Mar 12
30
Top Five Full-Body Exercises in the Beaverton Gym
Beavertongym attendees are already dedicated to their fitness goals. Of course, there are different ways in which they go about it. The most classic workout pattern is the split, in which one or two muscle groups are targeted in one workout, and another in the next. The most common breakdown is biceps and back; triceps, chest, and shoulders; and lower body. There is another strategy which has been gaining more acceptance recently, in which the whole body is targeted in every workout.
Muscle groups require a day of rest following exercise in order to recover without overtraining or injury, as well as for optimal growth. When doing a split, you can work out every day, because one muscle group will be resting while you work another. Whole body workouts, in contrast, require a day of rest between each workout. This can take some getting used to for those who have been doing splits, as there’s a tendency to feel lazy hitting the Beaverton gym only every other day.
Full body workouts are based around compound exercises, those which work large muscles groups in combination. These are pushing, pulling, and lower body. The shoulders are worked secondarily in many of these exercises, but will soon look out of proportion if they are not worked directly, so shoulder exercises should be included in each workout.
Pushing exercises include the bench press on a flat, incline, or decline bench, dips, and pushups. Pulling exercises include the lat pulldown, pull-ups and chin-ups, and rows. For the lower body, squat variations, deadlifts, and lunges are used. Shoulders are targeted with presses, upright rows, lateral lifts, and rear flyes. One exercise from each of these groups should be included in every workout at yourBeavertongym – rotate or alternate among them to keep your muscles guessing. The plank should always be included in a full body exercise program as it works just about every muscle and is unsurpassed for developing core strength.
Using free weights (barbells or dumbbells) leads to involvement of the whole body as the core is called upon to stabilize balance and isometric tension in, for example, the arms while holding a barbell for squats uses those muscles as well.
Other exercises can be included. One example is the medicine ball diagonal reach, in which a medicine ball (or dumbbell) is moved from the floor at one side to overhead at the opposite shoulder. Cross body bicycle sit ups (elbow to opposite knee) is another.
Another aspect of full body workouts that may be appealing is that they tend to take less time to achieve similar results. Performing just 8 to 12 repetitions of each exercise, the entire routine can be completed in a half-hour or less. This a real benefit for those who may find themselves with less time to devote to exercise.
Beavertongym enthusiasts know that mixing up workouts is critical for continued stimulation of the metabolism and muscular growth. If you’ve been depending on splits, consider switching to a schedule of full body workouts for a month or so. You might find that you experience a new burst of growth.
