Elitefts™ Education Director Mark Watts explains three variations of the Glute-Ham Raise while Nick Showman, owner of Showtime Strength & Performance demonstrates.  These three variations using the elitefts™ Deluxe GHR all overload the eccentric contraction of the lift by either changing the center of gravity (COG) of of the lifter, adding an external load during the eccentric portion of the lift, or both.

The benefit of overloading the eccentric contraction during this movement is NOT the fact that it can replicate the same sequence of muscle activation during deceleration, landing, and squatting.  But eccentric overload can increase the muscle activation within the same time-under-tension, thus increasing the muscular tension by "loading"the posterior chain musculature.

Three Variations Used in this Video:

For the sake of instruction, there is a pause between the eccentric and concentric contractions.  This is not necessary.

  1. Body-weight w/ change in COG. Perform the eccentric portion of the lift with the hands behind or over the head.  Before reversing momentum during the concentric portion, place the hands at chest level or to the sides of the body.
  2. Med Ball Release.  Perform the eccentric portion of the lift while holding the med ball at the chest level.  Drop the med ball at the bottom of the movement and return to the starting position without the med ball.  Hand the lifter back the med ball at the top of the movement for the next repetition.
  3. Med Ball Change in COG. Perform the eccentric portion of the lift while holding the med ball behind or over the head. Before reversing momentum during the concentric portion, place the ball at chest level.

The Glute-Ham Raise is one of the most beneficial movements athletes and lifters to enhance performance and reduce the chance of injury. Some of the benefits of the Glute-Ham Raise include but are not limited too:

Enhancement in Linear Speed.
The Glute-Ham Raise exercise activated the posterior chain muscular in a similar firing pattern at sprinting and jumping
Vertical Jump Improvement.
Because the Glute-Ham Raise is a Closed-Chain movement, it develops the ability of the athlete to produce force into the ground when doing so against the foot plate of the GHR.
Reduction in Non-Contact Lower Extremity Injuries.
The Glute-Ham Raise is one of the most efficient movements to address muscular imbalances between the posterior chain with the quads and hip flexors.  Minimizing this imbalance can reduce the chance of hamstring strains and knee injuries.
Improvement in Squat Variations and Pulls.
Increasing the strength of the glutes and hamstrings can allow the lifter to compensate less and assist in maintaining proper posture and movement patterns.

General Tips for the Performing the Glute-Ham Raise

The Set-Up

  1. You should feel like your knees are falling through the front pad, This will ensure the best range of motion and avoid any undue pressure on the knee.
  2. Your entire foot should be against the back plate. This is crucial to proper execution of the movement. Your shin should be resting on the bottom leg piece. There is no need to contact the top piece with your calf.
  3. The back leg adjustment should be as low as possible to start with. Raising the back apparatus will make the exercise more difficult, but it can also alleviate quad pain if needed.

The Movement

  1. With the Eccentric portion, concentrate on leading with your hips on the way down until your knees are locked. You should never bend at the waist at any point
  2. Do not perform a back rise and GHR combo. The momentum plus the tendency of extending the back to initiate the movement defeats the purpose of the lift.
  3. During the concentric portion, tuck your chin (to avoid leading with hyper-extension), snap your head back and push your toes against the back plate. If you are set up correctly, your ankle will be close to (not exactly) a dorsi-flexed position. This movement if done correctly activates a similar firing sequence of motor units as sprinting.

Variations
There are a few variation you can do in increase the difficulty of the lift without adding resistance. Here are some ideas.

  1. Pause GHRs (pause at bottom)
  2. Segmented (pause halfway up and down)
  3. Tempo (especially on eccentric)
  4. 1 & 1/2 reps (full rep then halfway down)
  5. Overload eccentrics (change COD by hand placement

deluxe-glute-ham-400Elitefts™ Deluxe Glute-Ham Raise

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