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They are an outdated exercise popularized by old school bodybuilders like Arnold, and I have a couple friends who do well with these, but for the average person I wouldn’t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

What is the Best Way to Control High Blood Pressure Symptoms Naturally?

 

Click HERE to Discover How You Can Maintain & Stabilize Your Blood Pressure Naturally

Control High Blood Pressure Symptoms Naturally - This Fun Sport Lowers Blood Pressure Better Than Drugs

 

We know that to remain healthy we must exercise, but this doesn’t mean that we don’t find walking on a treadmill painfully boring.

 

But there’s some good news for those who want to escape the monotony of gym life – Danish researchers recently published a report in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine how this one “fun” sport delivers far better health benefits than all the time in the gym.

 

Lowering blood pressure, shedding pounds, dropping cholesterol, and increasing bone density are just a few of the many health benefits this sport holds – and the best thing is anyone can do it, no matter their age or shape.

 

Football, or if you live in the US, soccer, has massive health benefits, and unlike other types of exercise, people are more likely to stick to it because of its fun social factor.

 

Researchers measured participant’s blood pressure, body composition, fat, cholesterol, bone mineral density, and fitness levels at the beginning and end of the year.

 

They found that soccer players had these proven benefits over their non-playing cohorts:

 

A decrease in blood pressure of between five and seven mmHg versus no change for non-players.

 

Soccer players lost 2.5 kilograms of body fat, while inactive participants gained weight.

 

Fatty deposits and cholesterol dropped versus the inactive group, who experienced an increase in both.

 

Soccer player’s bone density increased compared to their inactive peers who suffered losses.

 

Sprint performance and endurance increased in the soccer group, but not in the inactive group.

 

Therefore, playing soccer can prevent heart attacks, strokes, type 2-diabetes, and more.

 

But soccer is actually not the best exercise to lower blood pressure. Control High Blood Pressure Symptoms Naturally - If you want to drop your blood pressure below 120/180 today, you need do these three easy exercises found here…

 

And to eliminate bad cholesterol for good, you need to cut out this one ingredient you probably didn’t even know you’re consuming…

 

Control High Blood Pressure Symptoms Naturally - One Juice Lowers Blood Pressure and Boosts Brian Health

 

When scientists from Northumbria University discovered a juice that lowers not only blood pressure but also increases brainpower, they created quite a stir.

 

But if this is not enough – this juice is also said to improve, or even cure, dementia.

 

Then they watched in amazement how the blood pressure of those drinking this specific juice dropped almost instantly, and the great thing is that this juice is so common and easy to get your hands on, unlike other exotic cures from further afield.

 

The good news is that Montmorency tart cherry juice is everywhere – you can even find it at Walmart and Amazon.

 

Researchers tested the hemoglobin concentrations in their subject’s brains at different intervals following consumption. They also tested their subject’s actual brain functions.

 

In the first three hours after the drink, the participants experienced a drop in systolic blood pressure of up to 6 mmHg, which is enough of a reason to get people off dangerous meds for good.

 

They also found a definite increase in the blood flow to their brain’s cerebral cortices, suggesting it might be a solution to dementia that results from an age-related decline in blood flow to the brain.

 

This cherry juice contains flavonoids like anthocyanin, quercetin, and catechin, which again shows that flavonoids have major health benefits that researchers are only now starting to understand.

 

Control High Blood Pressure Symptoms Naturally - But cherry juice alone is not enough – check out these 3 easy exercises to drop your blood pressure below 120/80 as soon as today…

 

Control High Blood Pressure Symptoms Naturally - Blood Pressure Lowered 5 Points with Surprising and Simple Exercise

 

If your blood pressure measure yields a reading of 120/80 or less, pat yourself on the back – your blood pressure is under control.

 

This is becoming increasingly rare, however.

 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates approximately 25% of Americans have hypertension, and a further 33% of them have pre-hypertension – and the numbers are on the increase!

 

One of the biggest challenges for medical professionals is to catch people with moderately high blood pressure before they develop hypertension.

 

A research team from Delhi in India conducted a study on the effects of yoga on people with pre-hypertension.

 

They recruited 60 participants in their 50s and divided them into two groups – one did moderate aerobics, didn’t smoke, and ate healthier food.

 

The other received the same lifestyle advice, but also added yoga into the mix.

 

The group that followed the lifestyle changes remained the same, but the yoga group experienced an average reduction of 4.9 mmHg, consistently, every day they practiced yoga.

 

If a 4.9-point overall drop looks insignificant, bear in mind that a mere two mmHg drop in diastolic pressure can reduce your risk of coronary heart disease by 6% and that of stroke by 15% – this is enough to keep pre-hypertensive people from needing to start medication.

 

For more ideas to control high blood pressure symptoms naturally, watch this video - Natural Ways to Lower Blood Pressure

 

Control High Blood Pressure Symptoms Naturally - BUT Yoga may not be enough – to really drop your blood pressure below 120/80 starting today without drugs, you need to follow these – even simpler exercises…

 

This post is from the High Blood Pressure Exercise Program. It was made by Christian Goodman Blue Heron health news that has been recognized as one of the top-quality national health information websites. 

 

This program will provide you the natural high blood pressure treatments, natural recipes to cook healthy meals and useful strategies to build a healthy diet with the aim to help you to maintain, stabilize and get your blood pressure down in minutes permanently and naturally.

 

To find out more about this program, click on Control High Blood Pressure Symptoms Naturally

 

How to Build Muscle for Women at Home?

 

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

For women to build muscle, it takes a lot of energy and resources.

