Are you guilty of doing an exercise that isn’t good for you? I know I am.
Before I learned about how the body works and choosing correct exercises, I was guilty of trying exercises because they looked cool or they were difficult.
Lets go over some exercises that are commonly seen around the gym but actually aren’t good for you. When you go into your gym next, or into your boot camp classes, check to see who’s doing these exercises. Hopefully they aren’t the fitness instructors that are supposed to be helping people.
The Burpee
Is it hard? Oh yea. Is it safe? Mmmm, not so much. The burpee requires a lot of stabilization through your core (deep abs and back muscles) with a lot of power generation and stability through the rest of your joints, especially the lower body. Have ankle, knee, hip, or back problems? Then this probably isn’t for you.
Behind the Neck Shoulder Press
This exercise kills me to see. I literally cringe every time I see this. Behind the neck exercises like the shoulder press put an excruciating amount of pressure on your shoulders.
Shoulder Shrugs with a roll
It doesn’t work the traps (upper back/neck) any more to roll your shoulders. It may seem harder but it just looks and feels funky.
If you have a question, don’t be afraid to ask somebody. Why are you doing that exercise? Is it truly helping your body? Is there a better exercise you could be doing?
If you have a question on exercises I am more than happy to help. Just comment below or message me.
Exercise should be fun AND safe.
And remember:
In order to achieve something you’ve never done before, you must be willing to become somebody you’ve never been before
Good points.
Burpee: I agree, kind of useless. It reminds me of doing exercise in second grade–not necessarily like I am becoming more of a man.
Behind the neck shoulder presses and lat pulldowns BOTH KILL UR ROTATOR CUFF. I’ve seen really successful body builders use this but I would totally recommend using a spot/trainer to make sure you are keeping the angle correctly. Also, avoiding it is a good option. Even Arnold did this exercise with careful reps/ angles/ and much lower weight. It’s one of those exercises that if you aren’t getting paid to work out then don’t do it. Your bed friend won’t give a shit what kind of shoulder work out ur doing.
Also, who invented the rolling shrug?
Shoulders = lighter dumbbell on all lateral raises. I’ve had my fair share of neck injuries from not watching my weight stacks.