Just Call Me Bendy

[Scott Styles]

Back guys. Had to skip workout 11 to rest of for the Michigan Grip Champs. Left Side, my only real goal with this stuff is to have fun. If I get stronger that's great.

02-11-2006 - Workout 12 of 16 - Michigan Grip Champs 4

This was an awesome, well run contest. To make it even better, there was a local kid about 15 who was just a little stronger than me. He definitely pushed me to reach higher levels. Hadn't trained grip before, but I bet he will now.

No Set Grippers

Righty: HG150, HG200, HG250 Miss, HG250 Miss

No suprises here. HG200 was easy, near a #1. The HG250 was near a #2 and I wasn't even close to no-setting it. 8th here.

Levering

Righty: 6 (PR), 7.25 (PR), 8 miss

Lefty: 8 (PR)

Apparently levering well is mental for me. Huge PRs here. My previous best on this was like 26" down my 6lb sledge handle. After seeing Matt hit the 8lber, I knew I had to do better. The 7.25 was a 6lb slege with a platemate on the side. IMO it was harder than the 8lber. I cannot remember for certain if my left hand lift was deemed legal. My control of the hammer wasn't the best at the very end, but I may have already hit vertical at that point. If not, it was close. I've apparently been holding back when I lever at home. Think I tied for 8th here.

I can see how judging this event is difficult. We placed our arms on a barrel, which was good for keeping things level. The hard part is identifying when the sledge breaks the plane of the head. The judges did a great job of keeping this strict, calling guys that broke their arm off the barrel by even a small bit.

Blob Medley

Righty: 25 to highest, 30 to highest, 35 broke ground a couple inches but never landed it on a platform (PR)

This event was different from the BBB blob medley in that there were 3 different height platforms to choose from with each blob. Unfortunately, my best lift on the 35lber happened in front of the heighest platform, which I wasn't even close to reaching. Had I done it in front of the lowest platform, I probably could have placed it. I broke the 35lber off the ground multiple times though, which is a definite PR for me. 9th here, Matt got the 35lber on the lowest platform to edge me out.

I really liked the setup with 3 different height platforms. IMO a blob medley of this nature makes for an excellent visual grip event, while keeping things safe. There is a lot of excitement around it. When Dave Thorton got every single blob to the highest barrel, including a 50lber and a Blob50, the room went nuts. You can really get into this event. I'd like to see it at more contests.

2 Hand Plate Pinch

~125 (empty euro device) Miss

95

105 (PR)

110 Miss

The 2 hand pinch euro device is a cool piece of equipment. It's a bit too heavy for me though. So we ran a pipe through a pair of 45's for myself and Matt. The 105 was doable. 110 on my last attempt was a bit much. I saw Matt do the 105 with ease and knew he was going to get 110 on his next attempt, but I just didn't have it in me. I probably shouldn't of wasted steam on the Euro pinch attempt. My hope was that the rush from the contest setting plus the friction of the Euro pinch would give me 25lbs over my best combined 1 hand pinches. I never practiced 2 hand pinch, so I wasn't sure what I was capable of. It didn't happen. 9th here, Matt beat me with 110. I think he had more in him too.

100's hold

6 seconds

This was a cool event. Head to head timed holds with 100lb plates. Bob set the pairings up so that people next to each other in the placings faced each other in the last event. Placings were on the line as each competitor fought to keep hold, watching for their opponent to give it up. The suspense was awesome. I think this should be in more grip contests. It fries whatever strength you have left and can turn the win into a game of mental toughness.

I knew from the BBB that if I comitted myself, I could lift 100lbs with each hand. Then I needed to focus to hang on. I did the best I knew how, but after seeing the other competitors go, I think I have the strength needed to do better on this type of event. I don't know how to manage the mental side of a timed hold. Got 8th here.

So in the end, I got 9 out of 9, with Matt beating me out via a higher placing in one of the events. I knew from my last contest to eat between events. That was a huge help in keeping my enthusiasm high and staying focused. Afterwards, we all stuck around to hang out and play with Don's toys. I did the following that I can remember:

Broke the 35lb blob off the ground a few times

Just missed the HG250 with a MM set

Lifted a 3" dumbell with 60lbs on it

Did a 13 second timed hold with about 40lbs on a secret weapon

Failed to get a 775lb hip lift, then watched Don's wife get it. She's strong!

