“Superhero Joe” Dumbbell Side Swings
January 25, 2008 – 12:54 pmWhat are you missing in your normal fitness that is endangering your potential? What does conventional dumbbell training severely lack? What you don’t know can hurt you!
To answer these questions, look at the evolution of weight-lifting. Orginally crude-object stunts, over a century ago weight-lifting was a Victorian oddity for Europeans and Americans, a side-show carnival featuring the “strongman.”
However, as science began to intermingle with established physical cultures from ancient India, Persia and Russia, modern weight-lifting evolved into Olympic lifting, a splinter faction now known as power-lifting, and eventually into the bodybuilding sub-culture. Each of these four approaches - strongman, Oly-lifting, power-lifting and bodybuilding - each have their own techniques to accomplish specific goals.
In modern day, we’ve stepped outside of these four sports, developing functional training approaches. Merging cutting-edge Russian biomechanics and stress physiology with the millenia-old techniques of yogic science, and born out of the cauldron of martial arts competition, the innovative approach called the Circular Strength Training® System has not only invented its own signature line of performance enhancement and longevity fitness, but also ressurects and adapts techniques from any discipline found useful.
Among this comprehensive technique pool in the CST System is the dumbbell side swing, inspired by “Iron Guru” Vince Gironda, and performed by “Superhero” Joe Wilson, proud member of the Powerhouse RMAX Faculty Coaching Staff, and trainer to thousands of men and women each year as a Senior Physical Training Director for the City of Memphis.
Though the Side Swing takes place in the frontal plane (cutting the body into front/back halves), the benefit to the core, in particular the internal and external obliques, serratus and lats, comes from the contra-lateral resistance against the weight pulling away laterally. In biomechanics, the combined action of yawing (or twisting right/left) with the action of rolling (or bending right/left) serves a critical function totally neglected by conventional exercise.
You will be pleasantly surprised at the great looking and functionally useful shoulders, upper back and thighs it also produces! So check out Superhero Joe as he demonstrates:
If you’re going to implement this into a general fitness program, then consider adding it as a station in a circuit with your Prasara Body-Flow exercises and your Clubbell® training. Here’s what I recommend for the station protocol:
Flow Thyself™,
3 Responses to ““Superhero Joe” Dumbbell Side Swings”
I really think the form you are using for this exercise is completely incorrect. This exercise was not meant to be done with momentum nor were you supposed to twist from side to side. Vince Gironda was only interested in bodybuilding - not aerobics; he intended this exercise to be done slow to build the delts. You are doing the exercise like the dumbbells are a pair of old Indian Clubs. The correct way to do this exercise would be to slow the exercise way down, hold the weight at the top of the movement for a second, and keep your head looking straight ahead. Do NOT twist your body side to side. This exercise should look similar to traditional lateral raises in its cadence.
By Augydoggy on Jan 27, 2008
Augy,
I agree with your comments regarding Vince’s bodybuilding exercise. However, Coach Wilson’s side swings were only “inspired” as the article says by Vince’s old-era weight-lifting. Joe combined modern biomechanics with ancient Chinese martial art “concrete lock” training to create a full-body exercise which improves the connective tissue strength along the bandolier across the torso from one hip to opposite shoulder (known as “yawing” by Dr. Nikolai Bernstein, the father of biomechanics). As a result, Coach’s exercise fits perfectly into the science of Circular Strength Training, because CST does not place one’s physique before one’s health like old-style bodybuilding does.
Flow Thyself.
By Scott Sonnon on Jan 27, 2008
Basically I do all my movements and lifts slow so I can feel the muscles. In my humble opinion this helps the most.
I’ll do some research on CST though. Interesting points you’re making!
By Matthew on Nov 19, 2009