Stand with feet hip width apart holding a kettlebell by the side of the bullhorns, keep your grip tight. Place the bottom of the kettlebell on your stomach and imagine breaking the bell in half at the handles, this will allow your lats to engage. With a slight bend in your knees, your back straight and your core braced, start to take your hips back as though they were on a train track. Do not sit down into a squat, as you move the hips back you should feel some tension in your hamstrings.

Description

Stand with feet hip width apart holding a kettlebell by the side of the bullhorns, keep your grip tight. Place the bottom of the kettlebell on your stomach and imagine breaking the bell in half at the handles, this will allow your lats to engage. With a slight bend in your knees, your back straight and your core braced, start to take your hips back as though they were on a train track. Do not sit down into a squat, as you move the hips back you should feel some tension in your hamstrings.

Purpose

One of the most popular exercises out there is the kettlebell swing, but it is also one of the more technical exercises. A common mistake is to assume that the kettlebell swing is a squat when in fact it is a hinge at the hips. This drill allows you to understand the movement of the hip hinge without having the ballistic movement of the kettlebell swinging.

Working with foundational movements like this is key to keeping your body in the correct form and building up strength and durability to be able to perform the kettlebell swing correctly.

The exercise should be performed under tension to ensure that the lower back is constantly supported, the glutes are the main driving force during the exercise to make sure that you squeeze them at the top of the movement.

Recommendation

Perform with a moderate weight kettlebell executing 10 to 12 reps.

The post Kettlebell Hip Hinge Drill appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Renegade rows are deceptive. They kind of look like a plank with a simple weight pull. Simple in so far as it doesn’t seem technically challenging. And you’re probably right, you don’t need a lot of technical expertise to perform renegades effectively. However, they expose shortcomings in strength and stability and they’re extremely challenging.

Benefits of Renegade Rows

• Training anti-extension – avoiding overextension in power movements such as bending your core in a heavy a lift
• Training anti-rotation – preventing your core from rotating which, ironically, is important in developing rotational power like swinging a bat
• Stabilizing through strength – works the complete core, the trunk musculature so, it’s core stabilization but in a total sense
• Scapular stability

Let’s concentrate on that last point here because once you try this exercise you’re not going to have a problem feeling the impact on your lats, sensing the tension in the musculature of your trunk and realizing the stabilization forces that come into play.

When it comes to scapular stability we have to think about how we perceive the shoulder and it’s relationship to the scapula. Looking at the diagram below, you’ll notice that the muscles around the scapulae are much larger than those around the rotator cuff. The stability of your shoulder comes from these muscles so, you don’t want weakness and immobility here.

Train for Balance

Here’s how to fit the get up, and it’s its counter the renegade row, into your training:

Men’s Weights:

• Beginner: 10% of your bodyweight for 5 reps per arm
• Intermediate: 20% of your bodyweight for 5 reps per arm
• Advanced: 30% of your bodyweight for 5 reps per arm
• Beast: 40% of your bodyweight for 5 reps per arm

Women’s Weights:

• Beginner: 5% of your bodyweight for 5 reps per arm
• Intermediate: 10% of your bodyweight for 5 reps per arm
• Advanced: 15% of your bodyweight for 5 reps per arm
• Amazonian Goddess: 25% of your bodyweight for 5 reps per arm

Your body should feel stronger and more stable after adding renegade rows to your daily routine. You can include it as part of your warm-up or as an integral routine in your strength and conditioning program. The effect on your trunk musculature and scapular region should be noticeable over a short space of time. The carryover into more functional movements should help create greater opportunities for you to evolve in your practice. We have highlighted the dumbbell variation here, but you can also check out kettlebell renegade rows here. For a full set of dumbbell workouts try 12-Week Moster DB plan.

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Place the kettlebell slightly in front of your body. As you look down at your feet, which are hip width apart, the kettlebell should form an equilateral triangle.  Set-up your hip hinge by slightly bending your knees, keeping your shins 90 degrees from the floor, your back straight and your core braced. Grip the handle tightly and imagine breaking the handle in half to create engagement of the lats, tipping the kettlebell forward. You are going to stay in this bottom position so that your quads and glutes only move in a slight bouncing motion. Imagine tapping the bell down behind you on the floor and then bring it back to the start position. You have the option of making this a continuous motion back and forth, or adding a slight pause at the start of each rep as demonstrated on my last rep in this video.

Purpose

With the kettlebell hip hinge, deadlift and clean we are prepping the body ready to start kettlebell swings. The kettlebell low swing is the next stage and is a hard as nails exercise that sees you mainly in isometric contraction so your thighs and glutes will burn.  Bracing the core and engaging the lats will make this exercise more tolerable and help you build up some muscles endurance (time under tension).

I have a preference to doing this movement with a heavy kettlebell because you are using big muscle groups to power this movement so your body can handle it. This is a great exercise to compliment a kettlebell swing progression program or even as a finisher at the end of your workout.

Remember, as usual, form is key. At no stage should you have any pain in your lower back, if you do, then ensure that you are bracing your core and not rounding out through your back.

Recommendation

Perform with a relatively heavy kettlebell for up to 1 minute. If using this as a finisher then perform 4 sets of 30 secs work:30 secs rest.

The post Kettlebell Low Swing appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Begin by placing 2 cones 6 to 8 feet apart just like the 2 cone drill previously listed. In addition to the 2 cones place a third cone about 6 to 8 feet out in front of the middle of the 2 cones creating a triangle among the cones.

