Exercises You Shouldn't Bother Doing

If you're a beginner don't do the following exercises, chances are you'll do them incorrectly anyway.

Leg Press


If you think this exercise is better than squats you couldn't be more wrong. Doesn't matter how many 20kg plates you can throw on the machine, it'll never compare to a squat. Its also possible for your lower back to round at the bottom position which would place your spine in a compromising position. The leg press is more of a quad builder, and leaves out the hamstrings and glutes. Do squats which will train your legs and whole body much more effectively.

Smith Machine Exercises


The smith machine squat is not as bad as the leg press but still pretty terrible. The machine takes balance out of the equation which can make you develop really bad habits for the squat. If you look at the picture above the bar is way behind the middle of the feet, an impossible position to maintain in a free-weight squat (you'd fall on your ass). Avoid doing anything in the smith machine and you'll be better off.

Leg Extensions

A great way to tell your knees that you hate them. When you think about it your legs extend during the squat anyway, making this exercise redundant.

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Pretty much any exercise that involves a machine you should stay away from for three main reasons:

1. They help stabilise the weight for you, so you're not getting the most out of the exercise compared to when using free weights
2. They force you to move through a range of motion which may not cater for your body's leverages which can be detrimental
3. Training to isolate muscle groups is redundant as your muscles don't act this way in real life. This type of training may be useful for aesthetic purposes but as a beginner you have no business training this way.
   

Just get strong on the main compound lifts (using barbells not machines) and your training will be much more productive.

Sit-ups and Crunches

It takes countless reps to even feel anything, and most people do them wrong anyway by using their hips. Doing countless situps is not going to make your belly fat go away, that's going to depend on your body fat level which you can lower by lowering your food intake (you'll have an easier time if done in conjunction with exercise that is intense enough).

A more productive ab exercise that will strengthen your abs are prone bridges.


Maintain a rigid position as shown above for 3 sets of 30 seconds. As you get better at them you may put weights on your back (you might need someone to help you with this) to make the exercise more difficult. Prone bridges don't take as long as sit ups and they're more effective.