Fitness Junction

This week:

• Knowledge Corner: Unilateral Training

• Monthly Challenge Update: Getting outside in February

• Meme Center: The woes of Instagram

Knowledge Corner: Unilateral Training

I discussed isometric exercises in a previous newsletter as a method for shaking things up at the gym. In a similar vein, unilateral exercises are another great tool to add to your kit. Unilateral exercises involve conducting a movement utilizing only one side of your body. If you’re doing chest press with a dumbbell in each hand, that’s a bilateral exercise. If you put one dumbbell down, and do the same press with a weight in only one hand, it would become unilateral. The benefits of unilateral training include: increased core activation and balance training, increased activation and strength gains in targeted muscles, improved sports performance, and prevention of muscular imbalances.  

My favorite benefit of unilateral training is the strain it places on the rest of your body to maintain stability. When you train with weights in both hands, they balance each other out. When you have weight in only one hand, your core muscles are forced to contract to provide stability to offset the uneven weight across your body. So in addition to increased strength gains in the targeted muscles, you’re also strengthening your core and burning a few extra calories in the process - which is good cause beach season will be here before we know it.

Unilateral exercises are also beneficial for preventing and correcting muscle imbalances. It is common for our dominant side (whatever side of your body you write with) to be slightly stronger than the other. Standard bilateral movements, such as bench press or overhead press, can amplify that imbalance. The dominant side will overcompensate for the weaker side. Over time, this overcompensation can lead to muscle imbalances and potential injury. Training unilaterally, however, will allow the weaker side to catch up and improve your overall movement patterns.

Incorporating unilateral training into your program is simple. Just think of exercises you do with weight in both hands and try them with weight in just one hand. Here are some of my favorites:

• Single arm farmers carry

• Single arm chest press

• Bulgarian split squat

• Single arm lat-pulldown

• Single arm clean and press

Trivia

How did the Bulgarian split squat get its name?

• A. It mimics a movement seen in the mating ritual of the male Bulgarian Bullfrog

• B. It was popularized by Bulgarian rap legend Lil Sofia

• C. It was introduced to the U.S. by a Bulgarian weightlifting coach

• D. It resembles a pattern of stars know as the Bulgarian Constellation

February Challenge: 15min Outside, 5x Per Week

Another successful week of getting outside! It helped that I had to shovel the driveway multiple times. Talk about some NEAT!

Bonus challenge: Coffee hasn’t been hitting the same for me lately and I've been going for an extra cup more frequently. So I am going to go cold turkey for this upcoming week to try to reset my caffeine tolerance. If you find yourself needing more and more caffeine to get through your day, consider giving this a shot with me! Thoughts and prayers for our coworkers and significant others who have to tolerate us during this week though…

Meme Center

Thank you for reading this week's Fitness Junction! If you aren't already, subscribe here and share the newsletter with anyone you think will enjoy it. Click the button below to learn more about Natural Function Fitness and our services.

Trivia answer: C. It was introduced to the U.S. by a Bulgarian weightlifting coach. Bulgaria is a weightlifting powerhouse. They have the fourth most Olympic Weightlifting medals of any country and were especially productive during the Cold War years. U.S. coaches were eager to learn their secrets and accepted the story from one assistant Bulgarian weightlifting coach that the split-squat was key part of their success. That narrative has been contested by other Bulgarian coaches but regardless, the Bulgarian split squat remains a great addition to any leg day.