Bad form in training

Bad form is bad. End of debate.

Nah jk, but we'll get deeper in the subject.

Bad form is not inherently to no avail. It has its usages in calisthenics skills training. It can be used as a progression, but quite difficult to scale.

To bad form I will also include any cheats that make skills easier: lat tri, wrist compensation, abusive false...Which are sometimes not even considered by athletes.

## How to use bad form in training?

I see two main ways for the usage of bad form in training.

The first one is attempts. If you do a skill in bad form, it means you do it, so you're able to do it. That's a great mental booster to know that you can do it. It feels possible, easier... You still have to be conscious of the flaws you have in the movement, in order to correct them over time, as long as you get stronger.

The second one is progressive overload. Usage of bad form can be great to promote muscle growth. For example in a set of bicep curls, you do the first reps with strict form, and start to cheat the last reps. That's perfectly fine, it means you're pushing your body past its limits. It can also be used in bodyweight exercises to promote STRENGTH. Keep in mind that it doesn't develop your mind-muscle connection for skills that well.

## Honesty and positivity

Citing Rayan Astegiano and Iliesse Belasri: *"Knowing how to positively anticipate one's performance is necessary for risk-taking, determination and perseverance in the effort. However, positivity doesn't mean ignoring problems, quite the contrary. Consideration of difficulties and failures will enable you to take the necessary actions to improve your performance and the success of your goals. In conclusion, positivity is a key component in the optimistic perception that should be adopted in this sport, and more broadly in everyday life. Awareness and mentalisation of your progress is essential for long-term achievement and progression. To sum up, your mind is a big part of the key to your success."*

This means that in your training, you have to be able to track your progress, but you still have to be mindful of the details to work on. There are two extremes you must not fall in:

- the first one is being delusional in your training, in the sense that you cheat all your movements, and don't work towards a proper execution. Be mindful that if you're using 70% of the required strength to do a skill, it's the same as being able to do a 100kg benchpress and saying you can bench 143kg. Big difference. This is a form of ego lifting that you don't want to fall in.

When you're in this state of mind, you don't care so much about the form that even canvas elements of some skills are overlooked: straight arms in butterfly, maintaining contact with the bar in frontlever touch... All for the sake of unlocking the next skill in the strength progression. Keep in mind that strength progress doesn't happen overnight, sometimes it's a click that makes you suddenly understand a skill, but such a click only happens once or twice a month, and doesn't make you stronger but rather more clever about the movement. Take some steps back, work with a better form that will give you better CNS gains, and will be more impressive and recognizable to the people.

- the second one is focusing way, WAY too much on the small details, being perfectionnist about your training. I call these people the "form nazis". It's a kind of reverse ego lifting actually. This obsession doesn't bring you happiness and positivity about your training, and sometimes makes you want to quit training (not bein able to do the corrections you want). The same as before, those corrections come as clicks.

Another flaw of this state of mind is that you tend to apply the same standards to other people and judge their abilities way more. Everyone has his own goals, own standards, there's not one "perfect form" for everyone as we're all built differently. Some people also use this for external validation: they say their sets are "bad form" just so they can be reassured that it looks good to other people's minds.

In conclusion, you have to find a happy medium between honesty and positivity.