Muscle Ventures Video Analysis

Nancy Arnold (aka The Big Girl) and I, Bud Gibson, have been training partners for a little over a year. It's been a fun ride.  Around June, 2005, Nancy decided to prepare for a bodybuilding competition this coming April (tax day to be exact). I decided to tag along.  I'm not bodybuilding material like Nancy, but I like the discipline. 

In August, the training regimen began to change rather dramatically. Since, we've been through a few changes, and each one is a new challenge. It's been great pushing each other, and Nancy has proved truly impressive in her dedication.

In November, Nancy started to blog. The day before Christmas, I followed suit. Since then, we've been doing a lot of training related things jointly, but it's hard to share across blogs. So, we decided to create this blog where we both can author and edit each other's posts. Our first mutual venture is the video analysis that we have to date been publishing on my blog.

The Freemotion cable cross machine is a very versatile cable pulley machine.  It is very effective for rear delt flyes because it allows you to cross your hands at the finish while still maintaining tension, thus providing a range of motion exceeding that of dumbbell flyes.

To prepare for rear delt flyes on the Freemotion cable cross, set the arms of the machine to 5 or 6, depending on your height.  Then, set a light weight, about 5 lbs. less than you would do on the dumbbells version of the exercise.  Finally stand facing the machine, about 12 inches back from the arms and grasp the cable handle of the machine arm opposite each hand.

The start position for this exercise varies from hands slightly crossed in front of you to hands crossed all the way to the elbows in front of you.  You then move your hands back with your arms straight in a flye motion until they have extended behind your back.  After that, you return through the same range of motion to the start position.  Throughout the exercise, your knees should be slightly bent.

My training partner, Nancy Arnold, and I (Bud) show two different variants of the exercise in our video analysis below, starting with arms crossed fully to the elbows and starting with arms only slightly crossed.  There are two major form breaks possible in the exercise.  The first is to rear back from your lower back to gain momentum.  The second is to not bend your knees slightly, making it possible to pivot back from your feet and gain momentum.

In each analysis, we show several reps of the exercise to illustrate how form evolves as fatigue sets in and illustrate what to do when there are form breaks. 

Bud (Quicktime, 3.2 MB; WMV, 3.9 MB)

Nancy (Quicktime, 4.3 MB; WMV 5.2 MB) 

Nancy does not cross her arms to the extent I do at the start of the exercise.  However, her long arms allow her an extensive range of motion, and she extends her hands well back with her arms straight.  Her form starts to fade toward the end of the set, so she drops weight.

Although many powerlifters are not fond of weight training machines, they can be used to add variety to a program. Further, creative use of machines can allow you to hit unique training angles that can be hard to attain otherwise.

The nautilus lat pulldown allows for exercises at a variety of angles. Here, my training partner, Nancy Arnold, and I (Bud) show the narrow pulldown on the Nautilus Lat machine. In a later post, we'll show a wide grip variant that Nancy has developed.

The machine is less complicated than it might appear in the photo at left. The trickiest part is the seat adjustment. Adjust the seat height so that your fingertips touch the handles at the top. Then adjust the thigh pad so that it holds you firmly in the seat. Finally, set the weight to slightly less than what you do in a bicycle grip lat pulldown on cable. The machine is like a cross between a very high row and a pulldown.

You perform the exercise by reaching up and grasping the handles. You then pull down leading with your elbows until your hands hit your chest. Your elbows should extend behind the back at this juncture. There are several possible form breaks with this exercise. The first is to involve your lower back. A second is to shrug at the end and involve the shoulder. A third is to shorten the range of motion. Nancy and I illustrate all of these as well as good form.

Nancy (Quicktime, 3.6 MB; WMV 4.3 MB)

The photo-array shows Nancy in one of her first reps of the set and in her last rep of the set. Note how, on the first rep shown, she holds her back straight and appears to pull through the elbows. This is especially apparent in the video version. She has good control of the device at the start of the movement.

By her final rep, Nancy's form has deteriorated. The machine leads her torso up at the start of the movement. On the down portion of the movement, she hunches her shoulders a bit and does not achieve the same range as initially.

The video continues after the end of Nancy's movement because I forgot to turn it off. Although that video is not informative, the audio gives a good view of our lifting strategy. Nancy wants to press weight so that at the end of the set, she barely has acceptable form. On an 8–10 rep regimen, that means the reps have to be good to 8 at least.

Bud (Quicktime, 3.3 MB; WMV, 4.2 MB)

This video clip picks up right where Nancy's left off. I'm a somewhat different animal than Nancy. I hold form pretty well until the end and only made 9 good reps. At the beginning of the set, I get full extension and pretty good pull back through the elbows. On the 9th rep, last shown, I barely get my elbows back even with my body. I'm hunching my shoulders. That said, I am fitting within our strategy.

Neither one of us is making a pretty face at the end of the video.