“How you do anything is how you do everything.”
This statement is just as relevant in the gym as it is in everyday life. When I coach, I often see people struggling with specific movement patterns rather than the movements themselves. We sometimes treat simple exercises—like air squats, rowing, or burpees—with less attention to detail, assuming they’re safe because the risk of injury seems low. However, executing these movements with poor technique, over time, creates bad habits that eventually lead to injuries.
Take rowing, for example. If you’re pulling too early and failing to fully extend your arms, I’ve observed that this often carries over to other pulling movements like pull-ups, cleans, and snatches. What does this tell us? You’re likely not engaging your lats (back muscles) properly, and instead, relying too much on your arms. Over time, this poor pattern can lead to shoulder issues or even elbow tendonitis. A rowing session might seem harmless, but repeat this mistake for hundreds of reps, and it will undoubtedly show up in other exercises.
Let’s break this down: a 500-meter row equates to roughly 50 pulls. If you row 3 times a week, that’s 150 pulls. Imagine doing 150 pulls incorrectly—that improper pattern will soon transfer to all your other pulling exercises, reinforcing the same flawed technique.
Now, consider how this applies beyond rowing. If you push off only from your toes and don’t drive your heels into the pads, you’ll likely develop poor hinging mechanics. This can lead to squatting every movement with a hinge, such as picking things up or lowering to the floor. Over time, this weakens your hamstrings and glutes, placing more stress on your quads and lower back—setting you up for back pain down the road.
This principle applies across the board. For instance:
- If you don’t fully extend your hips on a box jump, you’ll probably cut your range of motion short in a clean or kipping pull-up as well.
- If you struggle to get your hips below your knees during a squat, you may find deadlifting uncomfortable, leading to stiffness in your lower back.
- Tensing your neck too much during push-ups? Chances are you’ll do the same in a ring dip, push press, or bench press.
This is why moving well is so crucial! Even with basic bodyweight exercises—like air squats, push-ups, or pulling movements—how you perform them directly influences your more complex, loaded movements.
Take the time to correct the small faults in simple movements, and you’ll see noticeable improvements in your more challenging exercises. Movement quality matters at every stage of training—because how you do anything truly is how you do everything
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