3 Ultimate Sandbag Exercises That People Screw Up!

If I had to narrow down the challenges of teaching DVRT Ultimate Sandbag exercises to the industry, one would HAVE to be how people miss the details and focus too much on the task of the exercise. For example, in our Lateral Drags, people focus on just moving the weight back and forth, they miss why we grab the weight the way we do, where we position the load, what we are thinking about when we perform the movement. That is the thing with DVRT Ultimate Sandbag exercises, if we don’t focus on the details we miss the great results they can offer.

That’s why we are going to focus on 3 Ultimate Sandbag exercises that A LOT of people miss the bigger picture upon. Since We already mentioned it, let’s start with one of the most challenging Ultimate Sandbag exercises…Lateral Drags.

Fortunately, you guys won’t have to listen to me, but Megan Berner of Fitness Lying Down will give you some great insights. Like all our DVRT Ultimate Sandbag exercises, it start with proper positioning and purpose to the drill. As simple as it sounds, most people simply start the exercise incorrectly by not having the RIGHT plank!

Once we have the plank the Ultimate Sandbag comes in not to just challenge the movement, but to connect the body. Why and how we grip and move the weight is all about connecting the chain of the lats, core, and glutes. That is why what Megan breaks down is so important in not just having a tough core exercise, but making these Ultimate Sandbag exercises something really special.

MAX Lunges

Our MAX lunges tend to be a favorite because it does look so dramatically different than anything else. Yet, again, if we don’t understand what we are trying to accomplish, a lot of BAD things can occur.

Of course we have progressions to ALL our DVRT Ultimate Sandbag exercises, but Megan helps break down some of the most common mistakes people make in the MAX lunge. It should be something that almost everyone can reach if we just take the time to really teach the foundations of good movement.

Around the Worlds

One of the most misunderstood Ultimate Sandbag exercises is our Around the Worlds. It would be TOO easy to say this is just a shoulder mobility exercise because we see the shoulders moving in circular patterns. Sure, that is one reason these types of Ultimate Sandbag exercises can improve mobility and strength at the same time, but is far from the ONLY reason.

Why are Around the Worlds so important DVRT? It is a combination of a lift/chop and plank movement. We tend to understand the importances of planks for core stability, but lifts/chops?

These movements come from the world of physical therapy and tap into the natural design of our core and body. Therapists have used these diagonal patterns for decades to restore human movement after injury. The idea is the greater stability we create in the core, the body perceives greater stability and allows for better movement in the shoulders and hips.

The Around the World has so many variations, but you have to own those foundations before we get to progress. Megan will show you one of the biggest reasons that these types of Ultimate Sandbag exercises are unique, even though you see them with other implements, is both the range of motion we can achieve and tension. Together we get a BETTER result than trying to do these drill with something else.

Hopefully you see why we spend so much time on the why’s and how’s, not just the what’s. Getting great results doesn’t mean doing new exercises, but understanding the value and purpose in our foundational movements!