Tag Archives: physical exercise

Tricep Dip (Chair or Bench)

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Another week has gone by and that means it is time for a new Home Exercise of the Week!

The Tricep Dip is a great exercise that can be done anywhere you can find a chair or bench (that being said, I don’t recommend doing this at random public places unless you want to get some strange looks or draw a crowd to watch your feats of strength).

The primary muscle group being targeted in this exercise are your triceps but you will also be working your anterior deltoids (front shoulders) and chest muscles.

Some tips to remember when doing the Tricep Dip:

  • place your hands close to your body on the chair
  • make sure to keep your elbows pointed back to ensure proper tricep muscle contraction
  • dip down until you feel a good stretch across your chest and in your front shoulders.  Your arms should be at 90 degree angles at this point.
  • when you get to the top of the movement, straighten your arms to get a nice tricep contraction
  • if you want to make this exercise even more challenging, try putting your feet up on a stability ball or rest some weight plates on your thighs!

So there you have the Tricep Dip.  Now Chairs aren’t just for sitting any more!  They are a multi-purpose exercise tool that can be used to build and tone some strong and sexy arms!

 

Stability Ball Pushup

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I have a challenging exercise for you today for the Home Exercise of the Week!  If you’re a fan of pushups, the Stability Ball Pushup will add something new to your routine.  If you don’t like pushups, well then you’re probably thinking wow I didn’t know they could get any worse than they already are!

Whether you like pushups or not, the Stability Ball Pushup is a great exercise that will work your chest, shoulders, and triceps.  Since you are doing this exercise on a ball, you will also be working on your balance, core muscles, and all the little stabilizer muscles to keep you from flying off the ball.

If this is your first time trying the exercise, I recommend placing the ball against a wall which will make it easier to balance.  As you get more comfortable with the exercise you can place the ball freely in the room.  Also, you can start with a modified pushup from your knees if needed until you get stronger.

Some tips when performing the Stability Ball Pushup:

  • grab the ball on the sides and squeeze it as you move down to increase the contraction in your pectoral muscles
  • make sure your hands are in line with your chest throughout the movement
  • keep your ab muscles tight at all times by pulling your belly button in towards your spine
  • a wide foot position will increase your stability and if you feel that’s too easy then bring your feet together to work your core and stabilizers even more (at this point you’re probably thinking “yeah right Craig, let’s start with getting on the ball first!”)
  • at the top of the movement, stop just before your arms are fully extended to keep tension on your pectorals throughout

So there you have the Stability Ball Pushup!  Add this great exercise to your routine and you might impress people so much with your acrobatic feats that you get asked to join the circus!

Reverse Lunge Leg Kick

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The Home Exercise of the Week this week is the Reverse Lunge Leg Kick.  If you ever have one of those personal trainers that are always pushing you to do more when you don’t want to, then this exercise could come in handy! 😉

Like a regular reverse lunge, the Reverse Lunge Leg Kick works your quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, and calves.  Adding the leg kick however, will increase the difficulty and will greatly improve balance, coordination, and core strength.

Some key points to remember when doing the Reverse Lunge Leg Kick:

  • Step backwards with one leg and lunge down until both legs are at 90 degree angles
  • Keep your back upright and straight throughout the movement
  • When stepping out of the lunge, push up through your front heel
  • When raising your knee up to do the kick, make sure to really squeeze your ab muscles (make sure your trainer is close enough in front of you as well if he/she is annoying you!)
  • give a nice forceful kick and bring the same leg back in to the lunge and repeat
  • do 10 to 12 reps for one leg then repeat on the other leg

So there you have the Reverse Lunge Leg Kick!  This is a great variation to the regular lunge and also good practice if you ever want to be a kung fu master!

Cross Body Mountain Climber

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This week’s featured exercise is the Cross Body Mountain Climber.  This is a fantastic exercise that will build strength and tone your abs including your obliques.  Not only will it bring you one step closer to that highly sought after “six pack”, it will also strengthen and tone your entire body!  Shoulders, triceps, chest, back, quadriceps, glutes, and calves are also working in this movement.

Some key points to remember when doing the Cross Body Mountain Climber is to keep your body straight from head to toe.  So no butts in the air on this one!  If your butt is up high you won’t be engaging your abs and too much strain will be put on your shoulders.  Another point to remember is to keep your abdominals flexed throughout the movement.  An easy way to engage your abs is to pull your belly button in towards your spine.  If you aren’t flexing your stomach then the abs aren’t being worked as effectively as they could be.

The difference between this exercise and the regular Mountain Climber is the degree to which your oblique muscles are being used.  Driving your knee to your opposite elbow will really get them working.

The Cross Body Mountain Climber can be done anywhere so by adding this great core exercise to your routine you’ll be on your way to a strong and flat stomach!

Close-Grip Pushup

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The Home Exercise of the Week this week is the Close-Grip Pushup also known as the Military Pushup.  This is a great exercise to work your tricep muscles, inner chest muscle, anterior deltoid (front shoulder), as well as your core!

This is generally more challenging than a regular pushup because the tricep muscles are the prime mover whereas your chest does more of the work in a regular pushup.  Since the tricep muscles are smaller than the muscles of your chest they won’t have as much strength.

If you are new to performing the Close-Grip Pushup, you will most likely find that your elbows tend to flare out from your body because your chest takes over and does the work to compensate for the weaker tricep muscles.  You will want to try and keep your elbows tucked in to your body as much as possible to avoid this.  Over time, as your triceps get stronger, it will be much easier to keep your elbows from leaving your sides.

Another key point to remember when performing this exercise is to always keep your body as straight as possible.  There is a tendency, especially from the kneeling position, to just move your upper body down towards the floor while leaving your butt up in the air.  You will want to make sure that your hips come down with you so you get the full benefit of the exercise.

So there you have the Close-Grip Pushup!  Add this effective exercise to your routine and you’ll be on your way to sculpting strong and shapely arms!