Caution! 'magic' exercise routines

So many exercise routines claim to be the magic routine- the best and only one to get results. some fitness 'experts' make up training principles, give the system a fancy name and hope people are gullible enough to follow. Unfortunately some are and they soon come to realise that you can't reinvent the wheel. 

Keep things simple. A good trainer will instinctively know how hard you are working and will be familiar with the technicalities of an exercise- this can only come from many years of experience training themselves and others it cannot be learned on a 1 month course! In short the the human body has seven basic movements,

• squat
• lunge
• push
• pull
• bend
• twist
• gait

So how do we become fitter stronger for everyday life and sports? How do we burn a lot of calories and fat? Try these three steps

1. Perform each movement correctly, e.g. squatting with your knees in line with ankles and back straight is better and harder than squatting with knees caving in and back rounded
2. When they can be performed correctly, next perform them over a wider range of motion, eg squat below parallel is better and harder than a half-squat
3. When performed correctly over a wide range of motion, load the movement, e.g. barbell squat with 20kg is better and harder than a squat with no weight

So we take those movements and load them up with resistance – our own bodyweight, dumbbells, kettlebells etc. This is the reason I ALWAYS put basic movements first in a routine.

We don''t load all of them -bending or twisting under load will be less than ideal for our backs. Gait? Loading yourself while walking or running is great if you want to join the Army, hikes and some back conditions. But its not useful for most beginners in the gym.

That leaves squat, lunge, push and pull. Squat and lunge use pretty much the same muscles, but lunge is a bit more difficult to perform well as it's one-legged. So maybe squats for complete beginners, moving onto lunges later, its all dependant on the individuals capabilities and goals. So we may add resistance to the movements squat/lunge, pull and push.

By training movements not muscles, we actually end up training all the muscles. The squat/lunge works quadriceps, hamstrings and gluteals, the pull works the upper back, biceps and forearms, and the push works the chest, shoulders and triceps. 

By doing this you will help correct muscle imbalances and avoid the joint injuries most gym goers seem to have accumulated due to poor exercise form.

 Like I said K.I.S.S-  Keep It Simple Stupid!!