# You wondering, "what exercises should i do?"



## mickems (Sep 30, 2015)

At the gym I belong to, it seems a lot of people do cable weights/ machines. They jump around doing a lot of the machines but seem too intent on avoiding the free weights. Of course the result is, they have been training for years and look like poop. Some I have personally talked to, are actually jewsing and have nothing to show for it. So a guy asked me (of all people, I know, I know. lol.) my opinion of what were the best exercises for him to get the most strength and muscle activation from, in order to burn fat and gain muscle. So I figured I would put this list of my favorite "most effective" and "multiple muscle activating" exercises out there for anyone who is in the gym doing endless cable curls or sissy squats and look like Napoleon Dynamite. Feel free to add to the list if you got some of your own favorites.


---keep in mind, these main exercises work a lot of other muscles at the same time, that's why I like them.


back----Deadlifts, bent over rows, and pull ups/chin ups

chest----Flat or incline bench press (incline seems to be more forgiving on my shoulders)

legs-----barbell squats / front squats

triceps----close grip barbell bench press/ tricep (ez curl) extensions ( think skull crushers)

shoulders-----military press, overhead press, and the push press ( which is great because dip activation comes from the drive of your heels and quads, not your shoulders)


biceps----barbell curls and ez curl bar curls (for those with wrist position problems)

Hope this can help someone new, looking for some good exercises.

If you're body "doesn't allow" you to do any of these exercises, try the peanut butter sock exercise.


----------



## Tren4Life (Sep 30, 2015)

You fukked up. 

Bench should be at the top of the list. Hahahaha 

You covered them all for me


----------



## Luscious Lei (Sep 30, 2015)

Dips, weighted or not, hit the triceps much harder than skull crushers IMO.


----------



## trodizzle (Sep 30, 2015)

Luscious Lei said:


> *Dips*, weighted or not, hit the triceps much harder than skull crushers IMO.



Sing it with me!


----------



## Iron1 (Sep 30, 2015)

imo, a lot of the reason people in the gym fail to achieve the change they desire is more related to how they eat and their lack of understanding of what progression means than the movements they're doing.


----------



## zROgravity (Sep 30, 2015)

what iron said, i agree with the compound workouts(covered all bases there!) but workouts are worthless without proper nutrition.


----------



## mickems (Sep 30, 2015)

Luscious Lei said:


> Dips, weighted or not, hit the triceps much harder than skull crushers IMO.



yes, you're right Lei. I don't know how I forgot the dips. thanks.


----------



## MrRippedZilla (Oct 1, 2015)

Iron nailed it.

Most people fail in the gym because a) they are not consistent with any routine and do a bunch of random movements every week out of sheer boredom and b) they are clueless about nutrition.

For beginners the best movements are the ones that:
- They enjoy
- Can do consistently
- Can do safely
- Can feel the targeted muscle working
- Can progressively overload

Beyond that, there is no "best" exercises - follow those rules and put them on a solid training routine with a dialled in diet then watch the magic happen


----------



## Beefcake (Oct 1, 2015)

I think a mix of both cables and free weights works best.  I can't get everything with free weights or cables alone.  I like tricept pushdowns with the rope, bicept curls with the rope, cable seated close grip rows and cable bar pulldowns, upright rows, along with various free weights?  I love those isolated movements that really focus on a single muscle.  For example for bicepts I would do the rope, then seated free weight curl bar, then single cable curls one arm at a time, then dumbell curls, then finish with standing cable curls one arm at a time.  (I love doing bicepts)


----------



## widehips71 (Oct 2, 2015)

IMO a person can build a powerful body and physique with a few basic movements

1) Dips
2) Pull-ups
3) Squats
4) Deadlifts

You're hitting everything with this and I challenge anybody who has minimal time to spend in the gym everyday to form their foundation around these.  You will get strong and you will put on thickness that no iso movements will build.


----------



## Greenebean (Oct 3, 2015)

Gotta go back to the big 3. Squat, bench, dead lift. Hard to beat the basics


----------

