Legs · Reconnection

Eat something 2-3 hours before this session — training under-fuelled costs you real strength on every lift. If you didn't and energy is under 5/10 today, cap this session at RPE 6 regardless of the week.

General Warm-up8 min

row

5 min steady · zone2 conversational

Easy pace, ~130 bpm for 5 min — raise core temperature before the primer.

treadmill (backward, incline)

3 min steady · zone2 conversational

15% incline, 3 km/h, walking backward — a warm-up finisher before squatting/pulling.

Mobility Primer8 min

90/90 Hip Switches (dynamic flow)

Dynamic flow through internal/external rotation, both sides — 8 reps each side, every bout under 20s. Groove the movement, do not force range.

Video thumbnail: 90/90 Hip Switch (Improve Hip Health & Mobility)

External video — 90/90 Hip Switch (Improve Hip Health & Mobility) by Simone Sports Performance.

How to do it

Setup: Sit on the floor. Front leg bent 90° at hip and knee, shin angled across your body toward the far hip — this hip is now in external rotation. Back leg bent 90°, shin angled out behind you, away from your body — this hip is in internal rotation. Spine tall, hands off the floor.
Execution: Lift both knees slightly off the floor and rotate through the hips — not the hands — to swap which leg is in front. Flow side to side for the prescribed time, each bout under 20 seconds.
Common error: Pushing or dragging yourself around with your hands instead of rotating from the hip — if you need your hands to move, you're not doing the drill.
Feel: Smooth rotation through both hips, no catching. Dull ache anywhere is fine, keep going. A sharp pinch in the hip crease means stop that rep and shorten the range.

2 × 8/side · bout <20 s · rest 0:15

Hip-flexor PAILs/RAILs (couch-stretch position)

Couch-stretch position. Ramp to effort 4-5 of 8 (moderate) over 5-10s, hold peak 5-10s, release 5s — that's the PAIL. Immediately, RAIL: draw the knee forward against resistance, hold 5-10s.

Video thumbnail: Couch Stretch PAIL RAILS TUTORIAL

External video — Couch Stretch PAIL RAILS TUTORIAL by SJC Physiotherapy.

How to do it

Setup: Kneeling lunge: rear knee down, rear foot up against a wall or bench behind you. Front foot flat on the floor, well out in front. Torso tall, ribs stacked directly over your pelvis — not leaning back.
Execution: PAIL: squeeze the rear glute and drive that knee down into the pad, ramping the effort up over 5-10s, hold at peak, release over 5s. RAIL: immediately try to drag the same knee forward off the pad against your own resistance, hold 5-10s. That's one rep. Repeat for the prescribed reps, then switch sides.
Common error: Arching the lower back to lean the hips forward and fake extra range — the stretch has to come from the front of the rear hip, not from your spine. Keep the ribs stacked down over the pelvis the whole time.
Feel: A building stretch through the front of the rear hip/quad during the PAIL, real muscular effort during the RAIL. Dull ache is fine. A sharp pinch in the hip means back off the depth now, don't push through it.

2 reps/side · ramp 20 s, hold 8 s · effort RPE 4–5 · rest 0:30–1:00

Cossack Squat (bodyweight, dynamic mover)

Bodyweight flow, 6 reps each side — groove only, not a stretch-seeking drill this week.

Cossack Squat (bodyweight, dynamic mover)~200-400KB demo

Showing: Weighted Cossack Squats Male — closest verified demo. Shows the loaded (single-dumbbell, goblet-style) Weighted Cossack Squat — the primer's dynamic-mover version is performed bodyweight-only, as a groove/warm-up rehearsal, not for load.

2 × 6/side · rest 0:15

Banded Hip Distraction

Thick band around the hip crease, anchored behind you, step into a lunge — pulls the femoral head back into the socket. No band? Substitute a 20s deep lunge hold, rear knee down, pushing the hips forward.

External video — Banded Hip Distraction by The Active Life.

How to do it

Setup: Loop a heavy band around a low, sturdy anchor (a rack post works well). Step into the band so it sits high in the hip crease of the working leg, facing the anchor, then walk backward away from it until there is strong, obvious tension pulling that hip straight back toward the anchor.
Execution: Sink into a shallow squat or split-stance lunge on the banded side, letting the band's pull gently distract — open a small gap in — the hip joint. Rock or shift gently through a few positions for the prescribed time, breathing normally throughout.
Common error: Standing too close to the anchor so there is little or no real band tension — the whole point is the joint distraction, not just standing near a band. If you can't feel a clear backward pull on the hip, step further away.
Feel: A gentle "opening" sensation deep in the hip joint, not a muscular stretch — this is a joint-capsule mobilization, different from the muscle stretches elsewhere in the primer. No sharp pinch; if the hip sharpens, step closer to the anchor to reduce the pull rather than stopping outright.

