Foundation is Everything
Most lifters have probably heard the cue to "put the weight in your heels" when doing certain lifts, such as a squat, leg press or many other exercises...
This statement has taken the fitness industry by storm and I hear this constantly...
Most people have no idea what this does or why they tell others to do it...
This is a parrot phrase people hear then run with it not knowing the anatomy or biomechanics behind it...
I would strongly encourage everyone to throw this thinking out the window
In this post I am going to break down why I despise leaving all the weight in your heels and give you a much safer and stable foundation to improve your strength & performance and avoid any injuries
Think of your body as a building...
Your feet would be the foundation of this building...
When engineers are creating this blueprint or piecing together the building they never plan on distributing more weight on one side than another...
So why do we do it with our bodies?
Instead of putting the weight all in your heels, imagine you having three main points of contact with the floor at all times; This is also known as the foot tripod
The main points of contact are your big toe, small toe, and your heels...
As a trainer the part I see people struggle with the most is at first they get the positioning right, but as they continue their set they tend to lift their toes up or rock their feet back and forth...
Imagine glueing your feet and toes to the ground during every exercise you perform...
When you do this it locks in and maintains that strong foundation...
If you wiggle your toes, or rock your feet, you are losing tons of leg drive and increasing the amount of work your core has to do, and putting your spine at risk of several different injuries...
Every exercise you are doing, imagine jamming all of your toes into the ground and then evenly distribute the rest of your weight into your heels and keeping them locked there during the entire set...
This does a few things;
First it gives you much better balance...
It allows for better control of the exercise throughout its full range of motion...
A big thing most people overlook with this is they start to feel muscles in their feet they've never noticed before...
Muscles like the flexor digitorum and flexor hallucis longus will be engaged by using the foot tripod which are underdeveloped in most people...
These muscles greatly contribute to either having an arch in your feet (which is normal) or flat feet which can lead to major problems down the road such as back pain or knee pain!
I like to present this in extreme cases as well to get the message across...
Imagine a powerlifter getting ready to squat 500+ lbs.
Can you imagine the potential risks and dangers of having this amount of weight on your back and then putting all of that weight on top of your bodyweight into your heels?
There's a high chance this person will lose stability, lose balance, or even fall backwards if the weight takes over their ability to control it...
When you think of it like this, it makes much more sense why you should not perform movements with this stance...
Your warm-up reps should look identical to your 1RM...
Therefor your form should always be the same...
So whether you are a powerlifter looking to maximize the weight you can lift, or an everyday gym goer trying to stay healthy...
I cannot encourage you all enough to learn and integrate the foot tripod into your training routine for your own safety, to avoid injuries, and to maximize your performance.
If you have any questions about this concept please let us know!
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Keep up the hard work!