The average gym user should be doing

Having spent the last 2-3 years training more like an athlete than a bodybuilder I can honestly say that most people in gyms who currently train like bodybuilders ( even though most of them are not ) could get even more out of their training and physiques if they trained a bit more like an athlete .

I spent years training to be a competitive natural bodybuilder and achieved good results from using simple basic training but I also made mistakes that I see a lot of people doing today.

The following are some things that I believe that the average gym goer could benefit from and add to their training.

Proper warming up

Most people’s idea of a warm up is to jump on a bike for 5 minutes and then hit the heavy squats. Whilst this is better than nothing it is less than ideal , A good warmup will include some light cardio, mobility work and some dynamic flexibility work that will prepare the muscles you are about to work. This need only take 10 minutes but the benefits are worth it. When the body is tight, technique and lifting ability can be hampered . The other benefit from this is that of reducing the chance of future injury , I learned this the hard way , I did very little if any stretching for the first 10 years of my training and at the time had few problems but years down the line I have encountered problems which I believe could have been avoided had I stretched more and warmed up properly. At then end of the day we all want to be able to push ourselves and train hard but I want to train hard for years and years not just for a short time . 10 minutes might seem like an inconvenience but if you improve technique , lift more weight and decrease the chance of injury is it not worth it ??? Oh and if you can purchase a foam roller do it as your body will thank you for it !!!

Performing Explosive Exercises

The majority of gym goers will perform exercises at the same tempo and speed and very often the same amount of sets and reps. Including some explosive exercises into your current routine can have a very positive effect on your training and physique. Exercises such as weighted squat jumps , broad jumps , box jumps , plyometric press ups , Olympic lifts , med ball throws and even the good old bench press , Deadlift and squat performed in an explosive manner can all provide new stimulus to your training and very often help people smash through any strength plateaus they may have encountered. As a side note training in this way is also fun and adds variety to people’s routines. Simply adding one exercise for your upper body and one for your lower body can provide excellent results.

Training your core for strength and performance rather than just looks

The majority of people I see training their core will usually bang out a few sets of crunches or a few hundred reps on the good old ab cradle ( said with a sarcastic tone) and then its job done . Now I have heard people say that you don’t need to train your core if you do heavy squats and deadlifts and there is some element of truth in that but how many people do you see in the gym who perform heavy squats and deadlifts ???….im currently thinking about that very question and I am only counting on one hand ( my gym has 7000 members ) . Even powerlifters perform additional core work and they squat and Deadlift ridiculous weights so something tells me core work is more important than most people think. So instead of thinking about performing endless sets of crunches , add in sets of more useful exercises such as hanging leg raises , palloff press , off set farmers walks , suitcase deadlifts , roll outs , plank variations , Turkish get ups etc…….if these exercises mean nothing to you then its time to look them up ( possible future article J ) . oh and if you use machines to train your core then you are even worse than the ab cradle worshippers and you deserve to burn in hell ….( insert evil laugh here )

Bench Press Technique

If I had a pound for every time someone has told me that they hurt their shoulder doing flat barbell press I would be as rich as those two grossly untrained lottery winners from Scotland . Lets face it it’s the one exercise that the alpha male in you says I want to see how strong I am. Having been to the USA a good number of times the most common thing the locals would shout to me was “hey dude how much do you bench “ . Joking aside the bench press is one of the best exercises for upper body strength and it is also one of the riskiest as the majority of people perform it with incorrect technique and put themselves at greater risk of injury . The bodybulding technique of elbows out and brining the bar down fairly high on the chest can cause a lot of problems especially when the lifter starts moving heavy weights. This is not to mention the amount of people who bounce the bar off their chests or those who get their training partner to perform bent over rows whilst spotting them as they go beyond failure. The powerlifting technique of benching is alot safer and once learned you can lift more weight whilst protecting your shoulders . Without going into too much detail the lifter will pinch their shoulder blades together and keep them pinched for the entire repetition , they will have a nice arch in their backs so you could slide a piece of paper in the space between your butt and your back. Finally you will tuck your elbows rather than flare them so they stay closer to the sides of your body – the bar path should come down lower on your chest and the weight is taken more on the triceps and lats compared to than the shoulders and chest which happens in the usual bodybuilding method.

Having a plan / programme – and stick to it !

I don’t care if your trying to be the next Arnold or you just want to be able to increase your strength in certain exercises – either way you have more chance of getting there if you have a plan layed out . A good programme will have progression and allocated rest periods so the person can train hard , make gains and not burn out . Powerlifters generally train in 4 week blocks where for the first 3 weeks they increase their weights lifted and then in the 4th week they deload and back off . This process ensures that the lifter can keep getting stronger without burning their central nervous system out. One of the most common mistakes I see with alot of people is adding loads of exercises to a programme , for beginners especially this only ends up watering down the effectiveness and intensity of their workouts . Variety is good but it is over rated – If you concentrated on getting stronger in the bench press , squat , deadlift , pull-up , military press and dips you would make fantastic gains – in fact if you perform these exercises and nothing else I would say that’s a better programme than 90% of people who train in a gym . Another common error is to programme hop , one minute its high volume the next week its high intensity and then a week later its dogg crapp . You need to follow a programme for 4-8 weeks in order to get the benefit out of it . All the above programmes are great but they only work if you follow them for a good amount of time and follow the principles of the programme .