Fitness Tip from The Sporting Club San Diego: Eccentric Training

Fitness trainer Kris Machain from The Sporting Club San Diego is once again featured on E&L TV for another fitness tip of the month. This short but sweet segment also features his assistant, Danny, who demonstrates the optimal way to maximize your bicep training with a barbell.

This month’s fitness tip is focused on using eccentric training to build your strength.   Kris explains the difference between eccentric and concentric training and how to maximize your work out with both. In this video, bicep curls are used to show eccentric vs. concentric exercises. Concentric training is the contraction of your muscles – for example, in the video Danny is contracting his muscles when he brings the barbell up to his chest. Eccentric training is the exact opposite – the lowering of the barbell from the chest, which lengthens the muscles.

The important thing that Kris highlights here is tempo. Many people tend to do bicep curls too fast, using gravity to bring the barbell down, which neglects eccentric training. In order to build strength, Kris says it’s important to put more focus on the lowering of the barbell. To do this, Kris recommends the“4-0-1” counting method as a good tempo. This means taking one second to contract the muscle (pulling the barbell up), then four seconds to lengthen the muscle (lowering the barbell), and once you count down to zero, you repeat the exercise again. This helps you really focus on eccentric training by taking your time with lowering the barbell and lengthening those muscles.

According to Kris, we are 33% stronger eccentrically so the best way to increase strength is to maximize eccentric training at the gym. Eccentric training is one of the best ways to boost your performance and you can use eccentric methods with other fitness exercises such as pull ups and squatting as well. Look out for more helpful fitness tips from Kris Machain on San Diego Entertainer’s E&L TV in the near future.

Also, for more information on the Sporting Club San Diego visit their website at: http://www.thesportingclub.com/