A One Sided Story- Unilateral Work
Written by Coach Harry Taylor
A huge amount of exercises that we use in the gym are known as Bi-lateral movements, using both arms or both legs simultaneously to produce movement and to move a load. Squats, deadlifts, presses and rows are all prime examples of this. What we tend to utilise less are movements known as unilateral exercises. These can still mimic the squats, deadlifts, presses and rows, they will give us all the same benefits, but they also bring with them a heap of benefits of their own.
Benefits of uni-lateral work:
Correction of imbalances- If we only train both limbs simultaneously, imbalances and asymmetries can go unnoticed. Our stronger side will have a natural ability to over compensate which can exacerbate the issue further still. Over time these compensations will result in movement faults, muscle weaknesses and potentially injury and/or joint impingements. By introducing unilateral exercises into our program, we can offset any potential strength bias and highlight and movement faults that may be occurring during our main lifts.
Core Stabilisation- Our core musculature is always working for us, whether we are sitting, standing, running or climbing, the muscles that stabilise our entire muscular and skeletal movement system are active. If we press a barbell overhead the core muscles of the trunk and shoulder girdle are most definitely stimulated. However if we pressed a single dumbbell overhead these same muscles are innervated to a far greater extent. This increase in muscle activity is due to the requirement for your core muscles to stabilise the spine due to the imbalance of load that has been placed through the body. This in time will lead to a stronger, more reactive muscular system that will benefit all of our bilateral movements.
Sport Performance- Most sports are very dynamic, reactive, multi-planed and unilateral. Exercise selection therefore should mimic the demands of the athlete's sport as closely as possible. Unilateral training will give the athlete the dynamic strength, power, balance and coordination needed to perform at a high level within their discipline.
Increases in muscle fibre stimulation- Studies show that when a muscle was subjected to a unilateral load, the levels of stimulation and EMG activity (Electromyography- measures muscle response or electrical activity in response to a nerve's stimulation of the muscle) were greater than its bilateral equivalent. This rather like our core musculature example would lead to greater strength gains not just with unilateral movements but its bilateral partner.
Decrease injury risk- Injuries can occur from a multitude of reasons, some injuries can be the result of a freak accident, whilst others can be due to a chronic subjection to improper movement and inefficient neuromuscular adaptations. Many musculotendinous injuries are thought to be a consequence of neuromuscular deficits (how the brain communicates with the muscle) and altered length tension relationships (the muscle length and the force it can produce at that length). Since muscles work as a synergy, a deficiency in one can cause a domino effect into other muscles around that joint and elsewhere. This will quickly cause pain, decreased movement capabilities and injury. By training muscles and/or muscle groups in isolation these risks can be greatly decreased.
Given this list it’s clear that we can benefit hugely from implementing unilateral training into our gym programming.
These subsets of exercises will help us improve our strength, power, coordination and balance; everything we need to be the best athlete that we can be.
They will also help us move more freely, decrease the risk of injury and give us longevity in our training. The ratio of bilateral to unilateral exercises within any one session or training block will be subjective and based upon many variables mostly surrounding the training requirements of that individual or group. It’s perfectly acceptable to have a training program that has a greater percentage of bilateral movements, as long as our unilateral movements are implemented in a targeted fashion and with purpose we can reap the benefits that both offer.