2 × 20 s/side hold · rest 0:15

Benchmark

90/90 external/internal rotation rating

Log now, before loading: 90/90 rotation ratings, 1-10. Four numbers every time: right external, right internal, left external, left internal.

Measure (optional)

How to do it

Setup: Sit on the floor in the 90/90 shin-box position: front leg bent 90° with the shin across your body (front hip = external rotation), back leg bent 90° with the shin behind you (back hip = internal rotation).
Execution: Rate the front hip's external rotation 1-10 — not against a textbook standard, against how it felt last time you tested. Rate the back hip's internal rotation 1-10 the same way. Then swap which leg is in front and rate that side's external and internal rotation too. Four numbers every time: right external, right internal, left external, left internal. Log all four before you load anything that day.
Common error: Rating against an imagined 'normal' range instead of your own trend, or skipping the swap and only ever testing one side.
Feel: A quick, honest gut-check, not a forced stretch to find a number. If any of the four is notably worse than last time, say so before squats or deadlifts, not after.

90/90 external rotation — right

90/90 external rotation — left

90/90 internal rotation — right

90/90 internal rotation — left

Accessories — Opening Activation8 min

Toes-to-Bar

Opens the day, same as it always has — control the swing, don't kip it.

External video — Strict Toes To Bar by Marcus Filly.

How to do it

Setup: Hang from a pull-up bar with a full overhand grip, hands shoulder-width, arms straight, body hanging still with no swing before you start.
Execution: Brace the core and drive both feet up in an arc toward the bar, aiming to touch your toes to it, keeping the legs as straight as you can manage. Lower back to a still dead hang under control before the next rep. That is one rep.
Common error: Kipping — using a swinging, whipping motion from the shoulders and hips to throw the feet up, then riding the swing back down. Control the swing at both the top and the bottom; this is a strict core movement, not a CrossFit-style kip.
Feel: A hard, building ab/hip-flexor burn and a real grip challenge. If you can't yet touch the bar with straight legs, bent-knee "knees-to-chest" reps are the honest regression — still dead still at the bottom, still no kipping.

3 × 12–15 @ RPE 7 · rest 1:00

Single-leg Hyperextension

Squeeze the glute at the top of every rep — this wakes up the posterior chain before the squat, not just a finisher.

Video thumbnail: Hyperextension (Single Leg)

External video — Hyperextension (Single Leg) by Operation Badass.

How to do it

Setup: Hips against the pad of a 45-degree (or horizontal) hyperextension bench, ankles secured under the rollers. One leg's foot stays flat on the footplate and does all the work; the other leg trails behind, unweighted, touching nothing, for balance only.
Execution: Lower under control by hinging at the hip — not the lower back — until you feel a stretch in the working-leg hamstring/glute, torso and legs roughly in line with the bench. Drive back up through the working-leg heel to a flat-back finish. Stop level with your legs at the top — do not keep arching past that into a lower-back extension.
Common error: Letting the trailing leg push off the floor or bench to help (defeats the unilateral point), or continuing to arch the lower back past flat at the top instead of stopping there.
Feel: A building stretch through the working-leg hamstring/glute at the bottom, a firm glute squeeze at the top — the top position should feel like a strong contraction, not a backward bend. No pinching or strain in the lower back itself.

3 × 12–16/side @ RPE 7 · tempo 2-0-2-0 · rest 1:00

Main Lift — Back Squat18 min

Back Squat

Low-bar default, moderate-wide stance, toes out ~20-30°. Depth = deepest pain-free range, not forced ATG.

Back Squat~200-400KB demo

4 × 5–8 @ RPE 6 · tempo 3-1-1-0 · rest 2:00 → 6 @ RPE 6 · tempo 3-2-1-0 · rest 1:30

If pain flares

Sharp pinch in the hip crease at depth: regress first to a box squat at the height just above the pinch point; if still sharp, drop to a heel-elevated goblet squat at a shallower depth (this slot). Dull ache is fine — sharp, sudden, or pinching pain is the stop signal.
If regressing depth/load still sharpens it: swap the day's main lift to Romanian Deadlift (hip-hinge pattern) entirely and flag it for review — the final rung of the regression ladder.

