Exercise and Workout
7 Exercises That Are Wasting Your Time
No woman walks into the gym hoping to blow her time on so-so-results.
Get more out of every rep and workout by trading these ineffective (and
crazy common!) exercises for our superior time-saving alternatives.
The Stationary-Bike Warm-Up
You
need to warm up, but the typical five-minute tour on the stationary
bike probably isn't going to do much, says Dean Maddalone, CSCS,
director of the Professional Athletic Performance Center in New York.
Your warm-up should get your heart rate to at least 60 to 65 percent of
your max heart rate (aim for 120 or up). This will increase your core
body temperature and get blood and nutrients to your muscles so you're
primed for your workout, he says. "If you don't increase your heart rate
or break a sweat, you're wasting your time," he says.
Better Moves: Warm up (and in less time!) by hammering out some quick bodyweight exercises. Try 30 jumping jacks, 30 bodyweight squats, 15 mountain climbers, or 10 to 15 burpees, Maddalone recommends. Our hearts are pounding just thinking about it.
Better Moves: Warm up (and in less time!) by hammering out some quick bodyweight exercises. Try 30 jumping jacks, 30 bodyweight squats, 15 mountain climbers, or 10 to 15 burpees, Maddalone recommends. Our hearts are pounding just thinking about it.
Machine Leg Presses
The
leg-press machine turns a multi-plane exercise (squats) into a
single-plane exercise, says Maddalone. Translation: Your legs can only
move in one direction, not up and down, side to side, and forward and
backward, like nature intended. Your stabilizer muscles are taken out of
the equation, and you get only a fraction of the muscle-building,
calorie-torching benefits.
Better Moves: "Squats are probably one of the best multi-joint exercises," says Maddalone. "They not only develop your legs, they also help develop overall trunk stability." Start with bodyweight squats and then progress to goblet squats, holding a dumbbell or kettlebell at your chest for added resistance, he says. To get the most out of the exercise, make sure to lower your torso until your thighbone is parallel to the ground and keep your weight in your heels.
Better Moves: "Squats are probably one of the best multi-joint exercises," says Maddalone. "They not only develop your legs, they also help develop overall trunk stability." Start with bodyweight squats and then progress to goblet squats, holding a dumbbell or kettlebell at your chest for added resistance, he says. To get the most out of the exercise, make sure to lower your torso until your thighbone is parallel to the ground and keep your weight in your heels.
Smith Machine Shoulder Presses
This
one goes on the inefficient list for the same reason as the machine leg
presses: The Smith machine fixes your weight's path so that you only
need to push it up and down, Maddalone says. You don't need to work to
keep the weight stable, meaning fewer muscles in your shoulders work
during every rep.
Better Moves: You might need to lift less weight, but performing shoulder presses with a set of dumbbells is going to get you a better burn and sexier set of shoulders.
Better Moves: You might need to lift less weight, but performing shoulder presses with a set of dumbbells is going to get you a better burn and sexier set of shoulders.
Kettlebell Swings
It's
one of the most common kettlebell exercises out there, but kettlebell
swings—in which you swing a kettlebell between your legs and then up in
front of you or even over your head—use a lot of momentum, says
certified personal trainer John Rowley, director of wellness at the
International Sports Sciences Association. The more momentum you use,
the less muscle you use—and sculpt.
Better Moves: Most people do kettlebell swings in an effort to tone their legs and the frontal deltoids, Rowley says. If that's you, opt for working your legs with squats or lunges and working your front deltoids with slow and controlled dumbbell front raises.
Better Moves: Most people do kettlebell swings in an effort to tone their legs and the frontal deltoids, Rowley says. If that's you, opt for working your legs with squats or lunges and working your front deltoids with slow and controlled dumbbell front raises.
Weighted Side Bends
When
it comes to working your obliques, many women perform these: They stand
tall, holding a dumbbell at one side, and they crunch toward it over
and over again. And while they will work your external obliques,
crunching like this, especially with heavy weights, will make those
muscles more pronounced and dare we say it, bigger, according to
certified group fitness instructor Angeles Burke. If you're vying for a
chiseled athletic look, that's great, but if you want to make your
middle look smaller, this could be counterproductive. Plus, these side
bends don't do much for your internal obliques or the rest of your core,
which is critical to sports performance, she says.
Better Moves: Try side planks with a twist, bicycles, and Russian twists, she says. They'll all work your external obliques, while also working your deeper abdominal muscles—including your internal obliques and transverse abdominis, your true powerhouse.
Better Moves: Try side planks with a twist, bicycles, and Russian twists, she says. They'll all work your external obliques, while also working your deeper abdominal muscles—including your internal obliques and transverse abdominis, your true powerhouse.
Hip Adduction/Abduction Machine
You
know that machine that makes you feel like you're sitting in stirrups
at the gyno's office? Yeah, you don't need it. "By sitting when
performing this exercise, you're actually hurting your ability to
deliver maximum results," Rowley says. "The glute muscles have a harder
time activating while you are in the seated position, and you're not
working a variety of muscles here, when you could be using a different
exercise."
Better Moves: Try squats, lunges, and, if you really want to work your inner and outer thighs, side lunges, Rowley says. By working those muscles while standing, you'll be able to better work your adductors and abductors, while you'll also get an awesome calorie burn by also recruiting your quads, hamstrings, glutes, and calves.
Better Moves: Try squats, lunges, and, if you really want to work your inner and outer thighs, side lunges, Rowley says. By working those muscles while standing, you'll be able to better work your adductors and abductors, while you'll also get an awesome calorie burn by also recruiting your quads, hamstrings, glutes, and calves.
Machine Leg Extensions
These
can strengthen the muscles in your upper thighs, but that's about it,
says doctor of physical therapy and strength and conditioning specialist
Sean M. Wells, DPT, PT, CSCS, a bistroMD fitness expert. "Isolated
movements like this one provide very little carryover to daily
functioning and sports performance," he says. "Moreover, they lack the
efficiency of using multiple muscle groups for maximal calorie burning
needed for weight loss and general health."
Better Moves: Again, the squat reigns supreme. (See how many moves you could cut from your workout routine if you simply squatted?) Squats involve multiple joints to strengthen the front and back of your legs, as well as your butt, so it builds more strength and burns more calories, Wells says. Plus, it's completely functional, meaning it mimics motions you do in everyday life outside of the gym. Step-ups and lunges are also great quad-strengtheners that work the rest of your legs, too, he says.
Better Moves: Again, the squat reigns supreme. (See how many moves you could cut from your workout routine if you simply squatted?) Squats involve multiple joints to strengthen the front and back of your legs, as well as your butt, so it builds more strength and burns more calories, Wells says. Plus, it's completely functional, meaning it mimics motions you do in everyday life outside of the gym. Step-ups and lunges are also great quad-strengtheners that work the rest of your legs, too, he says.
source : http://www.fitnessmagazine.com
