3. Repeat.
Incline leg press
Exercise details
 Target muscles: Quadriceps (Rectus
Femoris, Vastus Lateralis, Vastus
Medialis, Vastus Intermedius)
 Synergists: Gluteus Maximus,
Adductor Magnus, Soleus
 Dynamic stabilizers (not
highlighted): Hamstrings,
Gastrocnemius
 Mechanics: Compound
 Force: Push
Starting position
1. Sit in the leg press machine. Make
sure your back is pressed firmly
against the back support.
2. Place your feet hip-width apart on the
platform.
3. Release the safety bars, grasp the side
handles for support, and extend your
legs without locking your knees.
Your torso and legs should make a
90-degree angle.
Execution
1. Inhale as you bend your legs and
lower the platform until your knees
are almost fully flexed.
2. Driving with your heels, press the
platform back up to the starting
position as you exhale.
4. When you have finished, lock the
safety bars properly. Otherwise, the
platform may slide down onto your
legs!
Comments and tips
 Make sure that the platform is
securely locked when you load the
weight.
 Adjust the back support and safety
brace to accommodate a full range of
motion.
 Keep your feet flat on the platform,
and your knees and toes pointing in
the same direction (slightly outward).
 As you lower the platform, do not
allow your lower back to curl up;
keep it in firm contact with the
support.
 Do not lock your knees out when you
press the platform up.
 The incline leg press is a very
versatile exercise. Altering the
position of your feet on the platform
will emphasize different muscle
groups. The higher your feet on the
platform, the more you will
emphasize your gluteus maximus and
hamstrings. The lower your feet on
the platform, the more you will
emphasize your quadriceps. The
wider your feet on the platform, the
more you will emphasize your
adductor magnus and inner
quadriceps. The closer-together your
feet on the platform, the more you
will emphasize your outer
quadriceps.
 Also known as the sled 45-degree leg
press, the butt and thigh press, and
the diagonal leg press.

Wheel rollout
Comments and tips
Exercise details
 Target muscles: Iliopsoas (Hip
Flexors)
 Synergists: Latissimus Dorsi, Teres
Major, Rhomboids, Sternal (Lower)
Pectoralis Major, Pectoralis Minor,
Posterior Deltoid, Tensor Fasciae
Latae, Sartorius, Pectineus, Adductor
Longus, Adductor Brevis
 Stabilizers (not highlighted): Rectus
Abdominis, Obliques, Erector
Spinae, Rectus Femoris, Triceps
Brachii, Clavicular (Upper)
Pectoralis Major, Wrist Flexors
 Mechanics: Compound
 Force: Pull
Starting position
1. Kneel on the floor holding both
handles of the wheel using a pronated
(overhand) grip.
2. Place the wheel in front of your knees
and lean over it so that it supports
your upper body.
3. Straighten your lower back. You
must maintain a straight lower back
when you roll out. Your lower back
must not sag.
Execution
1. Inhale as you gently roll out for as far
as you can hold a straight lower back.
2. Exhale as you reverse the motion and
roll back to the starting position.
 Keep your arms almost straight.
 Initially, you may not be able to roll
out very far without your lower back
sagging. That’s fine. As you keep
practicing, you will be able to roll out
increasingly farther.
 The wheel rollout exercise is a little
advanced. To build yourself up to it,
you can start with the plank and
graduate to the wheel rollout when
ready. You can also make the
exercise easier by performing it up an
inclined surface.
 To make the wheel rollout more
difficult, wear a weighted vest or
perform it standing.
 If you don’t have a wheel, you can
use an exercise ball or a barbell.
 The wheel rollout is not an ab
exercise because there is often either
very little or no waist flexion. Most
of the movement is in your hips and
shoulders. Your abs and obliques
usually only act as stabilizers. They
contract isometrically to stabilize
your waist.
 1. Exhale as you stand up and pull the
Dumbbell deadlift dumbbells up across the front of your
body.
2. Inhale as you push your butt
backward, flex your hips and knees,
and lower the dumbbells down the
front of your body to the floor.
3. Repeat.

