The Nordic Curl
The Hardest Exercise You Haven't Tried (Yet)
The squat and deadlift get the most press regarding lower body movements and with good reason. These exercises are superb at building strength, power, and neuromuscular coordination. No resistance training program is complete without at least one variation of the above movements.
The Nordic Curl is an excellent complimentary exercise to aid in developing the posterior chain, which includes the muscles from your glutes down to your heels. This isolates the hamstring muscles, which start at the base of your glutes and connect at the back of the knee. The hamstrings consist of three separate muscles: The biceps femoris, semimembranosus, and semitendinosus. Together, they work to cause flexion of the knee joint and extension of the hip. An example of knee flexion is lifting your heel to your butt, while an example of hip extension would be hinging to perform a deadlift or kettlebell swing.
The most common hamstring isolation exercise is a curl, typically done on a machine. It is performed either sitting upright or lying face down. Another version is lying on the floor using a stability ball. While all three are effective, my money is on the Nordic Curl, getting the most bang for your buck. If you've never done it before, you'll be quite surprised at how difficult it is, even if you've been loading up the weight stack on the curl machine. Don't say I didn't warn you!
One reason for the high degree of effort is that there is no way to cheat. You can't use momentum to pull the machine's hand grips for some extra oomph. It's just you versus your body weight, so check your ego at the door. See the video below for an example.
Even a season lifter can find this a very humbling experience. Here are a few pointers to keep in mind.
Keep your glutes tight and brace your midsection to maintain a flat torso.
Don't force it! Patience is a necessity to progress this.
If you start to break at the hips, you've gone too far.
Start with two sets of five. Trust me, this will be enough.
Try this instead of the leg curl machine for your next training session.
Only add weight once you can lower your chest parallel to the floor for an entire set.
The first time I attempted a Nordic Curl, I could barely lean forward before pulling myself back up. After many months of practice, I could lower until my chest was parallel to the floor. This should be on your list if you're looking for a new training goal. Try it out, and let me know how it goes in the comments.
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Yup .. I’ll be fitting the safety bars to my 🚽😳🤣
This exercise is up there with Burpee’s for “sheer joy!”