Cheats never prosper....or do they?
When used in the right way, cheat reps can enable you to smash through plateaus, and destroy your current limits. Interested?
Note: Cheat reps are for more experienced lifters. Beginners should learn the correct form for every exercise they do. Without a solid base technique, cheat reps can have form that is too far from safe and lead to injury. If you are unsure if you are ready, work with a qualified personal trainer who will guide you through it.
Many of you may already use cheat moves in your routine so this wont be anything new. But this article may just help to guide you in the right direction.
There is a limit to how much you should cheat. To go through a whole workout cheating is not sensible or productive. You want the muscle to be under controlled tension, for as long as possible. For example, with bicep curls, pick a weight where you will just about get 5 reps with good form, then, using a little 'body english' give the weight a little momentum from the bottom to help you get three more reps out. Make sure to control the weight back down even in the cheat reps. You just got a set of 8 out with your 5 rep weight. This is where cheat reps lead to your progress. You are pushing the muscle past its current failure point, and in doing so, will cause the body to build itself back stronger (and normally bigger) to enable you to complete that weight for 8 reps next time with less stress.
Its because of this reaction that cheat reps can let you get past sticking points in your training.
The thing to remember with cheat reps is that you are not swinging the rep up. There is a sticking point in each rep that is the point where you fail. If you just use a tiny bit of body movement to get past that sticking point. The bar will need to move around an inch, maybe two.
Once you get the hang of this, you will really see huge results. Just be sure to keep it in check, avoid the dreaded huge swing!
The last thing to mention, is to not do these with every exercise or even in every workout. Throw them in from time to time, just to mix it up!