Lifted 80lbs on a 2.5" dumbell.

Ripped 4 sheets of newspaper Don folded up to the size of a deck of cards

Some narrow pinch plate passes (3/4") with a smooth 35lb plate, failed on a 52.5lber

Failed to lift an approximately 145lb 2" dumbell several times

There was probably more, but I can't remember it. The biggest thing I'm taking away for my training from this contest is a total redefinition of mental intensity. Seeing Don Larkin in action is unreal. When he unleashes on a lift, it's like he regresses to a primitive wild animal state. He was explaining this to me, and I didn't really get it. Then I saw him do the newspaper tearing. Amazing.

Afterwards, Don had me try the tearing with 4 folded up sheets. I got it cracked, then got stuck in the same place I usually do on a deck of cheap cards. This is where I usually quit because it hurts my last 2 fingers and the tear isn't going anywhere. I tried to give up here, but Don wouldn't let me. We were in the middle of everyone, and there was no stopping if I wanted to be able to look people in the eye the rest of the evening. I literally had no choice but to ignore all pain and try harder. I stopped thinking about whether or not I could and just pulled as hard as possible. Slowly the crack widened and I was able to rip the paper in half. It was awesome. This is by far the best tear I've done and it was after hours of gripping.

[Starkmann]

Sounds awesome. Well done man. Keep after iit, next year you'll be guiding others alnog the same path and all of this wil seem like ancient history.

So what's up for the next rotation. Are you gonna take a week off to get recovered?

[Scott Styles]

I'll probably skip the Tuesday workout, then hit my last 3 scheduled workouts of this cycle. I think the grade 2 bolt will go down for me next workout if I can tap into some of that new found mental intensity.

[dthor]

Good seeing you at the Michigan Contest Scott. With the drive and intensity you showed at the Contest, I'm sure you will start making some big gains.

[Scott Styles]

Thanks Dave. I'm making it a point to get out to more grip togethers to keep that intensity high and the PRs rolling in.

02-14-2006 - Workout 13 of 16 - It Arrived!

My formulator came in today. I wasn't planning to work grip, but there was no stopping me from trying this thing out.

Formulator

Extension: Sets at 2.5lbs, 5lbs, 7.5lbs, 7.5lbs, 7.5lbs, around 10 reps per, wasn't really counting

Flexsion: Sets from 7.5lbs to 15lbs. Again, didn't really track, just playing with the thing to get a feel.

Well, my forearms definitely got pumped. Extension was worked much harder than on a wrist roller. Flexion seemed good enough, but the pads got in the way a little at the bottom. We'll see how I feel tomorrow. True to its claims, the Formulator did let me work my wrist without relying on my thumbs.

I thought about doing some other grip work, but even light movements with my 6lb sledge let me know my hands are not ready yet. My thumbs especially are feeling beat up. Considering that pinch, levering, and block weights were all contested on Saturday, that doesn't suprise me. All the time I spent focused on crush seems overkill now. I'm beginning to understand why some guys don't give grippers much focus.

[gamidon]

Thanks Dave. I'm making it a point to get out to more grip togethers to keep that intensity high and the PRs rolling in.

02-14-2006 - Workout 13 of 16 - It Arrived!

My formulator came in today. I wasn't planning to work grip, but there was no stopping me from trying this thing out.

Formulator

Extension: Sets at 2.5lbs, 5lbs, 7.5lbs, 7.5lbs, 7.5lbs, around 10 reps per, wasn't really counting

Flexsion: Sets from 7.5lbs to 15lbs. Again, didn't really track, just playing with the thing to get a feel.

Well, my forearms definitely got pumped. Extension was worked much harder than on a wrist roller. Flexion seemed good enough, but the pads got in the way a little at the bottom. We'll see how I feel tomorrow. True to its claims, the Formulator did let me work my wrist without relying on my thumbs.

I thought about doing some other grip work, but even light movements with my 6lb sledge let me know my hands are not ready yet. My thumbs especially are feeling beat up. Considering that pinch, levering, and block weights were all contested on Saturday, that doesn't suprise me. All the time I spent focused on crush seems overkill now. I'm beginning to understand why some guys don't give grippers much focus.

NICE work

Hey we are getting together on Saturday, Tom is going to come over. You of course are welcome to join. Gve me a call if you would like, I can see if Tom can pick you up.

