When I first went to the gym, I was utterly confused about the number of machines, equipment and trainers there. It was mind boggling to see so many things, yet not knowing what to do and where to begin. When I asked a friend, he told me a routine which he followed and that was too advanced for a beginner. The routine was advanced not only because he was a regular at the gym, but also because at gyms, people tend to focus on developing specific muscles and as a beginner, developing individual muscle is the last thing you need to do.

Advantages Of A Full Body Workout

Muscles to Target During Full Body Workout. Courtesy – http://builtlean.com

For starters, a full body workout routine is something that will really help you out. Not only does it focus on developing the entire body, but it also increases core strength, which is essential if you need to be actually fit and healthy. Also, full body workouts prepare the whole body for more advanced forms of exercises, which is where targeted exercises come in.

Even if you are not a beginner, full body workouts have lots of advantages for people. First of all, full body workouts are only performed 3 to 4 times a week, and not more. The reason being, that the full body workout is completely tiring and totally drains your energy, so you exercise on one day and then take the next day off.

Exercising on alternating days allows the body to rest in between, and thus the muscles relax and are not overexerted. Not only does it give your body a break, but it also saves a ton of time as gym exercises usually require daily practice. So instead of spending two hours in the gym everyday where you focus on each muscle separately, you only need to spend an hour on alternating days where the entire body benefits.

What To Do

Full body vs individual exercises. Courtesy – http://workout-routine.com

Here is the interesting part. Full body workouts do not necessarily have to be complex. They are a combination of exercises that can be performed easily, even at home. A full body workout should essentially be something that targets almost every muscle in the body or at least close to every muscle in the body.

Thus, the ideal body workout would include squats, lunges, crunches, pushups, curls and presses. Don’t be intimidated! You don’t have to do them all in one day. Just pick specific exercises for one day, then keeping the core exercises similar, change the main exercise for day 2, and then again for day 3. The whole process is then repeated for the next week.

Here is a sample of what a body workout may look like:

Crunches, Important part of Workout. Courtesy – http://gamentrain.com

Day 1:

• 5 minute warm-up
• Squats
• Pushups
• Bench Press
•  Bicep Curls
• Crunches

Day 2:

• 5 minute warm-up
• Squats
• Pushups
• Reverse Curls
•  Hip Thrusts

Day 3:

• 5 minute warm-up
• Squats
• Pushups
• Bench press
• Reverse pull ups
• Corkscrew or Scissors

You might have noticed that the exercises change, but the body part they target is the same, if you want to include any more exercises in the routine, feel free to do so, as long as they are useful and can be easily fit into the routine. Just remember to exercise only on alternate days. Doing any more will actually be harmful, as your muscles will be overexerted and can be damaged. However, if you want to remain active throughout the week, running or jogging in the days you are off is a great way to complement the full body workout.

Physical fitness is a relative term that has a different meaning for every individual. Physical fitness is one aspect that is related to every walk of a person’s life. You need to be fit to work, you need to be fit to study, and you need to be fit to be confident; in short, you need to be fit for everything under the sky! Fitness components entail competence in the activities of daily life of a person. So what then is the secret to fitness? What should you do in order to ensure a fit and healthy body leading to a comfortable life? More…

If you are a full time professional and have to spend long hours at work, I am sure you do not get time to exercise or go to the gym. Especially taking out time to go to the gym is a great hassle and the added stress of having to travel to a gym while you are tired and agitated can contribute quite a bit to your frustration. It can even make you hate exercise and gyms which is not something we want. More…

A couple of months ago, I was struggling with my weight issues. I was overweight, did not exercise and as a result, I was lazy and depressed. Finally, after giving myself many hypothetical nudges and pep talks, I set foot in the gym for the first time and after being introduced to fancy machines and fit people all working around me, I decided to never set foot in the gym again! Thankfully that resolution did not last very long and I was back in the gym a couple of weeks later but this time more confident and more eager to work out. More…

For those of you who aren’t aware of the mountain climber, it is a simple routine that can produce some excellent results. As the name suggests, the exercise is very similar to climbing a mountain, only that it can simply be done at home, on the floor. More…

Developing the triceps and biceps are one of the hardest areas to target in your body. This is not because the exercises needed to develop them are difficult or rare, but because it takes quite a while for the results to show. As a result, the best thing to do is to use exercises that might be difficult to perform, but that show good, quick results. Of course this does not mean you go excessively out of your comfort zone. Rather than doing bicep curls or light lifting, it helps to go in for the kill – a squat rack. More…

With summer right around the corner, it’s time you started working on those six packs of yours. Workouts involving the abdominal muscles are generally best suited for beginners, because not only are they relatively easy, they also offer great results that can be seen within a matter of weeks. I always recommend beginners to start out on their abs, because the quick results often encourage them to start working on the rest of the body. Here’s a basic beginner workout routine for the perfect six-packs for men.

More…

There is no doubt about the benefits weight training has to offer. Apart from giving your body a leaner and more toned look, the difference you will feel in your strength and stamina is something I can’t even begin to explain. Weight training will make it easier for you to perform other exercises like cardio and HIIT as well, so it’s something worth looking into. However, the problem is that it can be a little daunting. Beginners often don’t have an idea of where to start from and how to develop a balanced workout routine, so I’m going to give you a very basic beginner’s guide to weight training. More…