Rissa Fitness

The I Y T A exercise series is a great way to warm up your shoulders, strengthen your rotator cuff muscles and improve your posture.

You can do this exercise in a chest supported position (as shown) or face down on the floor. Form the letters I, Y, T and A as shown. You can try 3-5 reps of each letter to warm up your shoulders or build rotator cuff strength at the end of your workout!

Try it out and let me know what you think!

Inverted Row:

The inverted row is an underrated back exercise. It’s instantly scalable: beginners can use a higher bar position and lower the bar as they get stronger.

Unlike bent over row variations, it also doesn’t require you to maintain a proper hinge position to do it safely. If you have lower back pain, this is a great option.

When performing this exercise, make sure to squeeze your back at the top. Keep your arms relaxed so that your back does most of the work. Think about driving your elbows toward your back pockets as you pull yourself to the bar.

Try out 3-4 sets of 6-12 reps on your next upper body or full body workout and let me know what you think!

Training inquiries: [email protected].

Here is a great way to build the strength for full chin ups while still practicing the movement pattern.

Loop a band around a bar that gives you enough assistance to perform chin ups comfortably.

Start the exercise by pulling your shoulders back and down and your chest tall toward the ceiling. Try to pause at the top and then slowly lower down to the start position.

Whether you can already do chin ups or not, practicing with the assistance of a band can help you really hone in on using the right technique and activating the correct muscle groups to perform the movement!

Romanian Deadlift

The Romanian Deadlift is an excellent exercise, but it’s so easy to screw up!

To perform this movement properly, keep your spine straight and push your hips back to the wall behind you. Try to keep your legs straight or mostly straight. You should feel a huge stretch in your hamstrings and glutes at the bottom of the exercise.

If you feel pain in your back, or if you don’t feel that stretch, you are doing it wrong! You can go back to some of the other drills I posted on my page a couple weeks ago! Hope that helps!

Happy Cinco de Mayo!