Starting standing upright with feet together, reach one foot back and perform a lunge. Hip thrusts, Glute Kickback, Back Extensions (shoulders rounded). While maintaining a slight elbow angle, pull the bar down towards your waist. While at the peak of your rep (and in the air), clap your hands together, then return them to the position and catch yourself before you descend into your next rep. From there, extend and try to reach your spine up to the ceiling as your shoulder blades separate. Top sets and Backdown (or Back off) sets are a common programming & autoregulation technique in strength training. That could be a paused high bar squat, front squat, heel elevated goblet squat, close stance leg press, or another quad-dominant squat variation). When you press into the floor to drive your body back up to the top, press as explosively as possible, lifting off the ground where possible. Set up for a squat in a high bar position (bar resting on top of your shoulders). Can also be done with a partner holding the board on your chest. We recommend a Glute Ham Raise as a great substitute, or any other hamstring curl with a slow eccentric (negative), such as slider hamstring curls. These can also be prescribed isometrically as a Banded Front Raise Hold. Start in a quadruped position on a bench holding a dumbbell in one hand. Control the speed and distance the by engaging the core. Preacher Curl; Concentration Curl; Single Arm Cable Curl; Alternating DB Curl; Hammer Curl; Barbell Curl; Single Arm Banded Curl. Keep your elbows close to the side of your head and return to start position. With this hand position, we should be aiming to keep your arms as close to the torso as possible, aiming for roughly 10-30-degrees of angle between arms and torso at the bottom to maintain more emphasis on the triceps in this variation. If you entered our challenge for prizes, dont forget to film your retest set! Keep constant tension here, and try to avoid resting the weight on your thighs at the bottom. Think about pushing the feet through the floor while squeezing your glutes and pushing your hips forward, hingeing at the hips. Starting with your arms slightly in front of you and your elbows pointed down, perform tricep pushdowns. Plank; Hanging Leg Raises; Bear Crawls; Side plank; L-sit. If you are unable to perform negative pull-ups, perform Dead Hangs for the prescribed percentage of your baseline test max Dead Hang time. Try to pick a box where your elevated leg has no more than a 90-degree angle at the knee at the deepest position. Front loaded (DB, KB, barbell) squat; Belt Squats; Leg Press or Hack Squat; Leg Extensions. Unrack the bar and lower to your chest with control (aim to tuck your elbows a little bit closer to your torso than a normal bench press) and press back up to lock out. Since this exercise is so technically demanding, the absolute load used is less important, Suitcase Walk, Side Plank variations, Turkish Getup, Half Turkish Getup. Repeat for 3-8 repetitions per side, if rep range is not prescribed. Control the descent of the bar path, and rather than lowering all the way until the bar touches your chest, pause the bar before it makes contact, about 1 inch above your chest. Begin pressing the DBs overhead for the prescribed number of repetitions, aiming to keep a vertical torso. Set up on a GHR/GHD machine with the knees slightly behind the pad and feet firmly on the platform. Heavy Carry; Suitcase Walks; Shrug Variations; Walking Lunges. Alternate by crossing your training leg over and then under your leading leg for the prescribed time, distance, or repetitions. I was so happy!. Descend back to the start position and repeat. Lift your hips off the ground, and maintain a neutral spine by tucking the ribs and squeezing the glutes and abdominals. Face a cable setup with a rope handle attached to a low pulley. Set up far enough away from the pulley so that there is tension on the cable when your arms are extended. Set up in a modified pushup position with hands and knees on the ground. Keep your body in a straight line, making sure not to raise or sink the hips. Pressing your low back into the ground, contract your abdominal muscles and crunch while bringing your hands and feet together. This can also be performed on a cable machine using a rope attachment and a low pulley position. Engage your tricep and push the weight back to straighten the arm. While facing forward the entire time, start by crossing one foot over the other while stepping explosively in that direction. Using a dip belt, add additional weight and perform strict pull-ups. Begin the rep by reaching your hips back while allowing your torso to tip forward, focusing on maintaining a strong and rigid trunk as you descend. The wider you spread your legs, the more stable your base will be. Lower the weight back to the ground with control, then repeat for the prescribed repetitions. Set up a band to a low anchor. OH Tricep Extension (DB/Band/Cable with both arms); Single Arm Cable Push Downs, Single Arm DB Skullcrushers; Single Arm DB/Band OHP. Can also be performed with a TRX or Rings. Start standing upright with a single KB in both hands, and feet roughly hip width apart. Set up in a modified pushup position with hands and knees on the ground. Do not completely lockout knees, but take note to keep legs more straight. That is one repetition repeat until youve completed the prescribed number of reps. DB Windmill, Turkish Getup, Half Turkish Getup, Russian Twist. Set up in front of a cable machine with the pulley in the lowest position, with a rope handle attached. I feel like I know what