10 Strange, Awesome Exercises You Should Start Doing
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Get Weird with Your Weights
No one wants to look like a fool in the gym. But what if those weird-looking exercises actually did something? And what if the moves that made others laugh were in fact, some of the best exercises to develop massive strength, solid movement patterns, and ripped abs?So get weird in the gym with some exercies to build serious mass — don’t knock them until you try them. They’ll acutally help you on your fitness journey for that bulletproof body.
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Barbell Hip Thrust
Have you forgotten what a hip thrust looks like? The barbell hip thrust is the best exercise to build strong, powerful glutes — it’s known as the glute activator. And by targeting your backside, you’ll see a carry over on other lower-body strength exercises like squats and deadlifts. These are also perfect for people with back pain and knee pain, but still want legs like tree trunks.
How to do it:
With your shoulders on a bench and a barbell on your hips, lower and drive your hips to full extension. Push through your heels and squeeze your glutes once at the top. For your protection, place the barbell on a thick pad.
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Bear Crawl
Full disclosure: you may be laughed at while doing this exercise at the gym. But really, the joke is on whoever is laughing at you — everyone should do a bear crawl.Crawling exercises combine all fitness aspects: strength, endurance, flexibility, stability, and mobility. Also, by getting on all fours, you’ll link your entire body from hands to feet — developing the stability and neural drive to boost your overall strength and power.
How to do it:
Get on all fours, with your hands under your shoulders and your knees under your hips; keep your knees an inch above the ground. Crawl forward by taking a small step with your right arm and left leg at the same time, and alternate. Keep your hips low and your head up.
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Skater Squat
Although it may look like a ballet move, the skater squat is a fantastic single-leg exercise that blasts your quads and develops lower-body stability. Instead of adding extra weight to make it more challenging, simply increase the range of motion.
How to do it:
Start from a standing postion and bend one foot behind you. Then, squat down while trying to touch your bent knee onto the ground behind you. Lean your torso, and reach your arms forward as you descend. If you can’t reach the ground with your knee, just go as low as you can.
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Alligator Drags
Alligator drags — something an infant would do, but give it a shot and don’t be shocked if your core is crazy sore the next day. It forces you to brace your abs hard as you dynamically move your upper-body.
How to do it:
Place both feet on a slideboard or on separate Valslides. Get into a push-up position with your glutes squeezed and core tight. While keeping your arms straight, march forward with your arms while dragging your legs behind you. Keep your legs straight.
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Bottoms-Up Kettlebell Press
Although this exercise looks more like something a street performer would do, the bottoms-up press builds your strength, coordination, and ability to fire your muscles in a correct sequence. As long as the kettlebell stays above the handle, you’re doing it right.
How to do it:
Start with one kettlebell in the “rack position,” with the large part of the kettlebell above the handle. Keep your chest up, pull your shoulders back, and crush your armpits. Keep your wrists straight, tense your body, squeeze your glutes, and drive the kettlebell directly overhead. Focus on pushing your body into the ground, rather than the kettlebell away from you.
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Hard Rolls
You may have never seen a hard roll, and if you havne’t, then you’re missing out. It’s one of the best core exercises in existence. Hard rolls work by mimicking an essential developmental pattern when you were a baby — training you to fire the core in a proper sequence.
How to do it:
On your back, lie on the ground with both arms overhead and legs straight out. Pinch a half-roller or ball in front of your chest with your left knee and your right elbow, and keep it there the entire time. Now, turn your head toward your left armpit, and use your head to “pull” the rest of your body until it falls onto the left side. Then, turn your head toward the right and pull your body back to the starting position. Keep your arms and legs relaxed; it’s your core that should do all the work. Do a few reps, then switch sides.
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SLBR
The supine lying ball roll or “SLBR” — pronounced “slobber” — targets your abs and trains your midsection to resist twisting and bending, which keeps your spine safe. Not only is the name strange, but so are the movements; it looks like you’re doing a balancing act on a stability ball. If you can bolster up the confidence to try this move, you’ll unlock a unique way of activating your core to build a six-pack.
