|
|
|
Pack on Mountainous Back Mass With Romanian Deadlifts |
|
|
|
|
Written by Stephen E. Alway, PhD, FACSM
|
|
Tuesday, 24 April 2007 |
It's not difficult to distinguish bodybuilders who have opted to limit their back training to lat pulldowns and occasional rows from those who have invested some serious sweat in heavy deadlifts. The former may have wide backs and some middle back depth, but they will have no lower back development. In fact, their lower backs are so flat that they look like they were constructed under the tutelage of a steamroller. In contrast, the bodybuilder who has the guts to pound out set after set of deadlifts has a thick and dense quality in his back. His lower back bulges as if huge thick cables are extending along either side of the spinal column. This thick mass will run from the hips to trapezius and neck and it's anything but flat. This type of monster back does not come easily, and it will not come at all unless deadlifts become part of a bodybuilder's building phases.
Besides being the best builder for the lower back, the deadlift is one of the best exercises for overall development, perhaps just next to squats. Among the styles of deadlifts, the Romanian deadlift tops the list of back and hamstring mass builders. Under the influence of Romanian deadlifts, the erector spinae muscles of the middle and lower back will develop mass and thicken in ways that no other lift can duplicate. Romanian deadlifts are certainly worth considering if you are determined to add mass, power and mounds of muscle to your back.
Muscles Activated
If the hip is fixed, the extensor muscles of the back can extend the spinal column (move the spine from a flexed, bent-over position toward an upright position). The three primary extensor muscles of the back include the splenius, the erector spinae and the transversospinalis muscles.
The splenius muscles are superficial. They wrap around the neck like a bandage (splenius = bandage) and they work on the cervical and thoracic area of the vertebral column.
The erector spinae muscle group has by far the greatest muscle mass in this region. It includes the iliocostalis muscle, which runs from the ilium bone of the hip to the ribs (costal=ribs); the spinalis muscle, which is the most medial column of the erector spinae running adjacent to the vertebrae of the back; and the longissimus muscle, which lies in the middle of the three and runs the length of the back.
The transversospinalis muscle is the last of the three primary muscles of the back. It's located deep to the erector spinae and its fibers run from transverse process to spinous process of the vertebrae.
The powerful gluteal muscles can also affect the movement at the vertebral column (particularly at the hip joint) and are strongly activated in Romanian deadlifts. The fibers of the gluteus maximus muscle attach on the crest of the ilium, a major hipbone, the posterior surface of the sacrum and fascia of the lumbar area. It inserts on the posterior part of the femur bone of the thigh at a section referred to as the gluteal line. When the thigh is fixed (i.e., your lower legs are firmly planted on the floor when doing deadlifts), and the hip joint is free to move, the gluteus maximus muscle extends the lower back.
The three primary hamstring muscles assist the erector spinae and gluteal muscles in back extension. The biceps femoris muscle has two ("bi") heads. The long head of the biceps femoris attaches to the ischial tuberosity, the most inferior (lowest) part of the hipbones. The fibers of the short head of biceps femoris begin from the lower one-third of the femur bone just above the knee. The short head is not considered to be a "hamstring" muscle because it does not cross the hip joint. Both heads of the biceps femoris muscle fuse into a thick tendon, which crosses the lateral side of the knee joint to attach to the fibula bone near the knee. The semitendinosus and semimembranosus muscles Make Up the rest of the hamstring group. The semitendinosus fibers attach to the ischial tuberosity and insert into a cord-like tendon about two-thirds of the way down the posterior thigh. The tendon attaches to the medial side of the superior part of the tibia bone of the lower leg. The semimembranosus muscle begins on the ischial tuberosity of the hip and attaches to the posterior part of the medial condyle of the tibia just below the knee joint.
Romanian Dead lifts
1. Before doing deadlifts, spend a few minutes stretching the hamstrings and back. This does not guarantee that you will never have an injury, but without stretching your likelihood of injury is far greater.
2. You can do the exercise off of blocks or a power rack or other stands (e.g., in a squat rack) at about knee height. However, the Smith machine allows you the greatest safety for some extreme lifts. Set the bar on the Smith machine at about knee level. Load the bar with weight. Romanian deadlifts use much more hip movement than stiff-legged deadlifts.
3. Use an alternate grip (one hand supinated and the other pronated) or a pronated grip with both hands. If you choose the pronated grip you might also want to consider using wrist straps to prevent your grip from failing on the heavy sets.
