5 exercises to avoid?

I was reading an article today on excercises to "avoid":

http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/featu res_julieshealthclub/2008/11/five-exercises.h tml

Do you think this is fairly true? I am getting worried now as part of my light weightlifting/strength regimen i do squats w/ weights and apparently now i'm not supposed to because i'm gonna get bigger thighs and a bigger butt?

Argghh so confused.

Did you read all of the responses underneath? The ones I saw (I stopped reading), agree with me - this article is silly.

edit: I went back and finished reading the responses - and people think that posters on this fitness forum are rough... man - those readers did not like that article! Fun to read, though.

Original Post by amethystgirl:

Did you read all of the responses underneath? The ones I saw (I stopped reading), agree with me - this article is silly.

edit: I went back and finished reading the responses - and people think that posters on this fitness forum are rough... man - those readers did not like that article! Fun to read, though.

 ha! i didn't even notice those comments. thanks!

Good lord who write's this trash???

It pretty much crosses out two of the MOST effective exercises deadlift and squat totally insane.

i've been doing plenty of both from the last 9 months including though my bulk cycle and i have NOT gained bulking thigh's and butt from them, franky im a classic pear my thigh's and but is where i hold my weight and if anything squats and deadlifts have helped my shift bulk (fat) from thoses area's not made the problem worse.

yeah i dont necessary agree with the article. theres some truth to what they are saying but as far as the exercises hurting your back, as long as your technique is good.. and building muscle in your thighs, well yeah thats going to happen but doesn't muscle look better than fat? and it wont make you huge, unless you are seriously training for strength and all that stuff.

hi: i'm a new member here; my girlfriend is very much into fitness and exercising and i showed her the relevant article because she has always stopped me from doing exercises #2 and #3 when we first started exercising together, to the point where she has threatened not to accompany me to the gym if i insist on doing them.

 she agrees in the main with the article but not necessarily for the reasons given.(except for #4 which we in england refer to as push ups and thinks that it is a very good exercise, however even with respect to #4 she recommends seated chest presses, dumbell bench presses or plain ole bench presses purely because the resistance is adjustible as opposed to every one trying to push up agiants their own weight, which can be too much for some and too little for others;

argument against weighted squats:  tremendous strain is put on the entire spine esp the lower back, the hips and knees. her view point is that in a modern gym there are plenty of better and safer exercises that can achieve the same and better results without the inherent risks of doing squats.

amongst others: seated leg press; leg extensions; leg curls; thigh adductions, lunges; all these do not exercises the glutes as much as squats and hence the fanny will not flare up as it would with squats.

press begind neck: another dangerous exercise that puts undue strain on the neck, shoulders and elbow, besides the risk of the weight slamming onto one's skull; furthermore the range of movement is partial and hence will not do its inteneded job fully;

front barbell presses or dumbell presses to the side are better and safer.

regarding #5, she syas that it a good exercise but only to be done by advanced weight trainees (both male and female), who are accustomed to lifting heavy weights. back extensions on a back extension rack or machine in her view is preferable.

i must admit that i was sceptical at first but now i tend to agree fully with her.

wtf. i think the comments at the bottom of the article are more articulate than the actual article. & i have pear shape as well, been doing squats & deadlifts for months & i have scoliosis. no probs because i listen to my body

Original Post by blackbeard:

argument against weighted squats:  tremendous strain is put on the entire spine esp the lower back, the hips and knees. her view point is that in a modern gym there are plenty of better and safer exercises that can achieve the same and better results without the inherent risks of doing squats.

amongst others: seated leg press; leg extensions; leg curls; thigh adductions, lunges; all these do not exercises the glutes as much as squats and hence the fanny will not flare up as it would with squats.

Um, seated leg press puts more strain on the lower back and weighted squats, and leg curls and extensions put more strain on the knees than weighted squats and thigh adductions/abductions are about as useless as anything you can do in the gym.  Not to mention none of them mimic any sort of real life motion or use any stabilization muscles at all.

quite possibly i am wrong; i am far from an expert on exercise, i'm only going by what my girldfriend says and how i feel after doing said exercises.

i dont the true answer; but after having switched from squats to leg presses, extensions and curls (admittedly he leg press machine at my gym is very comfortable and well designsed as all the other leg machines), my enthusiasm for doing leg exercises has greatly increased; my joints doent ache as much, i look forwards to doing legs rather than find an excuse not to do them, and as far as i m concerned that in itself is of far more importance to me.

the other point is that i have not seen a single gym trainer in any of the gyms that i have (sporadically attended, so far) ever recommending or demonstrating squats but all of them make it a point to demonstrate the other lef exercises as  matter of routine.

the same holds true of personal trainers as well.

maybe they know something we dont

I'm a convert turned zealot for the weighted squat - when you use good form there is nothing that gives you a better feeling imo.

edit: spelling

Original Post by blackbeard:

the other point is that i have not seen a single gym trainer in any of the gyms that i have (sporadically attended, so far) ever recommending or demonstrating squats but all of them make it a point to demonstrate the other lef exercises as  matter of routine.

the same holds true of personal trainers as well.

maybe they know something we dont

 They know that their gym wants people to use that equipment as it gets people in and out of the gym faster so the gym makes more money.

