By When you’ve been weight training for many years, the pleasure is in finding what gives your body some amazing conditioning results, and what does not. I think I’ve tried every gamut of exercise techniques, and can pinpoint without a doubt, the top 4 that have given me the greatest amount of success. Now, I’m always harping on about multi joint movements, but I’m going to go one step further and actually take an exercise that’s out of that realm and explaining why it has worked wonders for a particular goal I’ve been working towards. Perhaps these can help you as well as anyone else who wants to pick just a couple of great exercise, and do them regularly (with alterations of course, as you need to change it up regularly to get awesome results consistently)
4 top muscle building exercise that reshaped my body and will do the same for you.
- Deadlifts.
This is my choice of exercise for the legs, glutes and back. My main goal with this exercise is to change the conditioning aspect of my legs. So far, it’s working very well but in order to take those results to another level, it’s important to lift even heavier. When you have a prolonged imbalance in your hips, there is a fine line between lifting because you know you can and holding back to save you from becoming injured again (which then causes setbacks with training). To lift heavier poundages, and also make sure there is not even a trace of injury potential, I lift the bar from safety cage wrack. It can help me develop the form and execute the exercise without injury. I may not be getting the absolute full movement form lifting it from the ground, but it sure helps me increase my grip and lower body strength. Slowly, when you start consistently lifting those heavier weights, you can transition to the floor.
Another great alternative is to use the hexagonal bar too. Use this if you are a beginner or recovering from a back injury. It’s very safe.
A couple of tips when deadlifting:
– Deadlift without shoes on a flat (non=-slippery surface) in order to stop any sways in foot movements during the lifting phase. It also helps keep you stable throughout them movement.
– Use a foam roller after you squat or deadlift, to lengthen the muscles and prevent spasming or tightness in the area. - Incline bench biceps curls – with a pulse.
I love developing my biceps, and it’s hard for someone not to notice my size. They are highly developed because I use the exercise above. I place my bench at 90 degrees, and using dumbbells, I lift the weight on an angle, never letting my arms rest in this movement. This actually gets a lot deeper into the biceps. I add a pulse at the top for extra intensity, and to activate those dormant satellite cells which I really want to grow. Proceed with caution if you do have a bad neck at all. - Squats. Another favourite of mine for the legs and glutes. For this one, I do use the bar sometimes, to help me get through that sticking point when you want to execute a full range of motion. I set the safety bars at the point where I’m completing my full range squat at the bottom. Then I lift to the top and keep that up for how every may reps. I do this a lot, so I can train myself to keep the best form in the upward motion and allow my body to train through that sticking point we all seem to have.
- Pull ups. I know that these can be really challenging for many people, but the art of mastering a pull up is by just doing them! May I suggest those who want to become an expert at chin ups and pull ups, try out the negative option. This will help your body become accustomed to lowering your body weight constantly and in no time, you will be able to do a number of reps. I would not bother with assisted bands of that machine which pushes your body upward. Just use the negative motion, and make sure you slowly lower your body. The slower you lower your body weight, the stronger you will become and the faster you will get to the unassisted variety.
I hope some of these tips can help you within the gym and spark some difference in your workouts. For further tips. tricks and general ranting, please feel free to join me via my website or join me on fb and insta social. Please feel free to upvote this answer if it has been useful in some way to you.
