A. I was recently interviewed for an article to be published in a newsletter. I was asked the question, which three exercises do you have your clients do most often? I didn't hesitate when giving my answer... You can work every muscle in the body with three exercises! Everyone of my clients have done just about every variation of the push up, pull up and squat. These three exercises have many variations which can not only allow any fitness level to begin and progress but can also target specific muscles of the body.
PUSH UP
One of my favorites! This exercise works the chest, shoulders and triceps. By placing your hands in different positions, you can recruit more chest, triceps or shoulders. A narrow hand position will focus more on the inner chest area, shoulders and triceps. Wider hand positions will focus on more of the overall chest. You can keep your elbows pointing back to really hit your triceps or let the elbows flare out to the side of the body to put more stress on the chest. There are many variations of a push up as well, such as putting your feet on a chair or bench, staggered hand position (where you place one hand by your head and the other by your ribs), one handed push ups etc. Each variation will not only target specific muscle groups but will allow you to progress by making the variation becomes more challenging!
Can't do a push up? You can do a modified push up off your knees, table or even off the wall. Try the various different types of push ups for a multiple set workout.
For a cardiovascular element you can do plyometric push ups (clapping push ups) where you push off the ground and clap your hands at the top portion of the push up or push up forcefully and push yourself into the air having your hands leave the floor. This will get your heart rate up and burn more calories.
CHIN UP/PULL UP
This a great exercise for working the back, rear shoulder and biceps. Just as with the push up, by varying your hand position you can focus more on each specific muscle. By using a reverse grip (palms facing you), you can target the biceps more effectively. Try using a wide grip, shoulder width grip, thumb width grip and of course the reverse grip pull up for a well rounded workout. A narrow grip will target the inner back while a wider grip hits the outer back.
Can't do a pull up? Many fitness centers have a chin up - dip machine which allows for an assisted pull up. You can also do a modified version by using a smith machine and laying under the bar and pulling your chest to the bar (as many of you have done with our workouts!). You can increase the intensity of the exercise by adjusting the height of the bar. Another modification is to stand on a chair and jump up at the bottom of the pull up
SQUAT
I bet you thought I was going to say LUNGES!!!! You can also do a lunge (another favorite of mine) which has many variations and works the whole lower body. But, the squat is very effective for working the butt, thighs, hamstrings, calves and even the core! Try varying the width of your foot placement. The wider the stance such as a plie squat will target the glutes and inner thigh. The more narrow the stance you will target outer thigh and butt. There are many variations of a squat such as a barbell squat, kettlebell squat, plie squat, TRX squat, prison squat, goblet squat, split squat... I sound like Forest Gump.... bubble gum shrimp, shrimp scampi... lol
For a cardio element try a jump squat or hop at the top portion of the squat. This will burn more calories and also get your heart rate up! For more of a core and calve involvement, you can squat up onto your toes.
Now throw in a couple sets of bicycle crunches of jack knives for 15-25 reps at the end and you have a complete workout!