Complete List of Weightlifting Cues for Perfect Form & New PRs
When most people want to learn how to do an exercise with proper technique, they copy what other people do in the gym. While this method can help you find your feet, it can also teach you bad habits that are hard to uproot later on. The reason for this is simple: most people don’t use proper technique, and if you ape them, you’ll end up making the same blunders. As the old saying goes, practice doesn’t make perfect—practice makes permanent . A better approach is to learn and use what are known as weightlifting cues when you’re training, especially when doing compound exercises like the squat, bench press, deadlift, and their many variations. At bottom, a weightlifting cue is just a simple reminder that draws your attention to a particular aspect of your form. For example, the cue “spread the floor with your feet,” is a helpful weightlifting cue for remembering to keep your knees from caving in while squatting (more on this cue in a moment). These mental mant...