A. Front squat – 3×6@75%.
B. Pull-up strength:
- 5 slow negatives. If you can do strict pull-ups, instead do 5 (separate) reps, aiming for equally slow up and down portions of the movement, e.g. take 15 seconds to pull from the bottom to the top, then the same length of time to return to the bottom.
- 3 max effort sets of supinated (palms up) body rows underneath a barbell at 31X3 tempo. Relax the shoulders (protraction) at the bottom of the movement, and pull your chest to the bar, focusing on maximum retraction (pull shoulder blades together) at the top. Your set ends when your form starts to break down. If these are easy and your form is perfect, raise your feet up on a box and/or lower the barbell to increase the difficulty.
- 3 max effort sets of scapular pull-ups at a controlled tempo (e.g. 2 sec pause at top and bottom of the movement).
C. 5 max effort planche lean holds. Most people will have done these before, but just to review – These are essentially a plank on your hands, with a very active shoulder position, and without releasing your shoulder position, lean your shoulders forward as far as possible and hold it there. Keep your hollow position the whole way through. Rotate your fingers outward if your wrists aren’t comfortable in this position. Stop your hold when you can no longer maintain the correct position.