Crossover Hands: Technique, Benefits, and Common Mistakes

The chest is one of the most important parts of the body. The rib cage primarily protects vital internal organs such as the heart and lungs. And for any bodybuilder, beautiful pectoral muscles are already half the success.

Of course, in order to achieve the appropriate form, you need to train a lot and systematically. The optimal in this case will be to spend 90% of the workout on multi-purpose composite exercises, during which several muscle groups are involved. However, if your main goal is to build muscle mass (in this case we are talking about the pectoral muscles), then flattening your arms in a crossover while standing is perfect as a final exercise, with which you can qualitatively load the target muscles. In addition, this simulator can be found in almost any gym, which greatly simplifies the task.

Execution technique

1. First of all, correctly "configure" the simulator. You carry out the reduction of hands in the crossover through the upper blocks, respectively, place the handles at the highest point on each side.
2. Set the desired weight (the same in both cases) and, standing exactly in the middle, grab the handles with the palms down.
3. Take a step forward. Hands are slightly bent at the elbows, chest forward, look straight ahead. This is the starting position in this exercise.
4. Using only the shoulder joint, slowly bring your palms together, crossing them directly in front of you. At the lowest point, tighten the pectoral muscles.
5. Slowly return to starting position.
6. Perform the required number of repetitions.

Some useful tips

Any physical activity requires preliminary theoretical training. So you minimize the risk of injury and can get more results in less time. Here's what you should know before proceeding directly to the note-taking in the crossover:

1. Keep to the maximum range of motion. Thus, you maximize the use of muscle fibers. During the exercise, you should feel tension in the joints at the beginning of the movement.
2. Use lighter weight. Do not try to look like a hero in the eyes of others. The purpose of reducing the arms in a crossover is fatigue of the pectoral muscles, which occurs best with 10-15 repetitions with low weight, in combination with push-ups.
3. Perform the exercise slowly, follow the technique. Since in this case the load goes only to one joint, there is no point in using an additional impulse. Try to feel every movement.
4. Take your shoulders back. A common mistake. Bringing your shoulders forward, you work on the muscles of the back and shoulders, and not the pectoral muscles. Take your shoulders back, keep your head straight to engage your chest.
5. Bend your arms slightly. Also a common mistake is excessive bending of the arms. Yes, it’s much easier to flatten the hands in a crossover, but at the same time its efficiency is reduced by half. Better use less weight, but keep your hands almost straight.

Common mistakes

Probably, there is not a single exercise that absolutely everyone performs correctly and without errors. It is very important to monitor posture and performance techniques during training. Do not be afraid to seek help from a duty coach. If this is not possible, then at first you can shoot the exercise on camera. So you can sensibly evaluate your technique and, if necessary, turn to knowledgeable people for help.

The most common errors include:

1. Inadequate muscle strain. While most exercises work only with the initial effort, when pushing the arms in the upper crossover, both a jerk forward and a return to the starting position are important. Be sure to fully stretch the muscles of the chest, this will lead to better stimulation of muscle fibers and, accordingly, active growth.
2. Lack of diversity. The secret to an ideal workout program is constant change. Performing mixing only from the upper block, you run the risk of overtraining only the upper chest, leaving the rest of the body disproportionate. Constantly change exercises to stimulate muscle development from all sides.
3. Fear of experimentation. Yes, flattening your arms in a crossover is great for completing your workout, but that doesn't mean you can't try adding this exercise first. Remember, each organism is individual and in its own way reacts to the load. Try, perhaps, fatigue of the pectoral muscles before the main load will be more effective for you.

Benefits

The pectoral muscles are quite voluminous, and therefore, when performing the mixing of arms in a crossover, you also use the muscles of the body and shoulders to maintain balance. All this leads to more efficient burning of calories.

Also, as mentioned earlier, a developed chest creates a more harmonious figure and affects the appearance of the shoulders and triceps.

There is the possibility of diversity. Crossover is a universal simulator. By placing the cable at different points (upper, lower middle), you get the opportunity to act on the pectoral muscles from different angles, which undoubtedly contributes to a more harmonious growth and development of the muscle corset.

Two ideas for a superset

Supersets - the ability to maximize the load on target muscles. If the usual information of the hands in the crossover is not enough for you, then you can diversify the exercise by adding:

1. Push ups. Killing superset, because without stopping you are doing two exercises on the same muscle group. However, if for you to do more than 30 push-ups is an impossible task, then abandon the idea of ​​implementing this superset. It will be too hard for you.
2. The rise of the body. During the reduction of arms in the crossover, the cortex muscles also actively work. Therefore, combining these two exercises together, you not only work out the pectoral muscles qualitatively, but also give a greater load on the press than when performing these two exercises separately.

Perhaps this is all you need to know about this exercise. Follow the technique, experiment, but remember: the main thing is safety!