Unusual and old school weight training

BrianD3

Anyone here do any "unusual" exercises and find them good. IMO this term would cover anything that is rarely or never seen being done in a gym. The sort of stuff i'm talking about would be old school training, one sided lifts, Pavel style training, kettlebell training, training for those who workout at home with limited equipment, exercises that are well known but are ignored by a lot of people etc. etc.

Examples:
Suitcase deadlifts
One legged deadlifts
Bent press
Side press
Pistols with or without added weight
Dumbbell or kettlebell swings
One handed snatch with dumbbell, barbell or kettlebell
Barbell hack squats
Windmills
Weighted chin ups (well known exercise but very few people seem to do 'em)
Thick bar exercises (eg deadlifts, rows)
Yates rows
Hanging leg raises (with added weight if necessary)

Anyone have any opinions on the above or have any other similar ones that they do. I have experimented with most of the above ones and have gotten enjoyment out of them. Exercises such as these have become quite trendy and have attracted a cult following in recent years thanks to articles on the internet, Pavel's book etc. I sometimes wonder if their benefit is exaggerated and if they are just another fad that will pass.

It also should be said that there is probably more potential for nasty injuries with the above exercises (esp the one sided ones) than with the more mainstream stuff. Eg I wouldn't advise any beginners to start doing suitcase deadlifts without first gaining some experience doing normal deads and abdominal work.

Easygainer

I do some exercises that I never see anyone else do (I won't list squats, but that falls into this category in most gyms :rolleyes: )

-Rack chins (behind the neck and to the front)
-Overhand bent rows in smith machine (similar to cross between rack dead and snatch high pull)
-Sumo leg press (for hams)

I also perfrom a lot of exercises differently - eg for calves I do standing leg press with explosive positve, 5 sec negative and 15 sec stretch at bottom for 12 reps...

joc_06

i have a few too:
turkish get ups : basically standing up from a sleeping position with a DB in one hand and elbow locked.
all exercises one legged or one handed. eg one handed deadlift, one legged front squat
also a heap of strongman lifts, like log lifts and tyre flips, stone lifts, farmers walk etc

poobum

i hate turkish get ups...make us do them for rugby! they work good but are a pain in the ass!