ex rX by Amy A s h m o r e , PhD

Biomechanic Basics for Safe,Effective, Efficient WorkoutsUse your knowledge of biomechanics to design, innpiement and lead exercisesthat will help your clients achieve their goals.

To most people, personal trainers are thesolution to a huge problem: unsafe, inef-fective and inefficient workouts. Whenthe three goals of kinesiology and appliedbiomechanics—safety, effectiveness andefficiency fHamilton,Weimar& Luttgens2008)—are met, it results in successfulparticipation in physical activity and im-provements in the physical and physio-logical factors associated with fitness.

Goals of Kinesiologyand Applied BiomechanicsIn order to bridge the gap bet\\'een knowl-edge and application in biomechanics andapplied kinesiology, it's important first todefine the three operational or "real-world"goals. Consider them the guidelines thatgovern the discipline. They are a frame-work for developing and implementingprograms, as well as the best way to preparefitness professionals for the workforce.

SafetySafety is correct exercise biomechanics orform. The purpose of safe movement is toavoid doing hann to the body. For example,during a safe lunge the exerciser's knee isaligned over the ankle, while during anunsafe, mechanically incorrect lunge theknee extends beyond the toes. It is impor-tant to note that exerdse safety is determinedfor each client based on individual factorssuch as fitness level, age, balance, and boneand joint health. A squat jump provides anexample of individual factors determiningsafety. This exercise is safe for a heaithy, 20-year-old female, yet not recommended for awoman over 65 with osteoporosis.

Correct biomechanics will keep youand your client safe. We've all heard mem-bers say, "I'm not sure if I'm doing it right."One of the many reasons people hire a per-sonal trainer is to show them how to per-form exercises properly. When the goal of

safety is kept in mind, you decrease thelikelihood of injury to your client and in-crease program adherence. You also de-crease the risk that a claim of professionalnegligence can be made against you.

EffectivenessEffectiveness is results. It is measured aseither success or failure. Another com-mon reason people hire a personal traineris to help them structure an exercise pro-gram so they can reach their fitness goals.You've heard clients say, "1 feel like I'mwasting my time in the gym" or "I've beenworking out for 3 months and cannot seeany difference."

The two components of effectivenessare program design and implementation.To design and implement effective pro-grams, you need to do four things: definethe program's goals; select exercises thatmeet those goals (have a measurable out-come); verify that the exercises are ap-propriate for the individual client; andmake certain during the training sessionthat the intended muscle is activatedwithout any compensation from othermuscles or muscle groups.

EfficiencyEfficiency is the degree of ease with whichclients achieve safe and effective move-ments. An efficient movement is a correaone that is completed with the least pos-sible amount of effort. When your clienteasily completes 20 push-ups with correctform, that is efficient. A person who can-not complete 20 push-ups without arch-ing the back or dropping to the fioor isworking inefficiently. »

rjovember-DBc«mb«r 2009 IDEA Fitness Journal

Neural factors influence efficiency.While people are learning motor skills,they have to think about what they're do-

ing, which takes up most of their availableneural resources. The mechanism is this—the brain has to be trained to activate spe-

Select Exercises That Are Safe,Effective and Efficient

1. Use natural movement patterns, such as walking or cycling.2. Use the same movements repeatedly within and between sessions.3. Design programs and sessions in building blocks or logical sequences.4. Minimize the degrees ot treedom—that is. number of joints involved. For any move-

ment, the greater the number of joints involved, the more degrees of freedom thereare. This is why a walking lunge is more difficult than a seated leg extension.

5. Minimize intersegmental coordination (movements that decouple the arms and legs).Intersegmental coordination involves having a client do something different vwith thearms and the legs at the same time; for example, a squat with an overhead press.

6. Choose bilateral exercises for equal and opposite workload on both sides of the body.7. Evenly distribute forces across the body to minimize point of impact. Think about

force this way—if a 5-pound weight dropped on your foot, it would hurt. However, if 5pounds were broken up and hit the entire surface of your body evenly, it would barelybe noticed.

8. Displace forces horizontally, not vertically. This is the difference between a force ap-plied horizontally to the spine in a supine position versus a force applied vertically ordownward along the spine. For example, if you are doing a supine hamstring stretch,don't push down on the client's leg in a way that applies force to her body and spine.Apply the force parallel to her body. That displaces the forces away from her andmakes the stretch safer for her

cific muscles in a specific order in a specifictime sequence. Mastering this takes timeand repetition. Another influencing factoris age. An older brain is less plastic than ayounger one, and the connections are notthere, so it becomes harder to learn newskills as you age. To help novices or olderexercisers become "exercise efficient." youshould select exercises that don't requirea lot of cognitive effort.

Goals andBiomechanical AnalysisThink about the three goals of kinesiologyplus applied biomechanics. Now applythose to the new gym member or client.New exercisers are of concern to staff andfloor trainers, who see these clients tor onlya few minutes and are then faced with thedaunting task of creating an exercise planfor them. The structure and movement ca-pabihty of every person's body are differ-ent. The ability to quickly assess a person'smovement capabilities makes the differ-ence between a fitness program that is safe,effective and efllcient and one that is not.This is where biomechanics basics comeinto play just knowing a few quick assess-

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November-December 2009 IDEA Fitness Journal

Using Biomechanics Specificity to Strengthen Your IMiche

Think in terms of business strat-egy. Your job is to create customfitness programs tailored to yourclients' goals and abilities.Define your niche by specifyinga biomechanics framework. Thisis a specific set of skills, move-ments, patterns and timing thatyou use. It is how you instinc-tively make movement flowwithout thinking about it,

A business example of a bio-mechanics framework is thepain management programmingoffered by Justin Price, MA, whoco-owns The BioMechanics stu-dio in San Diego (Mahoney2009). The population (people inpain) defines the biomechanics(what movements are used invi/hat sequence). Another exam-ple would be a trainer who at-tracts clients who've just

completed physical therapy andneed careful exercise instruc-tion. That trainer would focus thetraining on corrective-exercisebiomechanics rather than seek-ing clients who want to bepushed.

