Though I seem to cannot do them well, I got trough the breakin with those.
But now they turn out to be in Hypertrophy 1 as well, and with differing rep ranges!
I can hardly do them without cheating,(=pushing off with the inactive leg) so I just did them for the required repcount and cheating "as little as possible". But this is very hard to quantify, so I don't see how I can control the intensity of it so that I can use the exercise propely over differing repranges.
Would you be able to make a video of you doing them?
I know the general advice is to pretend you're not even using the inactive leg, but I wonder if anyone ever does them that way.
If you are allowed to get some help from the inactive leg, I'm sure that they can be done as weighted step ups too.
Not using that other leg at all, makes the exercise very similar to pistol squats.. also freaking hard.
I always do them from the top, drop down, back up… so that the non-working leg doesn't ever touch the ground and therefore you can't cheat that way. Also has the advantage of giving your cns the heads-up the way bench and squats do, starting with the eccentric, so that it doesn't feel quite so heavy or awkward.
I always do them from the top, drop down, back up… so that the non-working leg doesn't ever touch the ground and therefore you can't cheat that way. Also has the advantage of giving your cns the heads-up the way bench and squats do, starting with the eccentric, so that it doesn't feel quite so heavy or awkward.
I never thought about doing them that way. I will have to try that. I usually start and then stop after my foot is off the floor. Then I continue with the step up. If that makes any sense?
mmh, not touching the ground at all could be an option, but I would need to look how deep I go down which complicates the exercise more again.
Regarding the pistol squats, I was actually thinking about having the low rep stepups replaced by those. I tried and found out I can actually do 5 reps of those without major trouble. But the movement is differnet I think. We (Espi and I) have been talking about quad involvement in squatting dependent on position before.The stepup position is very likely to have much more work on the quads compared to the pistol squats, and maybe thats why they are harder. But in that case I better not replace them.
And yes, I was able to make videos just not to have them embedded in my post
mmh, not touching the ground at all could be an option, but I would need to look how deep I go down which complicates the exercise more again.
Regarding the pistol squats, I was actually thinking about having the low rep stepups replaced by those. I tried and found out I can actually do 5 reps of those without major trouble. But the movement is differnet I think. We (Espi and I) have been talking about quad involvement in squatting dependent on position before.The stepup position is very likely to have much more work on the quads compared to the pistol squats, and maybe thats why they are harder. But in that case I better not replace them.
And yes, I was able to make videos just not to have them embedded in my post
yeah, had the stepups private before I'm a bit ashamed of it and I noticed that even though I don't name my videos properly , some bodybuilding fans found my channel and want to become friends etc
I find that a bit embarassing and atthe same time think I disappoint them with the stupid stepups
but anway that's the internet. I just post them to have the movement judged, not to impress people.
It certainly is puzzling how difficult the step ups seem to be when it's obvious how well you master the pistol squats.
Maybe it's about the different center of gravity that makes them so much harder?
Ever tried to start at the position Aoife suggests = step up normally & then start the movement from the bench w/o actually touching the floor?
If it's really true what missJane says (and I don't doubt her words at all, considering your problems & those of many others = this is not the only thread about the step ups being a major problem), you're better off doing them the way you *think* you should do them = w/o weights, rather than use weights. Or?
Like I said I also think the position, or centre of gravity, does make the difference, just like in squatting
Otherwise I could replace the 5rep workout by pistols. Maybe I could even advance to doing those weighted, which would be nice.
But I would still not be placing the load on the apparantly weakest spot,which might be needing it more
As for the 4x10 and 3x15 workout, how could I make a difference in the intensity of those if I do them both unweighted? Or even the 5x5 as well. Would be making no sense doing those difference repranges if you cannot make a difference in the exercise intensity.
Where are those other threads anyway? I must admit I did not search before posting, I really underestimated the exercise. Thought it was a typical pussy-ass beginner exercise, and suitable for people afraid for building actual muscle etc etc. Damn I had that wrong
Crap.. even when I limit the search to just the 2 NROL forums (the original and the one for women) and also want it to be in the title, there's no less than 25 threads on them!
To say people have problems with them is a sore understatement.. I'm not feeling so bad anymore that I avoid it and tend to skip them if they are part of my program.
I'm not yet so far that I can do them w/o even using the non-working leg but have improved by placing my rear leg extremely close to the bench so that I'd not 'cheat' by actually stepping onto the bench using the rear leg for support. That's the best I could manage.
When you flip to the 2nd page there's more questions about step ups for the Original NROL & I found this answer from Lou Schuler interesting:
Quote:
They're not equivalent. The movement pattern is different (one is in the deadlift family, the other is a lunge variation), the muscles used are different (step-ups involve much more quadriceps activation, and even some work for the calves), and the potential for overwork of your lower back is heightened if you sub in an exercise like RDLs.
The key to getting the most out of step-ups is your step height. My knees don't allow me to use a high step, so even though that would be best for strength and muscle development, I can't do it. So I use a lower step and heavier weights.
In my view, the step-up is one of the most underrated exercises in the gym. It's hard to do, with lots of moving parts, so there's a big metabolic benefit. And, as I noted in Muscle (the magazine I edited for a couple of issues toward the end of my tenure at MH), it's used in place of squats by Eastern Bloc Olympic weightlifters, who find they get more strength and hypertrophy.
Should ask our Oly friend, who has a lot of Bulgarian friends if this is true...
Trouble with the stepups
I'm a bit ashamed of it and I noticed that even though I don't name my videos properly , some bodybuilding fans found my channel and want to become friends etc
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