4. Place your feet approximately shoulder-width apart. Squeeze your scapula (shoulder blades) together, tighten your back and keep it rigid and tensed throughout the lift. Begin by bending forward and pushing your hips backward until your arms can reach the bar.
5. Flex your knees slightly then lift the weight upward as you extend your hips and knees. Think of this as driving the hips and buttocks forward as you lift the weight. Keep your head up and back flat (never look at the floor during the lift or your back will become rounded and invite a serious injury). As your knees are approaching a full extension, continue to extend your lower back until you are standing in an erect position.
6. Lower the weight toward the floor in a controlled fashion. Keep your eyes and head up; this will help keep your back flat and not rounded. Bend your knees as the weight is approaching the floor (rather than keeping your knees locked straight). Push your hips and buttocks backward toward the wall behind you but keep your back tight. The bar should be about four to six inches or more in front of your lower legs as you are lowering the weight.
7. Continue lowering the weight until it is about halfway between your knee cap (patella) and ankle then drive upward by extending the back, hips and knees into the next repetition. Your back should be straight and just above parallel to the floor in the lowest position.
8. Keep your back tight and make sure you relax your lower back only after locking the weight on the safety rack of the Smith machine. This will ensure that your back is flat during the decent and it will also give you better control in positioning the weight back on the rack.
Important Training Tips
The three muscles of the erector spinae, gluteus maximus and hamstring muscles all contract strongly when you are raising from a bent over to a standing position (extending the vertebral column). These same muscles will undergo an eccentric (lengthening) contraction as they control the descent of the bar back to the starting position. The splenius muscles are active particularly during the top half of the lift. The transversospinalis will be isometrically active throughout the lift. The trapezius and other superficial upper and middle back muscles as well as muscles of upper extremity (e.g., forearm) are active, but primarily they act isometrically since they do not change the length of their muscle fibers during the exercise.
If you use an alternate grip, but it is always the same (the left hand is always supinated and the right hand is always pronated), the muscles on the pronated side will develop more strength and thickness at the expense of the muscles on the other half of the back. Thus, you should alternate the hand positions between supination and pronation to avoid this problem. Naturally, this will not be a problem if both hands are pronated and you use wrist straps for additional grip support.
You will develop a thick back if you have the inner fortitude to blast through each and every set. Romanian deadlifts can provide the basis to develop thick cables of mountainous mounds of muscle that will take up new residence on either side of your spinal column. Of course, that only becomes important if you have the will to be a winner in this great sport of bodybuilding.
References
Akuthota, V., Nadler, S. F. (2004). Core strengthening. Arch Phys Med Rehabil, 85, S86-S92
Cholewicki, J., McGill, S. M., Norman, R. W. (1991). Lumbar spine loads during the lifting of extremely heavy weights. Med Sci Sports Exerc, 23, 1179-1186
Escamilla, R. F., Francisco, A. C., Kayes, A. V., Speer, K. P., Moorman, C. T., III (2002) An electromyographic analysis of sumo and conventional style deadlifts. Med Sci Sports Exerc, 34, 682-688
Flicker PL, Fleckenstein JL, Ferry K, Payne J, Ward C, Mayer T, Parkey RW, Peshock RM. (1993) Lumbar muscle usage in chronic low back pain. Magnetic resonance image evaluation. Spine, 18:582-586.
Kramer, M., Volker, H. U., Weikert, E., Katzmaier, P., Sterk, J., Willy, C., Gerngross, H., Kinzl, L., Hartwig, E. (2004) Simultaneous measurement of intramuscular pressure and surface electromyography of the multifidus muscle. Eur Spine J
McGill SM. (1998). Low back exercises: evidence for improving exercise regimens. Phys Ther, 78:754-765.
Radebold A, Cholewicki J, Panjabi MM, Patel TC. (2000). Muscle response pattern to sudden trunk loading in healthy individuals and in patients with chronic low back pain. Spine, 25:947-954.
Rasch, P.J. Kinesiology and Applied Anatomy Seventh edition. Philadelphia, London. Lea & Febiger, (1989) pp. 117-120.
Van Wingerden, J. P., Vleeming, A., Buyruk, H. M., Raissadat, K. (2004) Stabilization of the sacroiliac joint in vivo: verification of muscular contribution to force closure of the pelvis. Eur Spine J, 13, 199-205
|
|
Supp of the Month 