 

The body is reluctant to make a dramatic change to its current state. You must feed it so it has no choice. Convince your body there’s an abundance of food and nutrition by eating all day, every day. A highly effective diet for putting on lean muscle mass is a whole food, plant-based diet.

 

The reason I decided to write the gender-specific “How to Build Muscle for Women” is that there are physiological differences that need to be considered.

 

Women tend to be at a disadvantage when it comes to fat loss and muscle building because the majority of the advice offered is based on research done on men.

 

Many of the same fundamentals apply across the board, but women have different hormonal composition and metabolism. This carries over into exercise response.

 

A common belief is that women can’t build as much muscle as men because they don’t have as much testosterone. This is true, but also a little misleading.

 

Recent studies show that protein synthesis and gene signalling that lead to muscle gains, which are the primary factors for building muscle, are nearly equal between young men and women.

 

The exception is older women who have a reduced muscle building response to resistance exercise.

 

They possess lower protein synthesis than men of the same age in response to training, which appears to be maintained even when they take supplemental protein.

 

More research needs to be done in regards to dosage, but It’s possible older women require a larger dose of protein or more of the amino acid leucine (which has been found to equalize protein synthesis in older and younger men).

 

Lift Heavy Weights Using Compound Exercises

 

According to strength expert Pavel Tsatsouline, a shorter number of repetitions with a heavier weight and using compound exercises (squats, deadlifts, bench press, etc.) is the optimal method for building size and strength.

 

He also speaks out against going failure. If you look at the strongest people on the planet, most of them do not train until failure. In his words, “Andy Bolton does not train to failure. Brad Gillingham does not train to failure. Konstantin Konstantinov does not train to failure. Case closed.”

 

Pavel is a former physical-training instructor for Spetnaz, the elite Soviet Special Forces, and is currently a consultant to the US Marine Corps, Secret Service, and Navy SEALs. He is a rare source I trust completely on the subject of strength training.

 

I have synthesized my own twenty years of applied knowledge in the gym and Pavel’s general methodology to get you started on a solid foundation.

 

Muscle and Strength Protocol:

 

·         First, test your one-rep-max (the heaviest weight you can lift one time) to gauge your strength at the beginning of this protocol. Be sure you warm up thoroughly beforehand and have someone spotting you.

·         Each exercise will consist of five sets.

·         Each set will consist of five repetitions.

·         The first sets are to warm up your body and get it used to progressively heavier weight until you reach your “working set” (the last set that is also the heaviest).

·         Determine your working set by finding the maximum amount of weight that you can do for seven or eight repetitions.

·         For each repetition, count three seconds up and three seconds down (or vice versa). This slower movement eliminates momentum, creates maximum stress on the muscle, and helps prevents injury.

·         Take three minutes between sets. During your “rest,” always keep moving. Either perform a different exercise that trains another part of your body or casually walk on a treadmill or ride a bike.

·         Test your one-rep-max again in five weeks to determine your progress with this protocol.

 

Generalized strength skills that fortify all displays of strength and will help your efforts in the gym:

 

·         Work on flexibility and posture with yoga or Pilates. This will make you stronger in the weight room.

·         Build your breath with breathing exercises.

·         Build your hand grip strength and strong abs.

·         Daily meditation is a form of mental training that will strengthen your ability to focus. The world’s top bodybuilders, powerlifters, and athletes know how important this is, and all of them are exceptional at focus.

 

Protocol that will build muscle and strength for women.

 

You will also want to alternate this with a different strength training protocol every five to six weeks to continually shock your body, since it will adapt, and progress will slow to a halt. To reiterate, make sure to use heavy weights—one of the most common reasons women don’t get results from training is that they use weights that are too light because they fear that they will bulk up like a man. This misunderstood myth has no scientific validity to it.

 

Get Enough Rest

 

Your workouts make up the primary way to build muscle, but rest and diet also contribute. Rest gives your body time to repair, get stronger, and build muscles. Experts generally recommend at least 72 hours between training the same muscle group again.

 

Get Enough Protein

 

This is a topic of vast debate. Some experts say we are getting too much protein, while others say we aren’t getting enough. Because new science has debunked the myth that high protein consumption is harmful to the kidneys, I lean on the side of having too much than not enough.

 

In healthy people, normal protein intake doesn’t create a health risk. Even a fairly high protein intake (up 1.2 g/lb) doesn’t impair kidney and renal function in people with healthy kidneys.  In particular, plant proteins appear to be especially safe.

 

For those who don’t train, the recommendation for healthy adults is 0.36 g per pound of body mass. For example, a 140 lb woman would need approximately 50.5 grams a day to prevent protein deficiency. This isn’t optimal for us vegetarian bodybuilders and athletes who train hard in the gym, however; for our tribe, we need to ramp things up to 1.0 g/lb of body mass.

So the 140 lb woman would need approximately 140 g of protein per day.

 

Think it’s too hard to get that much protein in your daily meal plan, drink 1-2 protein shakes to fill the gaps.

 

Important Note: If you are 100 lb and want to build up to 110 lb, you will want to consume as much protein as a 110 lb person to get there (e.g. 110 g of protein).

 

For more ideas on how to build muscle for women at home, watch these 2 videos –

 

HOW I BUILD MUSCLE AND LOSE FAT

 

How To Build Muscle For Women (5 MYTHS FEMALES MUST KNOW!)

 

If you’re not into lifting weights, here’s a bodyweight exercise protocol that we feature in our bodybuilding system that many bikini competitors use for building lean muscle.

 

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 – Build Muscle for Women at Home