Tag Archives: back

Superman Back Row

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I hope you have all had a wonderful holiday season and I’m sure many of you have set some fitness resolutions for the new year so here is a Home Exercise of the Week to get you started.  It’s called a Superman Back Row or Superman with a Back Squeeze as the video says.

The Superman Back Row is a great core exercise that targets your lower back muscles and works your upper back muscles at the same time.

Let’s take a look at how to do this exercise properly.

  • lay face down on the floor with your arms straight ahead of you
  • raise your arms and legs off the floor as much as you can while keeping your limbs straight the whole time
  • slowly pull your elbows back until you feel a good squeeze on your shoulder blades then extend them forward again
  • it can be challenging to breath while laying on your stomach but do the best you can to breath consistently.  Exhale as your pull your elbows back and inhale as you extend them forward.
  • start with 1 to 3 sets of 10 to 15 repetitions or 1 to 3 timed sets of 10 to 30 seconds

So there you have the Superman Back Row!  A strong core is the foundation for strength and balance everywhere else so make sure to add this in to your routine in the new year!

Jackknife

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I have another core exercise for you for this weeks Home Exercise of the Week.  It’s called a Jackknife and it’s one of the more challenging ab exercises but once you get the hang of it you will feel how effective it is!

The Jackknife works all areas of your core as well as your hip flexors and at the same time it isometrically works your upper body muscles.  This exercise can put a lot of strain on your lower back if not done correctly so let’s take a look at the key points to doing it properly.

  • getting on the stability ball can be challenging so the best way is to put your hands on the floor and one leg up on the ball first then put your other leg up.  Your shins should be resting on the ball.
  • it is very important to keep your abs contracted by pulling your belly button in towards your spine.  This will help keep your hips from sagging down which will put a lot of pressure on your lower back.
  • once you have stabilized yourself, pull your knees slowly in towards your chest squeezing the abs and then return slowly to the starting position
  • if you find it hard to do this exercise with your hands on the floor, try using a bench to rest your arms on.  This raises you up a bit and can take some of the pressure off your upper body

So there you have the key points to doing the Jackknife effectively.  Add this to your routine and you will be well on your way to a strong and toned core!  If you want an extra challenge and some extra upper body work, try adding a pushup in between each roll in.  You can also do a side roll to target your obliques more but that is a video for another day! 🙂

V Up Roll Up

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It’s Friday and this Home Exercise of the Week is coming a bit late but if you’re planning a workout this weekend then try adding in this killer ab burning exercise!

The V Up Roll Up is a P90X move and I wanted to share it with all of you because it is a very effective exercise to strengthen and tone your upper and lower abdominals.

Technique is important as always but especially with this ab move.  If done properly it will destroy your abs and you’ll be cursing at me for ever asking you to try it.  If done incorrectly, it can put a lot of strain on your lower back and we don’t want that!

So let’s take a look at the key points to doing the V Up Roll Up properly.

  • lay flat with your arms straight up over your chest
  • pull your belly button in towards your spine
  • sit all the way up keeping your belly button pulled in and reach towards your toes
  • keep your head straight throughout (no tucking your chin in to your neck)
  • as you start to lay back down, raise your legs up keeping them straight until your lower back touches the floor.  There is a tendency sometimes to do the second crunch before your lower back touches the floor and this is where your lower back can become strained.  The position you want to be in before the second crunch is almost laying all the way down with just your shoulders and head off the floor.
  • keeping your legs straight at about a 45 degree angle, do the second crunch by reaching towards your toes
  • repeat and let the burning begin! 😉

So there you have the V Up Roll Up.  I thank you Tony Horton from P90X for showing this great ab exercise and although you might not thank him or me for showing you this, in the end your abs will! 🙂

Three Close Grip Pushup Superman

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This week I have a combination exercise for the Home Exercise of the Week.  Combination exercises are great to add an extra challenge to your workout and you can target many muscle groups in one move.  The more muscles being used the more calories you will burn and the higher your metabolism will be.

The combination exercise I would like you to try this week is the Three Close Grip Pushup Superman.  I say three pushups but you can definitely do more or less before the superman.  The idea here is to do enough rounds of this in a set so you get around 10 to 15 total reps of each.

With the Three Close Grip Pushup Superman you will be working your triceps and lower back muscles primarily but you will also be working your chest, shoulders, and upper back muscles.

Let’s take a look at the key points to doing this exercise properly.

  • start by doing the pushups from your knees if you find you can’t go down all the way on the pushup portion of the exercise.  You can build up to doing the pushup from your toes over time.
  • keep your abs tight and body straight the whole time (no bending at the waist)
  • throughout the pushup you will want to keep your elbows tucked in to your sides…this will allow your triceps to do most of the work
  • keep your head in line with your spine throughout
  • during the superman part of the exercise keep your arms straight out in front of you and raise them up as high off the floor as you can while at the same time lifting your straight legs up as high as you can
  • hold the superman for a second or two then go right back to your close grip pushups

So there you have the Three Close Grip Pushup Superman.  Your lower back and arms will thank you for this one but I’m fairly certain you won’t be thanking me once you add this to your routine! 😉

One Arm Plank Shoulder Circles

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It’s time to get your core and shoulders working with this Home Exercise of the Week!  In the video you’ll notice that this exercise has a really long name! (obviously at the time of filming it I couldn’t think of anything better)  So instead I have shortened it to One Arm Plank Shoulder Circles.

I’m going to be honest with you and say this exercise is hard!  That being said there are modifications to make it easier until you get stronger.

The plank part of the exercise is isometric which means the joint angle and muscle length doesn’t change during contraction.  This is really going to work your core!  The shoulder circle part of the exercise works your deltoids and in particular, your posterior deltoid and upper back muscles.

Let’s take a look at the key points to remember when doing One Arm Plank Shoulder Circles.

  • keep your feet wide to stabilize yourself during the movement
  • keep your body straight throughout (no butts sticking up!)
  • pull your belly button in towards your spine to keep your abdominal muscles flexed
  • raise one arm out to the side keeping it in line with your upper body
  • move your arm in small circles at an even, medium pace (this is going to burn!)
  • start by doing forward circles for 10 to 20 seconds or for 15 to 20 repetitions then go backwards for the same amount of time or reps
  • breath deeply and evenly throughout the exercise

As I mentioned earlier, there is a way to make the exercise easier if you are having trouble.  To do this, put your knees on the floor instead of being on your toes.  Keep in mind though that you still need to keep your body straight with this modification so no bending at the waist.

So there you have One Arm Plank Shoulder Circles!  If you have progressed to the point where this exercise is starting to get easy, try holding on to a dumbbell when doing the shoulder circles.  This will step up the intensity and maybe even cause you to utter some profanity while doing it!