Serious injury forces immediate retirement from BWF – farewell everyone after 2+ good years!

@bibbigo The Iron Cross has always been an egotistical gymnast power move. I have worked with gymnasts who have told me that that the Iron cross is NOT worth the risks and degradation of the shoulder capsule and glenohumeral joint.

That move has resulted in a high percentage of shoulder surgeries of elite level gymnasts and ring specialists.

It is not a natural movement. Most body weight fitness is safe, when we are primarily doing natural movements. Obviously it is cool and fun to push ourselves to limits previously unachievable, but you never do so without risk.

EDIT: This statement seems to have really triggered some people. It is worth emphasizing that some people may never have issues with the iron cross, especially gymnasts who have trained their entire life doing them. NONETHELESS, they are definitely 100% dangerous on the shoulder joints, and cause a breakdown in the connective tissue. MORE so than deadlifts, squats, running fast, planches etc.

Planches do not put any where near the amount of sheer tension on the shoulder joint than an Iron cross does.

Most people that frequent this subreddit are bodyweight fitness generalists, NOT specialists like gymnastic professionals. An iron cross for generalists is 100% an egotistical power move, just to say "they can do it, or hold it for x seconds". I'm standing firm by my notion that it is NOT worth the wear and tear it does to the shoulder joint.
 
@ironicall
I have worked with gymnasts who have told me that that the Iron cross is NOT worth the risks and degradation of the shoulder capsule and glenohumeral joint.
That move has resulted in a very high percentage of shoulder surgeries of elite level gymnasts and ring specialists.

I have heard this time and time again as well. What ends up happening to their shoulders? Did they explain it to you?
 
@jermyn From speaking to surgeons in sports med, the level of sheer tension this exercise puts on the bursae, ligaments and other connective tissue can cause unnatural tearing over time - or immediate life debiliating tearing immediately (in a failure, probably what happened to OP).

Cysts can form if these tears occur on the bursae, you can get complete tearing which will scar on other connective tissue. Our shoulder joints are not designed for this type of movement, and it should only ever be attempted by people who have unbelievable straight arm strength (competitive level gymnasts) and never performed often.
 
@ironicall Interesting. Thought the same thing but didn’t have the mechanism for it. Just saw how many of those high level specialist AND generalist who are more casual get injured when doing Iron Cross. I got to thinking that the movement itself might not be very safe. Or worth it. Why risk a potential lifetime injury. A Full Planche can probably give you most of the ring gains you’ll ever need with much less risk.

Thank you. I fully support your statement. This isn’t just tendinitis. It’s an injury that can require surgery and end your fitness journey for a long time AND often does. I don’t see much point where there are so many safer moves before it that will let you gain without the risk of so much pain.
 
@jermyn It is totally not worth it for gains, it's so specific it doesnt translate to much in daily life or other moves.

Training for the iron cross gets you that: an iron cross.
Some people do it to win an olimpic medal, some for a cool instagram pic

I dont think i have ever seen anyone recommend training iron cross for muscle gain as a natural progression from or to something else. It's useful for maltese, but that is another high risk element

Im 99% sure this post is an April's fools joke tough
 
@westernrose I REALLY hope this is an April Fools post. Would be sad to hear it wasn’t. But I wouldn’t be surprised if it wasn’t given how painful IC can be. Definitely not something I think is worth the risk. Especially when you can work towards something like a Full Planche and probably get more gains than you’ll ever need in life.
 
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