Wenning Strength

Reverse Safety Bar Front Squats: Build an Upright Torso Without Beating Up Your Bench

Reverse safety bar front squats are one of my favorite squat variations for teaching proper posture and an upright torso. The load placement forces you to stay tall, engage the upper back, and maintain position throughout the lift. If your chest drops, the bar immediately lets you know.

Another advantage? You get the benefits of front squat mechanics without the wrist, elbow, and shoulder stress of a traditional front rack position. That means you can build leg strength, core stability, and upper-back endurance without creating unnecessary fatigue that could negatively impact your bench press training later in the week.

Great athletes aren’t built by doing the same exercise forever. Strategic exercise rotation allows you to attack weaknesses, improve movement quality, and continue progressing while managing recovery.

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Behind-the-head pulldowns aren’t “bad” — but like any exercise, context matters.

Variation is key in training, but overusing this movement can create unnecessary stress on the shoulders, AC joint, and cervical spine, especially if mobility and scapular control are lacking.

Used strategically, it can challenge upper back positioning and shoulder function. Used excessively, it often turns into joint irritation instead of muscle development.

Exercise rotation exists for a reason.
Change angles. Change grips. Change stress. Keep progressing without beating up the same tissues year-round.

Train hard. Stay healthy long enough to benefit from it.

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Backward sled drags = one of the best tools for knee prep and long-term knee health.

At Wenning Strength, backward sled dragging is a staple for warming up, restoration work, and building the quads without adding unnecessary compression or impact. It increases blood flow, builds work capacity, improves knee tracking, and helps prepare the joint before heavier lower-body training.

Simple. Effective. Low mileage. High return.

Get the knees warm, get the quads firing, then move into the main work. More preparation = better performance.

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45° Back Extension Oblique Bends

The 45° back extension isn’t just a lower back exercise. By rotating the body position and using controlled side bends, you can directly attack the obliques, QL, and lateral trunk stabilizers that improve bracing, force transfer, and spinal stability.

A stronger torso means better lifting, better movement, and more resilience under load. The obliques help resist rotation, stabilize the spine, and transfer power between the upper and lower body — critical for powerlifting, field sports, combat sports, and longevity.

Train the sides. Build the brace. Protect the spine.

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GHR tricep extensions in the WENNING warmup aren’t just a pump exercise—they’re a strategic way to increase tissue temperature, blood flow, and elbow stability before heavier pressing work. Building the triceps early improves joint prep, potentiation, and long-term pressing health.

The goal of the warmup isn’t fatigue. It’s preparation. Increase work capacity, protect connective tissue, and get more out of the main movement. Small accessories done consistently add up over decades under the bar.

Add GHR tricep extensions to the end of your warmup and stay consistent with the process.

Warm up with intent. Train longer. Wenningstrength.com Press stronger.

The throat press - a beefy rep and lockout builder for the press!!!! Come follow the workouts at wenningstrength.com to get strong and stay strong 💪💪💪

Planks aren’t just a beginner exercise — they’re foundational for every athlete.

A strong trunk transfers force, protects the spine, and gives you the stability needed to squat, pull, run, jump, and change direction efficiently.

For big squats, bodyweight planks eventually stop being enough. Heavy overload planks become necessary. Here I’m using 100kg because if your goal is 4-digit squats, your brace has to match the demands.

A 1,000+ lb squat isn’t just legs and hips — it’s the ability to create and maintain stiffness through the torso while transferring force under extreme load.

Train the brace. Train the trunk. Build the foundation.

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Rotating Squat Positions for Improved Performance

One squat variation done year-round is one of the fastest ways to stall progress. The body adapts quickly. In Soviet sport science, this is referred to as the Law of Accommodation—the response to a repeated stimulus decreases over time. Keep giving the body the same stress and eventually it stops adapting.

Rotating squat positions changes joint angles, loading patterns, bar positions, muscle recruitment, stability demands, and force production requirements. High box squats, low box squats, front squats, SSB squats, cambered bar squats, belt squats, Anderson squats, and lightened methods all create different stressors while still building the same goal: stronger squatting.

At Wenning Strength, exercise rotation isn’t random—it’s strategic. Rotate positions to reduce specific mileage, manage joint stress, avoid accommodation, and continue driving strength long term. Variation builds resilience, preserves tissue quality, and keeps adaptation moving.

Technique before strain. Rotate with purpose.

Lightened Method: More Than Meets the Eye

The lightened method changes more than just the load—it changes the strength curve of the bench press. By using bands from the top to unload the bar in the bottom position, you reduce stress where the shoulders are most vulnerable and gradually increase load as leverage improves.

This lets you overload the top end while sparing the joints and connective tissue at the bottom. It can improve force production, bar speed, lockout strength, and longevity without taking the same mileage as heavy straight weight alone.

The goal isn’t making the lift easier—it’s changing where the work happens. Train the curve. Train the position. Keep progressing while managing wear and tear.

The strongest lifters don’t just add weight—they manipulate the stimulus.

Strength carries over to every sport.

The greatest athletes understood this. Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, and LeBron James all took strength training seriously—and for good reason.

Strength improves force production, durability, body control, change of direction, injury resilience, and the ability to repeat high outputs over time. It isn’t just about lifting more weight. It’s about building an athlete that can perform longer and recover better.

Every sport has different demands, but every athlete benefits from being stronger. The key is building the right strength for the task.

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