Movement Category: Upper Body Pulling
Implement: gymnastic rings
Difficulty Level: beginner to intermediate
Exercise benefits:
- Establishes a basic Horizontal Upper Body Pulling movement pattern
- builds strong and conditioned upper back and scapular region
- improves posture
- improves the cores strength and stability
- balances out the pressing movements for overall shoulder health and stability
Muscles worked:
Prime movers: Lats, traps, rhomboids, rear delts, biceps, forearms.
Stabilizers: Spinal erectors, glutes, hamstrings.
Body Rows – Step by Step Instructions
Step 1: Begin by grasping the rings firmly, placing your feet on the floor or a box and straightening your body into one rigid and solid unit. The higher the feet go and the closer your body’s position to parallel, the more difficult the exercise becomes – on the other hand, the lower your legs are in relationship to your shoulders and the more upright your body is, the less difficult it becomes.
Step 2: Inhale, as you open your chest up and pull with your lats, while keeping your body straight and rigid by maintaining a reasonable amount of tension in your core, glutes and legs. Pinch an “invisible pencil” in between your shoulder blades as you finish the movement. Attempt to pull up to the fullest of your available range of motion while maintaining your head, body and legs in one line – do not flex the neck forward, it does not help.
Step 3: Exhale, as you push yourself away from the rings under control, while still maintaining a straight total body alignment and not sagging in your midsection on the very bottom of the move. Make sure that your elbows lock out on the bottom (but do not hyperextend) and that you retract your shoulder blades at the very end of the motion.
Caution: keep weights, boxes with sharp corners and other potentially dangerous object away from your head and at a safe distance for you to get to and out of the position and in case if you have to bail out of the exercise.
Variations
A) Australian Body Rows (feet planted and knees bent at 90 degrees)
B) Weighted Body Rows (weighted vest, bumper plates, sandbag)
C) Single Arm Body Rows