In other words, it’s more effective for your body to press, pull and rotate when you integrate those movements with other parts of your body. Make no mistake, if used properly, machines at your gym can make you stronger, but if science is proving that exercise integration is more beneficial in less time, why would people continue to isolate muscles?
Life happens on your feet, so train that way. If you go to the gym and exercise in a seated position, you will get stronger in a seated position. If you go to the gym and train in a standing or unstable position, you will get stronger in those positions. And isn’t most of life standing and unstable?
So how do you apply this to your training program? Here are a few ways to break the old routine.
First of all, you don’t need dumbbells to get stronger, you need resistance. Your body doesn’t know the difference between a 10-pound dumbbell or a 10-pound bag of doughnuts, it only knows that different muscles are required to lift it. For example, if you currently practice seated shoulder presses with 10-pound dumbbells in your exercise program, try it standing with 10-pound medicine balls. Your body will instantly know that it needs more muscle recruitment to stabilize and press the same amount of weight as the dumbbells you used in the past. Add a lunge to the shoulder press to mix it up. The possibilities are almost endless when it comes to the variety of exercises the human body is capable of. If progressed safely, your body will accept your challenges and have no choice but to get stronger in the environment you want it to get stronger in.
That said, it’s critical that you get the right guidance with your progressions. It is unsafe to progress any exercise without knowing how, when and why. It is also important to look at risk/reward with exercises. Just because something is physically challenging doesn’t necessarily mean it’s safe to achieve a higher level of strength, balance or conditioning. I attend recertification seminars all the time and I meet all types of trainers around the country. I can’t tell you how many times I hear trainers say, “I’ve got this client who can stand on top of a Physio ball and do squats.” You should never do an exercise that has a higher risk than reward. Trainers are here to help people, not impress them.
Greg Popp is the co-owner and president of Core Solutions Fitness Training Center in Westbrook and is a NASM Certified Personal Trainer. Contact him at www.csifit.com or call 854-5200.