Inverted rows are a humbling exercise. They are basically the reverse of bench press and will pay big dividends to your swimming as well as during longer bike rides. Perform them in a smith rack with your feet on a bench (figure 2.1a). Your body is suspended in mid air except for the two contact points, so try and keep your trunk solid. To perform the exercise pull your chest as close to the bar as you can get (figure 2.1b) and return in a controlled manner. It sounds simple but is very challenging when performed in multiple repetitions. Start with 2-3 sets of 6-8 repetitions and progress to reps of 8-12. For a more advanced exercise use a stability ball (figure 2.2) to support the feet.