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BIG EXERCISES: What exercises should I be doing?
What exercises should I be doing? That is a common question.
Most exercises are variations of other exercises. All of us find exercises that feel "right" or work for our particular body. Do what feels good for you. That being said there are several "core" exercises that everyone should be doing if you have plans of mastering bodybuilding and are serious about getting stronger.
The idea is to stimulate muscle growth then get out of the gym. In your building and strength cycles and even in the pre-contest cycle these (simple and basic) exercises are the back bone of your training. As you approach the contest you can add variations or extra exercises, but keep in mind they are only extra's or shaping exercises. Stick with the core workout and you can't go wrong.
Here are the big exercises:
SQUAT
DEADLIFT
ROW
BENCH
SHOULDER PRESS (with bar)
Here is a variation of those exercises:
LEG PRESS
LAT PULLS or CHINS
DB ROWS or PULLOVERS
DIPS
SHOULDER PRESS (with dumb bells)
There are many valuable exercises but they are variations of these "basic" exercises. If you can do them..these are the ones to master before other exercises. A fantastic, strong body can be built from these exercises alone. Here is a list of the second tier or exercises. Add these on after you master the others.
ADD ON EXERCISES
LEG CURLS
CALVE RAISES
SHRUGS (all sorts)
BICEP CURLS
TRICEP EXTENSIONS
HACK SQUAT
GRIP EXERCISES (all sorts)
SHAPING exercises comprise hundreds of variation exercises. Things like lateral raises, reverse curls, and so on. These are valuable exercises but should be done after you are advanced. And if you are advanced, just doing the basics (progressively) still is the best way to gain strength. When you are advanced the temptation is to always do more exercises. Too much and you can hurt your ability to recover and slow down your progress in the big basic exercises. My advice is: to really grow: stick with the basic lifts for several years (or forever). These exercises never go "out of style".
What exercises should I be doing? That is a common question.
Most exercises are variations of other exercises. All of us find exercises that feel "right" or work for our particular body. Do what feels good for you. That being said there are several "core" exercises that everyone should be doing if you have plans of mastering bodybuilding and are serious about getting stronger.
The idea is to stimulate muscle growth then get out of the gym. In your building and strength cycles and even in the pre-contest cycle these (simple and basic) exercises are the back bone of your training. As you approach the contest you can add variations or extra exercises, but keep in mind they are only extra's or shaping exercises. Stick with the core workout and you can't go wrong.
Here are the big exercises:
SQUAT
DEADLIFT
ROW
BENCH
SHOULDER PRESS (with bar)
Here is a variation of those exercises:
LEG PRESS
LAT PULLS or CHINS
DB ROWS or PULLOVERS
DIPS
SHOULDER PRESS (with dumb bells)
There are many valuable exercises but they are variations of these "basic" exercises. If you can do them..these are the ones to master before other exercises. A fantastic, strong body can be built from these exercises alone. Here is a list of the second tier or exercises. Add these on after you master the others.
ADD ON EXERCISES
LEG CURLS
CALVE RAISES
SHRUGS (all sorts)
BICEP CURLS
TRICEP EXTENSIONS
HACK SQUAT
GRIP EXERCISES (all sorts)
SHAPING exercises comprise hundreds of variation exercises. Things like lateral raises, reverse curls, and so on. These are valuable exercises but should be done after you are advanced. And if you are advanced, just doing the basics (progressively) still is the best way to gain strength. When you are advanced the temptation is to always do more exercises. Too much and you can hurt your ability to recover and slow down your progress in the big basic exercises. My advice is: to really grow: stick with the basic lifts for several years (or forever). These exercises never go "out of style".
