If you want a good night, then avoid two of these old school moves.
Good Mornings:
Although I can’t say I’ve seen these moves done in some time now, I know that growing up I saw plenty of pictures of how the move should be done. If I had more than 3 wishes left in this lamp, I wish that somebody would go find every book and every website with this exercise and cross it out with a Sharpie pen.
I have a good friend, who will remain nameless, that gave me another tidbit of advice. He’s been hugel in helping me train legs and is himself an experienced Coquitlam Personal Trainer. I’ve never pushed myself so hard. So when he gives advice, I know it’s from a reliable source that’s much better than any scientific study.
He began with some good mornings. At first it was the bar. Then it was 20 lbs. on each side. Pretty soon he was doing 225 lbs. That’s a lot of weight. But having the strength to do it and the youth, he pushed on. Until one day, POP! Forward he went, with 225 lbs. How he didn’t break his neck is somewhat of a miracle.
As with any exercise, and the motivation of a bodybuilder, we will continue to push ourselves to new limits. But some exercises just don’t produce any results worth the inherent risks associated. Good mornings are one particular exercises. There are many other options for compound movements that do the same thing but with much less of a risk. So skip the good mornings and try some deadlifts or stiff-legged dead-lifts. You won’t be passing up on anything by skipping the good mornings except maybe weeks of recovery or a broken neck.
Lat Pull-downs Behind the Neck:
No story to go with this one, but think about it. Eventually you’ll be doing some heavy weight. Really unnatural position. That is a recipe for injury. It’s much more natural and safe to do the same movement to the front. Either way your lats are getting worked. But behind the neck puts strain on the shoulders which isn’t the muscle group you are trying work.