Begin the drill the same way as the 2 cone drill. Stand with one leg lined up on one cone. Flex the hip and knee and forcefully jump to the side towards the opposite cone. Land by flexing the hip and knee of the opposite leg once you complete the landing to absorb it.

Once in this position the landing leg is loaded and ready to explode jumping off of that leg forward towards the third cone that is out in front. Jump off of the single leg and land on both feet once again absorbing the landing. Remember that with this drill the landing is more important than the takeoff.

Recommendation

Each repetition is counted once a jump is performed off of each leg at the start. For instance, if start my first jump coming off of the left leg and jumping to my right and then forward that is a half repetition. Once I complete the jump off of the right leg, then to the left, and then forward I’ve completed a single repetition.

Perform the jumps by alternating jumping off each leg. I would perform 3 to 7 repetitions for 3 to 4 sets on my agility and plyometric days. This is an intermediate to advanced drill so ONLY perform if you’re proficient at other basic plyometric training involving skipping, bounding, and jumping off of both legs.

Purpose

This drill is designed to test us in the act of having to immediately change direction. It does so by forcing us to react and to reorient body out of the frontal plane of motion while immediately transitioning into the sagittal plane of motion. This is essential in sports and life where varying situations demand that we create stability and a sort of “controlled reaction” with our bodies in unstable situations.

For athletes looking to develop explosiveness off of one leg (which is essential in all sports), to enhance quick change of direction, and to be able to acquire greater leg power for sprinting, jumping, throwing, punching, kicking, and anything that requires driving off of one leg this is essential.

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Start out by setting up 2 cones that are about 5 to 7 feet apart in distance. Part of this distance will be determined by the trainee having a good understanding of their own abilities as this drill should ONLY be performed if an individual trainee is proficient with performing some moderate to intense plyometric bounding. This drill is NOT recommended for a novice.

If we start out as the video demonstrates stand with the left leg lined up on the cone. Get a solid footing with the left foot on the ground, hinge the hip, bend the knee, and jump in order to propel your body towards the cone on your right.

As you jump drive your momentum, BUT the key is being able to land and to land softly absorbing the impact with your right leg by hinging the right hip and bending the right knee to land softly. Pretend you’re landing on a glass surface to achieve a soft landing. Do this while maintaining a good footing with your right foot.

As soon as you absorb the landing with your right leg you’re right leg is primed and loaded to execute an immediate jump right back into the opposite direction. Repeat this process jumping back and forth between each cone for the desired number of repetitions.

Purpose

When training to hone athletic skills such as throwing, becoming quicker on being able to change direction on the gridiron, for the act of skating faster, or to develop serious leg power for any need that arises the 2 cone lateral bound, or Heiden jumps are a great way to do just that.

Simple in structure, but challenging in execution Heiden jumps focus on loading the hip and posterior chain on one leg at a time. As shown in the video the drill is performed in the frontal plane of motion forcing us to load the grounded leg as we take a big leap to the opposite side landing on the other leg.

The post 2 Cone Lateral Bounding (aka Heiden Jumps) appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Lie on your back and pull one knee up while keeping the opposite leg straight and your foot lifted 3 to 6 inches off the ground. Position and pinch a soft medicine ball between the elbow and the bent knee on the same side of your body. Brace your stomach and pull the extended leg back and forth for the desired number of reps with control and stability.

Purpose

A common issue with many people performing lying core drills is to compensate at the lumbar due to having too much of an anterior pelvic tilt. In simple terms this means it causes many to “arch” too much in their low back causing discomfort during movements with the legs being extended away from the body.

With the addition of the medicine ball here in this drill it forces a trainee to push their low back firmly into the ground eliminating space between their low back and the ground. The stress is placed on the midsection to stabilize the movement instead of compensating at the low back which may cause discomfort.

Additionally this technique also demands greater control and focus from a trainee allowing them to perform the movement with greater intention for better results. It’s also a great supplemental exercise for enhancing the acts of sprinting, jumping, and kicking.

Recommendation

Perform with a soft 10-20 lb. medicine ball executing 10 to 20 reps on each side for 3 sets.

The post Lying Single Leg Bicycle Kick (With Medicine Ball) appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

To mobilize the T-spine prior to more intense movement involving lifting, throwing, and even running such as intense sprint work.

Recommendations

Perform 2 sets of 6-10 reps on on each arm with controlled movement. Stress optimal movement and keep the shoulders square while performing each circle with the arm that’s lightly grazing the wall.

The post T-Spine Circular Wall Drill appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Stand with the feet shoulder width directly over the medicine ball. Pick up the ball cupping the medicine ball more at an angle underneath the sphere rather than directly on the sides of the ball.

From here hinge the hips back dropping the ball between the knees into a squat position. Once at the base of the squat immediately explode out of the squat by gaining triple extension of the ankles, knees, and hips as you granny toss the medicine ball directly overhead in an arching pattern. The objective is to send the ball in a pattern of achieving both height and distance in the throw. If you jump off the ground ascending upward that is to be expected.

Once the throw is complete turn and run (or jog depending on what level of work capacity you want to stress) to chase the ball in order to perform a subsequent throw bringing the ball back to the starting point.

This is a more idiot proof drill that is great for coaching and helping a trainee to achieve triple extension of the joints (ankles, knees, hips) for the purpose of jumping and overall athletic performance.

Recommendation

Use a 10-20 lb. soft durable medicine ball and perform 3 sets of 4-7 reps. Intensity can be varied with either the weight of the ball or the tempo at which each set is performed.

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