A strong posterior chain is important in the majority of athletic endeavours, but It is an area prone to be injured. 619 million people live with lower back pain, and it is the leading cause of worldwide disability, according to the World Health Organisation. Therefore, filling your training programme with accessories that strengthen the posterior chain is often recommended. Two great exercises for this are the Hyperextension and the Reverse Hyperextension.

What is a Hyperextension?

A hyperextension, usually performed on a specialist hyperextension bench, is a lower body posterior exercise that anchors the legs into a stationary position while the torso moves freely to load the lower body.

Hyperextension Benefits

The Hyperextension isolates the hip, pelvic and lumbar flexion and extension, without a contribution from the knee joint. This makes it a great accessory to exercises like squats that use a lot more knee bend.

What is a Reverse Hyperextension?

A Reverse Hyperextension is a posterior chain exercise that anchors the upper body into a stationary position, while the lower body moves to load the lower body. It is typically performed with a Reverse Hyperextension Machine.

Reverse Hyperextension Benefits

Compared to the Hyperextension, the reverse hyperextension is a very similar exercise, but with less spinal flexion because of the pad restricting the torso. This makes it a great exercise if you are looking to add some posterior training into your training, without placing as much load on the lower back. If you have conventional deadlifts in your training programme, this might be a good choice for you, given the amount of spinal flexion and lower back loading already experienced in the deadlift.

Should I do Hypers or Reverse Hypers?

Both are great. And you can use both in your training programme at the same time if you like. But if you are looking to choose one, choose the hyperextension if you want more lower back flexion, and choose the reverse hyperextension if you would like an exercise that uses less lower back flexion.

Five Ways to Perform Reverse Hyperextensions and Hyperextensions in the Gym

1 - Flat Bench Reverse Hyperextensions

• Lay face down on a bench with your hips over the edge and your legs off an Exercise Bench.

• Keep your legs straight and raise your thighs as high as you can to extend your hips.

• Squeeze your glutes at the top to make sure you have hit full extension.

• Lower back to the start position slowly to complete a rep.

2 - Roman Chair Hyperextensions

• Anchor your legs under the pad of the Roman Chair, with your hips just above the flat pad.

• Flex at the hips, lowering your chest towards the floor until you feel a stretch in the hamstrings.

• Pull your upper body back to the start position with your legs, squeezing your glutes at the top to make sure you have full hip extension.

3 - GHD Machine Reverse Hyperextensions

• Using the M4 GHD Machine, lay chest down across the hip pad, holding the additional handles attached to the foot plate.

• Let your legs hang down to the floor to assume your start position.

• Raise your thighs as high as you can to extend your hips and lower back, squeezing your glutes at the top.

• Slowly lower your legs back down to complete the rep.

4 - GHD Machine Hyperextensions

• Anchor your feet inside the foot pads, with the soles of your shoes up against the foot plate, your legs straight and your hips overhanging the hip pad.

• Let your body hang down towards the floor to assume your start position.

• Pull your upper body as high as possible, whilst keeping your thighs flat against the hip pad.

• Squeeze the glutes at the top to get a full hip range of motion.

• Slowly lower back down to return to the start position.

5 - Ab Crunch and Back Extension Machine Hyperextensions

• Sit on the Back Extension Machine, with your feet anchored under the foot pad in front, legs straight and the Resistance Arm against your back, sat upright.

• Squeeze the handles and push into the foot pad to extend your hips, moving from an upright sitting position to a straight line from head to toe.

• Slowly reverse the movement to complete the rep.

If you are looking to blast your posterior chain in your next training block to help you break through plateaus, add the reverse hyperextension and the hyperextension into your training. They are great accessory exercises and help reduce the likelihood of later injuries.

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Tags: Equipment > Benches ; Equipment > Gym Machines