Kramers Ruben Springer Follow up

1- Physical strength and power could cause more health problems if not supplemented by flexibility exercises in proportion to the overly tightened muscles and ligaments.

Very true. But the assumption that this is what powerlifting does or wants to achieve is incorrect.

2- Limited range of motion for long duration and with heavy loading freezes joints. Frozen joints are problematic to mobility. Thus, even if the CNS wishes to use such frozen joints, the joints would not comply due to the imbalanced damage by the partial range of motion. Reference: "Orthopedic Physical Assessment" by David J. Magee, 4th edition, 2004, ISBN: 0-7216-9352-0.

The joints would certainly comply in the range of motion they were trained in. Not outside, but that wasn't the issue.

3- The majority of humanity has to deal with moving objects in their surrounding in order to sustain living. Powerlifting is an extreme sport that emphasizes strengthening body extension with total disregard to shoulder mobility. Overhead strengthening ensures the balance of the shoulder cuff rotators and constantly challenges the over-tightened pectoral and deltoid muscles.

Two points.

One: you seem to be convinced that powerlifters do not do any overhead pressing. The exact opposite is true: various forms of neck presses / shoulder presses are very popular as they are very useful.

Two: emphasizing the strengthening of body extension? You almost make it sound like a bad thing. But isn't that exactly what overhead lifting does, except in a different plane of motion? In fact, the amount of shoulder rotation in a push press is almost identical to shoulder rotation during bench pressing, just with a different start- and end-point.

1- As long as Powerlifters do not lose interest in adequate flexibility training, then I concur that the benefits of strength and power are great and positive gains.

2- The imposed limited range of motion in Powerlifting amounts to excessive abuse of joints in that limited range. Thus, joint destruction occurs in the overly traumatized points of the knees, where the lifter frequently and excessively inflects insult. In everyday living, we could not choose what range of motion to expect in performing our duties. Unless, we redesign our surroundings such that we do not squat fully to clean under the sink, we do not get into accidents where we have to bail out by fully folding our thighs to the chest and exiting through a narrow slot, or we maintain ladders everywhere we need to raise our arms overhead to reach elevated objects, then we must ensure that these joints will remain flexible and stretchable.

3- Shoulder presses do not address the issue of overhead coordination unless it is done while standing on both feet with not supporting devices. That ensures that the legs, trunk, and shoulders could participate in balanced performance. Seated shoulder press conceals lower body deficits and could cause serious lower back injuries had the lifter omitted whole body motion under resistance (see attached drawing for muscular balance during overhead lifting).

4- Strengthening body extension is a desirable gain, yet it should be balanced with adequate flexion such that posture and gait are not disturbed. The triad of hamstring-iliopsoas-pectoral over-strengthening in Powerlifting cause drooping shoulders and forward-leaning torso. The correction should be bridging exercises and overhead squatting.

Muscular balance during overhead lifting:

Muscles pull on the humerus (upper arm bone) in many directions in order to stabilize the shoulder joint. These muscular forces are directed as follows:

1- upwards and medially (trapezius),

2- medially (deltoid and supraspinatus),

3- downwards and medially (infraspinatus and subscapularis),

4- forwards and medially (pectoralis and serratus anterior), and

5- downwards and forwards (latissimus dorsi).

Muscular Balance during bench press

The lying down position eliminates many muscular forces or reduces their action to minimum.

1- The supraspinatus, deltoid (lateral and rear fibers), and trapezius are almost eliminated.

2- The subscapularis and pectoralis major are strengthened in shortened range of motion that will impede shoulder flexion in many other motions.

3- The scapulas are not balanced freely with muscular forces since the bench support eliminates the actions of the trapezius, rhomboideus, and levator scapulae.

4- The balance between the erector spinae and iliopsoas is minimal by virtue of lying down with no need for torso erection.

Mohamed F. El-Hewie