MAXIM gains guru ALEXA TOWERSEY gives you the lowdown on how you can get bigger and feel better, fitter at the same time…
What’s the point of being big and strong if you’re always in pain? Nobody cares about your numbers if you throw out your back every time you sneeze. And your barrel chest isn’t very impressive if you can’t lift your arms high enough to put on deodorant.
Most of us start throwing around heavy shit because we want to look better, perform better and “feel” better. But more often than not, the feel better part gets lost somewhere between our ego and the squat rack. Sure, various bumps and bruises are inevitable, but training should enhance your quality of life, not detract from it.
Strength and muscle are the cornerstones of resilience and longevity, and the best prehab and rehab method is smart training. You can get bigger and feel better by choosing exercises that build strength and muscle while simultaneously sparing your joints and bulletproofing your body. Here are my favourite exercises that you can either add in as accessories or warmups for your current program, or as a standalone circuit for those new to weight training or with existing injuries.
GLUTE BRIDGE
For a better butt, stronger deadlift and more bedroom moves, this is one exercise that delivers on both aesthetics (say goodbye to pancake posteriors) and functionality (improves the lockout strength on your deadlift and your ability to sprint on the sports field), all while saving your spine. Even better, there’s pretty much zero impact on any other joint complex. So grab a barbell (or a booty band if you’re at home), and get your ass into gear, literally.
Top Tip: If you feel your hamstrings more than your glutes, bring the heels in closer to you and lift the toes so all the weight is on your heels. You can also pop a booty band around your thigh, just above your knee and use it as a tactile cue to engage the glutes more and avoid the knees collapsing in as you drive the weight up.
CHEST SUPPORTED ROW
By using an incline bench to essentially “support” you to get into and maintain the correct position throughout, you can’t really cheat the movement or injure yourself. It also allows you to focus only on your mid and upper back, so you’ll develop more contractile strength and a superior mind-muscle connection. Cue width across the back and shoulders and initiate with the elbows rowing back, wrists to ribs.
Top Tip: Only row to the point where you can keep your shoulders from rolling forwards and add a 1-2 sec pause and squeeze at the top of the movement where there is the most tension.
FLOOR PRESS
There’s no horizontal pressing lift with more applicability than the floor press. From beginners to advanced powerlifters, the floor press can and should be used by everyone. It’s basically a bench press minus the bench. You do it while laying on the floor, hence the clever name. Not only is this a foolproof exercise to teach proper pressing technique, it also alleviates any injury concerns with a more limited range of motion and zero momentum. Even better, as this movement forces you to “stay tight” the entire time, it’s a great way to accumulate volume under the Time UnderTension (TUT) variable. You can use a barbell, dumbbells or kettlebells.
Top Tip: Whatever equipment you’re using, make sure that the wrists stay in line with the forearms, so the weights don’t just hang off them. This is a great exercise to practice really gripping your tool of choice.
SORENSON HOLD
Think of this as a plank for your backside. You’re essentially hooking your heels into a back extension or GHD machine and extending your hips and torso forwards to maintain an isometric hold with your body parallel to the ground. Along with reverse hypers, this is one of the safest and most low impact ways to strengthen the lower back, as well as the hamstrings and glutes. If you’re at home, you can do a straight leg hip extension while lying on the floor with your heels elevated on your couch.
Top Tip: By maintaining a slight posterior pelvic tilt (tucking your hips forward and under you slightly, and maintaining the connection between your ribs and hips throughout, you’ll make sure that your rib cage isn’t flaring and your entire core is engaged to support the lower back.
DEAD BUG
Lying with your back flat on the ground and your arms and legs up towards the ceiling, you will look similar to a cockroach in its dying throes – hence the name. Not only will these hit your transverse abdominis (your deep ab muscles), they’ll also allow you to practice a neutral spine position while taking your limbs through their range of motion – pretty damn functional for everyday life. The beauty of this drill is its scalability. There are a tonne of ways you can do dead bugs, whether you’re a newbie or you want to increase the challenge with some external loading. I suggest starting with legs bent at ninety degrees, knees directly over top of hips and extending from there.
Top Tip: You only want to extend your limbs away from you to the point where you can maintain your rib hip connection (no flaring of the ribs to take the arm overhead), and your lower back’s contact with the ground (no arching as the leg extends). Think about drawing your bellybutton to the floor.
For the full article grab the July 2021 issue of MAXIM Australia from newsagents and convenience locations. Subscribe here.
