Before that, though, there was a great run of corrective exercise articles, most of which were written by two of my favourite fitness writers, Mike Robertson and Eric Cressey.

This is my view of the top 10 corrective exercise articles on T-Nation, before we all forget about them in the frenzy to get back to what being a bodybuilder is all about…

1. Eric Cressey’s shoulder savers series.  I regularly re-read this series to remind myself of the various techniques that I can use if I start to feel that I might be pushing my luck with the amount of overhead pressing I am doing.  Now, if I start to feel nervous, I can implement some of Eric’s suggestions and be fine in no time.  If you’ve ever had shoulder problems, you need to know this off-by-heart.
2. Mike Robertson and Eric Cressey’s Neanderthal no more series.  If you’re like me and spend most of your day sat in front of a computer screen, this series is invaluable.  It hasn’t really solved my hunchback but it’s much improved.  And give me a week or two away and I’m walking upright again.
3. Eric Cressey’s construction by adduction article.  This is a great article that details the benefits of training the adductors for overall leg strength.  One of the techniques is single leg training, which as you know I am a huge fan of!
4. Eric Cressey’s cracking the rotator cuff conundrum.  As a former competitive swimmer, I have lived and died by my ability to control the negative effects of my rotator cuffs playing up on me.  This article went some way to helping me refine the techniques that I use to keep them under control.
5. Mike Robertson’s rowing article.  Basically, if you’re going to bench, you need to row.  Mike lays it out nice and simple.
6. Mike Robertson’s hips don’t lie.  Apparently.  Anyway, most of us are stuck in anterior pelvic tilt as a result of sitting down all day.  This article sets out to explain how that happens, why it matters and what we can do about it.
7. Bill Hartman and Mike Robertson’s push ups, face pulls and shrugs article explains how there is more to shoulder health than concentrating on the rotator cuff. 
8. Mike Robertson’s 18 tips for bulletproof knees.  I have been lucky enough never to have had a problem with my knees.  Probably because there is not really very much likelihood of you damaging them when all you do is swim up and down a pool all day (unless you’re a damn good breast-stroker with a really snappy leg kick).  Anyway.  This is what to do to avoid anything going wrong in that department.  As usual, my favourite topic of single leg work features prominently.
9. Eric Cressey and Mike Robertson’s get your butt in gear series is a good reminder of the importance of glute activation.  In brief, if you’re not going it already, you need to start.  Unless you really are a natural athlete, in which case I hate you.
10. Eric Cressey’s lower back savers series.  Because lower back pain is the opposite of fun.

Well that’s my take on the best corrective exercise articles that T-Nation has to offer.  If you have any recommendations for ones that you’ve found helpful, please let me know.

What is a lumberjack squat?

This is a lumberjack squat:

As you can see, you need a bar and some weights.  You also benefit from having a bench or sturdy box that you can put the bar down on between sets.  It’s not strictly necessary but it saves having to muscle the bar up into position every time.  I use a standard 7ft bench press bar wedged into the corner of a wall like this:

I also like being able to move the bench closer or further away from the pivot point, which raises or lowers the height of the bar at the bottom position.  This enables me to set the exact height of the bottom position so I can get exactly the depth I want.  If you lack great hip mobility, like I do, then you can use this to increase your depth gradually, as you develop your mobility, and know exactly how well you are progressing without guessing.

So what does a lumberjack squat look like?

It looks like this:

What else do I need to know?

Not much, really.  The only thing that I have discovered since using it regularly is that it’s hard to go heavy as you quickly use up the available space on the end of the bar.  You need space to put your hands, you see.  So I started using a sling to add extra weight, like this:

The sling keeps the extra weight out of the way of your hands while you squat, as you can see here.

• a resistance band; or
• a pulley

Using a resistance band for assisted glute-ham raises

I loop a resistance band over the pull up bar using a prussik knot (also called a lark’s foot).  I then loop the other end under my armpits and lock my feet under another pull up bar at ankle height.  I use a bar pad to help cushion the backs of my calves from the bar.  It looks like this:

The main advantage of using the resistance band is the fact that when you are vertical it is slack and provides no help at all.  Therefore, you can tip forwards quite easily.  As you fall forwards, the band stretches and provides more and more help until it is so tight that it almost pulls you back upright.  This is great because the hardest bit is at the bottom and this is the place you get the most help.

The main disadvantagewith using the resistance band is that it’s quite hard to know how much help you are getting.  After all, a band is not like a plate and you don’t really know how far from a true unassisted glute-ham raise you are.

The resistance band is attached to the pull up bar like this:

And if you want to progress by decreasing the assistance that the resistance band provides, you can introduce a bit of slack into the band by adding a sling into the system.  By adding extra pieces of sling, you can steadily increase the amount of slack in the system and create progression like this:

Using a pulley system for assisted glute-ham raises

Instead of using a resistance band, you can use a pulley system.  It looks like this:

The main advantage of the pulley system is that you can micro load the assistance you get and therefore get a nice steady linear progression going.  You also know exactly how much assistance (less friction in the system) that you are getting.

The main disadvantage with a pulley system is that the assistance you get is the same throughout the whole movement.  Therefore, when you are just tipping off from vertical, it’s actually quite hard to get going and you have to push through the resistance of the weight.

Close up, the pulley system looks like this. 

The pulley itself is attached to a wiregate carrabiner.  The carrabiner is attached to the pull up bar using a short length of cord.  The cord is probably tied off using an overhand knot but really you should use a double fisherman’s if you can.  I am just lazy.  But you really don’t want your assistance weight crashing down on your undefended feet as they lie pinned underneath the other bar.  Really.

The cord on the pulley is then run through and tied off in a loop, again using an overhand knot on a bight.  But again, you should probably use a figure-of-eight knot on a bight for added security.  I really am lazy.  The bight is then clipped into another wiregate carrabiner.  The weight plates are then looped onto a sling and clipped together with a third carrabiner.  Strictly speaking, you don’t need the third carrabiner.  It’s just for convenience, as it keeps the sling together when the plates are on the floor waiting to be loaded onto the pulley system (see, I told you I was lazy).

In summary

So on balance, I probably prefer the resistance band.  Why?

• it’s easier to set up;
• provides help where I need it and not where I don’t;
• it means I don’t have to lug plates across the garage all the time (I really am lazy, you see); and
• if you don’t already have a pulley for doing other exercises, like face pulls for example, then it’s probably going to be cheaper to buy a resistance band than to set up a whole pulley system from scratch.