6 Bodybuilding Exercises to Avoid

 

Click HERE to Find Out How You Can Build Muscle & Lose Fat By Eating Plants

No pain no gain? It’s important to make a distinction between pain that creates a positive effect and injurious pain.

 

You may want to avoid certain bodybuilding exercises simply because they don’t produce a positive effect.

 

First, I know there are bodybuilders and fitness experts who swear by some of these muscle building exercises listed below. Truthfully, I think magazines run out of material to write about and have to create new workout routines/exercises to maintain readership.

 

Different things work for different people, so please don’t get offended if you feel like I’m slamming part of your bodybuilding routine.

 

1) Behind-the-Neck Pulldown or Behind-the-Neck Barbell Shoulder Press

 

Unless you have exceptional shoulder flexibility that allows for full range of motion, behind-the-neck exercises are very unnatural positions to be in and compromise our safety and known for creating injury. They also put a ton of strain on the neck as well.

 

They are an outdated exercise popularized by old school bodybuilders like Arnold, and I have a couple friends who do well with these, but for the average person I wouldn’t recommend it. Personally, I like to do them occasional using really light weights just to stretch out, but I never use heavy weights for behind-the-neck exercises.

 

2) Ab Machines

 

My biggest issue with ab machines is that they reduce activation of the lower back, which is meant to flex along with the abs. This will increase the risk of injury.

 

Here are some good alternatives for building nice abs:

 

·         Heavy squats and deadlifts. Both of these exercises are incredibly effective ways to train your entire core, and will do a lot for your ab development.

 

·         Weighted Cable Crunch. I believe weighted ab training is very important because most of us, even when we’re lean, don’t have defined, rippling abs that really pop. Weighted training is the most effective way to fix this, and the weighted cable crunch is, hands down, my favorite weighted ab exercise.

 

·         Captain’s Chair Leg Raise. This is one of my favorite core exercises. It works the abs and obliques, and you can even add weight by snatching a dumbbell in between your feet.

 

3) Smith Machine

 

Some simple googling will render a few studies that scientifically suggest this machine kinda sucks. It completely removes the stabilizer muscles from lifts and forces an unnatural range of motion. The result is sub-par gains in both size and strength, which becomes obvious if you try to switch to free weights.

 

So do yourself a huge favor and use primarily free weights while training, and rarely supplement with Smith Machine exercises.

 

Watch this video – GYM FAIL! Weirdest exercise ever!!

 

4) Pec Deck Fly Machine

 

Let me first jump out in front of this one and say that I enjoy using this exercise for a pump, and it’s nice for mindful strength training routine, but it doesn’t allow for enough weight to properly overload your pecs to build any serious strength or muscle mass. It also increases the risk of hyper-extending your shoulders as you lower the weight backward.

 

My best advice in building a strong chest is performing at least 5-8 heavy presses, especially incline presses.

 

5) BOSU Ball Training

 

This must be one of the most popular exercises instructed by trainers I’ve ever observed; usually directed towards women. Just an honest observation. It’s unclear how or why this trend started, but the reality is that you won’t see a whole lot of experienced bodybuilders actually utilizing these.

 

It has been said BOSU ball training is supposed to recruit more muscle involvement, but I did a little research and couldn’t find anything substantial backing this claim up. Here is a buffet of BOSU ball exercises to try if you’re still interested.

 

6) Partial Squat

 

This will flat out ruin your knees, and when you’re 50-60 you’ll be feeling it. Now, there are some advanced warriors who really know there stuff and can utilize this build crazy amount of strength without question. However, this isn’t for the average person, no should it be a staple in your routine.

 

Squats done with good form (go deep or go home) will strengthen your knees instead of damage them, and are often used to rehabilitate injuries.

 

These are bodybuilding exercises to avoid in general. To be fair I have seen some experienced pros train with some of them in a seemingly effective manner. If you’re going to do so, train cautiously and discover what works best for you.

 

For topics related to bodybuilding exercises, watch this video - 10 Muscle Building Mistakes (KILLING GAINS!)

 

Author Bio:

 

Chris Willitts (creator of V3), is the founder and owner of Vegetarian Bodybuilding.

 

V3 Vegetarian Bodybuilding System is a mixture of science and author’s advice, providing users with optimal diet and exercise. This system is designed for vegans and vegetarians only.

 

A lot of research has been put in this program. Furthermore, a lot of professional bodybuilders and athletes tried and tested the program, praising its progressiveness and efficiency.

 

The program is about taking control of your own body and health according to your potential and needs. And worry not; you’ll get plenty of proteins with this system. It will boost you with energy, and you’ll feel just a strong as any carnivore would (perhaps even stronger, depending on how much you invest in your exercise). It avoids vitamins deficiency and provides you with a lot of proteins, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. 

 

Instead of saying things like “I think a plant-based diet is good for athletes and bodybuilders,” the V3 Vegetarian Bodybuilding System claims “I know a plant-based diet is good for athletes and bodybuilders, and I have results to prove it.”

 

To find out more, visit the website at V3 Bodybuilding – Bodybuilding Exercises at Home

 

How to Gain Muscle Fast at Home……. Exercise Less

 

Click HERE to Find Out How You Can Build Muscle & Lose Fat By Eating Plants

I’ve recently come across the most controversial and innovative method of gaining muscle fast that I’ve seen to date. It goes against almost everything I’ve been taught my entire life about strength training.

 

To be clear, it demonstrates that rapid increases in both strength and muscular mass could be produced without the use of “growth” drugs or supplements, and no “new-and-improved” diet plan.

