Reverse Nordic — hold at length
Quad and hip-flexor length under load — the other half of the Nordic, and the range a sprinter runs out of first
How to do it well
The set-up and the rep in full, then the cues the app shows on the exercise card — the short version, for the moment you are standing in front of the bar.
Set-up
Kneel upright on a pad with the knees hip width, body in a straight line from knees to head. Cross the arms on the chest, or hold a light plate there.
The rep
Squeeze the glutes and keep the ribs down, then lean the whole body back from the knees as one straight line over five seconds. Go only as far as you can return from. Hold there for fifteen seconds, then pull yourself back up to upright with the quads.
On the exercise card
- Ribs down, glutes on
- Lean back only as far as you can return from
- Hold, then pull yourself up
- Tempo
- 5s to lower
What goes wrong, and the fix
| What goes wrong | The fix |
|---|---|
| Bending at the hips | That takes the stretch off the hip flexors. Glutes on, so the hips stay straight. |
| Arching the lower back | Ribs down. The range comes from the knees, not the spine. |
| Leaning back further than you can return from | Go only as far as you can come back from without using your hands. |
Make it easier, or harder
- Easier
- A shorter lean, or a band anchored in front of you to help pull you back up.
- Harder
- A light plate on the chest, or a longer hold.
How Train Smart prescribes it
The sets and reps below are the authored starting point. The actual weight you see is calculated from your own last top set and the week you are in within your four-week block.
It is the other half of the Nordic: the quads and hip flexors loaded at length, the range a sprinter runs out of first. The bodybuilding and bodyweight programs both put it in the prehab block of their lower-body sessions.
| Program | Session | Sets × reps | Load |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bodybuilding | Legs — Quads, Hams, Glutes, Calves | 2 × 15s hold | BW / light plate |
| Bodyweight Athlete | Lower Strength + Power | 2 × 15s hold | BW / light plate |
What it trains, and who trains it
- Muscles worked
- Quads
- Region
- Lower body
- Classified as
- Mobility
- Prescribed in
- bodybuilding · bodyweight training
If you cannot do this one
Rack taken, kit missing, or it does not suit you. These are the swaps the app offers, matched by movement pattern and body region — each with the reason it is a fair substitute.
| Alternative | Why it works as a swap |
|---|---|
| Nordic Curl | Eccentric hamstring — top injury-prevention |
| Nordic Drop (slow descent) | Take as long as possible to lower — max-effort eccentric hamstring |
| Adductor Slider | Slide one leg out laterally — eccentric adductor loading |
| Lying Leg Curl Machine | Machine: direct hamstring loading, easy to scale |
| Seated Leg Curl Machine | Machine: hamstring isolation through full range |
| Standing Single-Leg Curl Machine | Machine: unilateral hamstring isolation |
This exercise, in a program that knows why it is there
Train Smart puts this movement in the right session, at the right point in your block, at a weight calculated for you — and swaps it automatically if you do not have the kit.
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