Zack Zweifel, M.S., CSCS

Grapplers put a lot of stress through their forearms and elbows. Most never train forearm rotation, and it’s one of the first things I add when someone’s dealing with persistent elbow issues.

Pronation and supination work builds strength in the rotators that share the load with your elbows during all that gripping. No single exercise is a magic fix, but this is one most people could benefit from adding in as accessory work.

strength floors > old PRs

I keep this one in the mix because in one rep it tells you a lot about how your whole leg actually functions, from the foot all the way up to the hip. If your ankle doesn’t move well, you’ll feel it. If there’s any instability through the knee or hip, it shows up. If one side feels significantly more stable and stronger than the other, now you know where to focus.

If you train combat sports, this is especially useful. Side to side differences show up fast, and those gaps matter when you’re scrambling or posting on one leg.

Your training does not need to look like your sport to make you better at it.

When I last saw my grandma, I was a little boy.

For a lot of my life I thought I may never get here and have this moment.

Being in the Philippines has been a blessing, reconnecting with family and also with myself.

Sorry it took me so long. 🇵🇭❤️

Tight hamstrings and a stiff lower back after lifting are common. But stretching alone usually isn’t the fix.

A lot of that tension is a control problem, not a flexibility problem.

The leg-lowering drill trains your core to stabilize as one leg moves independently. The hard part is keeping your hips and lower back flat on the floor the whole time. Most people can’t do it without compensating, and that gap is worth fixing.

Try it on both sides. Don’t be surprised if one is considerably harder to hold steady.

This is the kind of drill that shows you something about how your body actually moves.

Save this one!

never calling it shadowboxing again 🇮🇹🤌🏽

Flip a kettlebell upside down and hold it. To keep it from tipping, your grip and your shoulder have to stabilize hard at the same time. The two are linked, so this trains both at once.

What I like most is what it shows you. Try it on both sides and don’t be surprised if one is considerably weaker or harder to hold steady. That gap is a stability or strength imbalance worth knowing about. I use it on myself and my clients as a quick check.

It is also just a great shoulder exercise. Holding a heavy bell bottoms up without losing it is a real stimulus on its own. And once you own the hold, you can build into presses and more from there.

Now you know what to work on.

PRs fade. Standards stay.

I try to keep a back squat around twice my bodyweight that I can hit close to at any point in the year. Not on a perfect day after a training block. Just whenever.

I've only back-squatted once in the last ten weeks and still got right around it. Felt strong, was about eight pounds off, but I moved on. There was more I wanted to do that day, and the exact number was never the point.

Sure, I’ve been a lot ‘stronger’ than this before. But maintaining a stronger squat takes more effort than it's worth. So this is my floor. The number that tells me I’m still where I want to be.

That’s what I think more people should have. Not a peak you hit once a year and chase forever. A floor you can check against at any point in the year. If I’m way under it or it feels really hard, I know it’s time to refocus on my strength. If it’s there, I keep my energy elsewhere.

A PR is a moment in time. A floor is what you can show up and do any day.