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A few months ago I talked about my four day workout.  At the time, I was splitting up my routine to work one or two parts of the body per day.  Since then, I’ve changed my routine to work my entire body each time I work out.  I’ve had a few questions from readers on which style I found best.

Whole Body Workout

A whole body workout means just that, work out your entire body.  It’s 24 different exercises and I usually do 1 set of each for a total of 24 sets.

Body Part Workout

The body part workout works one or two individual body parts per day.  I would typically do abs and back one day, legs the second day, biceps and triceps the third day and chest and shoulders the fourth day.  You can do different splits but it’s still the same idea.  I would usually do 6 different exercises and 4 sets of each one for a total of 24 sets.

Advantages of the Whole Body Workout

• Speed - I get through the whole body workout faster even though it’s the same number of sets.  This is because I don’t have to rest as much between sets since I’m not constantly working out the same body parts.
• Schedule Flexibility - With the whole body workout, if I miss one day, it’s not as bad.  I still workout my whole body on other days.
• Variation - This workout keeps me more interested in the workout since I’m doing a new exercise each time.

Advantages of the Body Part Workout

• Targeted - You’re working out a specific body part every day and you’re really targetting that part.  I seemed to be getting a better workout overall when I was consistently doing a body part workout schedule.
• More Rest - After doing an abs and back workout, you have a week before you workout that area again.  That lets you rest that area and allows the muscles to recover.

Which One Do I Recommend?

Well, it depends on how serious you are about your time in the gym.  If you have at least three or four days to spend and a good amount of time on each of those days, you should probably go for the body part workout.  You’ll get a better workout for each body part and you’ll see better results.  However, if you’re like me and you’re trying to juggle working out into an otherwise very busy schedule, I think the whole body workout is a better option.  It guarantees you that you workout all your muscles equally, it’s quick and you’ll still see good results, if not quite as good as those of the targetted workout.

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There’s really no right answer here.  Neither workout is clearly better or worse than the other.  Try them both and stick to what works for you, but don’t be afraid to change things up and try something new once in a while.

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It never fails, get three people together in a gym and ask them to discuss their workout and inevitably the conversation will eventually turn to machines vs. free weights. If you’re completely clueless about this argument, it comes from the fact that some people prefer free weights like dumbbells and barbells while others like to workout on specialized machines that offer a narrow range of choices for exercises per machine.

In fact, most gyms are set up to have one area in which people work out on machines and another area in which people use free weights. for beginners, this can be a little confusing. After all, it seems like these two options are identical. I can get on a machine and do some curls or I can use dumbbells. I could use the leg press machine or I could do some squats. What’s the difference?

Form Is Better On Machines

As I’ve said before many times, form is very important when you workout. You want good form in which you slowly and gradually move the weights around. You want to primarily use the muscle group which you intend to workout. That means if you’re doing curls, you shouldn’t be swinging your entire body around trying to lift those weights.

For the purposes of good form, machines are better. Machines force us to have good form by stabilizing our whole body. For example, when I do a curl on a machine, I’m sitting and my upper body is relatively immobile due to the various supports on the machines. That means it’s only my biceps which are doing the work. With free weights, I’m free to swing more body parts around which could contribute to bad form. In fact, you can see that if you click on the free weights curls link here. The person working out is swinging back and forth, which is bad form. By way of comparison, look at these machine curls here. You can see that the whole body is much more stable and only the biceps are working. Do free weights have to mean bad form? Not at all. It’s very possible to achieve good form with free weights, but it’s somewhat easier with machines.

Muscle Recruitment Is Better With Freeweights

What the heck is muscle recruitment? It’s that thing your body does when you lift something and need to maintain your balance. Think of it this way. When you do a squat, you’re lifting a weight up with your legs. Your leg muscles are doing most of the work lifting straight up, but your body also recruit quite a few smaller muscles groups to maintain stability, to keep you upright and to prevent you from falling over. If you did the same exercises with a machine, less of your body would be involved.

Muscle recruitment is a little like form. It means more muscles are involved in the exercise than just the ones you wanted involved. The difference is that bad form means you’re making things too easy for those primary muscles. You’re replacing the work they’re supposed to do by doing it with other muscle groups. Muscle recruitments means you’re adding more work which is being done by other muscle groups.

Take a look at a free weight squat here, vs a machine press here.  Both have very good form and in both, the legs are doing the same amount of work.  However, with the free weight squat, the user is also recruiting other muscle groups to keep himself upright and stable, which the machine press does not do.

Less Injuries With Machines

By their nature, machines limit the potential for injuries.  You’re not going to drop a weight on your foot, you’re not going to move your arm into a weird position and tear a tendon and you’re not going to find yourself pinned to the bench with too much weight on your chest.  Machines are in fact safer to use since they limit the range of things you can do.

