That get your attention?
Good.
Sadly, these 3 exercises are not bullshit.
They should be a part of your program and I’ll tell you why.
First I’ll tell you what they are.
Wait, let me rant a little.
There are literally thousands of great exercises you should do, as a Powerlifter we often get pigeonholed into certain ones or certain types.
You know, we usually do the standard Squat, Bench and Deadlift plus a few variations and generally barbell or dumbbell based assistance work.
Back in the day there was little or no warmup and we didn’t even know what mobility work was.
Would we have been better lifters by adding what we know now in and if not better, at least would we have had more longevity?
I am willing to bet the answer is 100% yes.
Here are a few exercises I think should be a part of your program for various reasons.
You pick and choose what to add.
In no particular order:
Turkish Get Up:
Outstanding exercise for overall strength in the body and when done certain ways, they greatly improve mobility and stability in the shoulder, hip, ankle and torso.
There are about a zillion ways to do them, but I prefer the way we coach it as seen in the video below.
When done with static pauses at each segment of the movement you restore mobility to your joints that require mobility and you add stability to the ones that need stability.
Remember, some joints are mobile, some are stable.
Don’t laugh, these are hard and effective.
Try them as a self-assessment. See where you have restrictions on the movement and add in soft tissue work or mobility drills to improve. You can also just work slowly at them and use them as your mobility work, great as a warmup exercise.
Planks:
I hear all the time that Planks are useless and that you can hold one for 3 minutes. I call shenanigans.
Watch the video below and then try them. Set up your phone’s camera and film yourself.
Make sure you are doing them as shown in the video.
Bethca’ can’t hold for more than 15-20 seconds the first time.
Think about your lifting…..
You need to hold your body still and brace as hard as you can in the 3 lifts. A Plank is you holding your body still and bracing.
I am a huge fan of adding in Active Planks. I am pretty sure I made that term up but who knows.
What is an Active Plank?
Pushups, Blast Strap Pullups, and all kinds of work on a TRX are Active Planks.
You need to be holding your body still and tight while doing them right?
Straight Arm Pullovers:
Top shelf lat assistance exercise and it’s also a great teaching tool for lat recruitment in the Deadlift and on the Bench Press.
I like to use these as a warm up on the Deadlift to get the lats firing. We do 3 or 4 sets of them for 5-10 reps before we pull.
It really seems to get the lats doing their job fast.
On the Bench Press, this is one of my favorite exercises to teach the lifter to engage the lats at the handoff and set them before the press.
Start at the top, pull your shoulder blades together and then down.
You all have heard my cues I hope?
Drag it, shorten it…..
On the handoff we need to drag the bar out into position with our lats and then let it settle into them before we initiate the press (shorten it).
The straight arm pullover is possibly the best exercise to teach this. It also gets you some extra lat work.
They can also be done as a standalone accessory exercise.
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Vincere vel mori