If people think that they can only get a workout using expensive and spacious machines, they will join a gym. If people realized that they could get a better workout with free weights and a bench in their basement, they wouldn't need a gym.

The gym prefers the first scenario.

Hey, I have scoliosis too.

Make sure to avoid these exercises: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXBW-tWSx10

The videos are made by Spine Harmony.  They have an exercise program for people with scoliosis.  They have some exercise videos on YouTube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DpWnr-fCifE

BTW they're website is http://www.spineharmony.com

All the best with your workouts!

Oh my freakin God! That article made me sad, sad, and more sad. What a bunch of bull crap! Yes, when first starting out, I definitely recommend squats with NO weight..but still recommend squats. Squats are a compound movement..engaging many muscle groups and are excellent for increasing your core strength. I have done weighted squats [over 300 lbs now] for years and years..and trust me...my butt is one of my best ASSests but I don't think one person would ever think of me as having a huge arse or massive legs, etc.

The DL!! My FAVORITE exercise. I honestly can't think of any exercise that better works the hams..again, being a compound...it also is fabulous for the core.

No pushups? WTflyingF??? Push ups are essential to a workout, imo.

UGH. I can go on and on.

This morning, I did one hand pushups, one hand pull ups, bench press, flies and weighted squats, bulgarian squats, walking lunges, weighted hip rolls [at 8 pulses then rise into lunge]  4 sets ended with chest press on machine and alternate prone/leg ext machines 4 sets to fatigue. [only time I do or recommend machines at all].

If anything..besides the obvious that machines only isolate muscles..they also can contribute MORE to injury..not less.  Most people that I see use them don't even know that they need to adjust the settings on them..even doing so..they still can put enormous strain...

UGH. What a stupid article.

Original Post by fitnessgirll:

Squats are a compound movement..engaging many muscle groups and are excellent for increasing your core strength.

Quoted for truth.  While this article has the best intentions, it's neither clear nor concise.  Weighted squats may lead to strain or injury, but the truth is that any movement can do that if it's done improperly, or with too much weight.

The biggest issue I see with this article is that it seems to give false hope of instant results, something that we as a people (whether male or female) have latched onto.  We want the magic pill to give us results in one week or less.

Working out for an hour a day over 3-6 months is unfathomable because it's (insert whiny voice) tooooo loooooong!!

Avoid injury by using less weight than your ego says you should.  Building up the strength in the lower back and abs does not necessarily equate to "huge pulsating muscles."  Doing even 3 months' worth of light-weight exercise does not turn anyone into one of those meat-sacks on the cover of "Muscle & Fitness."

The article may have good content, but its voice is unfortunately misleading and can give a false sense of authority if the reader has just the right amount of desperation.

Omigosh you guys, I agree, chicks really shouldn't do pushups cause they're just too hard!  And all those icky exercises with barbells?  All they do is make you stronger and healthier, and everyone knows that's not the point at all.

Original Post by amethystgirl:

....and thigh adductions/abductions are about as useless as anything you can do in the gym.  Not to mention none of them mimic any sort of real life motion or use any stabilization muscles at all.

LIES! Lol. They're perfectly useful if you're conditioning for hockey, can't tell you how terrible my abductors/adductors are and how many times I had to pull them until I got the point. But, I think playing hockey is the minority activity here so... :P

Original Post by pezzle:

LIES! Lol. They're perfectly useful if you're conditioning for hockey, can't tell you how terrible my abductors/adductors are and how many times I had to pull them until I got the point. But, I think playing hockey is the minority activity here so... :P

I would LOVE to play hockey!  I just don't think anyone around here would do it with me :( (Alabama).  I'm from Michigan originally, and it's the only sport I even bother to watch, aside from the occasional U of M football game.  And I love to skate, even though I haven't done it in a long while.

Actually, I would consider abductor/adductors to be important in karate, too, which I do practice.  Some of those kicks really rely on thigh movements.  But at this point I'm just starting and only worrying about general training with compound movements.  I'll sort out the benefits of isolation moves when I'm closer to my goal weight or I notice something I want to focus on.