Categoriescoaching Exercise Technique Program Design Strength Training

Row, Row, Row Your Back

I hated P.E. class. I was a skinny, weird and uncoordinated kid.

I was the one who got picked on in the changing rooms about my lack of size, and we’re just not talking about muscles.

Whenever P.E. class was on my schedule, I dreaded it.  I’d rather go to the dentist to get a tooth pulled or talk about my confused teenage feelings.

Our masochistic P.E teacher liked to put us through a series of fitness tests every few months to determine our grades. As far as I was concerned, showing up was an A.

One of the many tests was an isometric chin up hold for time. You were to hold the top position of a chin up for as long as possible.  On this particular testing day, as soon as my name was called, the knives came out.

“You won’t last 10 seconds, McLean. You’re as weak as piss.”  (That’s Australian for not strong and bad tasting beer.)

As I stepped up to the bar, I had a little extra incentive and was determined to prove my doubter wrong.  I willed myself to a 40-second hold which was not bad for a weakling. I even got the nods of approval from the high school meatheads.

Ever since then I could always do a chin up.    

In the gym, chin ups/pull ups are still great test of your relative body strength.  You’ll never hear someone ask “How much to you row, dude?” However, you will hear in gyms around the world “How much do you bench?”

Not everyone can do a chin up (although it should be a goal), but everyone needs to build upper back strength because in today’s society we’re constantly looking down at our smart phones, tablets and computers.

Furthermore, we sit too much and move too little.

Over time this can wreak havoc on upper back strength, posture and spine. For instance, every inch our ears are forward from our shoulders (forward head posture) you increase the weight of the head on the spine by an additional 10 pounds. (Kapandji, Physiology of Joints, Vol. 3).

And while there’s no scientific correlation, forward head posture also increases one affinity for douchiness.

Upper back strength also plays a huge role in the big lifts such as squats, deadlifts and even the bench press, which is big deal for hardcore gym goers and for the everyday desk jockey who wants to look better naked.

That’s reason enough to include some old school and new age rows into your routine. Your back and biceps will thank you, and the chest will just have to wait its turn.

Old School Rows

1) Barbell Bent Over Row

This is the godfather of rows. Not only does this strengthen your upper back, shoulders, biceps and grip, it’s the perfect accessory exercise for improving your deadlift. Bent over row mimics the hip hinge, and holding this for time with help improve your lower/upper back endurance. More importantly, it will improve your ability to keep a neutral spine while pulling heavy.

 

The classic cues of shoulders down, chest up, grow tall or shoulders away from the ears work here. If you feel this movement in your lower back or upper traps, you’re missing something and should check your form.

Note From TG: Check out THIS baller post by Harold Gibbons dissecting a ingenious drill – the hamstring bridge hold – to help people learn to “feel” the hamstrings during a bent over row.

Programming – I’ve found doing this for strength (low reps 3-5 and more sets 5-6) will help improve your ability to pull from the floor and to keep a neutral spine under heavy loads.

If you’ve never done sets of 20 reps before, you don’t know what you’re missing.

2) Single Arm Dumbbell Rows

There’s a multitude of variations to choose from. From the classic single arm bench supported variety to this excellent variation from Eric Bach of Bach Performance.

Or this one from Tony himself:

 

Dumbbell rows in general are perfect for ironing out strength imbalances that often exist between sides and you’ll get some additional core work in the form of lateral stability.

Let’s face it, you cannot get enough core work.

Keeping the spine in neutral and not rowing with the upper traps is the key here. Please don’t go extremely heavy and short arm the weight because you’re not fooling anybody. It’s almost as bad as knee bend squats or poorly performed pushups.

Note From TG: Another point to consider is pinning or “glueing” the shoulder blade(s) in place. The scapulae should move around the ribcage, not stay in place. Read THIS for more information.

Programming – I prefer programming these for higher reps (8-15 range) and lower sets (2-4). Pairing these in a super set with any press variation or including these in a metabolic circuit works well.

Running the rack to murder the upper back is fantastic, if you’re a fan of pain.

New Age Rows

1) TRX Rows

Dan John sums up why we need to do TRX rows:

“TRX single arm and double arm rows target an area of the body that often gets missed or ignored. The whole upper back/rear shoulder area is probably the most underdeveloped area of people I’ve worked with.”

