elitefts™ Founder and CEO Dave Tate explains the SS Yoke Bar Upper Bake Good Morning, which primarily targets the upper spinal erectors, as performed by elitefts™ Advisor and mastermind of Mountain Dog Training John Meadows. The lifter starts in a neutral spinal position, and maintains this position through the movement (focusing on keeping the hips locked in place can help). The upper back is rounded in a controlled fashion into a deep forward stretch, held in the stretch position for at least two seconds, and then slowly reversed to the starting position by arching, with maintaining tightness and attempting to drive the head rearward into the traps the main focuses. A strong contraction in the upper back should be the goal at this point. This exercise is a slow, controlled movement that focuses on the stretch and contraction and should not be rushed. See the video for detailed real-time coaching cues. It is advisable to keep sets at least one or two reps short of failure to minimize stress on the lower back. This exercise is also a great way to hit the upper back while minimizing strain on the shoulders and biceps tendons. The exercise can be done for reps, or for time, as Dave and John did during their most recent training session. From Dave Tate's Training Log:
This is not a beginner exercise. This is about working the muscles and not just doing the motion. If you can't feel or know how to contract this will be worthless for you.
