Goals: Posterior chain strength; unilateral strength & hypertrophy; abdominal strength; hip and hamstring mobility

Duration: 60-90 minutes

Frequency: 2x per week

Schedule: Perform The Nordic Weight Bench V2 Complete Lower Body Workout at the beginning of the training week, and perform The Nordic Weight Bench V2 Complete Upper Body Workout the following day. Rest 1-2 days then repeat.

How to Progress the Movements

Seated Good Morning: strive to get more reps; gradually increase ROM; add 5lbs every 3-4 weeks

Nordic Curl: strive to get more reps; gradually increase range of motion; add a very light weight

Bulgarian Split Squat: strive to get more reps; add 5lbs every 3-4 weeks

Decline Sit-up: strive to get more reps; hold a light DB to your chest; switch to one leg

Copenhagen Plank: increase lever length; increase hold times; place a light weight on your hips

A. Seated Good Morning (Detailed Breakdown)

How to Perform It

1. Sit on the Nordic Weight Bench with feet flat on the floor and knees bent at 90°.

2. Hold a light barbell on your shoulders or a pair of dumbbells in your hands.

3. Hinge forward from the hips under control while maintaining a neutral spine.

4. When the hamstrings and adductors are maximally stretched, reverse the movement back to an upright position at the top.

Muscles Worked: Glutes; Hamstrings; Adductors; Erector spinae

Benefits:

1. Strengthens the posterior chain while minimizing spinal compression

2. Improves hip mobility and hamstring length

3. Reinforces hinging mechanics with a controlled, progressive range of motion.

Rehab Application (Back Pain):

1. A powerful tool for building back resilience after injury.

2. Ideal for reintroducing hip hinging with reduced axial loading.

3. Start with a light load and shallow ROM, and slowly and gradually progress.

4. Promotes muscular control, stability, and mobility.

Regressions:

1. Since the hips are already flexed to roughly 90° at the start of the movement, the mobility demands of this exercise are very high.

2. Start with a controlled, shallow depth by locking the pad of the Nordic Weight Bench at an elevated angle. Be sure to start with a range of motion that you can move through comfortably while maintaining a neutral spine.

3. As strength and mobility improve, gradually increase the range of motion one notch at a time.

B. Nordic Curl (Detailed Breakdown)

How to Perform It

1. Adjust the ankle roller on the NWB so that your ankles can lock securely underneath it.

2. Adjust the pad angle to a starting point that allows you to maintain full control of the movement. The higher the angle, the easier the movement will be; the lower it is, the harder.

3. Keeping the body in a straight line from head to knee, slowly lower your torso forward by unlocking the knees and fully controlling the eccentric contraction through your hamstrings.

4. Once your torso reaches the pad, drive explosively back to the top, keeping the hips mostly extended as you do.

Muscles Worked: Hamstrings (primary); glutes; calves (minor)

Benefits:

1. One of the most effective hamstring strength and injury prevention exercises

2. Increases eccentric hamstring capacity, key for sprinting and deceleration

3. Enhances knee stability and tendon resilience

4. Great transfer to running, jumping, and sports

Regressions:

1. Nordics should always be performed with full control. 

2. You can regress the movement to an appropriate level by elevating the pad on the NWB and shortening the range of motion.

3. Gradually increase ROM every few weeks as strength and control improve.

4. Band assistance can also be a helpful tool for easing into full-range reps.

5. Long-term goal: progress to full range of motion, unassisted reps. Once 10 clean reps can be achieved with body weight, only then add a small amount of weight.

Rehab Application (Knee Bulletproofing):

1. Essential for reducing hamstring strain risk and ACL injuries

2. Begin with a short range of motion that can be fully controlled

3. Focus on exaggerating and completely controlling the eccentric phase.

4. Gradually build toward full range unassisted reps over a period of several months

5. Band assistance can be a helpful tool for acclimating to full range of motion reps.

C. Bulgarian Split Squat (Detailed Breakdown)

How to Perform It

1. Set the ankle roller on the NWB so that it is at about knee height.

2. Place the working leg in a staggered stance out in front of you with the trailing leg supported behind you on the ankle roller.

3. Squat down by lowering the hips straight down in a vertical line towards the floor while keeping the torso upright and your weight distributed evenly over the front foot.

4. Drive powerfully through the front foot to return to the starting position.

5. Complete all reps on the non-dominant leg first, then switch to the dominant leg.

Muscles Worked: Quads, Adductors, Glutes

Benefits:

1. Builds unilateral strength; improves single-leg balance and hip stability

2. Reduces side-to-side asymmetries in strength and mobility.

3. Builds hip and ankle mobility while also stretching the rear leg hip flexors.

4. Enhances knee and ankle stability, translating well to sport and daily movement.

Pro Tip: Once bodyweight becomes easy, hold a pair of dumbbells at your side to increase the challenge. When you are comfortable with the balancing aspect, you can try using a bar on your back.

D. Decline Sit-Up (Detailed Breakdown)

How to Perform It

1. Set the pad on the NWB in the decline position, and adjust the ankle roller so that your feet are able to lock securely underneath it.

2. Lie on your back with your torso fully deloaded onto the pad.

3. Brace your core and sit up to a tall position, squeezing the abs at the top.

4. Lower under control until your back is making full contact with the pad. Repeat.

Muscles Worked: Rectus abdominis (primary); obliques (secondary); hip flexors

Benefits:

1. Strengthens the core through full range of motion trunk flexion

2. Trains trunk flexion in a controlled and progressive fashion.

3. Builds anterior core endurance and control

4. Great for hypertrophy in the abdominal muscles

Tips for Effectiveness

1. Using a controlled tempo emphasizes muscle activation.

2. Hold a light plate or dumbbell to your chest to progress the intensity.

3. Focus on curling the spine rather than simply hinging at the hips.

Pro Tip: Try doing these one leg at a time to increase the difficulty and enhance the hip flexor strengthening effect while maintaining the same stimulus for the abdominal muscles (most people have woefully weak hip flexor muscles!)

E. Copenhagen Plank (Detailed Breakdown)

How to Perform It

1. Lie on your side and place your top leg at the knee on the Nordic Weight Bench.

2. Stack your elbow under your shoulder and lift your hips off the ground.

3. Keep your lower leg off the floor and hold your body in a rigid straight line.

4. Push the top knee into the bench and hold this position for time.

Muscles Worked: Adductors; Obliques; Glute medius; Transverse abdominis

Benefits:

1. Strengthens the groin and adductors, which are hard to hit and often neglected

2. Improves hip stability and anti-lateral flexion core strength.

3. Reduces the risk of groin and adductor strains.

4. A quality of life movement. Useful for athletes, runners, and most gen pop trainees.

Progressions:

1. This movement should be started with a short lever (knee supported on a bench) regardless of your overall strength level.

2. Hold times should be increased first, and then a small weight plate can be placed on the top of the hips to increase the intensity.

3. From there, you can slowly lengthen the lever over time by moving your knee further and further off the bench until you are supporting yourself at the ankle. 

4. Be mindful that this final progression places a very large shear stress on the inner portion of the knee, and if you try to progress to it before you are ready, then it may cause some problems.