In order to avoid a sticking point in, say lateral raises for the shoulders, you can make this tiny bend on your knees, sort of "jumping" up the dumbbells through the critical point during the last few sets. The first question to ask is: Do I put excess stress on some joint when doing this? Am I putting the majority of the workload onto some other muscle? Am I in some kind of bottom-position (as in a fully stretched-out joint)? Am I "bouncing" the weight (as in at the bottom of a squat or bouncing a barbell on your chest when benching)?
If the answer is "Yes" to any of these questions, forget cheating or find some other way to cheat during that particular movement. In my example, I found the lateral raises to be all "No's" on the checklist, which is why I think it's safe to use controlled cheating. Once again, you have to make sure that your ego doesn't make this an excuse to start cheating from the first rep - to impress the girl next to you in the gym or whatever it may think is vital for your survival. The ego is like fire - it's a good servant but a bad master.
Easy summary:
OK: Using momentum, when not in a bottom-position.
NOT OK: Involving other muscles, "bouncing".
You should also keep in mind that cheating in the positive phase, when you flex your muscles, you have absolutely zero reason to cheat on the way back down during the negative.
Why? Simply because you're about 40% stronger when going negative! Next week we'll go into detail about the pros and cons of positive/negative training, and what tricks YOU can use to boost your 1RM (1 rep maximum) in several basic strength movements in a short time!
And hey... Don't forget to give this article a rating. It's just one click, takes a second, but gives me plenty of feedback. :-)
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