Posing with a Pro (Rear Poses) – Lee Labrada and Ryan Workman == http://www.labrada.com
In lessons 3 and 4, we started our study of the compulsory round, and talked about the seven mandatory poses. We learned how to do the three front mandatory poses and two side mandatory poses.
Now, we will turn our attention to learning to perform the remaining two mandatory poses which are the rear double biceps and the rear lat spread pose. Both of these poses are designed to show off the muscularity and development of the back of your body, including your lats, traps, shoulders, arms and hamstrings and calves.
Let’s learn how to perform the rear double biceps pose first. Starting in the relaxed rear quarter turn position, begin by placing the ball of the foot of your best leg on the floor, even with the back of the heel of your other foot and about 12 inches to the side, as you can see here. We’re going to illustrate this pose with the right leg back, but you can easily performing this pose with the left leg back if you wish. Bend your knees slightly, and tense your calves and hamstrings. Push lightly against your back right foot to create tension in the hamstrings. Most of your weight is going to rest on the left, or forward foot.
Once you have your foot position in place, it’s time to move onto the muscles of your upper body. Bring your arms together overhead, arch your back, then perform an imaginary lat pulldown, bringing your arms down slowly under tension, until your elbows are even with your shoulders. Flex your arms hard, and rotate your arms slightly backwards. Tense all the muscles in your back.
One common mistake I see made in this pose is crunching the scapula, or shoulder blades, together too much, which causes you to lose back width.
Now let’s move onto the second rear mandatory pose, the rear lat spread. You’re going to start this pose by posing your legs as you did in the last pose, the back double biceps.
To execute the rear lat spread, begin by placing your hands on your obliques. You can find the correct position by placing your thumbs your hip bones just behind your obliques. Then close the rest of your fingers into a fist, and bring your elbows forward until they are even with your torso.
You want your scapula to abduct forward, to allow the lats to flare, as you bring your elbows forward. Keep your ribcage expanded and lean back slightly at the waist.
One common mistake I see is contracting the lats at the same time as they are being flared. This results in the lats not being flared out properly which means you’ll lose back width. It helps if you keep your rib cage expanded, and your sternum high.
Another common mistake is allowing the sternum to collapse and rounding the back too much. Think of your back as a movie screen and the idea is to create the impression of maximum width. If you round your back too much, you are going to lose width.
Practice holding your poses for 30 to 60 seconds at a time, to build up your endurance. You’re going to need that endurance when you compete.
Well, that covers the two rear mandatory poses, and concludes our discussion of the mandatory posing round. Practice all 7 mandatory poses, using a mirror, and even photographs and videos. Practice these poses until you can execute them comfortably before proceeding to the next lesson. And remember, the more you practice, the better you’ll get.
When you are ready, join me in lesson 6, where we’ll start learning about free style posing. You’ll learn how to emphasize all of the strong points of your physique. Now that is where the fun really begins!
I’m Lee Labrada, and you’re watching Posing like a Pro.