Practicing Good Form with Coach Nicole
Hey SIN Family! It's Coach Nicole and I'm here to go through some exercises and share steps to maintaining good form as well as share some common mistakes so you know what to look out for. Making sure you have good form when working out helps maximize the movement as well as prevent injury. Be on the lookout on instructional good form demo videos on our SIN Fitness social media and Vimeo.
1. Goblet Squat
The Goblet Squat is a great exercise for targeting the quads, glutes, adductors and the core.
How to with good form:
Take a weight (typically a kettlebell or a dumbbell), hold it high to your chest.
Keep your elbows tucked in
Squat down until your knees are at a 90 degree angle
Come up pushing through your heels
Common Errors:
Dropping the kettlebell to the stomach
Leaning forward
Not getting low enough
Coming up on your toes
Rounded back
2. American Kettlebell Swing
The American Style Kettlebell Swing is great for targeting your glutes, hamstrings, and upper back muscles.
How to with good form:
Start with the kettlebell on the ground between your feet; in line with your toes
Stand with your feet just outside hip width apart
Hinge at hips and bend at the knees to pull the kettlebell to your hips
Stand tall and fast- the energy of your hips opening will allow you to push the bell up over your head.
Common Errors:
Dropping the kettlebell below your knees; causing unnecessary tension
3. Low Plank
The low plank is great for strengthening your core and maintaining balance.
How to with good form:
Assume a push-up position
Bend your arms at your elbows so your weight rests on your forearms.
Hold this position by pushing the ground away from your elbows to engage your back and shoulder blades, and squeezing your glutes and quads
Common Errors:
Don't let your head sag- make sure you're looking straight down at your fists.
4. Renegade Row
The renegade row is a dynamic core exercise that targets the shoulders, triceps, abdominals, quads, and of course the core.
How to with good form:
Place the dumbbells on the floor, positioned so that when you set up in a plank position, the dumbbells are roughly shoulder-distance apart
Set up in a high plank position, keeping your wrists and shoulders in a nice straight line.
Pull the dumbbell straight back towards your hip, while squeezing your core to maintain balance.
Common Errors:
Pulling the dumbbell up towards your armpit rather than your hip - by doing this, you are using more of your shoulder muscles where you really want to maximize using your back muscles.