More Accurate Progress With Machines

It’s easier to measure progress with machines since the movements and weights are always the same.  For example, if I use the example of the machine press vs. the squat I showed above.  The machine press is easy to adjust for less or more weight, but what about the squat?  My body weight ranges up or down a few lbs every day.  Since I’m also lifting my body weight, that could make things harder or easier.  Also, as you lose weight, exercises with freeweights could feel easier because you’re lifting less weight.  Finally, you could adjust your form or grip to make things harder or easier, something that’s more difficult with machines.  For example, if I’m doing a bench press, a narrow or wide grip on the bar could make things harder or easier.  With a machine press, there are places for you to grip, which means you always grip in the same spot.  All of these things combine to make machine workouts more precise.

Even Workout For Both Side With Free Weights

With machines, you typically workout both sides at the same time.  For example, when you do curls, you’re doing them with both hands at the same time.  This is not always true, but in general, that’s how most machines are set up.  That means one side could be doing more of the work and you might not notice it.  In fact, many people, when doing two handed exercises, will let their dominant hand or leg do most of the work.  With free weights, and specifically with dumbbells, it’s impossible to let one side do more of the work.  So you end up with a more even workout for both sides.

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So have we solved the argument?  Well, not really.  Personally, I’m a free weights fan.  However, I believe that most people who are new to the gym start out with machines before they use free weights.  That will help you learn good form and how to avoid injuries.  In the end, the best workout is the one you feel comfortable with.  The differences between free weights and machines are relatively small and both are far better than not working out at all.

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I’ve had a few emails from readers lately, who provided me with a breakdown of their workouts. Most of them were relatively standard, but I did notice a few exercises that seemed to be missing. So I decided to write up a quick series of articles on some of the best exercises that most people are missing out on. Number 2 is a combo of abductions and adductions, two of the best leg exercises that most of you guys are missing.

The Basics

Adductions and abductions are both thigh workouts. They are essentially opposites of one another. One works the outer thigh and one works the inner thigh. They’re some of the simplest exercises to do and consist of lying down on your side and lifting your leg. Lying leg adductions consist of lifting up your inner leg, the one you’re lying on, as you can see in this video. Whereas with thigh abductions you lift the outer leg as you can see in this video. Neither one of these exercises uses weights, so if you want to increase the difficulty, simply do more of them or do them slower.

Proper Form

As usual, follow the 3 and 3 rule. 3 seconds up and 3 seconds down. This is especially important with the adductions. With the thigh abductions, you may want to limit your angle to no more than 45 degrees. Any more than that and you risk a very uncomfortable pulled muscle in the groin area.

Benefits

These two exercises are key to strengthening your thigh muscles.  That may not seem like much, but remember that the muscles around your thighs and butt are part of the core group of muscles that stabilize your every move.  Virtually every function of your body is in one way or another helped by the core muscle group.  Strengthening these muscles will reduce the risk of injury from other exercises and give you better performance with your other workouts.  Think of it as working on your foundation.   No one will ever see your foundation, but without it, your entire house will crumble.

Warnings

Not too many warnings around these two exercises, they are relatively risk free.

Variations

Again, not too many variations here.  There are some people who prefer to use a machine to work these muscles.  That’s fine, you get just as good of a workout on a machine.

Who’s Missing Out?With this exercise, it’s mainly guys who are missing out.  I’m not sure why, but say “thigh exercises” to a guy and he thinks “that’s for women.”  I have no idea why this is?  Men have thighs.  We have the same muscle groups as women, so why would we not want to work them out?  Just relax guys, no one will think any less of you for working on your thighs.

Summary

Two excellent exercises that work on your core muscles.  both will strengthen your upper legs to reduce the risk of injury and increase your overall performance. Neither requires any gear and both can be done with virtually no risk injury.  What else could you want?

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I’ve had a few emails from readers lately, who provided me with a breakdown of their workouts. Most of them were relatively standard, but I did notice a few exercises that seemed to be missing. So I decided to write up a quick series of articles on some of the best exercises that most people are missing out on. Number 3 is going to be push ups.

The Basics

Unlike our last two exercises, the lunge and the deadlift, push ups work the upper body. In fact, they work the entire upper body, from arms and shoulders to chest and abs. They even recruit some back and neck muscles to maintain good posture. Like the lunge, a push up is a simple movement. Straighten your whole body and balance yourself on your arms and toes. Now slowly lower your body down by bending your arms and then push up again. Here’s a video from Cooper’s on how to do a push up.

