In the past, I’ve shared the best exercises for rapid fat loss and strengthening muscles, featuring variations of multi-joint, compound movements for your upper body (e.g. push-ups, pull-ups, rows, dips, etc.), lower body (squats, deadlifts, lunges, etc.), and core (pillar holds and rotational core exercises). These exercises will provide the biggest bang each and every time, for maximum results in less time. Even better are total body combo exercises like a squat to curl or lunge to press or a squat thrust and pillar variation that takes the whole body workouts to new level.

But, that is not what today’s information is about.

Let’s focus on the most popular exercises you should NEVER do. The following list includes movements and machines that deliver little to no results and can even cause injury.

The 7 Popular Exercises You Should NEVER Do

1.) Abs Machine



Walk into ANY gym on the planet - you will find this useless hunk of junk.

Here's the deal: Crunches and sit-ups only promote excessive flexion of the lumbar spine and tend to cause neck and back pain.

What’s worse than crunches or sit-ups?

Doing a similar movement with added weight in a machine that only trains your body in an unnatural front to back motion in a seated position! Yup, good ol' ab machine!

Yes, an abs machine, like a crunch or sit-up, do make you "feel" like you're working the abdominal muscles, but there are far better ways to accomplish this without the high risk of short and long-term injury to your spine.

Remember, the true function of your core is stabilization, both static and dynamic- to be able to maintain a neutral, straight-line position from your hips to your shoulders in all 3 planes of movement (front to back, side to side, and rotational) no matter what the external stimulus may be. In other words: STOP doing this stupid machine, and while you're at it, ELIMINATE crunches and sit ups from your fat loss workout routine. It's pointless for melting fat from your belly.

Better Training Update: For lean, athletic abdominals, you need to focus on pillar stabilization exercises like front, side, and back pillars with ground based rotational core movements with chop variations and upper body twisting motions.

2.) Lower Back Machine



If I DESPISE this useless abs machine, what do think I have to say about the “lower back” machine?

Just like its counterpart, you see it in every gym on the planet...and yet, it still ranks as one of the most stupid exercise machines ever created.

First, people already use too much of their “back” on most movements because of having tight hips, joints and inactive or weak glute muscles. Because of this, I recommend to focus more on hip extension movements that strengthen your rear, rather than continually overloading the spinal erectors. This will help correct muscle imbalances.

Second, just like the abs machine, this bonehead machine trains your body in one plane of movement - in a fixed path and, as a result, does not strengthen your key stabilizer muscles. Big omission, not good.

Lastly, the way that most people perform this movement is out of control – fast, jerking of the weight back and forth…not a good idea when it comes to performing any type of weight training.

Better Training Update: For a functionally strong, stable back, you should focus on correctly performing more deadlifts, good mornings, and hip extension variations while simultaneously focusing on the corrective stretching and self-massage of the Lumbo-Pelvic-Hip (LPH) area. A prone cobra, or airplane as it is sometimes called, is also a great exercise to improve spinal erector endurance while simultaneously improving scapular strength and stability.

3.) Leg Extension Machine



OK, I’ll admit it…I remember doing this exercise machine years and years ago. I thought I was so cool in the gym, because I would load up the entire stack and abuse the living hell out of knees trying to accomplish 3 sets of 10. I cringe when I think of the damage I could easily do the 2 most precious joints on my body.

Listen, here is the bottom line…this machine has the potential to cause havoc on your knees.

The excessive compressions on your patella will without a doubt results in the brake down of articular cartilage, which will in turn result in a bunch of arthroscopic knee surgeries to remove loose bodies and eventually full blown crippling arthritis. Doesn’t sound fun to me.

In other words: Avoid this machine like swine flu!

Better Training Update: For functionally strong, stable knees, focus on both knee-dominant (lunge, step-up, and single-leg squat variations) with hip-dominant SINGLE-leg exercises (single-leg hip extension, deadlift, and good morning variations) to prevent strength imbalances between limbs AND to prevent muscle imbalances between your front and backside muscle groups.

4.) Fly Machine



If your goal is tear your chest apart and destroy your shoulder's rotator cuff, then by all means, please include this machine to your exercise routine.

Again, the use of this machine virtually eliminates the valuable stabilizer muscle training…especially in and around your shoulders. Big omission, not good.

Better Training Update: For functionally strong, stable shoulder muscles, you should focus on performing an equal amount of pushing and pulling exercises. In fact, more pulling exercises initially may be a good idea if you find yourself hunchbacked from years of focusing on your mirror muscles (chest, abs, and arms) while neglecting your shoulders (front, upper and mid shoulder areas). For pushing exercise ideas, the best thing you can do is include a plethora of these push up variations. With proper form and technique, they will safely train the entire front side of your body but will also engage your upper back musculature in a way that the bench press never could.

You can also benefit from adding a dumbbell fly movement to your routine as well.

5.) Elliptical Machine



Listen, if you are struggling with severe obesity and have not exercised in over 10 years, then this machine MIGHT have a small purpose. Otherwise, it’s not really the best. Not even close.