Comments and tips

 Keep your back and arms straight,
your body upright, and your feet flat
on the floor.
 Ensure that your feet and knees point
in the same direction.
 To improve mechanical leverage,
keep the dumbbells close to your
body.
 There are many different opinions on
Exercise details how to perform this exercise. You
will often see people doing the
 Target muscle: Gluteus Maximus dumbbell deadlift while holding the
 Synergists: Erector Spinae, dumbbells at their sides. Since this is
Hamstrings (Biceps Femoris, very similar to the dumbbell squat,
Semimembranosus, Semitendinosus), the technique explained above
Adductor Magnus, Quadriceps enforces that the dumbbells be kept
(Rectus Femoris, Vastus Lateralis, in front of the body to better emulate
Vastus Medialis, Vastus the barbell deadlift. You will also
Intermedius), Soleus often see people fail to return the
 Mechanics: Compound dumbbells to the floor at the end of
 Force: Pull each rep, in which case the exercise
becomes more like the dumbbell
Starting position Romanian deadlift.
 Since it is not possible to lift as much
weight with the dumbbell deadlift as
1. Position a pair of dumbbells
with the barbell deadlift, use the
horizontally in front of your feet.
dumbbell deadlift as an auxiliary
2. Squat and grasp the dumbbells using
exercise to improve your barbell
a pronated (overhand) grip.
deadlift. The dumbbell deadlift can
3. Raise your hips a little, straighten
also take the place of the barbell
your back, and lean backward so that
deadlift as your primary hip-
your torso is upright.
dominant exercise if the barbell
deadlift is too hard on your lower
Execution back.
Captain’s chair leg
and hip raise
Comments and tips
Exercise details
 Target muscle: Rectus Abdominis
 Synergists: Iliopsoas, Tensor Fasciae
Latae, Sartorius, Pectineus, Adductor
Longus, Adductor Brevis, Obliques
 Dynamic stabilizer: Rectus Femoris
 Mechanics: Compound
 Force: Pull
Starting position
1. Get into the captain’s chair with your
forearms on the pads, your hands on
the handles, your back against the
back pad, and your legs hanging
straight down.
2. Press your lower back against the
back pad.
Execution
1. Keeping your feet together, exhale as
you raise your knees towards your
chest by flexing your knees, hips, and
your waist.
2. Try to hold the end position for a
count of two.
3. Inhale as you lower your feet to the
starting position in a controlled
manner.
4. Repeat.
 Keep the movement under control.
Do not allow momentum to build up.
 During the captain’s chair leg and hip
raise, your rectus abdominis and
obliques only act as stabilizers unless
you flex your waist and raise your
hips off the back pad at the top of the
movement. If you do not flex your
waist, your iliopsoas is the target
muscle.
 Apart from when you raise your hips
off the pad, keep your lower back
pressed against the back pad. This is
important because your legs are
raised by your hip flexors, especially
your iliopsoas. Your iliopsoas
originates on your lower back
(lumbar spine) and attaches to your
thigh bone. To raise your legs, your
iliopsoas must pull on your lumbar
spine, which can force it to
hyperextend. If you do not support
your lower back by pressing it
against the back pad, the repeated
hyperextension of your lumbar spine
could lead to lower-back problems
and pain.
 The captain’s chair leg and hip raise
is a brilliant exercise for developing
the strength and stability of your
core. You can make it more difficult
by straightening your legs or holding
a dumbbell between your feet.
 Also known as the vertical leg and
hip raise.

Cable hip
adduction
Exercise details
 Target muscles: Adductor Magnus,
Adductor Longus, Adductor Brevis
 Synergists: Pectineus, Gracilis,
Gluteus Maximus (lower fibers)
 Mechanics: Isolation
 Force: Pull
Starting position
1. Stand with one side next to a low
cable pulley.
2. Using an ankle strap, attach the cable
to the leg nearest to the pulley.
3. Step sideways, away from the pulley,
until the cable is pulled taut.
4. Grasp something for stability.
5. Allow your strapped leg to be pulled
out to the side so that you are
standing only on your far leg.
Execution
1. Keeping your body and legs straight,
exhale as you pull your strapped leg
down and in front of your supporting
leg.
2. Hold for a count of two.
3. Inhale as you reverse the motion and
return your strapped leg to the
starting position.
4. Repeat for the prescribed number of
repetitions.
5. Repeat the exercise with your
opposite leg.
Comments and tips
 Keep your body and legs straight.
 Start light to allow your adductors to
adapt.
 As you perform the cable hip
adduction exercise, not only do you
target the hip adductors of your
strapped leg but you also
significantly activate the hip
adductors of your supporting leg, as
they have to work hard to keep your
body stable as you pull your strapped
leg in.
 The cable hip adduction is a brilliant
auxiliary exercise for toning your
inner thighs. For toning your outer
thighs, see the cable hip abduction.
 to one side until you feel a mild
Lying bent-knee stretch in your lower back.
2. Reverse the motion to raise your legs
oblique twist back to the starting position and
lower them to the opposite side.
3. Repeat.
4. Exhale as your legs rise, and inhale
as they descend.

Comments and tips

 To avoid injuring your back, keep the
movement slow and controlled. Do
not allow momentum to build up.
 Keep your hips and knees flexed at
90-degree angles.
 The lying bent-knee oblique twist can
be performed with your calves resting
on an exercise ball, in which case the
ball will roll and guide your legs
down in a smooth circular motion.
 Make the lying bent-knee oblique
twist easier by keeping your feet on
the floor.
 Make the exercise more difficult by
holding a stability ball between your
Exercise details bent legs (see second video). You can
also just straighten your legs (lying
 Target muscle: Internal and External oblique twist; see third video).
Obliques
 Synergists: Psoas Major, Quadratus
Lumborum, Iliocastalis Lumborum,
Iliocastalis Thoracis
 Mechanics: Isolation
 Force: Pull

Starting position
1. Lie supine (on your back), with your
hips and knees flexed at 90-degree
angles as if you are sitting on a chair.
2. Position your arms out to the sides
for stability.

