Use THIS CUE to PR Your Lifts!
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Looking for a cue to help improve all of your lifts? Try this one out:
“Speed.”
Admittedly, it’s not a very technical cue, but it can be very useful for heavy singles, heavy doubles, and even the last rep of a set of five. Why is “speed” a useful cue?
Reason #1:
It’s a productive cue for two reasons; one - when you hear or think “speed,” it reminds you to try to make the bar move fast. Granted, with a heavy single or the last rep of a challenging set, you won’t actually be able to make the bar move quickly, but when you cue “speed,” you will simply push (or pull) a bit harder in an effort to make it move faster.
In short, you’ll try harder. If that seems a bit anticlimactic to you, no worries - the key is that it often works very well.
Reason #2:
The second reason I like the cue “speed” is that it changes your mental approach when performing a heavy single or double. At these weights, you might not know if you’re going to successfully complete the rep(s), but when you think “speed,” your thoughts tend to shift from “Will I get it or won’t I get it?” to “Can I move it fast or can’t I move it fast?”
Jason squats 170 kg (375 lb) for his third attempt.
In other words, the possibility of missing the rep is no longer front and center in your mind since you’re focused on trying to make the bar move faster. As a result, you tend to have a more aggressive approach to the rep, and this is always useful.
As always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better.
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