The exercises that you incorporate in your personal strength program have purpose: burning fat, building muscle, building strength and improving fitness levels. There are circumstances in which some exercises should be used but based on the goals that you have, some of the movements are going to have a higher efficiency.
Lifters want to be sure that their strength is as high as possible and they do this by working on their core and using exercises you do not see as being really common in bodybuilding or other workout types. While some people do prefer some exercises, nobody can deny the importance and the effectiveness of the ones highlighted below.
Goblet Squats
Goblet squats are basically progressions of bodyweight squats and are perfect for those that struggle with the bar squats. Your core would work at a double rate and the legs do work a lot in controlling movement. All you really have to do is take a dumbbell, hold it with your 2 hands at chest level, put your feet at shoulder width and that start by pushing the butt back, as sitting in a chair, descending till elbows reach your knees’ inside. The heels have to be kept flat and you have to pause at the squat’s bottom. Only then return to the standing position.
Pallof Presses
This is definitely a confusing movement at first glance but it is so beneficial for your overall strength. Not much weight is used and the focus is put on resisting movement, rotation. Start by standing perpendicularly to the cable column. Grab handle with both of the hands and then pull that to your chest. Always maintain cable tension. Put the feet at shoulder width distance. Your chest has to be held high and then you have to squeeze through your stomach, pressing handle away from your body while you resist rotation and twists. Always make sure that you resist rotational force.
Dumbbell Rows
In order to be properly balanced, you have to be sure that your back muscles are properly balanced. This improves posture, balances the entire body and helps avoid injury. Dumbbell rows work wonders in building a stronger core and stronger arms. Main muscles that are going to be worked include lats, rhomboids and traps.
Start with a dumbbell that is not too heavy so that you master the movement. Put the right hand holding the dumbbell down, together with the right foot. The left hand is used to keep balance on the bench. Retract shoulders, brace abs and pull the dumbbell towards your body’s side until your elbow will pass the body. Lower while controlling the weight. Do not just drop it.
Push-Ups
It is a shame to notice that push-ups are neglected since they seem so basic. The truth is that this is one of the best of all the strength exercises that you can do. We are faced with a functional movement that is highly effective in training your upper body pushing muscles. The core is also engaged since the nature of the movement, bringing in much more movement than the common bench press. We will not mention how to perform pull-ups but we have to highlight that there are dozens of interesting push-up variations that you can use. Consider them and you will be quite surprised of the results.