Yes, it is a low-impact alternative to running on a treadmill (which just the thought of makes my knees ache), but there is limited range of motion during the movement and does not burn nearly as many calories as the little control panel on the machine claims it does.

Furthermore, the elliptical is not a good machine to do fat-burning intervals on because it promotes excessive hyperextension or strain on the knee. This can easily result in injury at high levels of speed or resistance. Ouch. However, if you are looking for a quick steady-state cardio fix following your peak intensity interval training, this maybe might be a choice, but not usually.

Think about this for a moment…what is very first machine people who are new to bodyweight cardio exercise try when they are in the gym? The elliptical! Why? Because it’s so freakin’ easy!

Trust me, I have been there…plodding away for hours on this dang thing. I used to convince myself that the elliptical was a good option for me because I wanted to protect my knees. But then I finally woke up one day I realized I needed to get better results and provide better recovery from my training. This included corrective stretching and self-massage on my front/inner/outer hips and thighs to improve my tissue recovery and ability to heal AND improve hip and ankle mobility to take pressure off of my knees so that I could be functionally strong and limber.

Better Training Update: For optimal results during your cardio training, you have to focus on intervals. It’s a fact that these protocols will burn 9 times more body fat than aerobics and also result in greater improvements in overall conditioning than long, boring, steady-state cardio. If you are overweight/de-conditioned and/or have joint issues, a more logical place to start an interval training program is on a spin bike, or better yet, an Airdyne Bike which has both upper and lower body attachments to make it more of a complete body conditioning workout.

If you want to crank it equipment free, use body weight based exercises like jumping jacks, stationary running, split jumps and the like.

6.) Abductor/Adductor Combo Machine AKA "Sex Machine"



Ah, the seated sex machine… this one reminds me a time years and years ago where me and my buddies would stand around at the gym watching some hot chick crank out 100 reps, or if we were lucky, a 1,000 reps on this dumb machine. Yes, those were the good times. ;)

But here is the reality: no amount of opening and closing of your legs on this machine will help you fit into your “skinny jeans”. I know you’re smiling – I laughed out loud when I just wrote that description.

Women all over the world seem convinced to this day that this “naughty” machine can some how help them burn off the cellulite or rid themselves of the “jiggle thigh syndrome”.

How many times have I heard: “What exercises can I do to get rid of this flabby leg fat” or to “trim and tone” their legs? Way too many to count.

Shall I remind you that spot reduction training is a MYTH? Seriously, no amount of direct inner or other hip-thigh rotations will burn that unhealthy fat covering those sexy legs buried deep inside.

What do you say? You with me? First, clean out all of the junk carbs from your daily diet and starting consuming lean proteins, healthy fats, and fruits and nutrient dense veggies every 2-4 hours while pouring water down your throat like a crazy person. The reality is that most of us do not drink enough water, though you think you might. Drink more. Got it?

Then of course, get off that seated sex machine and get your hiney into a total body interval based workout!

Better Training Update: The most effective movement and exercises for your inner and outer-hip thigh will come from band-resisted hip walk variations, side pillar variations, and any and all single-leg exercises, especially multi-directional lunges (lateral, semi-lateral, etc.)

For some awesome resistance band exercise ideas, you've got to head over and check this out:
Band Training

7.) Leg Press Machine



If you are leg pressing, then you don’t know squat. Yes, pun intended ;).

It never ceases to amaze me how we all look for the easy way out when it comes to working out. It’s clear why people prefer to leg press - they get to virtually lay way back or just sit on their rear (depending the machine variation at the time)

If you want both nice legs and a flat midsection then you need to squat! This is the king of all exercises and is a must.

And no, you can’t squat lying on the ground, sorry. :(

The reality is that squats are a tough exercise. They require more muscle fiber than you can imagine. Plus, they require a significant amount of intense effort most people are not willing to give…which is why most never see the results they truly desire.

If that weren’t enough, this brainless leg press machine could very well be a major contributing cause for the rapidly increasing number of injured, bulging and herniated discs among avid gym members. People almost always use too much weight and use bad form resulting in brutally compressive forces on the knees and spine.

Better Training Update: The simplest, most effective (and safest) exercises for your lower body are a healthy combination of double-leg and single-leg exercises using free weights and body weight based movements. Be sure to perform an equal amount of knee-dominant lower body exercises (e.g. squats and lunges) and hip-dominant lower body exercises (e.g. deadlifts and single-leg hip extensions) to make your knees, hips, upper and lower back strong and injury free.

Have you noticed that each one of the useless, injury prone exercises involves a MACHINE?

Get off those damn machines and focus on performing useful, functional movements using your body weight…then throw some toys in the mix: free weights, bands, stability balls, etc.

Not only will you see better results with your fat-burning and muscle-building efforts, but more importantly, you’re not gonna end up hunched over, walking with a limp and broken down knees by age 45;)

Bring the intensity!

Curtis

PS - What other exercises do you see people doing in the gym that make you cringe? What other exercises do you absolutely hate? What exercises have gotten you (or your clients) hurt in the past?

Go ahead and share your personal experiences by posting a comment to this blog post, thanks!