Happy Thursday to you,
I hope you are having a great week so far?
Over the years I’ve seen a lot of crazy exercises, some are seriously dangerous and others are just a complete waste of time.
Below I’ve listed 3 common exercises that far too many people are wasting their time with and I don’t want you to be one of them.
Here goes…
#1. Crunches or Sit Ups
Crunches do not burn fat (unless you do 1000’s) and they certainly won’t thin down your waistline. But the worst problem with crunches is the damage they do to your back. So unless you want to risk herniating a disc I recommend you avoid them.
Alternatives: work on spinal stabilising exercises that force your core muscles to work while keeping your spine neutral e.g. Planks, Shoulder Taps, Bird Dogs and Slow Mountain Climbers.
#2. Bicep Curls or Tricep Extensions
Unless you are a dedicated bodybuilder and want to spend time on just a few muscles while the other 600 are standing by then these exercises are best avoided. Isolation type exercises may give you bigger arms but they have no impact on fat loss or your overall health.
Alternatives: all pressing movements use your triceps and all pulling movements use your biceps. So you can get a lot more done in less time if you use Push Ups or Overhead Presses for your triceps and Pull Ups or Rows for your biceps.
#3. Calf Raises
Calf Raises are a huge waste of your time, they hardly burn any calories and have no fat loss afterburn effect. So unless you want to be a bodybuilder these are best left alone too.
Alternatives: when you are performing your bodyweight squats or goblet squats extend up onto your tip toes as high as possible. You will get a great calf workout and burn a lot of calories at the same time too.
In summary
Basically any exercise where you are isolating just a few muscles is not worth your time. There are obviously exceptions for specific sports conditioning or body building but for 99% of people you need to use as many muscles as possible with every exercise.
There is a reason why squats, lunges, deadlifts etc. are such hard work, they use 100’s of muscles at a time. The more muscles used, the more energy required and the more fat loss and cardio benefits.
Here’s a Kettlebell Complex workout:
- Halo (clockwise & anticlockwise) x 5 reps
- Goblet Squat x 5 reps
- Bob & Weave x (left & right side) x 5 reps
- Two Handed Squat and Press x 5 reps
- Reverse Lunge with Rotation (left & right side) x 5 reps
Kettlebell complex workouts involve you performing each exercise for a certain number of reps before immediately moving on to the next exercise.
There is no rest in between exercises and the kettlebell should not be put down until the end of the circuit.
You can experiment with the number of reps, try 3 the first set, 5 the second and 7 for the third.
Try to feel the flow as you move from one exercise to the next.
The more you flow the more you will feel you cardio being challenged.
Want 12 weeks of progressive workouts? See my latest programs here
This weeks question:
Q. “Greg, can I change the kettlebell weight during my workout?”
A. There are a great number of kettlebell exercises and some, due to the muscles being used, will be more difficult than others.
For example, the single handed deadlift should be your strongest exercise whereas the windmill or get up may be your weakest.
As you work through the exercises feel free to switch weights while you master the difficult exercises and overload movements that you find easier.
You don’t need lots of different kettlebells:
- Women: 8kg, 12kg and maybe 16kg
- Men: 12kg, 16kg and maybe 24kg
You can also make progress without addding more weight.
Ultimately, your goal is to eliminate movement and strength deficiencies. When you can move well and your body strength is balanced you will find life a lot easier.
I hope this helps.
Take care,
Greg
P.S. Would you like to collaborate with me? If you have any interesting suggestions then please let me know. I’m all ears 🙂