Greg

[Scott Styles]

02-18-2006 - Workout 14 of 16 - Visit to Gamidon's

Bending Double Underhand

3/16" CRS: 5x5.5"

Timber Ties: 4x6"

Grade 2 Bolt: 1

1/4" CRS: Wobble 7"

Finally got that Grade 2 down. Put a lot of effort into the 7" x 1/4" Round, but it wasn't going today. I even tried again after watching Tom put in a great effort to take down the Grade 8. I need to spend a few weeks bending grade 2's before this will go down.

Block Weights

Bunch of lifts using the finger press, followed by holds / negatives, all done using 35lb blob

I'm so close to this thing it makes me crazy. I really want it.

Levering

Using Greg's loadable sledge:

Empty: 5x

+2.5: 5x

+5: 3x / 2x

+7.5: 1x

+10: negative only

This lift hurts. I'm still feeling it from last Saturday. I would like to be able to reproduce my 8lb lever from the contest at will.

Formulator

Did a couple sets of extension using 10lbs.

I've started thinking about my next training cycle. My original plan was to focus it around squats, but after the time spent trying to learn form, I think I need to build up some base strength before investing more energy in the squats. It looks like there may be another grip contest in Michigan in late July / early August. I'm going to train for that, but here's the twist - I'm actually going to lift some weights!

That's right, my plan is to commit to going to the gym to lift in the morning M/Tu/Th/F, until the contest. I'll do a basic upper/lower split, my primary focus at this point is just consistency. I want to get the hormones flowing through my body and am not too worried about sets / reps / exercises. I'll probably do a lot of machines.

On the grip side, I'll continue gripping Tu/Sat. I'm looking at doing the following:

1. Grippers / Bending, alternate workouts. (Goal: Dominate Hard #2 / Bend 60d)

2. Block Weights (Goal: Lockout 35lb blob)

3. Pony Clamp (Goal: develop base strength needed to 2 hand pinch empty Euro impliment)

4. Formulator Extensions

5. Finger Extensions

My goals will be to:

1. Consistently close my Hard #2 righty, Easy #2 lefty

2. Bend the elusive 60d Double Underhand

3. Lockout my 35lb blob

1-2 months out from the contest, I'll switch up the grip work to specialize for the contest events. My biggest goal for the contest will be to 2 hand pinch the empty Euro impliment, which is ~125lbs.

2 chances left to get stronger

[Starkmann]

wow, you almost got a 7" 1/4 CRS?

You are making huge progress. You are gonna quickly climb past a whole lot of us.

[Scott Styles]

I've got a ways to go on the 7" 1/4 CRS. I'd say I'm 2-4 weeks out from getting it. Still, it was pretty gratifying to have the grade 2 go down. It means I've got a real shot at the 60d in the coming months. That will be a big milestone for me to reach.

02-18-2006 - Workout X of 16 - Lower Body at World Gym

Breaking back into the morning workouts. This is the first time I've really lifted weights since about 6 months ago when things got hectic at work. It felt good. From the minute I walked into the gym, it was like old times. I'm just very comfortable in the environment and enjoy the time there.

Leg Press

12x7

12x11

12x11

Just numbered plates on this one. No idea about the weights, light I guess. I could probably have done more, but I'm going to break in nice and slow. I really am not interested in crippling soreness due to greed. It's very tempting to push hard right away. I love that post-set euphoria.

Back Extension Machine

12x7

12x9

12x9

Again, breaking in nice and slow. Easy does it.

Leg Curls

12x5

12x6

Gonna add one more set in, probably next workout. The tendons on the back of my knee haven't experienced stress like this in awhile, so I'm going to bring them up a little more slowly.

Stretches

Lower Back

Hamstrings

Quads

Calves

I could feel the tension being released from my hamstrings as I stretched. It felt like I've developed all sorts of knots in the muscle that were giving away one by one. I must have stretched each leg for like 3 minutes straight.

I really enjoyed this time. It was the highlight of my day. By the time I got to work half an hour later, I was starving. Probably the hungriest I've been in the last 6 months. I ate pretty much the entire morning straight. Luckily my boss had his daughter in today to deliver the Girl Scout cookies we bought. Between the morning and afternoon, I polished off a box of thin mints in addition to my regular food and a frozen burrito I'd left at work. It's a good sign that my body was so hungry. I'll have to bring more food if the hunger doesn't subside as I get used to the morning workouts.

