I see a new exercise for the weight room all of the time! But if you’re a beginner, don’t become confused with some of the more advanced exercises. You can work your way up to those, but everyone starts off somewhere in strength training. I was thinking one day of what the most important yet basic exercises are. So, I came up with 5 exercises that can start you off in the weight room to start building some strength.
5 of the best strength training exercises:
1. Squats – Probably the most basic exercise out there that everyone knows, including their grandmother, it’s number 1 when it comes strength training. Let’s see, the squat works pretty much every muscle…your legs, abs, lower back, upper back, arms. They build muscle, especially when using heavy weights and they build leg strength through a full range of motion. Also, one of my favorites, squats strengthen your knees. Since I blew out my knee years back, squats continue to keep my knee healthy but when done with proper technique.
Variations: Back, Front, Sumo, Split, Bulgarian…
2. Deadlifts – The absolute king when it comes to lower back strength, but it also works the whole back, legs, arms and traps. This exercise could cause some serious back injuries if not executed properly. When done with proper technique though, it builds back strength because you must must MUST keep your back straight and solid while pulling on a heavy load. It also builds legs strength as you push your hips forward, firing your glutes and hamstrings.
Variations: Sumo, Snatch Grip, Single Leg, Straight Leg
3. Press – You find less and less people doing this exercise in the gym. It got replaced with the Bench Press, even though an overhead press is better. (The Bench Press is a variation of the Press) This exercise works your entire upper body. You use your shoulders, upper chest and triceps to press the weight above your head. Then requires a lot of stabilization, from your abs and back, as you hold the weight there. By changing the exercise to a Push Press, you add both power and strength to the exercise.
Variations: Push Press, Military, Jerk, DB or BB
4. Cleans – Cleans develop power and all sports need power – the ability to accelerate and to explode. More power and more speed means more strength. A Clean will recruit more muscles than any other gym exericse. Since there are movements involved at the ankle, knee, hip, shoulder, elbow, and wrist joints, you will be using your calves, quads, hamstrings, glutes, spinal erectors, traps, deltoids, and forearms, as well as your abdominals to stabilize the spine during the movement.
Variations: Power, Hang, Snatch, Single-Arm DB
5. Glute-Ham Raise - Never pull a hamstring with this exercise! (This exercise is also no walk in the park.) It isn’t a very complicated exercise but it can be a brutal one. I would consider this one of the best movements for the posterior chain (lower back, glutes, hamstrings, calves.) It trains the knee flexor component of our hamstrings. (A reverse glute-ham raise trains the hip component of our hamstrings.) There is a high correlation between Glute-Ham Raise performance and improvements in Squats and Deadlifts.
Variations: Rev. Glute-Hams, w/ a Swiss Ball,
These 5 are fantastic strength training exercises, both beginners and advanced use them… and hopefully one you’ll add them your programming.
Stay strong
(orignal image by Luis Albuquerque)
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
How do you do the glute-ham raise? Im looking to incorporate that into my strength program.
I must have missed your comment Ottie, the best way is to start would be with a partner holding your feet down, but once you start incorporating a 25lb plate or 35lbs that can be difficult for your partner…and also you would need someone there with you which may not be an option either. If there is a glute-ham or back extension benches, hook your feet in and focus on the eccentric part of the movment (slowwww down).
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