Brock push day

After a nice rest day, I hit the first push session of the new program. Set list:

  • Decline bench press
  • Incline press (plate-loaded)
  • Cable lateral raises
  • Overhead cable rope extensions
  • Pec deck

Not a perfect session — I went a bit too heavy on the incline press — but the decline felt great. Lots of blood flow to the tits. Good start to the week.

Lunch time was a light 30 minutes on the elliptical, and tonight is ball hockey.

Are lateral raises a pull exercise?

During this push session I caught myself thinking about lateral raises and how they feel like a pull exercise. They’re always programmed on push days and I’ve honestly never questioned it.

CoachGPT explained it pretty well:

Lateral raises are shoulder abduction, not a pull.

Even though the cable is technically “pulling” on your arm, the muscle action is what matters.

Lateral raises train:

  • Medial (side) delts
  • Shoulder abduction (arm moving away from the body)

They are:

  • ❌ not elbow flexion (biceps)
  • ❌ not shoulder extension (lats / rows)
  • ❌ not scapular retraction (mid-back)

So from a programming standpoint, they’re a push-day movement — not a pull-day movement.

Thanks coach. Off to hockey, then tomorrow is Pull.

Notes

  • Weight at 175.0 lbs

TODO

  • Research posing and judging