Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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I recently took a "quad dominance test" in attempt to diagnose my overall lower body weakness/terrible fatigue and soreness after running sprints. Yep, I got it. It has always been a problem to some degree, and over the last year I took a job where I work long hours and sit most of the day. I also started doing BodyPump around the same time, wheras I rarely used weighted leg exercises before, relying on cycling and pilates, and I think this might have compounded the problem. So I'm taking some time off from BP but need some advice for reversing this.

Specifically, I'm trying to hack my sitting... I work in a very professional environment where we meet with clients, so a standing desk/ball chair is not an option. Advice on reversing quad dominance is appreciated as well1

flag	asked Jun 22 at 22:47 RaspberryCoconut 926●1●8●17

killer Nibs · Answer 1 · 2012-06-23 02:04:43Z UTC

To hack you sitting, you need to use any excuse to standup. Stapler on the otherside of desk, standup, were going to email someone a few desks away, standup. Need a sip of water or coffee, stand up. Use a small glass, so you constantly haveto get to refil it.t

For the sitting itself, squt down to the edge of the chair. Try and sit like this. Your feet will be under your shoulders, your middle will be tight. When it gets hard to sit like this, standup.

To address quad dominance,you need to work on the back half. Glutes hips and hamstrings. Best way is squats.

FED at LiveCaveman.com · Answer 2 · 2012-06-23 13:44:12Z UTC

Kettlebell swings are a great exercise for developing the "posterior chain" (basically everything from the back of your heel to the back of your head, including calves, hamstrings, glutes, low back, etc.)

The rotational angular momentum of the kettlebell helps to really activate the glutes in a way that even squats cannot. The movement of the kettlebell matches the movement of the hips as they go from flexion to full extension.

I was playing around with my camera a few weeks ago and made a video of me doing some kettlebell swings. I was going for a max repetition effort, but you can see the technique pretty clearly.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTDe9Ztpfbs

Dragonfly · Answer 3 · 2012-06-23 00:55:11Z UTC

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One word: SQUAT.

See the Primal Blueprint Fitness video here for proper form: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvXR-4sNbM8

answered Jun 23 at 0:55

Dragonfly
31.2k●1●8●41

+100...if you were doing lesmills body pump, load up the bar for track 2 and really work on your form. i also found slow uphill walking on the treadmill (don't cheat and hold on) really fired up the glutes. – sage_ Jun 23 at 2:13

Scotty Von Porkchop · Answer 4 · 2012-06-23 15:08:49Z UTC

How did you find out you were quad dominant? I was taught many tests for such thing's while personal training. TBH its mostly BS as ones ability to perform tests for comparison is based on there own ability to contract front or the back of leg. It's usually lack of posterior chain activation, more a question of form and function than absolute muscular power or force.

What does this mean; dont use machines or isolation exercises just do barbell and kettlebell stuff (admittedly this is the protocol i use for pretty much everyone’s training woes)

sage_ · Answer 5 · 2012-06-23 18:29:05Z UTC

another thing you could do thats fairly easy is to stand up from your chair on one foot only. try and rise as you would from a squat. do 10 on each leg once an hour or so. the nice thing about an office chair is you can raise the seat height to assist you in the beginning and lower it as you get stronger till you no longer need the chair at all.

Sitting and quad dominance

5 Answers