Exercise 6.15 Bridge press
(b) Floor
(c) Wall
The bridge press (also known as the bridge up or gymnastics bridge) is a challenging wholebody stability and strength exercise that requires a good level of shoulder flexibility in extension
Basic movement • Lie flat on your back • Bend your arms and put them flat on the ground by your ears, with forearms vertical to the floor • Bend the knees and place your feet flat on the ground • Engage the abdominals and glutes, and press through the shoulders and drive the hips up, raising the body off the floor • Aim to straighten the legs as much as possible, pushing the head through your arms • Although you may not reach anywhere near full arm or leg extension initially, a skilful bridge should finish with the arms vertical to the floor and the rest of the body in full extension
STABILITY SKILLS
(a) Hand position
to perform skilfully and safely. However, for this reason it is a useful, yet advanced drill for skills that require shoulder stability in an open position, e.g. handstands.
This exercise can be regressed to help individuals improve flexibility in shoulder and hip extension. The objective of the exercise is to focus on proper hip and shoulder extension. As you build flexibility and endurance, you can start to walk your hands further down the wall. • Stand with your back facing a wall, about 2–3 feet away • Keeping the feet a few inches apart, engage the abdominals and glutes, and lean backwards reaching the arms overhead to catch the wall behind you • Aim to place your hands on the wall around shoulder height, keeping the arms as straight as possible 79
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