Woodchopper
Exercise Information
| Exercise Name: | Woodchopper |
| Resistance Band Type: | A flat resistance band |
| Equipment Required: | |
| Body Parts Exercised: | Core, hips, back and arms |
Exercise Procedure
Exercise Start Position
- Wrap the resistance band around an object that is not going to move such as a pole, fence, tree or something similar. The resistance band should be at a low position.
- Stand side-on to the anchor point in a balanced, stable stance holding both ends of the resistance band in both hands with the hands low and upper body turned toward the anchor point.
- Move away from the anchor point to create tension in the resistance band.
Exercise End Position
- Stand side-on to the anchor point in a balanced, stable stance holding both ends of the resistance band in both hands with the upper body rotated away from the anchor point with the arms straight and hands in a high position.
Exercise Start Position
Exercise End Position
Action
- Whilst holding both ends of the resistance band in both hands, pull the resistance band up and across your body as you rotate your body away from the anchor point.
- Return to the starting position and repeat.
- Once you have completed your set on one side, turn to face the opposite direction and repeat on the other side.
Modification Options
- Vary the strength or length of the resistance band to increase/ decrease the difficulty of the exercise.
- The exercise may also be performed with a high anchor point starting with your hands high and finishing low after rotating your body away from the anchor point
Technique Tips
- Breathe out as you rotate your body away from the anchor point and breathe in as you rotate back toward the anchor point.
- Perform the exercise slowly, especially on the way back in. Aim for 4-6 seconds per repetition.
- To change the difficulty of the exercise, use a weaker or stronger resistance band.
Exercise Prescription
1-3 sets of up to 15 repetitions. Note that if you can do more than 15 repetitions of a particular exercise, you should increase the difficulty of that exercise. If you are performing multiple sets, you may do 2-3 sets of the one exercise before moving on to the next exercise or cycle through your whole program 2-3 times.
Up to 60 seconds rest between sets. The duration of rest will be dependent upon the intensity of the exercise for you.