How to do it:
Lie on stability ball and hold a dowel over your chest. Roll side-to-side on top of the stability ball, and go as far as you can without falling.
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Push-Pull
What’s the best kept fitness secret? It’s the push-pull. If you want a strong and sexy core, then do this move. In this exericse, your spine stays neutral while your abs and obliques work hard to stabilize your body and moves your arms. Just ignore all the curious stares from other gym-goers who are wondering why you’re pushing and pulling at the same time.
How to do it:
On a cable-crossover machine, set the cable handles to chest height and grab both of the handles while standing in the middle. Stand facing one handle with your arm holding it behind you by your side. Have your other arm holding the other handle, extending fully forward. Keep your shoulders and torso still — pushing and pulling the handles at the same time.
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Zercher Squat
The barbell squat is the bread-and-butter of a great exercise program. You may be used to seeing someone have a barbell resting on the shoulders (front squat) or behind the neck (back squat), but I’m sure you’ve never seen a barbell resting in someone’s elbows. The elbow-resting squat is called the Zercher squat, and it’s one of the best moves to build strong legs and abs. When you hold the weight in front of your bdoy, your core fires likes crazy as you stay rigid and resist collapsing forward.
How to do it:
Start with a barbell in the crook of your elbows, and hands held together by your chest. Stand shoulder-width apart with your toes slightly pointed out. Squat down by sitting back, bending your knees, and keeping your weight on your heels. Once your hips are below parallel, drive through your heels and rise. Keep your lower back flat, and your shoulder blades squeezed together throughout.
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Pull-Through
The pull-through could be the oddest-looking exercise in existence, but you should still do it. If you can get past being embarrased, it’s one of the best exercises to strengthen your hips and develop a clean hip-hinge pattern, which is necessary for a good deadlift. It’s also a great lower-body move for guys with knee pain because it minimizes the bend at your knees.
How to do it:
Face away from a cable machine, set the height to the lowest setting, and grab the ends of the cable-rope attachment between your legs. While maintaining a neutral back and straight elbows, start with your torso almost parallel to the ground with a slightl knee bend. Extend your hips and stand tall.
No one wants to look like a fool in the gym. But what if those weird-looking exercises actually did something? And what if the moves that made others laugh were in fact, some of the best exercises to develop massive strength, solid movement patterns, and ripped abs?
So get weird in the gym with some exercies to build serious mass — don’t knock them until you try them. They’ll acutally help you on your fitness journey for that bulletproof body.
Barbell Hip Thrust
Have you forgotten what a hip thrust looks like? The barbell hip thrust is the best exercise to build strong, powerful glutes — it’s known as the glute activator. And by targeting your backside, you’ll see a carry over on other lower-body strength exercises like squats and deadlifts. These are also perfect for people with back pain and knee pain, but still want legs like tree trunks.
How to do it:
With your shoulders on a bench and a barbell on your hips, lower and drive your hips to full extension. Push through your heels and squeeze your glutes once at the top. For your protection, place the barbell on a thick pad.
Bear Crawl
Full disclosure: you may be laughed at while doing this exercise at the gym. But really, the joke is on whoever is laughing at you — everyone should do a bear crawl.
Crawling exercises combine all fitness aspects: strength, endurance, flexibility, stability, and mobility. Also, by getting on all fours, you’ll link your entire body from hands to feet — developing the stability and neural drive to boost your overall strength and power.
How to do it:
Get on all fours, with your hands under your shoulders and your knees under your hips; keep your knees an inch above the ground. Crawl forward by taking a small step with your right arm and left leg at the same time, and alternate. Keep your hips low and your head up.
Skater Squat
Although it may look like a ballet move, the skater squat is a fantastic single-leg exercise that blasts your quads and develops lower-body stability. Instead of adding extra weight to make it more challenging, simply increase the range of motion.
How to do it:
Start from a standing postion and bend one foot behind you. Then, squat down while trying to touch your bent knee onto the ground behind you. Lean your torso, and reach your arms forward as you descend. If you can’t reach the ground with your knee, just go as low as you can.
