Carpentry and construction work loads the body asymmetrically: With joists on one shoulder and nailer in the other while balancing over joists – you know this and many other daily feats. Purposeful exercise, on the other hand, is about symmetrical loading and it flips different switches in your body. Here are a few of the exercises that have worked for me during my career behind the saw.
Lower Back, Shoulders, Whole Body.
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Mark Clement
Zero other stretches have un-crunched my spine as well as a nice…
Zero other stretches have un-crunched my spine as well as a nice hang. Use a stepladder or drywall bench. Find a ceiling joist or similar, grab with arms tensed and bent. Knuckles facing you. Slowly let your body settle and feel your spine elongate.
Mark Clement
Slowly. Bend the knees. Twist left.
Mark Clement
Then twist right.
Mark Clement
At the end if you feel inspired, try a pull-up.
Core Exercise, Shoulders, Neck, Back
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Mark Clement
This exercise is also a stretch. Start with your knees bent and …
This exercise is also a stretch. Start with your knees bent and back parallel to the ground, suspending the block above the ground.
Mark Clement
I keep my back straight and let the block hang.
Mark Clement
This “opens up” both shoulders. Then lift the CMU in an arc …
This “opens up” both shoulders. Then lift the CMU in an arc up to your chin.
Mark Clement
Then press it above your head with a full extension. Use somethi…
Then press it above your head with a full extension. Use something lighter if you need at the start.
Blood Flow, Stretch, and Breathing
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Mark Clement
I learned this from an old-school workout called P90X. If doing …
I learned this from an old-school workout called P90X. If doing this a few times takes more than 30 seconds, I’ll eat my hammer. But, man, it gets blood flowing. Hold your hands in an X across your chest.
Mark Clement
Breathe in. Swing your hands out.
Mark Clement
Then raise them over your head. Really try to reach up as high a…
Then raise them over your head. Really try to reach up as high as you can.
Mark Clement
Bring your arms down. Pretend you are trying to rub an imaginary…
Bring your arms down. Pretend you are trying to rub an imaginary wall behind you with your elbows. Breathe out.
Mark Clement is a former editor of Tools of the Trade, as well as remodeling carpenter, business owner, and flipper of a few houses. To date he remains a B+ drywall finisher and tile setter and painter. He's also a presenter at the R|D|J shows. He can set a kitchen just as well as the next guy, but decks and pergolas are where it’s at for him. Along the way he’s worked behind the scenes (and in front of them) on various television shows from Extreme Makeover: Home Edition to Spartan Race.
