If going hard to get hard-bodied is your fitness rallying cry, trainer Jay T. Maryniak has some advice: “Twice a week [give your] body and central nervous system a break from the high volume training.”
How? By focusing on burning calories, boosting mobility, building core strength, and bulletproofing the more vulnerable parts of your body instead of lifting your face off.
Maryniak admits this can be a tough proposition for workout warriors. “Prehab and mobility […] are not the sexiest stuff.” But ultimately, working smart is more effective that just working hard. “I assure you if you want to maximize your potential and stay injury free you need to be doing it.” Lucky for us, the trainer designed this 5-movement pre-hab and mobility workout to help you learn to pump the brakes without totally coming to a stop.
Movement #1: Single-Arm Farmers Walk
Also known as a single-arm suitcase carry, this move (and all carries) will challenge your entire body—but this variation is particularly taxing to the core. That’s right—as uncomplicated as it looks, by loading only one side of the body, this movement forces your core to lock in. Fail to do so, and you risk putting your back in a less-than-safe position.
To do the movement properly, focus on “packing” your shoulders (keeping them together as tight as possible), straighten your back, tuck your chin, keep your ribs flat, grip hard, and tread lightly. For this version, make sure the weighted shoulder doesn’t droop lower than the one on the non-weighted side. For balance you may choose to reach your opposite arm out to the side, as Maryniak does in the video.
He doesn’t give a recommended distance, but we suggest going 20 yards per arm, resting as needed before switching sides.
Movement #2: Double-Unders
If you left your jump rope on the playground, you’ll be surprised just how taxing this childhood classic can be. Maryniak doesn’t offer a set number of reps, but we recommend aiming to skip for 30 seconds at a time to start.
You’ve got two objectives on this one. First, move the rope with your wrist, not your forearms or shoulders. Second, maintain a tight core.
Can’t do double-unders? Don’t worry about it. Eventually, you should spend some time to nail the movement if you want—this double-under guide can help—but for this series, focus on the singles
Movement #3: Down Dog Toe Touches
This deceivingly tough-on-your-shoulders hybrid yoga move requires you to shift from a high plank, to downward dog, and then do one toe tap per leg before shifting back to a plank.
While Maryniak’s legs are mostly-straight, if you have limited hamstring mobility go ahead and let your knees bend. Doing so will take some of the strain off your lower back and keep you from sinking into your shoulder-girdle.
Movement #4: Banded Face Pulls
This exercise isn’t flashy, but it targets the muscles in your shoulders like the traps, rhomboids, and rear delts. Banded face pulls can be done either with the band anchored to a point that is higher than your head, or lower. It’s a little tricky to see in the video, but Maryniak has a resistance band secured to the rig at about chest height.
With your feet stacked under your hips, squeeze your glutes and brace your core for stability. Then, squeeze your shoulder blades together to pull the band toward your face, holding for a few seconds. Check out this guide for more pointers on the move.
Movement #5: Lateral Bear Crawl Burpee
Similar to a traveling plank, the lateral bear crawl is all about coordination and stability. Add a burpee in every four steps to jack up that heart rate.
Start on all fours, wrists stacked under shoulders and knees stacked under hips. Shift onto your toes until your knees are off the ground. Keeping your core braced to prevent your hips shifting from side-to-side, take four steps to the right. Return to the starting position, and repeat in the opposite direction.
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