Weight Training and Cable Exercise - Charles Coster (1953)

 

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                                        https://yoga-horizons.com/pdfs/Fatmans-Guide-to-Cable-Training-2.pdf  

93 page download. Beautifully done and THANKS for doin' it. This is a large, in depth book that may be a little overwhelming for a lifter new to cable training. I plan to put up more on expander training, articles taken from magazines of a more introductory nature. This book is definitely a keeper!  

The practice of pressing a barbell to arms length is not necessarily the ONLY method whereby an Olympic specialist can improve his pressing ability. There are other factors known to improve an athlete's natural ability in this direction, and Cable Training is ONE of them. 

A set of good cable apparatus is a most valuable possession from the body-builder's and weightlifter's point of view, because of certain unique features which are present. 

In the first place, cable equipment takes up very little space, and they are therefore most convenient for transporting from one place to another inconspicuously, and this is quite an important feature for the ordinary working-class enthusiast who usually has to undertake such endeavors in addition to his daily work.

There must be untold thousands of young men who could find time to have ten minute or twenty minute cable workout on some special portion of the anatomy during their slack moments or meal breaks, if only the equipment was on the spot at the right time. 

It is generally admitted that certain muscles and tendon groups are difficult to "get at" and these areas need frequent "blitzing" . . . 

Okay already . . . when was that word first used in a muscle publication. 

. . . with specialized types of work if undeveloped or stubborn parts of the body are to be made to expand their volume and increase in strength. 

Cables are therefore a very convenient medium for such purposes, since they can be carried around all day long if need be . . . cost only a small sum of money to purchase [I had plans to grow out my steely nose, ear and underarm hairs to a great lengths and go all out expander with 'em, but my second late wife's ghost ate the lot in a dream one night. Finding no solace in the bars and bells I chose to order a set of expanders, razor, strop, and aftershave lotion), make additions or replacements and with reasonable care, last for years.

I have heard the mermaids singing and the cry of the Israelites . . . stop it. 

This is not That kind of writing! 

I have heard of numerous instances of Olympic weightlifters who succeeded in making an appreciable improvement in their pressing ability after embarking upon an intensive and suitable course of cable training. One man in particular had been "stuck" for a long time with the same pressing poundage, but at the end of six months with the cables he surprised everyone by making an increase of more than 30 pounds. His deltoid, serratus, triceps, together with the entire scapulae area became very heavily developed, and moreover it was the type of muscle that showed up to advantage, with plenty of definition.

Mind you, he was not afraid of hard work and did not shirk the muscular "ache" and fatigue that often attend special muscle-building programs when additional strength is desired, and that, as many topnotchers can verify, is one of the all-important secrets of success in the Iron Game.

It is not necessary to dwell on the various cable exercises that can be made, since many of them are well known. But the design of such equipment and the shape of the human body make a really thorough workout of the shoulder girdle most effective when performed with cables. 

When additional strands are added for purposes of progress a full schedule of sets of repetitions requires much more efforst and willpower. The easiest way to master increased cable resistance is for the person concerned to lie in a prone position for as manyh of the exercises as possible as this will enable him to concentrate upon bringing a much greater degree of muscular effort upon the particular movement being used. 

The Overhead Downward Pull, the Standing Triceps Overhead Stretch, the Front Chest Pull (performed in sets from various angles), the Lateral Raise Standing (from both the front and rear of the thighs), and the Single of Double Handed Back Press-Out . . . are all movements known to build shoulder strength and development, especially when combined with other forms of dumbbell and barbell training. 

The Front Chest Pull can of course be performed either standing or lying down. It can also be used to advantage when the body is bent over from the hips and the hands close to the ground. 

Three excellent triceps exercises that are best performed with cables are the Left and Right Arm Overhead Triceps Stretch . . . in which the hand and forearm are raised from behind the head to the full arm stretch position. 

The famous Archer's Triceps Stretch movement . . . in which the elbow is extended to shoulder level (in line with the back), the knuckles of the engaged hand being just in front of the shoulder . . . from which commencing position the cable is stretched outwards and sideways until the arm is completely extended at shoulder level. 

