Why a Push and Pull?

Last week we discussed some additional benefits of having a personal trainer and a specific plan of action. This week we are going to dive a little deeper into that plan of action. You may have heard us mention working a “push and a pull” in a set of exercises. Let’s start by breaking down what this means and then we will get into why we do it! The muscles in our body all work in different ways based on their placement and their involvement in a movement. Push muscles are muscles that contract when we push a weight away from our body or push our body weight from something (ex. push-up). Pull muscles stretch while the push muscles contract. Pull muscles contract when a weight is being pulled toward the body or the body is being pulled toward something (ex. pull-up). Knowing what muscles push and pull is essential to designing a good plan of action! Why do we push and pull? As you know we work all major muscle groups with each personal training session. Pairing a push muscle with a pull muscle is a big part of training this way. These muscles work opposite of each other, for example the chest and the back. As the chest is pushing away and contracting the back muscles are stretching and vice-versa. Both muscle groups are being worked in both motions. Agonist and antagonist muscles work in opposite motions. As the agonist is doing the primary work, the antagonist is working in the opposite direction. Concentric and eccentric movements are how we achieve the push and pull of a muscle. As the chest is moving concentrically the back is moving eccentrically. So when we do a bench press followed by a low row this is considered a push and a pull and both movements are strengthening your chest and your back either concentrically or eccentrically. The use of push and pull allows us to give you the most bang for your buck if you will. As you work these muscle groups in opposite motions you train them differently but also together. When we don’t train both aspects of a muscle group it is easy to end up with muscular imbalances. These muscular imbalances don’t just mean your clothes fit funny. It causes postural deviations which can lead to pain. Exercising the push and the pull can prevent and even correct these postural deviations. We want our bodies to be strong all over to allow for us to complete our daily activities with ease! Your plan of action at FASTER is going to strengthen your weaknesses and increase your strengths. Our goal is to create a healthier you! We take into consideration all of your injuries and imbalances and do what we can to help you correct them. These things don’t happen overnight, but our methods will help you get better, faster!