Performance Plus Blog

The strict bar muscle-up is a very challenging exercise requiring significant upper body strength and coordination. In the following video, Pamela Gagnon breaks down a strict bar muscle-up progression to help you reach your goals! For more in-depth assistance getting your first strict bar muscle-up, check out our recently released five-week muscle up program on Performance Plus. We’ve helped thousands...

The Butterfly Pull-up is an advanced pull-up variation used by athletes participating in the sport of fitness. This movement requires significant strength, mobility, and coordination to perform. Fitness athletes perform the butterfly pull-up because it allows them to perform more pull-ups in less time, which creates a large benefit in competition. But many athletes fall into the trap of jumping...

DO YOU DREAD THE WOD WHEN YOU SEE TOES TO BAR BECAUSE YOU ARE FRUSTRATED WITH DOING SINGLES OR JUST HANGING KNEE RAISES? READY TO TACKLE THIS SKILL BUT NOT SURE WHAT STRENGTH OR MOBILITY YOU ARE LACKING? HERE ARE 3 GREAT DRILLS THAT WILL UP YOUR TOE TO BAR STRENGTH. What you will notice is that all these drills...

Let’s begin with the elephant in the room. Usually, we see a post of an athlete performing Butterfly Pull-ups and we see 100s of comments that say “not one pull-up done.” Ok. Let’s be real. First, if you understand the purpose of the butterfly pull-up you wouldn’t feel a need to make that comment. Second, if you understand the basics...

If you want to advance your handstand game, you not only need balance, but you need to build strength in your shoulders to improve the length of holds, core to help with a more stacked position, and forearm strength to control balance. Use these four steps to improve your handstand strength so you can not only hold handstands for longer,...

Ready to learn 3 steps to linking your bar muscle-up? Frustrated by performing singles during your wod? These 3 steps will help you string them together and crush your bar muscle-up goal. Before we dive into the drills, let’s look at why linking your bar muscle-up is an issue and how to resolve it, literally, step by step! First, can...

Are you struggling to improve your kipping bar muscle-up but are unsure of where to begin? Does this sound familiar? I land really low in support at the top of the bar muscle-up. I can do a bar muscle-up, but I chicken wing every rep. I can do a bar muscle-up, but I cannot link multiple reps [hint: download our...

The pistol squat is a challenging exercise for many athletes due to the strength, balance, coordination, and mobility demands. If you are frustrated with your pistol squat progress, check out this video from Dr. Zach Long (aka The Barbell Physio) which covers a few great pistol squat strength progression exercises. We also have two recommended programs for athletes trying to...