Only the forearm should be allowed to move . . . the upper arm and shoulder remaining stationary. If you have not tried the Archer's Stretch so far -- you will be surprised at the small resistance you can at first handle. 

The Left and Right Arm Downward Stretch is the last of the triceps trio. In this movement also . . . the forearm is the only part that should be allowed to move, the upper arm remaining quite still.

The commencing position is for the disengaged arm to hold the other end of the cable firmly overhead against the wall or some suitable obstacle. The hand of the arm about to be exercised (knuckles turned inwards) will thus be resting against the side of the chest . . . from which point it should be steadily and firmly extended outwards and downwards until the knuckles point to the floor by the side of the hip.

There is a curious and arresting difference between using a barbell an using a set of cables, and this difference is quite important.

When dumbbells or a barbell are used the poundage almost invariably tends to get "lighter" as the movement nears completion.

When cable apparatus is used . . . the reverse principle operates, for the last stages of cable expansion are very definitely much more strenuous as the strands become extended -- than they are at the commencement of the pull. 

This important difference is something which I feel should be exploited to the full by both Olympic specialists and body-builders alike. 

Body-builders need a maximum amount of contraction to take place at the completion of each repetition if they are to be successful in their efforts to gain both bulk and definition . . . and needless to say it is not nearly so easy to make peak contractions if the poundage decreases in intensity towards the finish of any particular movement. 

This problem was brought home to me some years ago when I was trying to improve upon the Lateral Raise Lying in the twelve stone (168 lb.) class. I had already broken the British Record, and was making an effort to establish a heavyweight record also.

It had been noticeable for some time that the first half of the movement was the toughest when the bells where being raised from the floor . . . the last part of the movement was comparatively easy.

It occurred to me, together with other devices, that one way to strengthen ability on the most difficult part of the lift might follow if only I could find a way to make the "easy" part HARDER. After a little experimentation I made an arrangement with some cord and cables of suitable strength which pulled in an outward direction once the dumbbells had reached a certain height. With regular use I found that I could adjust and increase the cable resistance considerably without interfering with the weight of the dumbbells, and the exercise became one of continuous tension throughout. Even when the hands were immediately above the face, strong tension had to be maintained in order to combat the strong pull in the opposite direction.

My efforts were rewarded in the end and I was able to make a new 12 stone and heavyweight British record by raising 120 pounds. 

This idea need not be confined to just one exercise, for it could just as easily be used for the Pullover at Arms Length or the Crucifix lifts. 

Even repetition deadlifting can be improved upon if fairly strong springs or cables are brought into play during the last part of the movement. 

*Yes, the new and thilling, hugely result-producing effect of bands, er, cables back in 1953.*

A glance at some of the excellent advertising illustrations which appear from time to time will amply show the many different uses to which such equipment can be put. 

One of the most interesting experiments I ever made some years ago was to construct a PRESSING BAR for repetition work which was composed entirely of cables and springs clipped onto an empty bar and the floor beneath. 

Providing plenty of resistance is used -- a workout will be found to be extremely strenuous and thorough, for there is a strong tendency for the bar to "wobble" forwards and backwards during upward and downward movements, the this factor will help the lifter to improve his balance, whilst the wobble makes the deltoids ache to an unusual degree. 

Alan P. Mead believed that muscles should be exercises from as many angles as possible . . . and he certainly introduced me to many queer pieces of equipment when I visited him at his gymnasium. 

He had a cable deadlift apparatus attached from the middle of the wall down to the floor and through a pulley wheel by using flexible steel wire attached to a gripping handle which was extremely difficult. 

It was necessary to pull upwards with the steel wire running through the pulley wheel in order to operate the apparatus, and the direction of the pull could be varied with each set by moving a step forward or backward. 

It made the muscles ache in my back more intensely, an in more different places than any appliance I had ever used before. 

Enjoy Your Lifting!