Progress will be awesome for the next 1-2 months as I get back to my previous strength levels. My hope is that I can keep my recovery and motivation in line to move beyond my old barriers. My perspective on reality is certainly different now. I feel like everyone can press a 100lb dumbell overhead and squat 315lbs for reps. I'm the odd man out for being so weak!

[Left Side]

I know how you feel. Makes me feel like it's time to shut up and get to work.

[Scott Styles]

I think one of my problems in the past was that outside of the internet, there were very few people I'd met who were really strong. I certainly did not know anyone personally. It was easy to write off people that were twice as strong as me as genetically superior, instead of recognizing that I was screwing up. After all, as an ACE certified personal trainer and an ACSM certified Health / Fitness Instructor, I'd run my workouts past all my "expert" coworkers.

Grip work has shown that I can't claim to have bad genetics. As long as I attend to recovery and train consistently, I should be able to reach 1/3 of world class strength on a lift in a moderate time frame. That's about twice as strong as I've ever been. Maybe I too can be a "genetic superior"

02-21-2006 - Workout X of 16 - Upper Body at World Gym

Breaking in the upper body with today's workout. Pleased to start the day with no lower body soreness. I had a tiny bit last night, which means I pushed just hard enough for the first time back.

My biggest problem right now is getting enough sleep. I went to bed on time, 8 hours before I was supposed to get up. Unfortunately my fiancee was up late preparing for a performance review today. That kept me up for an hour. Then the cat woke me up this morning, costing me another 30 minutes. I'm going to sleep a lot tonight to make up for it. My biggest failure risk is short changing sleep and getting sick as a result.

Standing Dumbell Press

12x25

10x30

8x30

I usually do these sitting, but thought I'd try standing since I want to bottoms up press that kettlebell. It was painfully obvious my triceps are not trained by grip work. I want to spend a little time reading up on form for this one. I had previously worked up to using the 45's for seated presses. Not sure how that transfers.

Supinated Pulldowns, Shoulder Width Grip

12x7

8x10

10x10

Holding back a little on the intensity here. Getting my shoulders used to moving through full ranges of motion with weight again. I think I was doing 3x8x13 for my work sets previously.

Seated Chest Fly Machine, weight in hands, shoulders neutral

12x5

12x6

12x6

This one feels good on my shoulders. I'm not stretching back far at all. My arms might reach the plane of my chest, at most. I think I was doing 2x8x9 for my work sets previously.

Machine Rows, arms parallel to the floor

12x5

12x6

Want to add one more set in next time. My form was getting sloppy today. I think I was doing 2x8x7 for my work sets before.

Stretches

Lats and Triceps

Upper Back

Side Bend

Lower Back / Chest

Nice to be getting back into things. I need to get the reps up to 12 on the pressing and pulldowns. I'm hoping that prudently strengthening the muscles in my shoulder girdle will help to ease the discomfort I get in my right shoulder from time to time. I still need to figure out exactly what is going on, but this may help anyway. Grip work tonight!!!

[Scott Styles]

02-21-2006 - Workout 15 of 16

Bending Double Underhand

3/16" CRS: 2x5.5"

Timber Ties: 3x6"

7" 3/16" Square: 3xPreviously Kinked, 1 Fresh One

Man, I started these out and I could just feel my hands were still beat up from Saturday. I decided to work through some of my lighter stock. I finished all the 3/16" square and 3/16" round. The timber ties are pretty easy at this point, so I'll probably need to get a box of grade 2 bolts and bend most of those before I hit the 1/4" round.

Block Weights

Did a couple lifts with my 20, 25, and 30lb hex blocks. I was having trouble just lifting the 30lber, so the 35lb blob wasn't going anywhere. My thumbs were tired.

Formulator Extension

10x10lbs

6x10lbs

8x10lbs

Now that I'm lifting again, not so worried about the flexion. Did this with a 10lb plate instead of 2 5's. I like 2 5's better.

Finger Extensions

20xIM Green Band

Considering things, not too bad overall. Quite frankly I'm very tired from not getting enough sleep the last 2 nights and my hands are beat to crap from Saturday. I may need to shift the Tuesday grip workout to Wednesday evenings to accomodate my morning workouts and weekend grip togethers.

