Valentin Bosioc
Front squat
How to:
- Stand with the bar across your shoulders, resting on your fingertips as shown. It’s a light grip, but don’t even think about dropping the bar.
- Now place all your weight through your heels as you bend your knees and push your hips back – sink as low as you can, but keep your back straight.
- Push through the heels to drive back up.
Romanian deadlift
How to:
- Stand tall with the bar at your waist and a slight bend in your knees.
- Now shift your hips back and let the bar slide down your legs. Stop when your hamstrings tighten.
READ ALL ABOUT: THE ROMANIAN DEADLIFT
- Keep your back neutral.
- Drive your hips forward and squeeze your glutes to stand back up.
Snatch grip deadlift
How to:
- With your feet hip-width and shins touching the bar, bend down to grab it.
- Your index fingers should rest on the outer ring of the knurling.
- Pull your hips down and raise your chest.
- Take a deep breath to stabilise your lower back, then drive up, thrusting your hips.
- Straighten your knees, then slide the bar back down the front of your legs to the start position.
Side lunge
How to:
- Stand with the bar across your upper back, pulling it tightly into your traps.
- Step one leg out; let the heel of the opposite leg take your weight.
- Push your hips down, keeping the trail leg straight and foot flat.
- Drive through the heel of your bent leg to stand back up.
- Repeat on the other side.
Pull over
How to:
- Lie on a flat bench with a good base (in the same position as for the California press) and hold the bar above your chest with a slight bend in your elbows.
- Keep your arms in that position, then lower the weight in an arc over and behind your head.
- When you feel a stretch in your pecs, bring the bar back up.
Good mornings
How to:
- Hold the bar across the back of your shoulders, then lean forward and push your hips back as far as possible.
- When your hams start to tighten, push your hips straight forward and bring your chest up as you straighten.
High pull
How to:
- Start the same as the power clean, generating momentum from your knees, hips and shoulders to drag the bar up from the floor close to your body.
- But instead of catching, keep pulling it up, flexing your elbows to shrug the bar up to your chin like an upright row.
- Lower it quickly – going slowly will only hurt.
- One for the impatient.
Reverse curl
How to:
- Hold the barbell at shoulder width with an overhand ‘motorbike’ grip.
- Keeping your wrists still, use your biceps to curl the bar up; squeeze the muscles for a second at the top.
SEE ALSO: What’s BEST: Preacher curls VS Incline Curls
- Slowly lower the weight back down, always keeping your elbows tucked in.
Cuban press
How to:
- Hold the barbell at your waist, slightly wider than normal with an overhand grip.
- First, row it up to your belly button.
- Then rotate the bar to your forehead, palms facing forward.
- Press the bar above your head.
- Reverse the movement to bring the bar back to the start position.
Weighted hip extension
How to:
- Sit with your knees bent and upper back resting on a bench behind you.
- Roll the bar on to the top of your hips and hold it in place.
- Now push your feet down, lifting your hips up until your upper body is fully supported by the bench.
- Squeeze at the top for a second and slowly lower back down to the floor.
Meadows row
How to:
- Place the end of the barbell in a corner, or the base of a bench, and stand at the front end of the bar at a right angle.
- With an overhand grip, row it to your armpit.
- Squeeze your shoulder at the top of the movement, then lower the weight back down until you feel a stretch.
Javelin Press
How to:
- Hold the barbell at shoulder height length ways, as if it was a javelin, with your elbow underneath your wrist.
- Don’t actually throw it.
- Keep your grip tight and drive the bar up until your bicep is next to your ear.
- Try to stop the bar wobbling, then lower it back to the start.
Perfect curl
