Scott Retta Fitness

05/08/2023

07/13/2022

Good Morning and Happy Tuesday!🤦🏼‍♀️ I know it's hard going back to work after a holiday weekend. So why not stop in and get your brew on? Hot, frozen, iced, we have all your needs. We would like to say
🎉Congratulations 🎉 to our business winner for the month of July, Scott Retta.

06/25/2022

Fitness Tips:
 
1.    Best practices for warming up for barbell/smith machine movements:

For loads 50-200lbs:
45lb empty bar x 10 reps
Rest 1 minute
50% working weight x 5 reps
Rest 1 minute
75% working weight x 2 reps
Rest 2 minutes
Working Weight x 1 rep (Post-activation potentiation which increases performance)
Rest 2 minutes, you are now properly warmed up
Begin 1st Working Set
 
For loads 200-400lbs:
45lb empty bar x 10 reps
Rest 1 minute
50% working weight x 5 reps
Rest 1 minute
62.5% working weight x 3 reps
Rest 2 minutes
75% working weight x 2 reps
Rest 2 minutes
Working Weight x 1 rep (Post-activation potentiation which increases performance)
Rest 2 minutes, you are now properly warmed up
Begin 1st Working Set
 
2.    Rest times: Go ahead and look up Dr. Brad Schoenfeld’s study: "Longer Interset Rest Periods Enhance Muscle Strength and Hypertrophy in Resistance-Trained Men.” Subjects responded best to at least 3 minutes of rest for heavy compound movements like squat, bench press, rows, and chin-ups. If you don’t feel like you need the 3 minutes there most likely is not enough weight on the bar. For isolation movements you can definitely cut it down to 2 minutes. If you really need to save time in the gym it may be more efficient to casually alternate between two upper body exercises at a time:
 
Bench Press
Rest 2 minutes
Chest Supported Row
Rest 2 minutes
Repeat
 
Would not recommend for heavy lower body exercises like back squats and deadlifts
 
For all isolation exercises you can save time with the same strategy
 
Dumbbell Bicep curl
Rest 1 minute
EZ bar Skullcrusher
Rest 1 minute
Repeat
 
Any time you do these casually alternating supersets double check that both exercises are not targeting the same muscle group.
 
3.    Make sure you are not performing all sets to 0 reps in reserve (or 10 RPE). You wanna start your mesocycles at 5 reps in reserve (or 5 RPE) and add weight to the bar or reps. This way your training intensity is being put to good use rather than being wasted. Once you are no longer a beginner and have intermediate levels of strength start your mesocycle at 3 or 4 rir. At the advanced strength level start at 2rir.

04/23/2021

This is just a glimpse into how I trained today and why I set it up like so. It is always possible to train around injuries. For example I am 4 months post a low back flare up which first started July 2019. It manifested as pain during both spinal flexion and extension. I also have chronic impingement in my right shoulder going on 6 years.

I've been doing close grip bench because it doesn't irritate my shoulder at all. It also gives even stimulus between the pecs and triceps, making it technically more compound than the classic bench press. Regardless of whether it is a flat or incline bench variation I stay around 5-8 reps for optimal muscle gain most of the time.

This is my first day doing a horizontal pull so I wanted to try a machine version before a free weight. This lets me see whether it is too much for my low back (previously I was doing chinups to purposely exclude the low back on back days). For machine variations of horizontal pulls I spend most of the time in the 10-20 range to get more mind-muscle connection.

04/10/2021

This is one of my great clients Chad working on back squats. You'll notice I have him using a band on the upper thighs. This accomplishes two things:

1. Makes the squat which is already a compound exercise engage additional muscles specifically the hip abductors (gluteus medius, gluteus minimus, and tensor fascia latae), more muscles engaged=higher calorie expenditure

2. Speeds up the process of squatting by not only strengthening those abductors but teaching them to do their job during a squat which is to push out just enough so that the knee does not collapse inward (knee valgus). Once you've mastered banded squats, traditional squats become childs play.

3. Saves time in the gym because you don't have to isolate the hip abductors if you've already done banded squats or hip thrusts.

Little aside: Don't fret about whether your knees travel over the toes. Just focus on keeping the knee from collapsing inward and squatting to at least parallel. Increasing stance width and rotating toes out helps most of the time. Always progress squats with respect to depth until you've reached the lowest that your skeleton lets you perform. Only then, start adding weight. Try goblet squats with a dumbbell if you're nervous about using a barbell.

10/08/2020

When it comes to back training, it is important to know that vertical pulls increase the width of your back, while horizontal pulls increase the thickness. Tuesday can emphasize vertical and Friday can emphasize horizontal.