I am doing and why, and that makes me stick to the plan rather than under or over train. Stand upright with your foot pinning down a long band, holding one side of the loose end in each hand. Reverse the movement to come back to standing, making sure youre again rolling up one vertebrae at a time. When your elbows reach parallel with your torso, perform a slight pause to avoid any momentum (unless a specific pause or tempo is prescribed) and control the movement back to the starting position. Take short steps by bringing the heel towards the midline, then pushing the foot back out diagonally. Then, without rest, turn over and perform Prone Incline DB Curls for the prescribed reps (Position 2). Set up in a staggered stance, with one foots toe in line with the other heel. Do your best to maintain level shoulders and hips here there should be minimal swaying or rotational movement even as you lift one hand off the ground. Starting in a plank position with one hand on the floor, and the other on a slider, paper plate, or magazine. Grabbing the handle or loose end of the band with one hand, back away from the anchor and enter a quadruped position. Keep ribs down and glutes tucked, being sure not to get into a hyperextended spine position. Take small steps laterally on one side and complete all reps. Then switch sides. If you are uncomfortable performing a full clap in between reps, you can try a plyo push-up, or modified plyo push-up. Repeat for the prescribed reps, time, or distance. Hold your body in a straight line for max time, with your feet off the ground. In an open space, maintain an upright posture (tall torso) while mimicking your sprinting mechanics (knees driving high, arms driving forward) in a march or skip. Set up a long resistance band anchored to a low position. Bring both feet, bending the knee and hip. Hold a KB/DB overhead, in the same hand as your upright knee. Keep your body in a straight line, making sure not to raise or sink the hips. Standing upright, hold a weight plate with hands parallel (palms together, hands on either side of the plate). Allowing a little bend in the knees is good (not stiff-legged), but aim to maintain that same knee angle as you hip hinge, as opposed to actively squatting or flexing at the knees. Split squat variations; Lunge variations; Step Ups; Any other unilateral lower body movement (single leg press, single leg glute bridge, etc.). Press back up to standing by pushing your feet into the floor and your shoulders back into the bar. Repeat for the prescribed repetitions. Starting with your legs as straight as as possible, begin performing your hamstring curls by actively squeezing your hamstrings, resisting the band, and driving your heels back, without moving your upper legs at all. To scale as an easier movement, perform this on a lat pull down machine, and try to build up your strength and control and gradually push the resistance. Perform the prescribed number of reps (or to failure, if prescribed as an AMRAP). Pause at the top of the motion and return to the starting position. Set up on your knees with your hands on an ab wheel. Hold a PVC pipe, broom, or band in front of your body with arms extended straight. Can be performed bodyweight or weighted (typically with DBs or KBs). Fold at the hip so you are perpendicular to the ground (with your head near the floor) and squeeze the erectors/lower back and glutes to pull the torso up above parallel from the floor. Aim to minimize arm movement above the elbow and focus on contracting your biceps to perform your curls, rather than swinging and using momentum. Aim to keep your shins near vertical throughout the repetition to better target your glutes. Press overhead similar to a DB or BB overhead press. Pull the band directly towards your face while keeping the upper arms parallel to the floor. Lower into your start position by reaching down with your arms straight down, hinging at the hip, and bending slightly at the knee. Walk, jog, skip, bike, row, elliptical If it makes you breathe a little harder, its fair game! Further options to scale this movement (novice) would be keeping your arms on the floor during the repetition, or keeping your hands on the floor while only lifting one leg at a time. Alt 2-Up, 1-Down Leg Extension, as demonstrated in the GIF above). Continue dipping down until your shoulders are at or below your elbows, as comfortable, then press yourself back up by straightening your arms until you are back at the top. Continue pulling until your chin passes the bar. On a good day, this is a weight you might be able to hit for 2-3 repetitions when just starting out. Regular Plank (both arms); Hanging Leg Raises; Bear Crawls; Side Plank; L-Sit. Keeping your torso upright, chest tall, and elbows pointed down, squeeze the lats/armpits and lower the handle to roughly your collarbone level. Keep your back flat against the wall, then bend your legs until theyre in a 90 degree angle. Can also be performed off a deficit if specified (as demonstrated above). Tricep push-downs; Skullcrushers; OH Tricep Extension; Dips; Any other tricep exercises. Set up a long resistance band anchored to a low position, or stand on one end. Keep your hands in front of your body to support and catch yourself as you get closer to the floor. If it does not feel comfortable, no need to make contact between the bar and your chest just aim to get your upper arms parallel to the floor. Then, slowly lower your body with control, aiming for ~3 seconds to return to the bottom (if no tempo is explicitly prescribed). 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