 

The method I’m referring to was discovered by Arthur Jones, called the Colorado Experiment. It’s important to note that the experiment was conducted in Fort Collins, Colorado, under the supervision of Dr. Elliot Plese in the Colorado State University’s Department of Physical Education Laboratory.

 

Incredibly, the participants mentioned in the Colorado Experiment produced large scale increases in muscular mass while simultaneously reducing fatty tissue.

Yeah, what the…??? What?!

 

The formula:

 

·         normal health (prerequisite)

·         high-intensity exercise

·         no warm up sets

·         no rest between sets

·         high-repetition sets (20-10)

·         execute only one set per exercise, and go until failure

·         brief workout sessions

·         reasonably balanced diet

 

Tim Ferriss, author of the “The 4-Hour Body” and king of unconventional tactics, modifies this method in the following ways to gain 34 pounds in 28 days:

 

·         lower frequency (maximum of twice per week)

·         three minutes between exercises

·         performing every repetition slowly, counting five seconds up and five seconds down, to eliminate momentum and ensure constant load

·         focusing on no more than 4-7 multi-joint exercises (leg press, trap bar deadlift, overhead press, Yates bent row, dips, incline machine benchpress, etc.)

·         exercising your entire body each workout to elicit a maximal hormonal (testosterone, growth hormone + IGF-1) response

·         eating large quantities of protein with low-glycemic index carbohydrates like quinoa

·         dropping calories by 50% one day per week to prevent protein uptake down-regulation

·         exercising less frequently as you increase strength and size, as your recovery abilities can only increase 20-30%, while you can often increase fat-free muscle tissue up to 100% before reaching a genetic set-point

 

Sometimes to gain muscle, you need to exercise less.

 

Have you ever wondered why for the past three to six months the countless hours you put into the gym are yielding hardly any gains? It’s common to label that as a “plateau,” but that concept is a huge misconception deserving its own article.

 

Chances are, you’re overtraining. This statement is contrary to the “how to breakthrough a plateau” workout routines cited in bodybuilding and fitness magazines. Those sources generally encourage you to train even longer, and power your way through to see gains again. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t work hard in the gym, but the frequency of training is where the solution lies.

 

There’s a “sweetspot” of frequency and intensity of training that stimulates muscle growth and strength. However, the ability to recover from a workout session is inherently part of that process.

 

Great strength is a result of two factors:

 

1.      individual genetic potential (fixed)

2.      intense training, without overtraining (adjustable)

 

However, the prerequisite is balanced health.

 

An unbalanced, unhealthy person simply cannot reach the limits of their potential strength. It’s possible to improve a sick individual with various chemicals. However, when you try to turn a healthy person into a superhuman with anabolic steroids, there’s always a price to pay somewhere along the line simply because it creates a chemical imbalance in the body.

 

Scientifically speaking, there is no such thing as a “super chemical balance.” If your chemical balance is normal, you are in a state of complete health, and if not, you are in a state of sickness to some degree.

 

As Arthur states:

 

“Yet the widespread bias in favor of such so called ‘growth drugs’ borders on hysteria. Even suggesting that the use of these drugs is anything less than necessary automatically labels you a fool in some circles. And there is certainly no doubt that a lot of people are being fooled on this subject; but you can NOT fool your endocrine system, and when you add an unrequired chemical for the purpose of disturbing a normal balance, you are NOT improving the situation.

 

“Pointing to recent strength records as proof of the value of such drugs actually proves nothing. The fact remains that the single strongest human recorded in history established his records ling before the drugs were ever used. Paul Anderson established records prior to 1958 that have never been approached and androgenic-anabolic drugs were apparently first used in athletic circles in 1960.

 

“Bob Peoples established a deadlift record thirty years ago, lifting nearly 800 pounds at a bodyweight of approximately 180; today, a very few individuals have reached or passed that level of performance…but most of them weigh nearly twice as much as he did, and some of them weigh more than twice as much.”

 

For more ideas to gain muscle fast at home, watch this video - BUILD REAL MUSCLE AT HOME (NO GYM NEEDED)

 

The Chris Experiment

 

After reading the Colorado Experiment and Tim Ferriss’s “From Geek to Freak: How I Gained 34 lbs. of Muscle in 4 Weeks,” I’ve been inspired to use some of their tactics and create a bodybuilding experiment of my own (with some adaptations).

 

Author Bio:

 

Chris Willitts (creator of V3), is the founder and owner of Vegetarian Bodybuilding.

 

V3 Vegetarian Bodybuilding System is a mixture of science and author’s advice, providing users with optimal diet and exercise. This system is designed for vegans and vegetarians only.

 

A lot of research has been put in this program. Furthermore, a lot of professional bodybuilders and athletes tried and tested the program, praising its progressiveness and efficiency.

 

The program is about taking control of your own body and health according to your potential and needs. And worry not; you’ll get plenty of proteins with this system. It will boost you with energy, and you’ll feel just a strong as any carnivore would (perhaps even stronger, depending on how much you invest in your exercise). It avoids vitamins deficiency and provides you with a lot of proteins, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. 

 

Instead of saying things like “I think a plant-based diet is good for athletes and bodybuilders,” the V3 Vegetarian Bodybuilding System claims “I know a plant-based diet is good for athletes and bodybuilders, and I have results to prove it.”

 

To find out more, visit the website at V3 Bodybuilding – Gain Muscle Fast at Home