What would you choose if you were limited, for the rest of your life, to one lifting exercise?
If you say barbell curls, I’m going to reach through the computer and smack you!
By now you know I live and breath The Big 7 as the core of any lifting program.
But which single one is the best?
Today’s article is SURE to cause a lot of debate and disagreement!
“What is the best lifting exercise?” is a really hard question, and of course it’s a silly question too. Nobody is every confined to a single exercise. But it’s a fun point of debate, and an instructional one. Because it forces you to consider what gives you the best results for the time and effort involved. Right away, that clearly eliminates any isolation-type movement from the list.
For years I’ve avoided taking a stand. Until now.
I’m sure to get a lot of people disagreeing with me – that’s ok, I can take it.
The single best, most important, most impactful lift is … (more…)
Join the forum discussion on this article, or comment below.
- You can keep lifting weights after 60, into your 70s, and beyond
I recently took my family to visit my parents and got to workout with my dad at his gym (Gold’s Gym – wow, their membership fees are really low!). While coaching him, I was reminded of many tips that I bet you’ll find valuable. (Dad, you don’t mind do you???) Let’s get right into the list of 12 Tips and Observations:
- After Your Warm-ups, Every Set Is A Working Set. Don’t stop at the end of set #2 with “gas still in your tank” so that you’ll have more energy for set 3. Go all out for set #2. And then, go all out again for set #3.
- Old Guys Can Still Lift Heavy – My dad is almost 70 and of course he can’t lift what I can lift. But there’s no reason to go easy on yourself. Even if you are “an old guy” you still need to lift heavy – that means heavy FOR YOU. For me, lifting heavy might mean X pounds. For you, lifting heavy might mean Y pounds.
- Cable Machines Are Not “Machines”. I discourage use of machines. My dad uses a lot of these newer cable machines from a company called FreeMotion. They really are excellent. I even used them for deadlifts (there wasn’t enough weight on the stack for doubles but it was still surprisingly effective). But most fixed-path machines still suck.
- Intensity Trumps Volume. I had to remind my dad, and I’m guessing you can use the reminder too, that it’s better to do 4 exercises really intensely than it is to do 6 exercises without going all out. 30 minutes of intense lifting is better than 50 minutes of moderate intensity. Of course, you do need to be safe and you can get “too intense”. But I’d bet you are currently really far away from being too intense. (more…)
Continue reading about Lifting Lessons With My Dad – 12 Tips
Admitting Defeat
You know, I recently wrote an article over at The Goal Triangle about how you have to fail in order to succeed. Well, here’s a case in point: the new email format. I tried to make things easier for you and for myself, and improve the look of the emails you get, but I “failed”. It was harder for me to manage, and the html codes ended up triggering more spam filters (meaning many of you never got some really good articles – check your spam folders over the past few weeks to make sure). So, I’m back to the old format.
Poll Results
You may have noticed the poll taking place on the right side of worldfitnessnetwork. The previous poll asked what your top fitness goals were. After hundreds of votes, the top 2 were: #1: build muscle and #2 shed fat. Probably not surprising given the content I write about! Be sure to take the current poll (which will be changed to a new poll in February).
The Fight For Your Fitness Wallet
If you are signed up for other fitness sites, you may have noticed a huge increase in sales hype and email volume.
I’m here to give you the straight story about why they are doing this, and how you should respond.
Since most of those guys are sending me information about how I should promote their products, I see their strategy. Here’s what’s going on… (more…)
The key to any beginner routine is to build a base of strength and to learn good training technique.
To maximize your results, I highly recommend that you pick up one or all of the Official WorldFitnessNetwork lifting programs. They go into great detail about routines for full-body results, strength (more…)
Continue reading about WFN Beginner to Intermediate Training Program
Last week we shared the first 9 of these tips for beginners. Check them out here: Top Tips For Beginning Weight Lifting. This week we finish up with another 10 must-know items before beginning your weight training regimen.
10. Intensity Is Underrated
Whatever your routine is, do it hard. (more…)
Continue reading about The 19 Weight Training Must-Dos For Beginners – Part 2 of 2
Tired of your current physique? Looking to build some muscle? Burn fat? Gain Strength?
Done properly, weight lifting is the best exercise for all three goals. Wanna lose fat while you sleep? The more muscle you have the more calories your body burns at rest. Wanna look good in a (more…)
Continue reading about The 19 Weight Training Must-Dos For Beginners – Part 1 of 2
[Before we get into this very short piece, I'm making the replay of last week's free training teleseminar available for the next 3 days only. So if you want to listen to it, go to http://www.worldfitnessnetwork.com/more/maycallreplay.html right now.]
Who Are You Calling A Beginner?
Are you a beginner? Or an advanced lifter? Or an intermediate?
How do you know?
Let’s take a moment and define these stages as far as I’m concerned. It’s important for several upcoming articles I’ll be sharing on Programs and lifting practices. So I (more…)
Continue reading about The Greatest Quad Builder… That Almost No One Wants To Do