The beauty of the TRX is you can adjust the intensity simply by adjusting the foot position closer or further away from the anchor point. This makes this exercise accessible to almost everybody.

Here’s how to set up for a single arm row, one of my personal favorites.

Keeping your shoulders down and chest up and not shrugging your upper traps to pull yourself towards the handles is the key here, too.

Also, try the Hinge Row (which “nudges” a bit more upward rotation in the shoulders)

 

Or, if you’re really feeling fancy pants you can try this variation, which, technically, isn’t a TRX row, but uses the TRX so whateves:

 

Programming – TRX rows are a great change of pace from weighted rows and I’d recommend training these for higher reps (12-20) and fewer sets (2-4). The TRX makes exercise transition simple, so including rows in a superset or a circuit works like a charm. 

If you’re looking to burn out the back and pump up the biceps, TRX mechanical drop sets are perfect.

2) Single Arm Landmine Row

Single arm landmine exercises such as the row will help reduce joint stress while maximizing shoulder tension and stabilization. In my experience you can use more weight than the traditional dumbbell/cable row set up without any undue stress.

The set-up and cues are similar to a barbell bent over row. A good hip hinge and a neutral spine are essential.

The landmine allows you to row from a variety of positions and grips which is great for hitting the upper back from different angles.

 

Programming – Holding the end of the barbell instead of the dumbbell will provide a greater grip challenge.

Use the same programming guidelines as for the dumbbell rows. Or if you’re hating life, include them in a landmine complex, like this one courtesy of Ben Bruno.

 

Wrapping Up

Just because you cannot see the upper back, shouldn’t mean the chest gets all the love. Keeping the upper back strong is necessity for good posture and healthy shoulders.  Upper strength will help improve your deadlift, squat and bench numbers.

If that’s not reason enough, rows work the biceps. They’re always in need of extra attention.

Author’s Bio

Shane “The Balance Guy” McLean, is an A.C.E Certified Personal Trainer working deep in the heart of Dallas, Texas.

No, Shane doesn’t wear a cowboy hat or boots.  After being told that his posture blows by Eric Cressey, he has made it his mission to rid the world of desk jockeys and have fun while doing so.

After all exercise is fun and never a “work” out.

You can follow Shane on Twitter HERE, and Facebook HERE.

CategoriesExercises You Should Be Doing Strength Training

Exercises You Should Be Doing: TRX Batwing

A few months ago Dan John wrote a blog post (or maybe even an article) on his “batwing” principle, which is a subtle exercise tweak one can make to standard rowing variations that aids in “waking-up” the rhomboids and the upper back musculature as a whole.

It was a very simple idea – albeit brilliant, because I had never dawned on me before and it’s something that can easily be assimilated into most programs without much thought or coaching.

I mean, come on, it’s pretty self-explanatory!

After the fact my good buddy, Ben Bruno, went a head and shared with the world a few of his own variations that he implemented with his athletes. And, having been hit by the “Ah HA” fairy myself, I too came up with a cool variation: the Half Kneeling Cable Batwing/Pulldown.

It pretty much changed the world.  True story.

Anyways, fast forward to the other day when I received an email from a former distance coaching client of mine , Tom.

We still keep in touch every now and then, and in this particular case he shared a batwing variation that he felt would be a nice fit to the Exercises You Should Be Doing series.

TRX Batwing

NOTE: Before we begin, I recognize that people hate (HATE!) vertical videos.  In the ranking of things to hate, a list may look something like this:

1.  Hitler.
2. Justin Beiber’s general level of douchebaggery.
3.  Rocky V.
4.  Vertical videos
5. Cold sores.

In the grande scheme of things you can blame me, because even though Tom sent me the video as is, it’s my fault for forgetting to film one myself when I tried the exercise out at the facility the other day.

My bad.  But moving on…….

Who Did (We) Steal It From Him:  I stole it from Tom, who stole it from both Dan John and Joe DeFranco.

What Does It Do:  Lots and lots of stuff going on here.  Tom mentioned that Joe DeFranco discussed a variation where you hold yourself in the push-up position on the TRX (with the arm locked out), and you grab either a kettlebell or dumbbell and perform a standard row.  Perform “x” number of reps on one side, switch, and repeat on the other.

However, Tom really liked Dan John’s idea of “reawakening” the rhomboids and instead of performing standard reps up and down, you hold each rep for time.

