Anybody who spends lots of the day sitting might in all probability stand to strengthen their glutes. And the clam shell train is a wonderful solution to just do that.
However it additionally affords a complete lot extra. This train—which is a staple in rehab and prehab bodily remedy applications, in addition to a fixture in some Pilates lessons—ushers in a number of total-body advantages that transcend the butt. Suppose: damage prevention, diminished ache, and general higher motion.
In case you’re not acquainted, the clam shell entails mendacity in your facet along with your hips, knees, and ankles stacked on prime of one another and knees bent to a 90-degree angle. Then, holding your toes pressed collectively, you merely elevate after which decrease your prime leg, performing a movement referred to as hip abduction (principally utilizing your hip muscle groups to maneuver your leg away out of your physique). Watch a demo and also you’ll perceive the place it will get its identify: The train mimics the movement of its namesake sea creature.
The clam shell is easy, sure, however its advantages are significantly legit. Right here we cowl all you want to learn about this super-effective transfer, together with which muscle groups it really works, what kind of train it counts as, what you’ll acquire by doing it on the reg, kind errors to keep away from, and ideas for weaving it into your routine. Then we now have a GIF and step-by-step directions so you possibly can check out the clam shell for your self!
What muscle groups does the clam shell work?
Do sufficient reps of the clam shell and also you’ll really feel your gluteal muscle groups put to work. Particularly, this train actually fires up your gluteus maximus (your largest butt muscle) in addition to your gluteus medius, a smaller muscle that types your facet butt, Femi Betiku, PT, DPT, CSCS, a bodily therapist and Pilates teacher in Westchester, New York, tells SELF.
It additionally engages your tensor fasciae latae (TFL), one of many hip flexors, in addition to your exterior obliques, core muscle groups that run alongside the perimeters of your torso, he provides. These two muscle groups get particularly fired up in case you use some kind of resistance to finish the transfer—folks mostly do it with a mini-band positioned above their knees—since that requires your physique to work further laborious to assist stabilize your trunk as you full the clam shell movement.
What sort of train is the clam shell?
What field the clam shell ticks is dependent upon your present exercise degree. When you’re new to train, it may be a muscular energy and endurance transfer, Dr. Betiku says. In different phrases, it could actually assist your muscle groups get stronger and increase their capacity to work for lengthy intervals of time. However in case you’re already fairly energetic, then it’s extra of a warm-up drill that may assist interact your muscle groups earlier than you employ them extra intensely throughout a exercise. That’s as a result of the glutes are one of many strongest muscle groups within the physique, and with a purpose to develop and strengthen them, you want resistance that’s heavy sufficient to essentially problem them. Relying in your present energy degree, a band might do that initially, however eventually, it received’t be as much as snuff.
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