If you’re a recreational — or competitive — weightlifter, you probably have a need for speed. The ability to fly under a heavy bar is absolutely essential to performing well in the Olympic ... Continue Reading
Active Stretches Explained — Science-Backed Selections for Optimal Recovery & Performance
Stretching seems to frequently fall in and out of favor in the fitness world. Much of the discourse surrounding stretching as a viable — or wasteful, depending on who you ask — practice comes from ... Continue Reading
The 8 Best Plyo Box Exercises for Conditioning and Strength Gains
If you’re looking for a way to spice up your training with a variety of different movements that will leave you hands-on-your-knees tired while still developing some serious power and strength, look no ... Continue Reading
How to Do Burpees: Proper Form & Benefits (CPT-Approved)
Originally called the “squat thrust,” the modern burpee was utilized as early as World War II as a method of determining the fitness levels of enlisted troops. If you’ve ever seen burpees performed in a ... Continue Reading
Build a Seriously Strong Posterior Chain With the Good Morning
The name tells you absolutely nothing about the exercise, but lifters laud the good morning for its ability to increase hamstring and glute strength, teach proper hip hinge mechanics, and help you to add ... Continue Reading
7 Lateral — Yes, Lateral — Exercises Powerlifters Should Be Doing
If your feet have ever shifted during a squat or you can’t find a solid foot position to drive your legs during the bench press, you already know how important lateral stability is to the sport of ... Continue Reading
The Snatch-Grip Deadlift Is an Underrated Strength-Building Exercise
The snatch-grip deadlift is a fantastic posterior chain dominant movement that possesses benefits for every type of athlete. Oftentimes, this exercise gets written off for only weightlifters, but every ... Continue Reading
The Best Core Exercises With a Stability Ball
There isn’t a shortage of tools to train the core. They range from the great — TRX, ab wheel, resistance bands, kettlebells — to the ab crunch machine. Some lifters argue compound exercises like squats, ... Continue Reading
Become a High-Rep Pull-Up Master With the Kipping Pull-Up
A kipping pull-up isn't cheating. Nor is it a traditional pull-up. This momentum-happy pull-up variation is popular among CrossFitters who need to bang out hundreds of reps. The lifter athletes fling their ... Continue Reading
How to Do the Cossack Squat — a Challenging But Rewarding Exercise
The Cossack squat is a single-leg squat variation that develops mobility, flexibility, and strength in the frontal plane. Cossack squats can benefit beginners and advanced lifters, but they are challenging ... Continue Reading
Become a High-Rep Pull-Up Master With Kipping Pull-Ups
A kipping pull-up isn't cheating. Nor is it a traditional pull-up. This momentum-happy pull-up variation is popular among CrossFitters who need to bang out hundreds of reps. The lifter athletes fling their ... Continue Reading
Everything You Need to Know About Hoisting Atlas Stones
Before there were weight plates and dumbbells, there were stones. Stone lifting is a universal feat of strength recognized by people everywhere. Scotland is home to the famed Dinnie stones. Iceland ... Continue Reading
The Hip Hinge Will Make Or Break Your Big Lifts. Here’s How to Do it
The hip hinge is more than an exercise. It’s a fundamental movement necessary for success in the deadlift, Olympic lifts, and more. Lifters can unlock their strength potential and protect themselves from ... Continue Reading
The Wall Ball is the Cardio Booster Your Workouts Are Missing
Most of us know all too well the feeling of the burning lungs, weak, flaccid arms, and legs that are on the verge of buckling. We're talking about wall balls — the dynamic squat and press exercise that ... Continue Reading
Simple Yet Effective — Here’s How to Do the Plank
Few exercises are as basic yet effective as the plank. To the untrained eye, a plank is a lazy person's exercise. Heck, you're not even standing up. But experienced gym-goers, or even someone who has tried ... Continue Reading
How the Reverse Hyperextension Builds a Bulletproof Posterior Chain
Your lower back, glutes, and hamstrings are the foundation of your body. Though each muscle serves a function on its own, combined, this trio makes up a decent portion of your core and supports your spine. ... Continue Reading
How Plyometric Push-Ups Can Improve Pressing Strength
Push-ups have been around for ages and are a widely embraced movement used to test upper body strength and fitness. Plyometric training has some amazing benefits — more power and strength — yet only with ... Continue Reading
The Glute-Ham Raise is a Functional Hamstring Builder
The glute-ham raise is an effective posterior chain exercise to develop strength, hypertrophy, and muscular endurance in the hamstrings, glutes, and lower back. Power, strength, and fitness athletes all ... Continue Reading
How to Do the Inverted Row — Variations, Alternatives, Sets and Reps Explained
The pull-up gets a lot of credit for being the ultimate back-building exercise. We’re not going to dispute that claim. But if you’re the type of lifter to shrug off inverted rows as a weakling’s pull-up — ... Continue Reading
The Split Squat Can Improve Mobility and Leg Strength
If the back squat is the cool guy everyone wants to hang out with, then the split squat is his older, less cool but more practical older brother. You can't lift as heavy with the split squat, but you'll ... Continue Reading
How to Do Dips: Proper Form & Variations
If you want to develop serious upper body strength, drive muscle growth, and improve your lockout performance in the bench press, there is one lift to rule them all — the dip. This is a simple movement ... Continue Reading
Get Strong and Bust Through Sticking Points With the Half Squat
Half squats are thought to be a gym sin carried out by either weak or lazy squatters that can't or don't want to hit depth. Full-depth squats are indeed ideal for building leg muscle, improving squat ... Continue Reading
Build Big Traps and Strengthen Your Lifts With Shrugs
Well-developed traps don’t only make you look jacked. They also play a crucial role in deadlifting, squatting, carrying, and in the Olympic lifts. The shrug is an excellent exercise for building the traps. ... Continue Reading
Do the Suitcase Deadlift For a Strong Grip and More Muscle
The suitcase deadlift — where you perform a deadlift with one side of your body loaded — is more useful than you may think. First, think about how often you carry something in one hand, be it a bag of ... Continue Reading