I agree.  Most people have woefully weak posterior chains (this includes the upper back) and IMO there’s really no such thing as too much horizontal rowing.

Too much Santa, yes.  Too much horizontal rowing, no.

By that token, this variation provides an incredible anti-rotary component (and anti-extension), as well as rotator cuff activation (because you have to have a death grip on the TRX so that you don’t tip over), and of course, provides a light training effect for the upper back muscles.

You’re not going to be crushing any big weights or breaking any PRs with this exercise, but it’s a nice way to include some LIGHT horizontal pulling while simultaneously getting in some “core” work.

Key Coaching Cues:  The most obvious: don’t fall over…..;o)

The wider the stance, the more stable you’re going to be, so depending on your ability level you’re going to have to make a judgement call here. Er on the side of caution, though and start with a slightly wider than hip width stance. Adjust from there.

Also, try to squeeze your glutes as if you’re trying to crack a walnut.  The entire backside should be in a relative straight line, so if you’re hiking your hips up in the air, squeeze those bad boys!

Along the same lines, your lower back shouldn’t be dipping.

As I alluded to above, you have two options here:

1.  You can perform “x” number of repetitions per side (8-12) using a kettlebell or dumbbell.  I’m indifferent either way.

OR (my preference)

2.  Hold each “rep” for an allotted time frame.  I think a great starting point would be 5x5s holds PER ARM.

Focus on pulling the elbow towards the hip (but don’t go past the hip! You want to try to avoid too much glenohumeral extension), and pausing in the top position for  FIVE SECOND count.  Perform five reps per side.

Feel that? Yeah, those are your rhomboids working.

Try it out today, and let me know what you think.

 

CategoriesProduct Review

Gift Ideas For the Fitness Fanatic

Tis the season!

Well, I guess technically the season started a while ago having witnessed the first Christmas themed commercial a few days before Halloween, and thinking to myself, “wow, really?????  This early???”

But alas, like most people, now that we’re well past Thanksgiving and Christmas (or whatever respective holiday you choose to celebrate: Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, He-Man’s b-day) is right around the corner, it’s time to put our game faces on.

As is customary in my family, when everyone’s home for Thanksgiving my mom literally forces us to sit down and make our respective list of gift ideas. In no certain order mine consisted of:

  • World Peace.
  • For Nickleback to never release another album ever again.
  • For my upstairs neighbors to NOT decide that 2AM seems like as good as time as any to reorganize their apartment and move around their furniture.
  • Socks.
  • Red Ryder BB Gun.
  • The Batmobile.

You know, nothing fancy.

In reality, however, my list generally consists of books I want to check out, some DVDs, maybe a few dress shirts, and definitely not socks.

Not everyone is as easy to shop for as me, though.

*cough cough, X-Box, cough cough*

But given this is a fitness site and you’re presumably reading it because you (and those close to you) dig lifting heavy stuff (or making fun of Tracy Anderson), what’s better than to give the gift of fitness, health, and well-being?

Okay, a movie quality Chewbacca mask is right up there too, but that goes without saying.

With that said, the following are some fitness themed gift ideas for the fitness minded individual in your life.  Some are things that I’ve recommended before, but there are a fair number of new ideas as well.

I hope this helps.  And if it doesn’t, you can always go the underwear route.  But that’s kinda lame.

1.  TRX Suspension Trainer 

This is one of those repeat gift ideas, but I find that this is perfect for those who want to get in shape (or do something) yet either don’t have time for the gym or just don’t want to deal with the hassle of dealing with pushy salesmen, shady trainers, crowds, lots of grunting and groaning, and people who wear way too much cologne.

In other words:  everything about a commercial gym.

The TRX is a very versatile piece of equipment that can be used at home or even as a nice alternative to those who do a lot of travelling and can’t always hit the gym.

For those looking to save a little money, however, I also recommend that Jungle Gym.

2. Heart Rate Monitor

Stealing a quote from Joel Jamieson, who’s really brought the whole concept of heart rate variability to the forefront in recent times:

A high quality heart rate monitor will help you get the most out of your conditioning work because it can help keep your heart rate in the right training ranges while also providing invaluable feedback so you can determine if your program is working the way it should be or not. Without this sort of objective feedback and information, a lot of your training becomes nothing more than guesswork.

