July 14 2009 Constantly Working on Strengths While Ignoring Weaknesses
One of the biggest mistakes lifter make is always doing the lifts they excel at and neglecting lifts that they are not great at. My downfall in the past was deadlifts and dips. My leverages are good for these lifts and relative to everything else I am fairly strong on them. So guess what? I used to do them constantly to the exclusion of many other lifts. My dipping weight (bodyweight + weights strapped to waist) far exceeded my bench press numbers, so why bench press? I could deadlift much more than I could squat, so why squat? After a few years of deadlifting I had 500 on the bar and was still making progress. And my squat suffered because I neglected it.
To put it simply, you will never be stronger than your weak points, and if you are to improve, you goal needs to be constantly figuring out what is weak, and eliminating the weak points. This is often best accomplished by doing lifts at which you are relatively weak. Get a guy that is weak at pull-ups and you will usually find a guy that is using every back machine in the gym. You will also find a guy who is likely having a hard time reaching is physique and strength goals. Bottom line, recognize your weaknesses. Think of them as opportunities for improvement and try to excel at them. You will be a better lifter, and person for it.
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