Page 56 - Muscle & Fitness (February 2020)

T R A I N G E A R S W A P By Kevin Gray

ON THE or an effective lower- the average gymgoer as well.”
body workout with a
Another benefit of the sled is
serious dose of
that you can load it with heavy
PROWL F beat the Prowler. This weight and use this as a way to
conditioning, it’s hard to
overload your entire body with
very particular piece of
less risk of injury compared
equipment is similar to a with deadlifts and squats. Your
Here’s how to sled—in fact, it’s a type of body will work very hard to

replicate the sled—that’s distinguished by move heavy iron but in a posi-
muscle-building having three points of tion that won’t strain your

and conditioning contact with the joints or back as much.
ground rather than Part of the Prowler’s
benefits of the two long skis. It can EASE UP appeal is its versa-
Prowler sled if be pushed or tility. With the high

your gym is too pulled (by and low handles,
clipping a you’ve got multiple
cheap to own one. suspension angles of attack.

trainer or rope to And the three-ski
the end) and offers construction allows
for more efficient turns,
especially when grasping
the T-bar.
“A couple of heavy 50-yard
sprints or max-effort 15-yard
pulls will have you on the
floor,” Smitley says. He also
notes that you won’t be as sore
since there’s no eccentric, or
lowering, phase, just a concen-
tric phase.

NO PROWLER? NO PROBLEM
If you don’t have any type of
sled at your gym, you can still

simulate a Prowler workout.
To approximate pushing the
low bar, Smitley suggests
pushing a 45-pound plate on
the floor. (If you’re on a hard-
wood floor, place the plate on
a towel.) Get low, keep your
back flat, and drive through
your legs. To simulate pushing
the high bars, grab a plyo box,
ideally on turf, and give it a
shove. To make it harder, stack
a couple of weights on top.
If you’re at a loss, Smitley
notes that other tools like the
Concept2 Rower, SkiErg, and
AirBike are also great options
for hardcore conditioning. S H U T T E R S T O C K
“But when you use a Prowler,

it’s just its own breed of hell.”

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