Here’s an unpopular truth: We, as lifters, do way too much work in the sagittal plane (or the anatomical boundary that separates the left and right portions of the body).
The sagittal plane is responsible for forward and backward movement, meaning all of the popular and important lifts occur in that plane — squats, overhead presses, deadlifts, lunges, pullups, and rows all fit the category. With that said, building a general baseline of athleticism is all good and proper, but failing to address other areas of our athleticism through loading different planes of motion will end up catching up to us — either in the form of a stalled physique, or in the form of an injury due to imbalance.
Once your foundation is on point and you’ve got a handle on the big lifts, there are three planes of movement that you should consider, and the sagittal plane mentioned above is only one of them.
Here are the other two.
The Lateral Plane
This involves loading movements that involve a side-to-side action. Plenty of the stabilizing muscles to our load-bearing joints get recruited the most when zeroing in on these forces, and this plane shouldn’t be neglected.
The Transverse Plane
The muscles responsible for the rotation of the spine are of prime importance and are often neglected. This results in insufficient T-Spine range of motion, and often compensation from the lumbar spine. For a lot of clients I see that the end result is chronic pain in the lower back and poor shoulder mobility to boot.
If you’re a lifter after strength and size (which is why you’re likely reading this article), then you’re probably at greater risk for losing peak functionality in this plane based on the way you’re used to training.
Tip: Use the Force
Taking advantage of different force angles, planes, and force curves will only serve your fitness and development well. There’s no harm in taking a phase or three away from the big lifts in their conventional form, to focus on patterns that may even mimic them while utilizing different vectors. Your body will thank you. And you just might break through a plateau of muscle development while you’re at it — or a strength plateau when you make your return to the big stuff.
To get the most bang for your buck, it’s smart to think about movements that involve most of the body to produce an effort, and are as functional as possible. Here are some smart choices to get every part of your body on point.
Lee Boyce is a personal trainer, speaker, fitness writer, and college professor based in Toronto, Canada. He is the owner and operator of leeboycetraining.com and works with clients and athletes for strength, conditioning, and sport performance. With a background as a varsity level sprinter and long jumper in university amid his kinesiology studies, he now brings plenty of that experience and anecdote to the lectures and workshops he delivers around North America to help make trainers and fitness professionals more effective at their jobs. Follow him on all social media @coachleeboyce
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Lateral Plane: Side Lying Adduction
Set up a bench or box and lie perpendicular to it, with one straight leg directly underneath. The top leg should rest on top, with the knee bent, so the entire lower leg is in contact with the surface of the box.
With your elbow positioned in a side plank, pull with the top leg until you raise your entire lower leg and hip off the ground. Attempt to “sandwich” the box with your legs.
Focusing on sets of 8-10 reps is smart to do before big lifts.
This is an exercise many lifters have heard of and may be aware of, but never do. And they’re missing out.
Holding a kettlebell or dumbbell in a front rack or goblet position, set up so that you’re in a wide sumo stance, with one foot pointing outwards. That will be the leg you keep straight.
Using the other leg, slowly lower yourself into a full squat position while keeping the other leg straight, with the toe pointing up. If going all the way to the floor is too difficult, set up a low box behind your working leg that you can aim to sit down to.
Pause, and return to your start position. Focus on sets of 5 reps per leg.
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Artiga Photo
Transverse Plane: Half Kneeling Med Ball Rotational Throws
To light up your obliques and get your T-spine moving the right way, using a medicine ball for a rotational throw pattern is worth its weight in gold.
Set up a mat about 6 feet away from a concrete wall. Half kneel on the mat, side-facing that wall, with the leg closest to the wall kept forward (if your right shoulder is closest to the wall, kneel on the left knee).
Next, keep tall posture and hold the medicine ball with long arms beside your far hip, rotating your shoulders to face away from the wall.
In one motion, throw the ball to the wall in a “scooping” pattern – pretend to aim for someone at your chest level on the wall.
Let the ball roll or bounce back to you, and repeat for sets of 10-15 reps per direction.
This sounds convoluted, but it isn’t. The bent press can be performed with a dumbbell or kettlebell and makes use of the thoracic spine going through a full rotation as the lifter hinges at the hip. It’s a great way to exploit weaknesses or poor quality in movement while doubling as a great oblique and shoulder stability tool.
Once you try both sides, you’ll probably notice a discrepancy in flexibility or mobility (I sure did). Do what you can to even things out, even if that means some supplementary strength or mobility work.
There’s no other way to put this: This is a TERRIFIC movement for glute and lateral quad development.
And it’s going to take a pretty loaded explanation.
To start, I Iike these more than curtsy lunges, due to the fact that the curtsy lunge doesn’t respect the alignment a lifter should seek among the knee, hip and shoulder. Setting up sideways to a landmine bar and “leaning in” so your body perpendicularly matches the bar, can create a heap of benefits:
The outward traction you create on the floor means more lateral quad stimulation.
The outward traction you create on the floor means more medial glute stimulation.
The reverse lunge reduces knee stress on its own, but this variation goes that much further by reducing pressure on the medial side of the knee.
In addition to this, the halfway Zercher hold I’m using in the video makes the upper body and trunk work hard to maintain posture.
This will tell you pretty quickly if you’re moving inefficiently. Especially if you keep the correct emphases, many of which are listed above. You’re basically working two force angles the entire time based on your positioning, which beats many sagittal plane movements.