Where I find the most value in using a heart rate monitor is managing your rest intervals during circuit training.

Using predetermined work:rest ratios is fine – and a great starting point for most individuals – but may be detrimental for some in that it can be either too aggressive or not enough.

With regards to the former point, some people take longer to recover when performing high intensity training.  An effective approach is to let your heart rate return to 130-140bpm before repeating an interval. This helps make sure you’ve recovered enough and are ready to push yourself to the max.

Conversely, some people recover faster than others, and if this is the case, you’re doing yourself a major disservice if you stick to preordained work:rest ratios.

Using a heart monitor takes the guess work out and allows people the luxury of optimizing their training.

I actually got one for Lisa for her Birthday not too long ago and she loves it!

NOTE:  I’m indifferent as far as which one to use:  the one that wraps around your chest, or the one that wraps around your forearm/wrist.  I guess it just comes down ti personal preference.  I don’t know if one is more effective than the other.  Maybe someone else can chime in?

3.  150 Healthiest Foods on Earth

Speaking of Lisa, I bought this book for her three Christmases ago, and it’s arguably still the best present I’ve ever got her.

To this day it’s not uncommon for either of us to reference the book for new food ideas or to serve as a refresher as to why grass fed beef is a better option or what it is about curcumin that makes it so healthy.

In all honestly, the entire book is chock full of nutritional information.

Likewise, I believe she and I have given this book as a gift for family members or friends no less than five times, and it’s always been a huge hit.

4. REPboards

So you’re at the gym and your program calls for board presses.  It’s already a pain in the ass enough to ask some random person to offer a handoff (which is an art in of itself), let alone to ask yet another person to come along and hold the boards in place.

If you train at a powerlifting gym it’s one thing – it’s part of the regular rigmarole and scheme of things to spot one another and to be “board bitch” on occasion.

At a commercial gym, though, things can get dicey.

Sure you can use your own boards and place them underneath your shirt and hope they stay in place, or you can even use a mini-band and wrap that around them, but nothing is guaranteed and it’s often a cumbersome cluster****.

A few weeks ago I was sent a complimentary set of REPboards to try out, and gave them a go.

They’re a handy little tool that takes all the cumbersomeness (is that a word????) out of the picture and allows one to utilize 1,2,3, and 4 board presses without all the fanfare.

Personally I don’t have a lot of need for them given where I train, but for those who don’t have the luxury of a training crew, these are a great alternative.

5. The Dark Knight Rises

Granted this has absolutely nothing to do with fitness, but it’s Batman, and Batman is awesome.

Actually Tom Hardy (who plays Bane) is pretty diesel in this movie, and Anne Hathaway (who plays Catwoman) is pretty flexible and stuff (and kicks several people in the face), so it does have a slightly fitness feel to it.

What’s more important is that your boyfriend already has the first two movies in the trilogy (Batman Begins and The Dark Knight) in his DVD collection, so you might as well do him a favor and complete the collection.

DO IT!!!!!!

6. Show and Go

Written by my good friend (and business partner, Eric Cressey), Show and Go is a comprehensive FOUR-MONTH training program that’s about as close as you can get to training at Cressey Performance without actually stepping through the doors.

Rather than wasting $597 (or however much it costs to buy “x” number of sessions with your local schmocal personal trainer), why not spend infinitely less and actually get your loved one a program that will actually yield results?

Note:  Show and Go is definitely geared towards the more intermediate/advanced trainee, so I wouldn’t look into this product for someone who doesn’t have a lot of experience under the bar.  In that case, hiring a personal trainer – if that’s the avenue you were going to take anyways – to show them the ropes would be the right path to take.

7. Post Rehab Essentials

For the more nerdtastic fitness enthusiasts in your life (those who want to geek out on anatomy, assessment, corrective exercise, programming, Dean Somserset’s sultry voice), I can’t recommend this one enough.

I really feel this is a “must-have” product that any coach or trainer should have in their fitness library – especially if they’re someone who works with a lot of banged up clients (which basically means everyone).

In fact I used many of the tests and exercises Dean discusses as part of my own rehab a few months ago when I was dealing with some lower back funkiness.

Dean talked me through a few months of programming and I was back to tip top shape in no time flat.

