Underused Powerlifting Exercise
 

I thought this would be a good idea for a poll/opinion thread:

Which do you feel is the most underused assistance exercise for strength building/powerlifting?

Ive just recently started to do GHR's on a regular basis and it have had a good impact on my squat so far.

My bench started to move again when i begun to do heavy ass seated MP's.


Seated MP's and GHR's FTW!

I'd have to agree with Swede on the GHR. It seems popular to have a GHR bench in the US but in the UK, you have to ghetto it up meaning not everyone has tried them. I'd also throw in a special mention for lat' work: both pulldowns and pull ups. If you want to stabilise a squat bar, bench with the right bar path and, to a lesser extent, finish your pulls, you need lat's.

LtL

Push ups, Chin ups, and Inverted Rows.

I like GHRs, too! But those were taken!

Try heavy dumbbell step-ups. Done properly they'll hit your quads, traps, and grip pretty damn hard. And they're a lot easier to load than the leg press :D

I am going to go with power cleans. Building that explosive power should be important to any lifter. I have noticed that my overall bar speed has improved a lot since i have included power cleans.

I also agree that ghr's, chin/pulls, and pressing should be a staple in anyones routine.

I've been wondering about MP (military) press vs OH (overhead) press, and what exactly the distinction is?

I always thought that Military press required a standing position, and OH press typically uses a seated position... is this not the case?

RE: building real strength, many people don't use bent over DB rows, or don't perform the correctly at least.

Before I had the means to deadlift, I built some great strength and mass using heavy (50 kg) DB BER's!

Anything involving grip. The harder you squeeze the bar the easier a Squat, Bench or Deadlift should feel. I am guilty of only working the "palm" grip & only secondary at that.

I plan on using the "finger" grip lots more in the future, and even when I switch to my mini "bodybuilding" phase after my meet for a full month to win the transformation contests I am entered in, I will be using the thick handles on the stupid cable machines I will be ending my free weight "work outs" to annihilate the PUMP!

I am going with good mornings. The average strength trainee doesn't use them and when they do, the good mornings are often performed incorrectly.

Military Presses are done with your heels together (hence "military;" like you're standing at attention) and ZERO leg drive, leg movement, or any other body assistance beyond pushing straight up. You have to keep your body very rigid to do them properly (and man, do they ever humble you...) but they're great for your shoulders. A staple of many strongmen back in the 40's-60's. (though I prefer push-presses)

OHP is less strict; you still don't use leg drive, but your feet can be spaced out some. Just a straight press up in a standing position.


I'm going to say that not enough people do pull-ups; especially weighted.