Top 2 Things You Should Focus on
1.Staying tight
2.Keep it balanced
After you’ve mastered those two then you can focus on speed
The Yoke walk is staple strongman event. It allows a tremendous amount of weight to be loaded on the body. The top strongman is easily quickly walking with 900+lbs on their backs. The Yoke walk places a very high demand on the CNS (central nervous system). Caution needs to be taken when training this implement. Too many sets at a high intensity can lead to overtraining.
Learn how to Yoke Walk Properly
Grip
The 3.5” yoke bar is placed on the back. Find a comfortable secure position on the back. It should be a hybrid between the low bar and high bar back squats. You may have to pick it up a few times and walk with it first to fine the optimal position.
Wide Grip:
Low Wide grip
High wide grip
Pros: This style helps with people who have inflexible shoulders. It’s very to get into.
Cons: Yoke widths vary. If you plan to do a meet or travel to different gyms it may not be the same width. Placing the hands low you risk pinching your fingers between the vertical uprights and the cross member. This style can place shoulder blades in an upward rotation possibly irritating the AC joint, promotes upper back rounding and makes it harder to keep the back tight.
Narrow Grip:
Pro: Allowing better overall back tightness. Transfers nicely to others yoke because you’re centering yourself on the crossmember.
Cons: Overall balance is harder because you are closer to the fulcrum. If you don’t properly center yourself balance will be off. You need good shoulder mobility to get into it.
Foot stance – Draw an imagery line from where each vertical upright meets the plate loading members, set the mid feet over this line and take a “gait stance”. This stance is one you walk with. If it’s correct there will be no wasted because the first step will be forward. The stance will be narrower than you think.
Height – The yoke should be 9” off the ground. As the weight increases the bottom of the yoke will be closer to the ground. This is due to compressive forces placed on the body. For lighter faster runs, you would want the yoke to be higher off the ground just in case it swings it doesn’t hit the ground.
Remember Top 2 Things You Should Focus on
1. Staying tight
2. Keep it balanced
Progressions
Yoke Picks While Holding Your Breath
Take your grip, foot stance, tighten up your back, hold a big breath in, tighten up your core then lift. Keep your eyes forward, aim to hold the yoke for 20 seconds, do not exhale until you set it down. If you feel like you’re going to pass out, set the yoke down and do sets at your max duration for breath holds.
Yoke Walk While Holding Your Breath
Take your preferred grip, set your feet in your gait stance, tighten up your body and lift. Starting with “baby steps” walk forward. As you’re walking focus on two things is to staying tight (back, holding your breath and abs) and keeping it balanced. Set it down after 20’.
Purse Breathing Practice
Place your index fingers into the belly, take a breath into your fingers then flex the abs. Now here comes the challenging part while keeping the same amount of tension on the fingers sharply exhale and then quickly inhale. Try to get 1 purse breath in every 5 seconds. Do this for 20 seconds, that’s 4 reps. The goal is to keep the same amount of abdominal tension during the breathing phases.
Yoke Picks While Purse Breathing
Take your grip, stance and get tight. While holding your breath pick up the yoke, after 5 seconds sharply exhale and then quickly inhale. Try to get 1 purse breath in every 5 seconds for 4 reps. The goal is to keep the same amount of abdominal tension during the breathing phases.
Yoke Walks While Purse Breathing
Take your grip, stance and core tightness. While holding your breath, pick up the yoke, take “baby steps” and walking. Make sure to hold your breath. Exhale then quickly inhale after 4 steps. It’s easier if you sync the breath with your right or left foot every 4th step.
Progress the Weight Slowly
Troubleshooting
Problem: Cannot stay tight while trying to purse breathe
Root cause: Need more practice, staying tight, holding the breath and purse breathing
Solution: Work on Static holds (holding breath) with increasing weight for 30 seconds. Then work on static hold focusing on getting purse breathing right for 30 seconds. Try to work up to the same weight you did while solely holding the breath. If you still cannot stay tight while purse breathing during yoke, do yoke walks only holding the breath setting the yoke down when you need to breath.
Problem: Rotational Wobble
Root cause: Feet are too wide causing the first step to be inward not forward or you go too fast off the start.
Solution: Ensure you starting in your “gait stance” and go slow taking baby steps ensuring that tightens and balance are being prioritized.
Problem: Hard getting the yoke moving
Root cause: Feet are too wide, taking too big of steps initially or the yoke is too high off the ground
Solution: Ensure you are starting in the correct gait stance (remember this is narrower than you think), take baby steps or have the yoke set at the right height (~9” off the ground).
Problem: Yoke Swinging forwards or the front end hits the ground
Root cause: Going too fast, unable to properly anticipate the “swing effect” or yoke is too low off the ground
Solution: Slow down you’re take off speed, adjust your walking rate to match the swing of the yoke or raise the height of the yoke by lowering the cross member.
Advanced techniques
Sprinter stance start – This stance will be very similar to your gait making your first step very smooth. Observe which foot you start walking with. Place that foot back. Center your weight between front and back foot.
Yoke Swing – Done correctly the yoke will act like a pendulum and give the athlete spirts of momentum. Pair this with a sprinter stance for a faster take off. Be careful the yoke will swing backwards then forwards. After the initial take off the athlete must slow their walk speed down to match the cadence of the swing. The Athlete will then speed up again after it starts the swing backwards. This will repeat until the yoke stops swinging.
Breath - Hold your breath for as long as you can and reserve the purse breaths for when you absolute need to breath. This will keep you as tight as possible.