8. New Rules of Lifting (Series)

I’ve mentioned this in the past, but I can’t thank Lou Schuler, Alwyn Cosgrove, and by extension, Cassandra Forsythe (who helped pen the female version) enough for writing these books, as they have saved my fingers from doing a lot of typing.

In a time where people are inundated with an avalanche of information when it comes to fitness, and seemingly more confused than ever, this series is the one that I ALWAYS divert people towards for information that they NEED to hear as well as to help set them on the right path towards success.

The New Rules of Lifting

The New  Rules of Lifting for Women

The New Rules of Lifting for Abs

The New Rules of Lifting for Life

And that’s about it.  I know I could probably list a few more books, gadgets (and movies), but I know people are probably stressed tot he gills and don’t need more lists to read or check off.  Hope I was able to help somewhat.

Happy shopping/Don’t kill anyone.

 

CategoriesUncategorized

Chin-Up Progressions for Women (The One Rep Hump) – Part I

I’ve noted in the past that, outside of maybe a handful (who are working their tails off to get there), every female client that trains at Cressey Performance (above the age of 16) can do a real, dead start, arms fully extended, sternum to the bar, non-spastic looking, legit chin-up.  Usually for multiple reps.

In recent months it’s been almost epidemic. Seemingly every female client is on a mission to conquer the chin-up, and the fruits of their labor are blossoming like never before with teenage girls as well as 50+ year old women – some of which who have been training for more than half their life – achieving something that they never thought possible.

You see, they had always been told by friends, family, the bulk of women’s magazines (or more than likely, told themselves) that they could never, not in a million years, do an actual chin-up.

Oh no you didn’t!!!!!!!!

As you can imagine, I think that’s a bunch of silly talk, and nothing is more satisfying than proving each and every one of them that they’re flat out wrong.

Truth be told, it’s amazing what can happen when you cut through the BS, stop making excuses, hold people accountable, and place them in a training environment that doesn’t cater to their fears.

That latter point is something that really bugs me sometimes.  How often have you heard a woman say she’d really love to perform a chin-up, and then her trainer points her in the direction of one of those counterbalanced chin-up apparatuses, or worse, the seated lat pulldown machine.

Full disclosure:  I’m not entirely opposed to those machines.  There’s a time and place for them, just as there’s a time and place for a leg press (hahahahahahaaha.  Just kidding).

But in all seriousness, if I’m starting with someone who’s woefully weak – to the point where gripping a bar and holding their body weight is too challenging – and relatively inexperienced in the weight room, I have no issues whatsoever introducing them to exercises like lat pulldowns or counterbalanced chin-up/pull-up variations to help build strength within that movement pattern and “grease” proper technique:

  • Keep chin tucked
  • Pull through the elbows
  • Keep shoulder blades together and down (retracted and depressed).  Another cue I like here is to keep the shoulder blades in the back pocket.  This helps prevent any shrugging.
  • Finish at the sternum and squeeze!
  • Lower controlled, and come juuuuuuuuuuust short of locking the elbows outs (maintain tension).
  • Repeat and when done, cue Goose and Maverick high five.

Moving forward however, if you want to get more proficient with chin-ups (or pull-ups) it stands to reason that, eventually, you need to gravitate towards the actual chin-up/pull-up bar.  And, if I am to speak frankly, I really feel that utilizing the lat pulldown and counterbalanced machines, exclusively, is just putting a band-aid over an obvious strength issue, if not something more relevant altogether.

To me, serving as the umbrella of all of this – and certainly not to be understated – is the mentality that a vast majority of woman carry heading into such a task.

That they just can’t do a chin-up. Period.

STOP THIS!!!!

It’s counterproductive and all the negative self talk isn’t going to help matters.

[Takes deep breath]

I tried to figure out a way to say what I’m about to say in a more PC fashion, and after fiddling with a few different sentences, talking it over with several other females, and letting my thoughts stew for a few days, I just decided to go with it.  Here it is:

If you have the ability to grow a human being inside your body and push it out, you undoubtedly have the ability to bang out a chin-up.  And might I add:  in MUCH less time than nine months.

Understandably, I recognize how the statement above may rub some the wrong way (but hopefully most of the people reading “get” the context) – but it’s high time we stop making excuses and stop sugar coating things. Quit with the excuses.

That said, what follows are some of the exercises (and progressions) we like to use at Cressey Performance with many of our female clients to help them get over that 1-rep hump……….

