Neck Position

Ann Codiga (13 years old) - 145lb Back Squat 5 x 3

Excerpt from article by Tim Henriques -

The first reason to look up is muscular. When you extend your neck it makes some of the muscles in your trunk, namely the posterior muscles, contract better.

According to strength training legend Mel Siff, flexing your neck (looking down) causes your back muscles to relax, while extending your neck helps them contract. (For more info on how important the back muscles are while deadlifting, read this article.)

The second reason to keep the chin high is due to biomechanics and leverages. A big challenge when deadlifting heavy is being able to lock out the weight at the top. It's common for the shoulders to roll forward a bit when going heavy.

The cervical section of the vertebral column (neck) is connected to the thoracic section of the vertebral column (trunk). The more rounded (flexed) the neck is, the easier it is to round the trunk. The more extended the neck is, the harder it is to (excessively) round the upper back.

Workout of the Day

Strength -

Close Grip Bench Press 5 x 3

Band Pull Aparts 100 total

Conditioning -

4 rds

1 Min Atlas Stone 2 Shoulder

1 Min Sledge Hammer Strikes

Post weights and notes to comments.

Comments

[Brittany]

Great job Ann! Looking strong girl(:

[Ian]

"I know its faux pas, but maybe you could try looking up"
-Kyle Haynes

[Dewsterling]

This post reminds me of something...hmmm... Kyle, am I up in the night or have you mentioned "push[ing] your neck into the bar" before? I mean, my technique is practically perfect, so probably not to me, but to someone, sometime.