Upright Rows

  Upright Rows

The human body is perfectly hinged to do an upright row — so to believe it is a movement that should never be done is preposterous — just as believing that a squat should never be done — ever. Those are the movements the human body was designed to do — but as always, many take a foolproof construct and turn it into their own self-destruction by using it for purposes it was not designed to do. If one should never do the upright rowing motion, then no parent should ever lift a baby — because that is precisely the movement involved. However, one would never attempt to lift a grownup in that manner — for what should be obvious reasons. That should be a moot point.

The problem always lies in the manner and circumstances in which such movements are prescribed — usually by the self-proclaimed experts on this — and every other matter they think they know what they are talking about, even if they’ve never thought it through, and tested it first on themselves, and then others — until they could reasonably be sure they knew what they were talking about. But that absolute certainty that they can know and do no wrong, should give us a clue as to how far they are to be believed.

While both the upright rowing motion and the squat are movements the human body is uniquely evolved and designed for, that manner which it is prescribed, makes them injurious — on the advice that the joint (axis) in which it is optimally designed to move, is instead advised to remain immobile — placing undue and unnatural movement and stress on joints that should be secondarily involved in supportive roles — rather than as the primary movers.

In the case of the squat, it is commonly advised that one should not allow the lower leg to move at all — usually indicated by the angle of the lower leg to the foot — which they advise should be maintained at a right angle, thus immobilizing the ankle — which actually should be the joint at greatest expression, or range of movement. This is particularly notable in dancers, gymnasts, divers, and performers of most athletic events. The reason a person jumps high, is because they can use their foot as a lever against the earth — but if some arbitrary rule demands that the foot must remain at a 90 degree angle to the lower leg, the result will be much less than allowing for the fullest articulation of the range of movement in all the joints. That would not make for interesting viewing, as all participants would be handicapped in that way — and we would not witness the full potential and possibilities of such movements.

However, that lack of movement might be advantageous in being able to support a heavier weight — by not allowing for the vulnerability that movement entails. Except in rare cases, movement is required in most human activities and expression — or we’d simply get a mechanical jack to hold up that weight indefinitely — if that is required. That is obvious in the case of a “squat” in which there is no movement from a bone on bone lockout. As soon as there is movement out of that position, the weight that can be supported is less — and finally, at the furthest range of movement, the range is the resistance. Everyone has those ultimate natural limits — although they may vary greatly from one person to another. But each individual only has to work with what they are given — and that is what matters. That is the importance of “knowing oneself,” and not presuming to know everyone else — and what they “all must be doing.”

The upright row is like the squat in that respect — that the ultimate expression and articulation of the arm movements — is indicated by the range of movement at the wrist joint. The manner in which it is usually performed with injurious effect — is to immobilize the wrist movement throughout the movement — to enable the handling of a heavier weight — rather than in recognizing, that the range of movement at the wrist, determines the state of muscular contraction of all the muscles of the arm land torso. That is a movement that most modern contemporary people do not do except for the aforementioned dancers, gymnasts, performers, etc. — in favor of the misplaced and prodigious development of the “showy” muscles for visual impact — and how much weight they are using.

In the case of the most productive exercises most people can do, it is far more important to perform the movement correctly than to increase the weight used. In most cases, such exercises are so productive that no additional weight is required to achieve the exercise effect and benefits. This is especially true when people become older and wiser, and realize just to be able to retain such movements is a rare feat in itself — even among the former world champions and people hoping to retain as much of their faculties and abilities throughout their lives — as their outstanding accomplishment.

There are a lot of people who have damaged their shoulder and arm mobilities by using too much weight in the upright row to whom just performing a full-range articulation of all the joints (axes) involved in that movement with no weight for 50 repetitions, would be a feat they no longer thought possible ever again. That is enough to put them in the top 5% of all people over 75, and if younger, a light enough weight to maintain their focus — that particularly, the essential range of movement is the axis at the wrist, and not any amount of weight done with the wrists immobilized — to damage the rotator cuff and arm muscles.

That and the ability to do a squat (get off the ground) with just one’s own bodyweight, are the benchmarks and milestones that everyone should aim for. 10,000 steps — or even 1,000 steps — are much less indicative and beneficial than those 100 reps a day — as measured by the articulation at the wrist, ankles, and neck. Those are the critical faculties of the human body anybody in their right mind wishes to retain, maintain, and improve throughout life — as their priorities. You don’t need to add more weight to exercise those parts of the body. The full range articulation produces the maximum contraction and relaxation without the need for added resistance. That is what all the exercise machine manufacturers realize — and so they don’t build those machines for those movements. Doing so, would make those exercises worse, less productive and injurious.