A couple of things about this video. First of all, Cooper’s likes to refer to a push up as a press up. That’s fine, it’s the same thing. Second, the variant shown here is a wide grip push up. There are quite a few variations which we will discuss a bit later.

Proper Form

My only comment about the Cooper’s video is the usual one, it’s too fast. Good form to me means going a bit slower. Remember the 3 and 3 rule. 3 seconds going down and 3 seconds coming up. Otherwise, this is great form for a push up. Note how the entire body is straight. Many people tend to either stick out their butts or sag around the middle section. Either one of these is bad. You should try to keep your whole body straight by tightening your abs and back muscles.

Benefits

The push up is an excellent upper body exercise. It uses quite a few muscles and recruits others to help in stabilizing your body. It’s completely equipment free which means you can do it anywhere. You do need a bit more space but that’s all. The push up can even be used as a cardio exercise of sorts. Just limit your movement and speed it up. That is, instead of lowering your body all the way down, lower it just part of the way down. Do that a few dozen times at a really fast pace and there you go, a bit of improvised cardio. The push up is relatively free of injury risk.

Warnings

The push up is relatively free of injury risk. The only things to watch out for are shoulder injuries. As usual, if it hurts, stop. If it keeps hurting, see a doctor.

Variations

The push up has dozens of variations, but here are a few:

• Kneeling push up - Instead of balancing your lower body on your toes, you’re going to be kneeling and just pushing your upper body up and down. This is a much easier variant and a good way for people to start out.
• Medicine Ball / Floor - And on the “I’m so fit I need to show off!” side of the spectrum, we have this variant which uses both the floor and a medicine ball. Don’t try this one unless you’re really well balanced and have a ton of upper body strength.
• Clapping Push Up - Another showy variant. I’m not a big fan of this one. It’s mainly for people who like silly gym tricks. To me, this adds too much injury risk without really adding enough workout benefit.
• One Handed Push Ups - And the ultimate in show off forms, the one handed. No clue why you would do this one. It’s not that good of an exercise.
• Close Grip Push Up - A bit more of a reasonable variant. This one will work your arms a bit more and your shoulders a bit less. Requires more balance work but I think it’s a great option to try out every once in a while.
• Hindu Push Up - I’d never even heard of this until a few months ago, but I got to say, I tried it and really liked it. It’s not as challenging on the arms but it’s a great whole body exercise. Plus it was a great back stretch.

Who’s Missing Out?

Quite a few people aren’t doing push ups.  Women seem to think of them as a “man’s exercise” while men tend to see pushups as something soldiers do, not gym goers.  I guess too many movies filled with “drop and give me 20 push ups!” have given the push up a bad image.  So let me clarify.  For you women, the push up will not make you into a body builder or some sort of super soldier.  For you men, it’s ok, not all gym exercises need to include weights.  Everyone can benefit from push ups.  Heck, I do them at home sometimes as a way of stretching if I’ve been sitting down too long.

Summary

There’s a reason the push up has become a standard for military training.  It’s an amazing all around exercise that uses a lot of your muscles and raises your heart rate.  It’s not meant to build up big bulky muscles, just to tone up the ones you have right now.

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I’ve had a few emails from readers lately, who provided me with a breakdown of their workouts. Most of them were relatively standard, but I did notice a few exercises that seemed to be missing. So I decided to write up a quick series of articles on some of the best exercises that most people are missing out on. Number 4 is going to be deadlifts.

The Basics

Like the lunge, the deadlift is both an exercise and a stretch. It’s a rather simple movement. Just stand up straight, feet slightly apart. Now bend down at the back, keeping your legs straight, until your fingers are at toe level. Hold for a second and straighten back up. Here’s the video of a dumbbell deadlift from Cooper’s.

Proper Form

The Cooper’s video is showing a stiff legged dead lift.  That means you’d lock your knees and then do the movement.  However, I prefer a slightly bent kneed stance.  Bend your knees just slightly so that you’re not locking them and then keep that stable.  You don’t want to increase or decrease the bend of your knees as you’re doing deadlifts.  That means you’re working out your knee and not your back.

Benefits

The deadlift is one of the best lower back exercises.  It also recruits many of the muscles in your legs for an even better workout.  Like the lunge, the deadlift can be done with no equipment.

Warnings

The deadlift does place a lot of strain on your lower back and on your knees if you choose to do the stiff leg pose.  You can minimize this a bit by bending the knees as I discussed in the form section, but you’ll still be putting strain on your lower back.  If you have a back issue, you’ll want to be careful with this one.

Variations

The dumbbell deadlift shown is the basic one, but there are lot of variations.

