132 August/September 2019
Recently, I was carefully flipping
through my fragile but pristine
collection of 1910 to 1950s Strength
and Health and Physical Culture
magazines. These periodicals marked
the beginning of, well, “physical
culture.” The men and women of these
magazines were in impeccable shape.
They didn’t just look fit. They could
lift immense amounts of weight while
also remaining flexible and free from
injury. Flexibility, breathwork, quality
sleep, and true strength in multiple
planes of motion were their focus.
Many of the movements of old-
time strongmen were known as “feats
of strength.” They demanded a ton
of flexibility, but also prodigious
amounts of strength and joint control
in complex ranges of movement. Feats
of strength required smart strength
training and preparatory movement.
But compare that to some of our
current progressions of physical
culture: the ups and downs, the fads
and quick fixes, the “exercises” meant
to “tone” and “shape” but that don’t
actually work and instead create
more problems.
It can be hard to figure out what
works without a lot of trial and
error when you don’t know which
direction to go. If you want to know
what you can do to prevent years
of misdirection, in case you don’t
happen to get lucky on the first try,
the answer is to take a look at what
has worked before.
The following old-time strongman
movements can be practiced at low
levels with a controlled range of
motion to create depth, flexibility, and
joint control. They can also be used
at a higher level—with more weight,
progressively loaded, to produce
incredible total-body strength.BENT PRESS
The bent press, in a nutshell, is simultaneous trunk rotation with a hip hinge and
loaded shoulder extension. This movement is very complex. It doesn’t require
much weight in the beginning and it does demand and reward joint mobility and
control. There are quite a few ways to perform the bent press, and I wouldn’t say
any of them are totally incorrect, just different. I am going to describe the “OG”
Bent Press, plus a regression, the Kneeling Bent Press. Overall, the premise is to
move under the weight and not to think of pressing the weight over head.Start Here: Kneeling Bent Press
[ 1 ] Start in a SV^OHSMRULLSPUNWVZP[PVU with a controllable weight at the
opposite shoulder of the front leg, palm facing the shoulder.
[ 2 ] Open your loaded arm so that the forearm is now vertical and the elbow is
on the hip.
[ 3 ] Begin to bow forward and rotate your upper trunk towards the weight,
while looking up at the weight.
[ 4 ] As you bow down, attempt to “get under” the weight by pressing it
upward at the same speed as you drop.
[ 5 ] Feed your non-loaded hand through the gap under your bent leg.
[ 6 ] >OLU`V\YLHJOTH_PTHSOPWÅL_PVUHUKZOV\SKLYL_[LUZPVUHYTSVJRLKV\[
JVTLIHJR\W to tall half-kneeling position, maintaining the arm locked out over
your head. Once there, bring the weight back down to the starting position.
Repeat and focus on the intricacy. Increase load as you feel comfortable.RECLAIMING FORGOTTEN
movement