Neutral Grip Pull-up:

Starting Position:

Place hands shoulder width and facing each other for healthy rotator cuffs

Hang down completely for full range of motion

Motion:

Pull up until elbows are just slightly behind the body, just like the row

Lower with control

Lat Pulldown:

Starting Position:

Sit down at the machine

Adjust pad so that it is snug against your thighs which prevents your body from coming off the seat

Grip bar shoulder width or slightly wider

Lean back a little

Keep your shoulders down (depressed) and back (retracted)

Movement:

Super glue torso in space

Pull bar towards your upper chest

Return with control

Most Rowing Exercises:

Starting Position:

Put feet onto footrests

Back Straight

Arms outstretched with scapulas protracted

Elbows should be 45 degrees away from torso

Movement:

Pull back until elbows are just behind the body, going further isn’t safe for the shoulder

Shoulders should be retracted

Optimal sets per week for back also happens to be 10. It is simpler than chest training as it grows evenly by 50% of the sets being horizontal and the other 50% being vertical. 80% of all hypertrophy comes from mechanical tension (5-10 reps). 20% of it comes from metabolic stress and muscle damage (10-30 reps). This is accomplished by using both free-weights and machines. The machine exercises work well going over 10 reps. The chest-supported row and pull-ups are more efficient below 10 reps. Rest 3 minutes between sets. Go to failure on all sets.

Tuesday (back width day) :
Neutral Grip Pull-up 3x5-10

10/07/2020

Programming for the chest. The pec major has two heads. The clavicular head (upper chest) flexes the humerus. The sternocostal head (lower chest) adducts the humerus. Together they inwardly rotate the humerus. My programming for chest centers around bench press (horizontal push), landmine press (incline push), and push ups (free-scapular push). Contrary to popular belief, bench press is perfectly safe for the shoulders if you do it right.

Starting Position:

Have the head, shoulders, and butt on the bench at all times.

Feet should be on the ground and tucked in as far as you can without your heels coming off the ground.

Arch your low and mid-back so that there is a “bridge” between your upper back and glutes.

Eyes should be directly below the bar.

Grip width should be 1.5 times the width between each acromion process (the bony part of the top of each shoulder). I use 1-1.25 if the client has had past shoulder issues.

Push your shoulders down and back, you are ready to bench press.

Movement:

Squeeze the bar throughout the movement

Breath in

Lower to where the bar touches your sternum, so the bar path should curve down your body.

Elbows should be 45-80 degrees from torso.

Press up while trying to externally rotate your hands. This guarantees your scapulas move properly.

Exhale on the way up

Landmine Press is my favorite incline pushing movement because it is well tolerated when overhead press irritates the shoulder. The incline bench press is a close second.

Starting Position:

You can have the other end jammed into any corner.

Stand holding the weighted end of the barbell with both hands in front of your chest.

Have feet shoulder width apart.

Movement:

Breath in

Press the barbell up with both hands until your arms are extended

Exhale as you press

Optimal sets per week for chest growth is 10. 40% of those sets should be horizontal, another 40% should be incline, and 20% should be bodyweight. 60% of sets should be 8-12 reps, 20% in 5-8 reps, and 20% in 15-20 reps. Rest 3 minutes between sets.

Monday:

Bench Press 1x5-8,3x8-12

Push Ups 1x15-20 (add weight if it’s too easy)

Thursday:

Landmine Press: 1x5-8, 3x8-12

Push Ups 1x15-20

Check out the full version of this blog post to modify this for intermediate/advanced lifters.

Programming for the chest. The pec major has two heads. The clavicular head (upper chest) flexes the humerus. The sternocostal head (lower chest) adducts the humerus. Together they inwardly rotate the humerus. My programming for chest centers around bench press (horizontal push), landmine press (inc...

09/01/2020

I believe the trap bar deadlift is the most important exercise. Unlike the barbell deadlift, it puts the weight directly below your shoulders instead of in front of your shins. For the general population, it makes more sense to do the trap bar variation.

For weight loss clients: it is the best exercise because it targets the largest muscle in the body, the glutes. This in addition to it being a compound exercise causes it to rev up your metabolic rate, burning a ton of calories.

For powerlifters/clients seeking strength: strengthening your glutes will certainly add pounds to your back squat. Although programming for them is different because they still need to compete using the barbell deadlift.

For bodybuilders/ clients seeking hypertrophy: getting your glutes stronger lets you squat bigger weights, getting those tree trunk legs you’re looking for.

For back pain, deadlifts performed with correct form can prevent back injuries and promote healing. Only deadlifting with bad form is dangerous for the back.

Muscles used: primarily gluteus maximus, followed by hamstrings, quadriceps and spinal erectors (low back).
1. Try to keep your neck in line with the rest of your spine. A lot of the time, looking at a mirror encourages you to extend your neck. So deadlifting without a mirror is preferable. What you really need to do is flexion instead of extension by tucking your chin.
2. Keep your back straight, you should be able to put a stick running on top of your spine.
3. Push your glutes back, you should feel a stretch.
4. Have your feet anywhere between shoulder width and a bit narrower.
5. For the ascent, think of pushing with your legs, after all the primary muscles worked are the glutes. Deadlifting with a pulling mindset encourages you to round your low back, which is dangerous.
6. Push hips forward, the bar path should be nearly vertical.
7. Stand tall, but do not hyper-extend your hips.
8. Flip the order to descend.
9. Feel strong

Programming trap bar deadlifts is available in the full version of the blog post, just click the link in my bio. Happy deadlifting.