.gif "IP Gear")
- Joined
- Oct 20, 2005
- Messages
- 816
By Johnny Damon
1 Pull-up (shown)
[3 sets to failure]
Use either an over- or underhand, slightly wider than shoulder-width grip. Avoid swinging, jerking, or bouncing at the bottom of the movement: Not only do they increase your chance of back injury, but you'll also be cheating!
2 Dead Lift
[3 sets of 10-12]
Simply raising the weight from the floor to the top of the thigh hits everything from the calves to the traps. Because so much is involved, form is key. Most importantly, keep your back straight and avoid rolling or hunching your shoulders as you lift.
3 Bosu Push-up
[3 sets to failure]
A great chest exercise without heavy presses. Push-ups done holding on to the sides of a Bosu -- round side down -- turn a classic exercise into a chest- and core-burner. If your gym doesn't have a Bosu, use a stability ball to experience similar benefits.
4 Hamstring Curl
[3 sets of 10-12]
To get the most out of your hamstring curls -- whether seated or lying on your stomach -- work on resisting the weight on the negative part of the lift when you're returning the weight to its original position. A slow and controlled return might be the most painful thing you do all day, but it's essential to big hams.
5 Seated Military Press
[3 sets of 10-12]
As long as your shoulders are healthy, the added stability of being in a seated position will let you go heavy on this one. Using dumbbells is a great way to increase the overall strength of the smaller stabilizer muscles around the shoulder joint.
6 Squat
[3 sets of 10-12]
To keep your knees happy, keep them directly above your heel through the motion. To keep your back healthy, keep your upper body straight.
7 Bent-over Dumbbell Row
[3 sets of 10-12, each side]
To get the most out of this one-side-at-a-time exercise, do a set from your weaker side -- while you're fresher -- before going to your strong side. As far as form goes, keep your shoulders parallel to the floor, your back slightly arched, and avoid twisting your upper body while you lift the weight.
8 Seated Row
[3 sets of 10-12]
Keep your upper body stable and slightly arched throughout the motion. If you're moving at the hip, you increase your chances of injuring your lower back.
9 Triceps Push-down
[3 sets of 10-12]
The most commonly screwed-up exercise at the gym. If your entire body is moving, you're doing it wrong. To isolate the tris, keep your upper arms tucked into your sides, and just move from the elbow down as you press down from a high pulley.
10 Standing Biceps Curl
[3 sets of 10-12]
Now that your biceps are nearly fried from all those back exercises, it's time to finish them off with curls. As with the triceps push-downs, the key to isolating the muscle is to stabilize the upper arm and move only from the elbow down.
11 Mountain Climbers
[3 45-second spurts]
To finish off the legs and get the heart rate up, position yourself like a sprinter in a starting block with your left leg extended behind you and your right leg bent and planted under your right armpit. Quickly switch foot positions while keeping your hands on the floor. Continue, with speed, for 45 seconds.
Cardio
[Once a week for each]
• Unless you have a mini-Everest nearby, you'll have to settle for a rough approximation of off-season Jamaican runs. Max out the incline of your gym's treadmill (usually around 15 percent) and go hard for 20 minutes.
• To give you a break, your second bout of cardio will be more traditional -- 20 minutes however you like it at 60 to 80 percent of your maximum heart rate.
• For insurance reasons, most gyms don't stock alligators or moving cars. To do your own version of off-season chasing drills, hop onto a quality elliptical trainer (Octane Fitness's Q45e, for example) and set it to "random" for the same quick-burst benefits as chasing a gator through the swamps.
1 Pull-up (shown)
[3 sets to failure]
Use either an over- or underhand, slightly wider than shoulder-width grip. Avoid swinging, jerking, or bouncing at the bottom of the movement: Not only do they increase your chance of back injury, but you'll also be cheating!
2 Dead Lift
[3 sets of 10-12]
Simply raising the weight from the floor to the top of the thigh hits everything from the calves to the traps. Because so much is involved, form is key. Most importantly, keep your back straight and avoid rolling or hunching your shoulders as you lift.
3 Bosu Push-up
[3 sets to failure]
A great chest exercise without heavy presses. Push-ups done holding on to the sides of a Bosu -- round side down -- turn a classic exercise into a chest- and core-burner. If your gym doesn't have a Bosu, use a stability ball to experience similar benefits.
4 Hamstring Curl
[3 sets of 10-12]
To get the most out of your hamstring curls -- whether seated or lying on your stomach -- work on resisting the weight on the negative part of the lift when you're returning the weight to its original position. A slow and controlled return might be the most painful thing you do all day, but it's essential to big hams.
5 Seated Military Press
[3 sets of 10-12]
As long as your shoulders are healthy, the added stability of being in a seated position will let you go heavy on this one. Using dumbbells is a great way to increase the overall strength of the smaller stabilizer muscles around the shoulder joint.
6 Squat
[3 sets of 10-12]
To keep your knees happy, keep them directly above your heel through the motion. To keep your back healthy, keep your upper body straight.
7 Bent-over Dumbbell Row
[3 sets of 10-12, each side]
To get the most out of this one-side-at-a-time exercise, do a set from your weaker side -- while you're fresher -- before going to your strong side. As far as form goes, keep your shoulders parallel to the floor, your back slightly arched, and avoid twisting your upper body while you lift the weight.
8 Seated Row
[3 sets of 10-12]
Keep your upper body stable and slightly arched throughout the motion. If you're moving at the hip, you increase your chances of injuring your lower back.
9 Triceps Push-down
[3 sets of 10-12]
The most commonly screwed-up exercise at the gym. If your entire body is moving, you're doing it wrong. To isolate the tris, keep your upper arms tucked into your sides, and just move from the elbow down as you press down from a high pulley.
10 Standing Biceps Curl
[3 sets of 10-12]
Now that your biceps are nearly fried from all those back exercises, it's time to finish them off with curls. As with the triceps push-downs, the key to isolating the muscle is to stabilize the upper arm and move only from the elbow down.
11 Mountain Climbers
[3 45-second spurts]
To finish off the legs and get the heart rate up, position yourself like a sprinter in a starting block with your left leg extended behind you and your right leg bent and planted under your right armpit. Quickly switch foot positions while keeping your hands on the floor. Continue, with speed, for 45 seconds.
Cardio
[Once a week for each]
• Unless you have a mini-Everest nearby, you'll have to settle for a rough approximation of off-season Jamaican runs. Max out the incline of your gym's treadmill (usually around 15 percent) and go hard for 20 minutes.
• To give you a break, your second bout of cardio will be more traditional -- 20 minutes however you like it at 60 to 80 percent of your maximum heart rate.
• For insurance reasons, most gyms don't stock alligators or moving cars. To do your own version of off-season chasing drills, hop onto a quality elliptical trainer (Octane Fitness's Q45e, for example) and set it to "random" for the same quick-burst benefits as chasing a gator through the swamps.
