Exercise, in essence, is a smart way of packaging a day’s worth of movements into a shorter period of time. Back in the day, when convenience was not as big a part of human life, people moved around a lot, just to get through the day. While they didn’t do any exercise the way we do now, they didn’t need it. The activities of daily living, known as ADL, included usage of pretty much all joints and muscles, and that kept them mobile, strong and healthful. Today, since our ADL doesn’t go much beyond sitting, exercise becomes necessary for well-being. So, the primary use of exercise is mobility and well-being, and only after that come weight loss, muscle building and the other flashy claims. Now, with this knowledge, it should be obvious that exercise is something that is applicable to everyone. Here are three you should incorporate into your workouts.
Squat
Th is is the most basic and foundational of all human movements. In fact, we humans squatted before we stood or walked. The squat does a lot of cool things. One, it works all of the major muscle groups of the lower body, especially the quadriceps (front of the thigh), glutes (butt), hamstrings (back of the thigh) and adductors (inner thighs). Two, it builds your core by strengthening the muscles of your trunk, especially the abdominal muscles, low back musculature and spinal erectors. And three, it improves mobility at the ankles, knees and hips, allowing you to move without tightness and pain. Whether you want to build muscle and get strong or not, these are all effects that are necessary for healthful living.
( Go to: Bodyweight squat, lunge, barbell back squat, kettlebell squat, dumbbell squat)
Push
An ything that moves an object away from you or you away from an object is considered pushing. Pushups, overhead presses, ball throws are examples of pushing exercises. But a push can be as simple as pushing literally anything. And when you push, you teach the muscles of the upper body to react. And by pushing muscles we’re talking about the pectoral muscles (chest), anterior deltoids (front of shoulder) and triceps (back of your upper arm). Let’s say you trip and fall or you need to push your car or bike. Actions like these require your pushing muscles to function quickly and efficiently. The more you train to push, the more ready your body will be to handle such situations.
( Go to: Pushup, plank, overhead press, push press, pike press)
Pull
Any move that moves an object closer to you or moves you closer to an object is a pull. Simple moves like opening a door or dragging something closer to you are examples, and so are pullups, rows and other structured exercises. Irrespective of the move, every time you pull, you use and work the muscles of the back, namely the trapezius, latissimus dorsi, rhomboids, posterior deltoids and, also, the biceps (front of your upper arm). One special reason to work on the pull — it is your only fight against ‘the slouch’. Posture is a problem for most of us due to the nature of our work and lives. And because of that, we end up slouching for a major part of our days. This results in making the anterior muscles (muscles in the front of your body) tighter and the posterior muscles lax, thereby causing neck pain and other shoulder issues. By pulling, we strengthen the posterior muscles, which fight against the tightening of the anterior muscles, which in turn prevents or reduces your slouch.
( Go to: Pullup, row, hang, resistance band pull)
Raj Ganpath is an NCCA-accredited personal fitness trainer; a certified coach in fitness, nutrition, barbell and kettlebell training and a Functional Training and Senior Fitness Specialist, with over 5,000 hours of coaching experience
