Is Bracing Necessary for Squats and Deadlifts? 

I can totally respect that! What are you currently doing in your routine to enhance that strength?

@@harvestingstrength I was wondering if a different bracing method could prioritize it since I’m guessing bracing takes away from the spinal erectors

@@cheffroggo4363 Well the erectors are going to work in some capacity to assist your brace but if you want an erector-challenging variation of exercise to help with development, perhaps try an SSB or front squat to challenge the postural muscles? Feel free to comment back with more questions! Glad to help

If your lower back is fragile, strengthen it. Make it more resilient. A disc herniation is the farthest thing from a career ending injury in strength sports, you just need a stronger core is all. Bracing is a really simple concept, but difficult to properly teach and execute. It took me suffering from a severe enough lower back injury that put me out of commission for about a year and a half plus a year of rehab to get back to throwing really fucking heavy weights around. I think most people just lack the proprioception required to effectively brace, I'm extremely "in-tune" with all of my core musculature now. Highly recommend looking into Stuart McGill's work with Brian Carroll for some inspiration, lots of outstanding information from those two. Chris Duffin is probably the next best resource for proper bracing mechanics, he has some great videos on here as well.

If you go to the description of the video, there is a link about the article I wrote for Powerlifting Technique. In that article I talk about some exercises to help you enhance bracing. One of them is the "Elbow Plank with DB Row" and this one is INSANE for helping you understand how to have an immensely braced core. Check it out!

@@bloatmax4420 Great feedback!

@@harvestingstrength What are your thoughts on dynamic core work's contribution to overall stability? Obviously isometric work is tried and true, but anecdotally I feel like also incorporating more dynamic work took my bracing, and rectus ab development, to the next level. Probably one of those things where you should always do both, I just don't see a whole lot of people doing it. They usually just choose one or the other, and I've known some damn strong people who only do stuff like weighted ghd sit-ups and cable crunches

@@bloatmax4420I absolutely agree, I think dynamic work is very important. One I love is eccentric-focused sit ups or even an eccentric-focused DECLINE sit ups. This ads immense time under tension, exhaustion, and growth without a ton of volume. When people lose their brace their spine is flexed, and a sit up is going to mimic a flex as well. So your preparedness through dynamic core work is a must in strength training. Great input man!