Accessories — Leg Volume22 min

Leg Press

A high-value leg accessory — full ROM, knees toward chest at the bottom, drive through mid-foot.

4 × 10–15 @ RPE 6–7 · tempo 2-0-2-0 · rest 1:30

DB Lunges

Walking or in-place, your call. Long stride, control the descent.

DB Lunges~200-400KB demo

3 × 8–12/side @ RPE 6–7 · tempo 2-0-2-0 · rest 1:30

Leg Extensions

Squeeze at the top, controlled negative.

3 × 10–14 @ RPE 7 · tempo 2-0-2-0 · rest 1:00

Leg Curls (machine)

Same control on the way back.

Leg Curls (machine)~200-400KB demo

3 × 10–14 @ RPE 7 · tempo 2-0-2-0 · rest 1:00

Single-leg Calf Raise

Full stretch at the bottom, drive up onto the toes.

Single-leg Calf Raise~200-400KB demo

4 × 15–20/side @ RPE 7 · tempo 2-0-2-0 · rest 0:45

Mobility Finisher9 min

90/90 shin-box PAILs/RAILs

Effort 4-5 of 8 (moderate), 2 reps/side — same dosing as the primer.

Video thumbnail: Hip Mobility Drill: The Shin Box

External video — Hip Mobility Drill: The Shin Box by Balance In Motion.

How to do it

Setup: Same 90/90 shin-box seat as the primer drill — front shin across your body, back shin behind you. Settle onto one side and stay there; this is a hold, not the switching flow.
Execution: PAIL: press the front shin/knee down into the floor, ramping the effort over 5-10s, hold the peak, release over 5s. RAIL: immediately lift that same shin/knee back up off the floor against your own resistance, hold 5-10s. That's one rep. Repeat for the prescribed reps, then switch which leg is in front and repeat on the other side.
Common error: Rushing the ramp instead of building it over the full 5-10 seconds, or letting the torso collapse forward to fake extra depth — sit tall throughout.
Feel: A deep, controllable stretch through the front hip during the PAIL, real muscular effort during the RAIL. Dull ache is fine and expected. A sharp pinch in the hip crease means back off the depth immediately.

2 reps/side · ramp 20 s, hold 8 s · effort RPE 4–5 · rest 0:30–1:00

Couch Stretch

Passive hold, 60s each side.

External video — Couch Stretch by Functional Bodybuilding.

How to do it

Setup: Kneeling lunge, rear shin up against a wall or couch/bench behind you, rear foot pointing up. Front foot flat on the floor, well out in front. Torso tall, ribs stacked over the pelvis.
Execution: Squeeze the rear glute to sink the hip forward and deepen the stretch. Hold completely still for the full prescribed time. This is a finisher drill only — never do it before lifting.
Common error: Arching the lower back to bring the torso closer to vertical instead of actually moving the hip forward — this fakes depth without touching the hip flexor. Keep the ribs pulled down and let the glute squeeze do the work.
Feel: A steady, building stretch through the front of the rear hip and thigh that should ease slightly the longer you hold it. Dull ache is normal. A sharp pinch in the hip means come out of the position, don't fight it.

60 s/side hold · rest 0:15

Pigeon Stretch

Passive hold, 60s each side.

External video — PIGEON STRETCH by Atomic Athlete.

How to do it

Setup: Front leg bent, shin angled across your body with the front foot pointing toward the opposite hip. Back leg extended long behind you. Hips square to the floor, not twisted or hiked to one side.
Execution: Fold your torso forward over the front shin, letting your weight sink down. Hold still, breathing, for the full prescribed time.
Common error: Letting the hips rotate or hike up to force the front knee flatter — this fakes extra rotation from the hip instead of finding it honestly. Keep the hips square first, and accept whatever depth that leaves you with.
Feel: A deep stretch on the outside of the front hip and glute. A sharp pinch in the front of the hip crease means the angle is too aggressive — back the front shin off toward a less rotated position.

60 s/side hold · rest 0:15

Legs · Reconnection

row

treadmill (backward, incline)

90/90 external/internal rotation rating

RPE — lifting sets

Effort — mobility & primer sets

Tempo

Reading the four numbers

Why this programme prescribes it

About this set