Page 93 - Demo

www.MOSTmag.com || MOST FITNESS || 93 After anchoring a resistance band above and slightly in front of yourself, plant feet firmly on the ground. Start the motion by hinging at the hips and pushing your glutes back while slowly allowing the resistance of the band to elevate your arms. Think about using your lats as the %u201cbrake pedal%u201d and continuously focus on squeezing them throughout the whole exercise. Once you have reached the most lengthened position (image 3), its time to use your lats as the %u201cgas pedal%u201d and contract them hard as you return to the starting position (image 1). Note: The distance between your body and where the resistance band is anchored dictates how much tension the band will create. So to intensify the exercise, simply take a step backwards first.The reason you should push your hips back (image3), is because %u201cmoving your body around the weight%u201d (which we will be doing a lot of), can manipulate the angle of the resistance band in relation to your arm. Notice that in all three images, the angle of the line of force (resistance band) and my arm is being maintained at 90 degrees while my lats are still able to lengthen and contract as I go through the motion.Being able to create constant tension in your workouts is a powerful tool that can maximize your results. Rest is for after the set is completed, not any time during the exercise. Anchor the resistance band directly in front of you and just under hip height. The most important part is to make sure your forearm is perpendicular (90 degrees) to the resistance band at all times. This is because the band is acting as the %u201cline of force.%u201d This is usually the role of gravity when performing a weighted dumbbell/barbell exercise. But when you use cables, the cable is the line of force. To create the most tension with a weight, cable, or band, you must be consistently perpendicular to it with the body part you are pulling with.To adjust the difficulty of this exercise, simply take a step back to make the band tighter. You should feel that it is challenging to keep your elbows at 90 degrees (image 1). Then, as you lead with your arms slowly pushing straight down, simultaneously bring your hips back to an extended position-standing upright. It should be even more difficult to hold this position with your arms pulling straight back and purposely squeezing your triceps as seen in (image2). Then to get back to the start position, which is also image 3, you must try to maintain the tricep contraction as you hinge at the hips and push your glutes back at the same time as you bend your arms to 90 degrees. During most workouts, we traditionally pick up a weight and move it around our body so the desired muscle contracts and lengthens. However, it can be just as beneficial to move your BODY around the %u201cweight%u201d instead, while keeping the %u201cweight%u201d static (as shown above).