TRX Progressions

Giving credit where credit is due, I actually “stole” these from Ottawa based strength coach Elsbeth Vaino, after a distance coaching client of mine directed me in her direction.  I thought these progressions were brilliant and rather than reinvent the wheel, I thought I’d pass them along and share them with you.

A few things to note beforehand:

1.  Before attempting these, it’s assumed that you can perform a regular TRX inverted row flawlessly.  If not, please don’t try these as it’s probably not going to look pretty.

2.  There’s a bit of trial and error involved in setting up the apparatus as you have to wrap the TRX around the bar in order to get the handles at the proper height.

3.  In the videos, I realize that Whitney is using more of a neutral grip rather than a standard supinated (underhand) grip while demonstrating the exercises.  It’s okay, I understand the difference between a chin-up and pull-up, so for those who were inevitably going to get their panties all up in a bunch and call me out……..relax.  I called myself out.  So there!

TRX Chin-Up Progression I

The main point to highlight here, is that Whitney is starting from her knees and then pulling herself up while using her feet to kinda “assist” herself up towards her chest. I don’t mind a little bit of “rocking” at the bottom as all I’m really concerned about here is grooving a more vertical pattern which carries over very well to the actual chin-up.

All the same rules apply in terms of proper technique:  shoulder blades in the back pocket, pull through the elbows, keep the chin tucked, control the eccentric (lowering) portion of the lift, increase your general level of awesomeness.

From there, we can progress the exercise into a more seated variation.

TRX Chin-Up Progression II

This does two things:

1.  Increases the range of motion.

2.  Forces Whitney to pull more of her own body weight.

Still, the objective is to grease more of a vertical pulling pattern, which can’t necessarily be down with a conventional inverted row.

TRX Chin-Up Progression III

Kicking it up a notch, we can then elevate Whitney’s feet onto a box (or stepper) and increase the ROM even further.

Simple, albeit very effective.

Among much else, these variations serve as an awesome way to get the ball rolling and to help better prepare the trainee for pulling her own body weight rather than relying on a machine to do so for her.

Of course, there are numerous other progressions (and even regressions) I like to implement, such as  band assisted variations as well as eccentric only variations, but those will have to wait until next week when I dive into part II.

Till then, feel free to share your thoughts below and offer your own insight into the matter.  I’d love to hear them!

CategoriesUncategorized

Exercises You Should Be Doing: TRX Busdriver

While the world is currently at a standstill over the Royal Wedding pukefest coverage, I for one have stayed true to my word, and haven’t watched one single second of it.  And, despite their efforts to the contrary – I wouldn’t let any of the women in this morning’s womens group talk about it, because frankly, I didn’t want my sperm count dropping.

Nevertheless, I’m going to keep this one short today unfortunately, because I’m in scramble mode trying to find another apartment.  I’ve spent the past few days on Craigslist searching for apartments for my girlfriend and I, and I’ve been meeting with realtors all week trying to find a place that doesn’t smell like wet dog.  It’s getting somewhat comical, though, because this will be the seventh year in a row that I’ve moved.  Thankfully, I travel light, and all I have to pack are my books, a couch, my tv, and a vintage Star Wars poster.

Anyhoo, lets get to the meat and potatoes.

What Is It:  TRX Busdriver (or, for something less lame, you can call it the TRX Kid-n-Play:  as a tribute to the early 90’s dance masters, Kid-n-Play, ohhhhh, ohhhhh, ohhhhhh).  If you don’t get the reference, then shame on you.

Who Did I Steal It From:  strength coach and guy who can kick my ass with both hands tied behind his back, Dewey Nielsen

What Does It Do:  While this is a fantastic exercise to work core stability, what’s often left un-noticed is the fact that this is also a superb way to train ANTI-EXTENSION as well.  So, in a sense, you kill two birds with one stone here.

Key Coaching Cues:  Making sure not to hyperextend the lumbar spine, simply move the TRX (or blast straps for that matter) from shoulder to shoulder maintaining as little movement as possible in the hips and pelvic area.  Another point to consider, is to make sure that you squeeze your glutes the entire time, and to recognize that the narrower your stance is, the harder the exercise will be.

You can do this for time, but I prefer something along the lines of 2-3 sets of 6-8 repetitions PER SIDE.

Give it a try, and let me know what you think!