Ten Most Useless Exercises – pt. 1
I love to exercise. I love the feel of the iron in my hands. But mostly I only use free weights. Why? Because they promote more stability and muscle activity than the machines. Here is the first half of my top ten list of the most useless exercises, as I see them.
1) StairMaster (or almost any brand of stair stepping machine). Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE climbing (real) stairwells for a great cardio workout and do it often in the apartment building I live in. But those machines make me crazy. Why? Because they HELP you do the movements. Nice little railings to hang on to, wouldn’t want to work that upper body in any way, right? and the stair that’s coming UP while you’re driving one foot down is helping you bring that other foot up. Almost useless. Hit a real stairwell for a real workout… oh, and go down it too… did you know that functionality for going down staircases easily tends to decrease with age?
2) Elliptical. Same reason. Once you get a rhythm going, the machine does almost all the work for you. All you’re doing is going for a nice little ride on the damn thing. Go cross country skiing in the snow to work out all those muscles you THINK you’re working out on the elliptical.
3) Leg Extension. When in real life will you ever work your quads without working your hamstrings? Darn hard on the knees too. Do a squat if you want to work your quads… better yet, do a barbell squat. See next point firs tho.
4) Smith Machine. Very limited range of motion. All it does it go straight up and straight down, forcing you into a range of motion that might not be right for your body size and shape. Get serious about working out and get over to the free weight barbell rack or bench press (better yet for chest press, use dumbbells, why let one arm compensate for another?)
5) Any exercise that you pick up 3lb dumbbells and actually think you’re doing anything effective. Ladies, how heavy is your purse? I’ll bet it weighs more than those pink dumbbells you’re holding so how do you think this is a workout? And men, if I see anyone who’s not currently in some kind of rehab program for an injury or illness holding a 3lb dumbbell be careful because I might come over there and whack you on the side of the head with it to knock some sense into you.
Check out my true story about how the ultimate fitness manual “The Truth About Abs” by Mike Geary helped me get my “Six Pack Abs”.
About the Author
Jackie Burgmann is a Registered Weight Trainer and Registered Personal Trainer who also runs a popular fitness-oriented video blog using the pseudonym Girlwithnoname at Girlwithnoname.com.
Snowboarding for Beginners : How to Change Direction in Snowboarding
|
|
Tools4Boards SkiVise XC Cross Country Ski Vise $67.12 The original nordic travel vise for holding classic and skating skis for waxing and base peparation. Improved heavy duty die cast center with metal binding holder compatible with all bindings (Salomon Profil and Rottefella NNN). Secure stable support for all xc skis. Holds the binding. 3 support points. Ideal for securely holding classic and skating skis for waxing and base peparation. Innovative … |
|
|
Tools4Boards Cinch Ski & Snowboard Vise $80.87 Finally a combination ski and snowboard vise! Securely holds all snowboards, alpine, xc, tele and bc skis for both side-edge and base tuning. Cord is looped around ski brake and cinched in cleat to hold any shaped ski firmly against extra large supports with soft, durable, non-slip and non-marking rubber pads. Ski break is automatically retracted. Pivoting supports adjust to any camber and side-cu… |
|
|
Terminator Tuning Stand Ski & Snowboard Wax Bench Table $258.19 Terminator Ski and Snowboard Tuning Stand weighs only 5kg, features Zamac die-cast components powder coated matt Black and T6064 sand blasted aluminum anodized 15 microns in Candy Apple Red for Terminator good looks and exceptional durability. Stand is easily set up or collapsed for storage/transportation simply by rotating and locking legs using quick release handles. Fits in any ski or snowboard… |
