The Best Old-School Upper Body Exercise You’ve Never Tried

In one of my recent articles (which I know you read because you are wise and discerning) I talked a little bit about how straight-arm scapular strength is one of the unsung keys of upper body strength — and indeed, full body strength in the long run.

The muscles surrounding your scapulae are the epicenter of all your upper body strength, and the stronger, more stable, and more under control they are, the easier it is for you to exert your will on anything and everything.

The thing is, this knowledge isn’t exactly new; the old timers — iron legends whose names still pepper the history books with tales of their no-holds-barred strength — used a great deal of straight-arm strength exercises in conjunction with their favorite pushes, pulls, and even leg exercises.

One such example comes from the Monarch of Muscledom, John Grimek, who was very fond of combining his squats with a straight-arm exercise known as pullovers.

Is it just me, or did John Grimek look sort of like a jacked verison of Johnny Cash?

Pullovers involve you laying on your back, holding a weight out at arm’s length above your chest, and then lowering it slowly and under control over your head until it almost touches the ground. From there, you bring it back to the starting point, and repeat for the desired number of reps (usually 8 or above).

All Pull, No Bull

Why are these so great?

It depends on who you ask, but various bodybuilders/old time strongmen have sung the praises of pullovers with the following benefits:

1. Forges a massive and powerful chest
2. Stretches and builds fantastic strength in the lats
3. Will expand your ribcage (something old time strongmen were obsessed with, I dunno)
4. Builds up the serratus muscles (which, up to this point, you probably never even thought about training)

Not a bad list of benefits, if you ask me. Could you use more strength in any of those areas? I thought so.

While a lot of bodybuilders, powerlifters, and strongmen liked to do them with bent arms, by simply keeping the elbows straight as you do these, you will build up some tremendous scapular strength and control along the way, which will pay off in dividends in your presses and pulls.

The classic minimalist strength-and-muscle routine that was a go-to for strength trainees the world over was the aforementioned “John Grimek special”, the squat and the pullover.

Here’s a combo to toss into your workout today that will leave you feeling old school strong and ready to manhandle (or woman-handle) the weights:

A1) Double kettlebell front squats — 5
A2) Light pullover — 10

Rest 1 minute between the squats and the pullovers, and then 3 minutes between rounds. Repeat for 3 rounds and call it a day.

If you’d like, you can go higher in reps on the squats and cut down the rest period between the rounds, but only if you really enjoyed what you ate for lunch and wanna taste it a second time.

Wanna REALLY take your full-body strength, stamina, and power to the next level?

Then you just might dig my free 9-Minute Kettlebell & Bodyweight Challenge.

It consists of some simple, easy-to-learn movements that I can almost guarantee you’ve NEVER done (including crawling, loaded carries, etc) and as the name implies, it only takes 9 minutes to do.

Not only does it fit neatly at the end of whatever other routine you’re currently doing anyway (so no need to put your regular training on hold), but many people have found that it actually enhances their workouts.

Have a look-see at what a gent named Mark had to say when he added my 9-Minute Kettlebell & Bodyweight Challenge into his current training program:

==

“Just wanted to pass this feedback along about the 9 min KB BW challenge.

I am on my 5th trip through it. I use it primarily as a warm-up, sometimes as a finisher, and sometimes as a stand-alone workout (when I am under recovered or just super pressed for time). I get in at least 3, usually 4, and sometimes 5 days a week including it.

I am to the point where I can get through 3 min straight of just about anything except double overhead carries (at about 2:10 with 16's), farmer’s carries with 32’s (about 2:15 when I push it), and can make 3 min of crawling but it smokes me.

I’ve now shared it with a dozen or so folx and the ones who “get it” have seen incredible benefits. Of course, there are those that never get it, but that’s part of the deal.

of note, the big thing I notice besides a massive (and positive) change in my abs is that I gen really feel more “tied together” and “ready” all the time. At 40, this is really important.

Thanks for making it SIMPLE to integrate this really important work!

best,

Mark Reinke”

==

Check it out for yourself at www.9MinuteChallenge.com

Have fun and happy training!

Aleks “The Hebrew Hammer” Salkin