[Starkmann]

Sounds like you are getting a real going over, you will be on to the 1/4 stock in no time.

I'm dumb so.. when you go to get the grade bolts at Hell Depot are they labeled as Grade 2? I haven't tried but am looking for something to get me by until I get my bag. I would think some 2s would do it.

[Scott Styles]

They're just 6" grade 2 bolts. They come in a box similar to the Timber Ties. I think there are 50 in a box for about $15.

The kettlebell arrived at my parent's house this afternoon, I didn't want to carry 50lbs from my office to the train. I should get it on Saturday and am really looking forward to it.

My chest and lats are sore from yesterday's workout. My chest especially so, which is rather dissapointing. The weights were pretty light. No place to go but up.

[Starkmann]

ooohhhhhh bbbbbooooiiiiiii, the kettlebell. I think you will like this. It's not just a conditioning tool, it's a strength tool, it's not just a strength tool, it's a rehab tool, .....

enjoy. By the way, let me know how you like that one, it's heavier than mine.

[Scott Styles]

I was actually going to get a 16k kettlebell, but Gill Athletics was sold out. I didn't want to pay the Dragon Door prices. Initially it's primarly going to be a motivator for me to keep going to the gym and get my strength up to the point where I can use the kettlebell for conditioning. Heavier just means I have to get that much stronger.

02-23-2006 - Workout X of 16 - Lower Body at World Gym

I managed to get into bed by 10 last night, but I'm just not used to falling asleep then yet. I probably wasn't out until 11. Getting up at 6:15, I felt pretty good though. 7 hours of sleep was enough to get me into the gym. The biggest barrier was the soreness in my chest. It hurts to touch it, let alone move my arms. I managed though.

Leg Press

12x8

12x12

12x12

Added a plate here. I'll hang around this weight for 1 or 2 more workouts. The stack goes to 25.

Back Extension Machine

12x8

12x10

12x10

Added a plate here, it was tough. I'll hang around this weight for 2-4 more workouts.

Leg Curls

12x5

12x6

8x6

Added my 3rd Set. These were kinda sloppy. I'll focus on slowing them down next workout and getting my reps.

Calf Raises

12x90

12x90

Breaking the calves in, nice and easy. I think I was using 160 when I stopped doing these. Nothing is worse the severe calf sorness though, so I'll move up over a few workouts.

Machine Chest Flys

20x30

The soreness in my chest is really bad, about as sore as my muscles get. I was hoping this would help to get blood flowing in the area and reduce the pain. It didn't. Tomorrow's workout should be fun, as a result.

Stretches

Lower Back

Hamstrings

Quads

Calves

Far fewer knots this workout. My muscles are getting used to working again.

Overall I'm happy with how today went. I'm a little worried that I may have pushed too hard on some things and will pay the price tomorrow. However, since I didn't have any lower body soreness from the last workout, I may be ok. The hunger was not as bad today, either. I think my body was just suprised on Monday. Or it could be that the 2 hour conference call I joined at 9am killed my appetite.

I also got a book today called Starting Strength. It's written to provide guidance on coaching beginners in the squat, deadlift, bench press, press, and power clean. There are 47 pages on the squat with lots of pictures. I'm hoping it will provide me with the guidance needed to understand what I am missing on squat form. My poor coordination means I really need to understand a movement before I can do it correctly.

[bloodlyjahk]

Can you describe the finger press?

thanks

[Scott Styles]

I picked that one up from Ben. When doing a pinch exericse, press on the thumb side of the impliment with one finger, just a little below where the thumb sits. If you are close to lifting it, that will give you the tiny added boost needed to get the impliment up. Once you have the impliment up, you can the remove the assisting finger to get the hold/negative as you try to keep the impliment from falling to the ground.

[climber511]

It's called progressive resistance training for a reason - looks like you're doing fine with your program - keep it up!

[Scott Styles]

Thanks Chris. The Starting Strength book I got has an intresting graph. On the y axis is % of potential. On the x axis is complexity of training routine needed. Up until about 80% of potential, the complexity of training routine needed is almost zero. I think that speaks well to what I've begun to learn about consistency and persistance being the "secrets".

02-24-2006 - Workout X of 16 - Upper Body at World Gym

The chest soreness has finally begun to subside today. It's still there, but I can move my arms without wincing. Finally got 7.5 hours of sleep before a workout last night. It did require me to lay down for bed at 9:45.

