If you ask the athletes in the gym for a fire tap exercise, most of them are unlikely to answer this question. Nevertheless, this is one of the most common and effective movements. A fire hydrant is often considered a purely female exercise because it is ideal for developing the buttocks and the outer thigh. In this article, we will consider all the subtleties of the exercise, several types of complexity that will help vary the load of the “hydrant”, as well as the correct technique, without which the use of movement will be reduced by at least half.
Benefits of the Fire Hydrant Exercise
Names like “hydrant” or “fire hydrant” are unlikely to be known to most athletes. But taking the legs to the side is performed by up to 80% of women in all gyms. It is important to understand that all these names mean only one movement, which is considered one of the best for pumping buttocks. Among the main advantages of the “hydrant” it is worth highlighting:
- the formation of mass and elasticity of the buttocks;
- development of the upper outer thigh;
- elimination of excess fat;
- universality and accessibility (suitable even for beginners);
- lack of harm and trauma;
- improved stretch marks.
Despite the fact that this exercise is performed with your own body weight, it provides an excellent load on the target muscles. If you train in the gym, it is best to put it at the end of the training, after working with weights, or combine with other movements in the complexes. For home training, a “hydrant” is best done either as an autonomous exercise, or in supernets with others (for example, squats, swings back, buttock bridge, etc.).
An important feature of the fire hydrant exercise is that it does not load the spine and lower back. The movement provides the most pure load for the buttocks and in the basic technique is insulating. Moreover, girls who want to pump up a voluminous ass can use rubber harnesses that will create increased resistance. This will greatly increase the difficulty of the exercise, but it will give excellent results. Many athletes are often confused by the name. Moreover, there is a version that the exercise is named after dogs that relieve themselves under a fire hydrant. The second version is more decent, it is believed that lifting the legs to the side is somewhat similar to a fire valve. In general, despite the exotic name, most often the exercise is called swings or leads to the sides,
Technique of execution and varieties of Fire Hydrant Workout
Usually there are two levels of difficulty, regular and advanced. The second involves performing a fire hydrant exercise with leg extension. This not only complicates the exercise but also significantly increases its effectiveness. At first, it will be difficult for beginners to fully make high-quality knee extensions due to insufficient stretching, therefore it is recommended to start with the basic technique.
It’s worth moving on to a more difficult option when you have a certain experience of classes and a level of physical fitness.
The technique of fire hydrant is as follows:
- Take emphasis on hands and knees. The back should be slightly bent, the neck is in a natural position (it is important to look down and not lift your head back, this can be dangerous for the cervical region).
- At an average pace, take the leg bent at the knee (at right angles) to the side until it is parallel to the floor;
- Without delay, put your foot back at the same pace and repeat the movement.
It is important to understand that the feet, lower leg and knee must remain motionless. The movement is carried out only due to the hip joint.
Leg lift depends on stretching. At first, not all athletes can raise their legs to the level when the inside of the thigh is parallel to the floor. This is not scary, because the movement develops the stretch well and after 5-6 trainings you will notice improvements in amplitude. The leg can also be raised above the parallel, but only if this does not violate the position of the body and the correct technique about testosterone undecanoate. Usually the whole approach is performed on one and then on the other leg. However, you can perform the movement in turn. In this case, lift your legs left and right in turn, doing a pair of repetitions in the set. To complicate the implementation, extension of the leg at the knee is used. This makes the movement four-phase:
- abduction to the side;
- straightening;
- bending;
- return to starting position.
If stretching allows, try to straighten the leg completely, otherwise, a slight bend in the knee is allowed. This is not a mistake.
Static Hydrant – a variation of fire hydrant exercise
This version of the exercise is performed with a tourniquet. Moreover, the harness must be very stiff in order to create powerful resistance. A rubber tourniquet is worn on both legs under the knees, after which the leg is retracted to the side in normal mode. Keep it at maximum height for as long as possible, but not higher than the level of parallel with the floor. With hard rubber, even an angle of 45 degrees will be enough.
Conclusion
This exercise hardly needs to be introduced, because it is performed by millions of people around the world. Nevertheless, in this movement the technical part is very important, which determines the effectiveness of the “hydrant”. Remember that at the top point you should feel resistance, if it is not there, then you are making a movement not at full amplitude and your stretching allows you to raise your leg higher. Leg extension is an optional option that serves as an element of complication. You can also combine the abduction of the leg to the side (with straightening), with abduction back.