New Trainers. The futurelooks good for fitness profes-sionals. Employment opportuni-ties are expected to increase27% over the 2006-2016decade (Bureau of LaborStatistics 2008) Find your areaof expertise and turn it into abusiness, using a diversifiedskill set. That doesn't mean youshould try to be everything toeveryone. But if, for example,you are particularly good withweight loss clients, diversifyyour marketplace to include lo-cations where those clients are.

In addition, focus on learningtechniques that are relevant tothat population, such as movesthat minimize impact forces.

What if you excel at strengthtraining yet don't hear the musi-cal beat and are not a goodchoreographer? Focus in thatcase on the biomechanics oímovement, specifically strengthand flexibility, where executionand timing are more importantthan music.

Industry Veterans. Trainerswho have been in the field havea distinct advantage—yourclients have helped you defineyour niche. Answer these threequestions, and trends will de-velop that show you where tofocus your efforts:1, What have you been paid for?2, Where has the bulk of your

income come from?3. Why do people tell you they

seek your services?Create additional income

in traditional and emergingmarkets by focusing on biome-chanics applications—whetherthat means designing specificexercise programs for specificpopulations or using a presetprogram in which tbe move-ments are designed first andthen follow the same order foreach class and every exerciser.The key is to determine thehiomechanics framework tbatdefines your expertise and exe-cute it within the boundaries ofthe three goals of biomechanicsand applied kinesiology.

ment tools gives trainers valuable infor-mation about appropriate exercise selec-tion in a matter of seconds.

Here is an example of a quick biome-chanical analysis: Look at the person, andlook for lines created first by the spineand then joint to joint. Any deviations?Next, visualize the forces that will act onthe client during exercise, and determineif those forces are appropriate for thatbody. For example, I recently heard atrainer suggest a supine, straight-leggedabdominal exercise to an elderly, over-weight woman. This was clearly thewrong exercise choice. Such an exerciseselection would result in a movement thatwas unsafe, ineffective and inefficient.

Another way to look at the three goalsis to consider functional training. Althoughit has become popular in the literature,fiinctional training may not meet the goalsof clients who want to increase musclestrength, as the total workload is limited bythe weakest muscle used during tlie move-ment (Bryant & Green 2003). Isolatedstrength training exercises would be a bet-ter choice in this scenario. Funrtional train-ing also requires learning, balance andcoordination that may be unsuitable fornew or older exercisers.

Look for these biomechanical changes

to determine if a movement is unsafe, in-effective or inefficient:

A Change in Movement Pattern. Oneexample wouid be seeing a client elevatethe shoulders during a lateral deltoidraise, which would indicate that she istired and using the trapezius to help thedeltoid lift the weight.

A Shift in Body Weight. When anexercise becomes too difficult to com-plete, a common compensation is to shiffthe hody weight. For example, if a frontdeltoid raise becomes too difficult tocomplete correctly, the exerciser willstraighten the legs and back and use theentire body to thrust the arms up.

Forward Flexion. When the bodyslumps forward, it is acting with gravity(Floyd 2009). Muscles have to work tofight the influence of gravity, yet when weget tired, we succumb to its effects.

A Flexed or Bent Joint. This does notmean a "soft" joint. It means the joint isbent or flexed to the point where the mus-cle is ineffective because it is shortened somuch. For example, in a standing bicepscurl the muscle produces very little forcewhen the joint is bent at the top of themovement and the muscle is very short.A bent joint can indicate that the workingmuscles are fatigued. A short muscle is an

ineffective and inefficient muscle. If amuscle is too short, it cannot producesufficient force. The force-length curvestates that a muscle produces its greatestforce or tension just beyond resting lengthor slightly stretched (Floyd 2009).

Participation in exercise programs iscritical to the maintenance of physical fit-ness. For many people, perceived obsta-cles stop them from participating infitness. However, when the three goals ofkinesiology are kept in mind, it becomeseasy to design, implement and lead effec-tive exercise programs for everyone. •

Amy Ashmore, PhD, holds a doctorate inkinesiology from the University of Texasat Austin. She can be reached at amyashmorephd@aol.com.

K' 2009 by IDEA Health & Fitness Inc, All righti reserved.Reproduction without permission is strict!)' prohioited.

ReferencesBryant. C, & Green. Ü.J. 2003, vlCE ftfswM/Trainer AianHfl/

iird ed. j . San Diego: ,Anierican Cotincil on Exercise.Bureau of I^bor Statistics. 2008, Occupational Outlook

Handbook: 2008-09 Edition. www.bU.gov/oco/ocos296.hlni=oiJtlook; relrieved May !9. 2009.

Floyd, R,T, 2009. Manual of Structural Kinesidi^ ( 17thed,). New York: McGraw-Hill.

Hatnilion, N,, Weimar. W,, & Luttgens. K. 2008,Kinesiology: Scientific Basis of Human Motion (11thed,). New York McGraw-Hill,

Mahoney, L, 2009, Vast pain relief. Club BusinessInternational (May 26).

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