I do want to get a discussion going, and it has to start somewhere.
So let's start by talking about our favorite exercises...
My favorite exercise has actually changed in the last several weeks. Who knows - it may change again soon. But for the time being, pull-ups are my go to exercise.
I never used to like pull-ups. They're not very glamorous, especially because they're so hard. It wasn't that long ago that I could only muster a couple repetitions before giving up. That's not really the makings of sticking with something.
But pull-ups are a fantastic way of working a ton of muscles. Aside from their value of being very challenging, they work every pulling muscle in the upper body. Most people neglect to ever think about the muscles in their back. Sure, they notice that they have lower back pain, but even then they don't think much about how the muscles you can't see in the mirror play a role in your posture.
Women always want to work their shoulders and triceps because they want to tone those areas, even though that's called spot reduction and it's impossible (but that's a discussion for another time). Men always want to work their chest and biceps because those are the muscles you see when you look at yourself in the mirror. Yet there are these big, really important muscles all around your upper back that no one ever seems to train.
Most people have very poor posture, and the number one postural defect is rolled in shoulders. Pull-ups, and other variations on pulling exercises, help strengthen the muscles that will counteract that "hunched over" look. And most people fail to think about the fact that one of the quickest ways to look slimmer and more muscular is to have good posture.
Now that I've invested the time to do them, I'm beginning to get hooked on the pull-up. I've improved greatly in the last several weeks, and now that I can do them well, I feel a great sense of accomplishment, which is what a good exercise will do - it will make you feel good about being able to do it.
How about you?
What's your "go to" exercise and why?
Or if you don't have one, what one exercise would you like to be able to do well?
