Exercise Index: Pull Throughs

October 27, 2009 on 4:14 pm | In Strength Training | 5 Comments

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Keeping on the posterior chain theme, pull throughs are a high quality, and often overlooked exercise.

Muscles Targeted: Low back, hamstrings, glutes (grip if sandbag or thick handle is used).

Exercise Description:Grab the object (sandbag, cable, band) between your legs, pull it through your legs by utilizing your hamstrings, low back, and glutes. I prefer to pull the band slightly in front to emphasize squeezing the glutes.  

Make sure to flex your torso and squeeze at the top of the exercise.

The other cable and band variation is to snap it up only to between the legs and not in front. Both variations work fine.

The sandbag will add grip and deceleration as you must control the odd object during the exercise.   Plus, you have to use what you can find!

Here’s a keg variation at the 1:55 mark:

More exercises on the way – make sure to subscribe at Synergy Athletics YouTube! 

- Joe Hashey, CSCS -

PS.  Tomorrow, Wed the 28th, Jedd and I will be doing a live broadcast talking about homemade equipment, grip strength,  and real world strength development.  Jedd goes on at 8, I’ll be on at 9 pm.   Have a question, post it here NOW ===> Muscle Gaining Experts.

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MORE ARTICLES YOU MAY LIKE:

• Baby Got Back (Posterior Chain Remix ft. Deadlift)
• Posterior Chain Strength - RDL
• One Hand Deadlift Series
• Lower Body Training - Pulling Against Chains
• Deadlifting Against Bands

5 Comments »

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1. the pull throughs remind me of a very awkward and heavy kettlebell swing, the superset with those and the front squat is a sick ass leg workout.

   good combo.

   Comment by Jay Ashman — October 27, 2009 #

2. with the sandbag swings, it looks like your getting more work with the shoulders because of where you have your hands the the hip explosiveness your looking for. Don’t get me wrong the choice of exercises are perfect, I just see more dragging the bag then explosiveness.

   Comment by Njama — October 28, 2009 #

3. Njama – certainly a reasonable thought.

   If I was standing upright and raising it would certainly be shoulder dominant.

   However – reaching back, pulling with the hamstrings and glutes while extending at the hips to finish the pull through is what causes the bag to swing through.

   When you see the hips extending (I think this is what you are talking about) is when the bag is approaching the peak – where there is not a significant load on them. This is more the “follow through” from firing them at the beginning of the force.

   With the sandbag (and unfixed object) as opposed to a cable or band, the shoulders and upper back are important to control the movement so the bag doesn’t go flying.

   I hope that explanation helps further.

   Joe

   Comment by Admin: Joe Hashey, CSCS — October 28, 2009 #

4. it helps alot Coach. I see where your thinking is regarding the loading of the hamstrings and glutes, and actually doing the swings the way you describe, I feel it more in the glute connection to the hamstrings because of the pull through.

   Comment by Njama — November 1, 2009 #

5. Glad I could help!

   I should spend a little time talking about the movements during the video instead of just performing them. I’ll take that into account when I film some more!

   Thanks!

   Joe

   Comment by Admin: Joe Hashey, CSCS — November 1, 2009 #

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