Warm Up: Elliptical Trainer for 8 minutes, getting heart rate up to a steady 150-160bpm

Standing Dumbell Press

12x25

11x30

7x30

Did a few more reps this time. I was trying, but not as hard as possible. I also threw a few push presses in on the end of the last set, but not counting those since they were in no way clean reps. Should have all the reps on this in 2 workouts, then I'll stick with the weight for 1-2 more.

Supinated Pulldowns, Shoulder Width Grip

12x8

12x10

12x10

Tried harder on this one today. I decided on the second work set that if I was going to sit down and pull on the bar, I was going to hang on until I got my reps. There was lactic acid build up, but handling it was really just a mental issue. I'll stick with this weight for 2 more workouts.

Seated Chest Fly Machine, weight in hands, shoulders neutral

8x5

8x5

8x5

I held back here. Plain and simple, I don't want to spend any more days with my chest as sore as it was earlier this week. I'll ramp up to 3x12x5 next workout. I can hit that without question, but I need to break my chest in a little more slowly.

Machine Rows, arms parallel to the floor

12x5

12x6

12x5

After the set with 6, I was starting to feel a little sick to my stomach. I'm not good at waiting long enough between my sets and it often catches up to me by the end of my workout. I was pulling kinda sloppy on the 6 again, so I'm going to drop back down to 5 and focus on control next workout.

Stretches

Lats and Triceps

Upper Back

Side Bend

Lower Back / Chest

1 week down, 24 to go. I should be able to start pushing myself in earnest in another week or two. There is only minor soreness in my lower body from yesterday's workout. I have a good bit of base strength to get back before I'm progressing into new territory. I think I've got the recovery factors on track and mind set needed to become the strongest I've ever been. Should be fun.

[Starkmann]

You'll get there. Once the soreness subsides the growth will begin. Remember to attend to active rest for your entire body as well as you traditionally have your hands.

I'm really excited to hear how the Kettlebell fits in.

Beyond that, your volume is pretty high, which is cool for getting back into it or body building. Are you planing on keeping it high?

[Scott Styles]

When you say my volume is high, do you mean I'm doing high reps?

My current plan, if you can call it that, is to drop the reps per set as I get accustomed to the activity and my weights stop progressing. I figured I'd go from 12 reps to 10 reps to 8 reps with 2 work sets. Once I got tired of that, I was going to drop to 5 rep sets and add a 3rd work set in. I figured that would take about the 5 months leading up to the contest.

I have the upper / lower split because I'm much better at getting up somewhat early every day than getting up really early 2 days a week. I also plan on taking the Th/F workouts off every 5th week, since the gym membership is for 30 days at a time and I buy it on a Monday.

My big concern around active recovery for my body is eating right and sleeping enough. I've gotten tired of my current foods and will be adjusting my eating plan to account for that. I'm also working on the sleep issue. I need to go to bed on time on the weekends to keep my weekday schedule on track.

I get moderate lifestyle activity. I walk 1-1.5 miles 5x a week (commute), do grip work 2x a week, and usually end up walking around a pool table for a few hours on the weekend. I might also have a longer walk of 2-4 miles on the weekend, if I go somewhere. That's once or twice a month at most.

[Scott Styles]

Oh, and at some point I'll end up dropping the leg presses in favor of some sort of squatting movement. Going heavy on the leg press makes my lower back hurt.

[chrisof4]

Oh, and at some point I'll end up dropping the leg presses in favor of some sort of squatting movement. Going heavy on the leg press makes my lower back hurt.

I have a question on that. I have been reading up on leg presses, since I have never done them much. One of the big things they stress is that your lower back should be firmly against the back support, and at the bottom of the movement, you should never go low enough to let your lower back leave the back support. I have found this is harder than it sounds, and I cannot go nearly as low as I would naturally go. How does this compare with your leg press experiences?

[Scott Styles]

The leg press I use is actually a horizontal leg press like this one:

http://www.fitnessplus.com/Equipment/Selec...HorLegPress.jpg

Even if I focus on keeping my spine neutral, heavy weights still end up bothering my back on it. I'd guess it's cause I'm kinda pinned between the shoulder pads and back support when pressing. Not an entirely natural movement. I'm doing it to start because it lets me get my knees and hips comfortable with weight over a full range of motion without much mental pressure to keep form tight.