• Toe touches - No weights involved with this one but the form is essentially the same.  Just bend down at the waist and touch your toes with your fingers.
• Barbell deadlift - Same as the dumbbell one but with a barbell instead.  This allows for greater weights to be lifted.
• Bent knees deadlift - As discussed above, this is the same as the stiff legged deadlift shown in the video but with the knees slightly bent.  Less pressure on the knees this way and you recruit more of your leg muscles.  However, this is a harder form to maintain properly.

Who’s Missing Out?

The opposite of the lunge, it’s women who seem to overlook the deadlift.  Actually, I’ve noticed that women in general tend to overlook the back exercises.

Summary

Another easy exercise that can be done anywhere and at any time, the deadlift is useful as a workout and as a stretch.  It’s one of my favorite exercises to do as a break from work or from a long plane ride.  It’s also part of my back day and my legs day.

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I’ve had a few emails from readers lately, who provided me with a breakdown of their workouts. Most of them were relatively standard, but I did notice a few exercises that seemed to be missing. So I decided to write up a quick series of articles on some of the best exercises that most people are missing out on. Number 5 is going to be lunges.

The Basics

The lunge is one of the simplest leg exercises and yet, one of the best. A simple explanation is, place both of your feet together. Now lower your body down until the knee of your back foot almost touches the floor. Here’s a quick video from Cooper’s Guns on the basic dumbbell lunge.

Proper Form

The guy in the Cooper’s video is doing the lunge a bit too fast for my taste. I usually prefer the 3 and 3 rule. That means you should spend 3 seconds slowly going down and 3 seconds slowly coming back up to your starting position. However, his form is good otherwise. His knees are in good position. Notice how, when he’s at his lowest position, both his knees are just about at 90 degrees. That’s a good lunge right there.

Benefits

The lunge works out your entire upper legs area, reaching all the way up to your lower back and waist. It’s one of the most comprehensive legs exercises because it recruit every single leg muscle group you have. It’s also great for practicing stability. It can be done with zero equipment since even a basic body weight (no weights) lunge, is still good exercise.

Warnings

The lunge does place some pressure on the knees. So if you have bad knees, take it easy when you first try out lunges. Talk to your doctor if you’re worried and stop if you experience any pain.

Variations

The dumbbell lunge shown is the basic one, but there are lot of variations.

• Lunge and curl - When your body is at its lowest point, hold that pose and do a slow biceps curl with the weights you’re holding. This will work out your upper body and pushes your legs even harder as you try to maintain your form.
• Walking lunge - Instead of moving the forward back to your starting position, move the back foot up as though you’re taking a step forward. In essence, you’re walking, but each step is interrupted by a lunge.
• Barbell lunge - Use a barbell with some weights on rather than a curl. Allows for some higher weights to be used.
• Bench lunge - Same as a normal lunge except your back foot is on a bench. Not recommended for those, like me, who aren’t very flexible.
• Side lunge - The forward foot moves up but also to the side. It should move to the outside of the back foot. This will put more strain on your outer and inner thigh muscles. However, the few times I’ve done this, I almost fell over. Again, not recommended for the flexibility challenged.

Who’s Missing Out?

For the most part, it seems to be guys who are missing out on the lunge. For some reason, guys seem to think that upper body is where they should focus and ignore their legs.

Summary

The lunge is an easy exercise that can be done anywhere and at anytime. You can even do it at the office or on long plane ride as a way to stretch. Add a few weights and it’s an integral part of any workout.

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This question came in yesterday from a reader in Oregon.

I know biking is good cardio, but it also seems to be good resistance exercise as well.  I can feel the muscles in my legs working hard while I bike.  Can you tell me which muscles those are and do I still need to do a legs workout if I bike?

That’s a great question and I’m going to answer it in three separate parts.

Is biking a resistance exercise?

Well, all exercise is resistance training to a certain degree.  Even walking consists of pushing myself forward using my legs which means my muscles are working against a certain resistance.  However, compared to other cardio workouts, biking is indeed a decent resistance exercise for your legs.  It’s not quite as good as swimming for the whole body, but it does involve a lot of pushing, which is good.

Which muscles does biking exercise?

Biking works out most of the muscles in your upper legs.  That involves the Glutes, Hamstrings, Vastus Lateralis, Rectus Femoris, Vastus Medialis and the inner thigh muscles.  In fact, most of the work involved with biking is done by your upper thighs, which push your leg down over and over.  There is some lower back involved, but it’s relatively minor.

Do you still need a leg workout if you bike?

I would say so, yes.  Biking is a nice repetitive exercise, but it doesn’t use the same controlled form and weights.  You may not want to do a leg workout on the same day that you bike, just to avoid the risk of overstraining your legs, but you will still want a good controlled leg workout using weights or machines.  It will make you a better biker.

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