Execution
1. Keeping your shoulders in contact
with the floor, slowly lower your legs

Barbell Romanian
deadlift
Exercise details
 Target muscle: Gluteus Maximus
 Synergists: Hamstrings (Biceps
Femoris, Semitendinosus,
Semimembranosus), Quadriceps
(Rectus Femoris, Vastus Lateralis,
Vastus Medialis, Vastus
Intermedius), Adductor Magnus,
Soleus, Erector Spinae
 Mechanics: Compound
 Force: Pull
Starting position
1. Using a shoulder-width pronated
(overhand) grip, deadlift a barbell
from the floor. You should be
standing with your arms extended,
the bar resting against the front of
your thighs, your knees slightly bent,
and your feet approximately
shoulder-width apart.
Execution
1. Inhale as you push your butt back,
hinge forward at your hips, and lower
the barbell down your thighs until
you feel a slight stretch in your
hamstrings.
2. Exhale as you extend your hips and
pull the barbell back up your legs to
the starting position.
3. Repeat.
Comments and tips
 Keep your arms and back straight,
your chest up, and your shoulders
back.
 Keep the bar close to your body. This
improves mechanical leverage.
 At the top of the movement, do not
lean backward.
 Do not go very heavy like you might
with the barbell deadlift.
 The Romanian deadlift is one of the
most effective exercises for your
posterior chain muscles, which,
generally speaking, include your
erector spinae, gluteus maximus,
hamstrings, and soleus. Your
posterior chain muscles work
together and are responsible for
forward propulsion. As such, they are
essential for general fitness and
athleticism. Use the Romanian
deadlift to strengthen your posterior
chain, and therefore run faster, jump
higher, improve your squat and
deadlift, and enhance your overall
fitness and sporting performance!

Machine seated calf
raise
Exercise details
 Target muscle: Soleus
 Synergists: Gastrocnemius
 Mechanics: Isolation
 Force: Push
Starting position
1. Sit in the calf raise machine and
place your forefeet on the foot
platforms, with your heels extending
off.
2. Place your thighs under the lever
pads and adjust the pads to snugly
support your thighs.
3. Lift the lever a little and release the
safety bar, giving the lever freedom
to descend.
4. Hold the handles for support.
Execution
1. Inhale as you allow the lever to
descend in a controlled manner until
you feel a stretch in your calves.
2. Hold for a count of one.
3. Exhale as you press the lever all the
way up by raising your heels.
4. Hold for a count of two.
5. Repeat.
6. When you have finished, secure the
lever with the safety bar.
Comments and tips
 Holding for a count of one before
pressing the lever back up allows the
elastic energy in your Achilles
tendons to dissipate, thus preventing
you from using the energy to bounce
the lever back up.
 If your calves have different sizes,
perform the exercise one leg at a
time, starting with your smaller leg.
To promote equal size and strength
between your calves, do not perform
more reps with your larger leg.
 Your soleus and gastrocnemius make
up your calf. In the seated calf raise,
your soleus is the target and your
gastrocnemius is the synergist. In
the standing calf raise, your
gastrocnemius is the target and your
soleus is the synergist.
 Building your soleus makes your
gastrocnemius look bigger because
your gastrocnemius sits on top of
your soleus.
 If you don’t have access to a seated
calf raise machine, you can perform
seated calf raises with a barbell on
your knees and your forefeet on a
block. See the second video.
 5. Repeat for more repetitions.
Standing dumbbell 6. Repeat with your right leg.
one-leg calf raise
Comments and tips
 Keep the movement slow and under
control.
 Do not lock out your knee.
 The point of holding for a count of
one after lowering your heel is to
dissipate all of the elastic energy that
is stored in your Achilles tendon and
thus prevent cheating.
 Use the standing dumbbell one-leg
calf raise to fix contralateral size and
strength differences in your calve
muscles.
Exercise details
 Target muscle: Gastrocnemius
 Synergists: Soleus
 Mechanics: Isolation
 Force: Push

Starting position
1. Hold a dumbbell by your side, in
your left hand.
2. With your left foot, stand on a
platform, with the arch and heel of
your foot suspending off.
3. Grasp something with your right
hand for stability.

Execution
1. Exhale as you raise your heel by
extending your ankle (plantar
flexion).
2. Hold for a count of two.
3. Inhale as you slowly reverse the
motion (dorsiflexion) and lower your
heel until you feel a mild stretch in
your calf.
4. Hold for a count of one.