There are so many training exercises used by people that we are almost out of ideas on how to develop new ways to work out. Having said this, the idea of improving the already existing exercises is one of the few amicable solutions to the lack of originality. In this article we shall look at some wildly popular exercises and how to make them more effective.
Dumbbell Biceps Curl
This is definitely one of the oldest exercises in the book and it is still one of the most common. Every person who works out places a lot of importance on symmetry. People therefore load barbells with similar weights and proceed to perform unilateral movements to keep the workload equal on both arms. However, symmetry is not always the right way to go especially when movement is concerned. When lifting dumbbells, a person could introduce a twisting motion to the routine in order to make it more useful. You start with the neutral position and when lifting the dumbbells you twist your arms. In the final position when the dumbbells reach the top the wrists should be facing upward. You may have to reduce the weight and reps with this twist.
Seated Barbell Row
This fitness exercise provides as much benefit to the back and biceps as bending barbell rows. The exercise doesn’t cause undue stress on the back and hamstring as bending barbell rows. Many people do seated barbell rows but make the mistake of extending their hips to complete the reps. This leads to fatigue due to the inefficient motion. To fix this a person may flex his hips when his elbows move towards the back. With this adjustment you should reduce the weight during the routine to avoid injury.
Standing Dumbbell Overhead Press
Olympic lifts are all the hype now-a-days and most people including those who just started working out are trying them. It is astonishing the numbers of people who are now involved in push jerking, push pressing, and split jerking. Most of these people usually don’t take time to build strength before they try more demanding fitness exercise routines. The standing dumbbell overhead press trains people to address the dangers of Olympic lifts and maybe even make them easier. With the exercise you learn to avoid letting elbows bow out during Olympic lifts and probably prevent serious shoulder injury.
In the exercise you lift a dumbbell standing beside a squat rack support pole. You lift the dumbbell straight up and the support pole prevents you from driving your elbow out. This skill should be transferred to Olympic lifts.
The Cable Chest Fly
The chest fly is one of the best and most popular chest exercises. It is great at developing the chest muscles without putting undue stress on shoulders and elbows. For this exercise you should place a flat bench in front of two weight stacks. You then place D-handles on the cables which should be at the lowest setting. You should then sit on the bench at the far end while grabbing the handles. You then avoid the cables from sliding you back on the bench by resisting their force. This technique is a great way to stay fit and there are many fitness videos demonstrating the variations of the exercise.