Alligator Drags
Alligator drags — something an infant would do, but give it a shot and don’t be shocked if your core is crazy sore the next day. It forces you to brace your abs hard as you dynamically move your upper-body.
How to do it:
Place both feet on a slideboard or on separate Valslides. Get into a push-up position with your glutes squeezed and core tight. While keeping your arms straight, march forward with your arms while dragging your legs behind you. Keep your legs straight.
Bottoms-Up Kettlebell Press
Although this exercise looks more like something a street performer would do, the bottoms-up press builds your strength, coordination, and ability to fire your muscles in a correct sequence. As long as the kettlebell stays above the handle, you’re doing it right.
How to do it:
Start with one kettlebell in the “rack position,” with the large part of the kettlebell above the handle. Keep your chest up, pull your shoulders back, and crush your armpits. Keep your wrists straight, tense your body, squeeze your glutes, and drive the kettlebell directly overhead. Focus on pushing your body into the ground, rather than the kettlebell away from you.
Hard Rolls
You may have never seen a hard roll, and if you havne’t, then you’re missing out. It’s one of the best core exercises in existence. Hard rolls work by mimicking an essential developmental pattern when you were a baby — training you to fire the core in a proper sequence.
How to do it:
On your back, lie on the ground with both arms overhead and legs straight out. Pinch a half-roller or ball in front of your chest with your left knee and your right elbow, and keep it there the entire time. Now, turn your head toward your left armpit, and use your head to “pull” the rest of your body until it falls onto the left side. Then, turn your head toward the right and pull your body back to the starting position. Keep your arms and legs relaxed; it’s your core that should do all the work. Do a few reps, then switch sides.
SLBR
The supine lying ball roll or “SLBR” — pronounced “slobber” — targets your abs and trains your midsection to resist twisting and bending, which keeps your spine safe. Not only is the name strange, but so are the movements; it looks like you’re doing a balancing act on a stability ball. If you can bolster up the confidence to try this move, you’ll unlock a unique way of activating your core to build a six-pack.
How to do it:
Lie on stability ball and hold a dowel over your chest. Roll side-to-side on top of the stability ball, and go as far as you can without falling.
Push-Pull
What’s the best kept fitness secret? It’s the push-pull. If you want a strong and sexy core, then do this move. In this exericse, your spine stays neutral while your abs and obliques work hard to stabilize your body and moves your arms. Just ignore all the curious stares from other gym-goers who are wondering why you’re pushing and pulling at the same time.
How to do it:
On a cable-crossover machine, set the cable handles to chest height and grab both of the handles while standing in the middle. Stand facing one handle with your arm holding it behind you by your side. Have your other arm holding the other handle, extending fully forward. Keep your shoulders and torso still — pushing and pulling the handles at the same time.
Zercher Squat
The barbell squat is the bread-and-butter of a great exercise program. You may be used to seeing someone have a barbell resting on the shoulders (front squat) or behind the neck (back squat), but I’m sure you’ve never seen a barbell resting in someone’s elbows. The elbow-resting squat is called the Zercher squat, and it’s one of the best moves to build strong legs and abs. When you hold the weight in front of your bdoy, your core fires likes crazy as you stay rigid and resist collapsing forward.
How to do it:
Start with a barbell in the crook of your elbows, and hands held together by your chest. Stand shoulder-width apart with your toes slightly pointed out. Squat down by sitting back, bending your knees, and keeping your weight on your heels. Once your hips are below parallel, drive through your heels and rise. Keep your lower back flat, and your shoulder blades squeezed together throughout.
Pull-Through
The pull-through could be the oddest-looking exercise in existence, but you should still do it. If you can get past being embarrased, it’s one of the best exercises to strengthen your hips and develop a clean hip-hinge pattern, which is necessary for a good deadlift. It’s also a great lower-body move for guys with knee pain because it minimizes the bend at your knees.
How to do it:
Face away from a cable machine, set the height to the lowest setting, and grab the ends of the cable-rope attachment between your legs. While maintaining a neutral back and straight elbows, start with your torso almost parallel to the ground with a slightl knee bend. Extend your hips and stand tall.
