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Hey Reader, It was Tuesday morning at 6:00 a.m. inside the Astoria gym. The room was dead quiet, and I was holding a warm mug of strong black coffee. My client Eric, the president of his company, walked over and picked an ab roller up off the floor. “What do you think about this?” he asked. I smiled and told him it was actually mine. Eric looked at me, completely surprised, and said, “Do you use it?” “I used to use it when I was a young trainer trying to impress other trainers,” I admitted. “Back then, I didn't know any better…” Eric had seen all the flashy workouts on Instagram that catch people's attention. I told him that most people think about aesthetics when they train their abs, not actual function. Unless you're a competitive gymnast, you don't need ridiculous core strength, you need a core that supports your back. The reason I'm sharing this with you is because the risk-to-reward ratio on flashy gym exercises is completely backward for high performers. My background in Behavioral Economics and Corrective Exercise taught me to always weigh the cost of a movement against the return. The ab roller puts massive strain on your shoulders and can destroy your low back for very little reward. And it's not the only exercise that belongs on the sidelines… If you sit hunched over a computer all day, the last thing you should do is battle ropes. They lock up your neck and shoulders, ruin your posture and breathing, and leave you with tension headaches.
Then you have sled pushes. Unless you're plowing wheat fields for a living, pushing heavy sleds puts your spine in a bad position and risks putting you on the sidelines.
Finally, skip the high box jumps. Unless you're a pro volleyball player, jumping on tall boxes past the age of 30 isn't worth a torn Achilles or a wrecked ACL just to impress your friends. People throw these random exercises into their routines, get hurt or burnt out, and then wonder why nothing ever sticks. Instead of risking your joints on explosive, flashy moves, stick to versatile movements that use your own body weight. A much safer, more effective exercise is the classic lunge. When you drive through your heels and flex your glutes, you build real-world strength and protect your lower back without wrecking your joints. The problem is that most people do them wrong. [Click here to watch this quick video and see if you've been doing lunges wrong your whole life.]
PS: Even a 7x Ironman has to check his ego at the gym door. What's one flashy exercise you've seen on social media that makes your back hurt just looking at it? Hit reply and let me know. 🙂 |
