Designing a resitance programme for fat loss

        When it comes to constructing the ultimate weight training program
to build muscle and burn fat, exercise selection is a very important component.
You build muscle fastest with compound weight training exercises.
Any weight training program that focuses on machines and
isolation weight training exercises is a complete waste of time.

Below are the worst weight training exercises on the planet and
should be avoided at all costs if you want to build muscle fast.

1) Smith Machine Squats- Squats are the best weight training
exercise you can do in order to build muscle fast. Doing them on a
Smith machine however, is a huge mistake. Squatting in a Smith
machine is very hard on the knees and causes the lifter to develop
what is known as a pattern overload syndrome. The smith machine
isolates the legs while taking the trunk out of the movement.
In a normal free weight squat your lower back and abs must stabilize
the weight and every muscle group must work in unison. This is
how the body functions, as a unit, never in isolation. This can lead
to severe imbalances and injuries.

2) Leg Extensions- Compound weight training exercises are the
best muscle building exercises there are. Leg extensions are an
isolation movement which do very little to build muscle. This
movement also creates shearing forces on the knee and should
be avoided at all costs.

3) Hack Squats- While squats are the superior muscle building exercise,
this movement falls into the exact same category as the smith machine
squat and should be avoided for all the same reasons.

4) Abduction/ Adduction machines- This is the one where you sit with
your legs spread and strapped into the machine. You perform this weight
training exercise by opening up or spreading your legs and then closing
them. This is another isolation movement which will do nothing to build
muscle.

5) Abdominal Crunch Machines- The abs never work in isolation in the
real world. In fact, the abs do not ever contract consciously. They
contract unconsciously as a way to protect the spine. The abdominal
muscles never work without the use of the hip flexors yet these isolation
crunch machines are specifically designed to take the hip flexors out of
the movement. For these reasons, this is a very ineffective weight training
exercise for building muscle.

6) Ab Roller Devices- This apparatus is a version of the aforementioned
crunch machines and is another useless piece of equipment. This device
takes the neck completely out of the movement which is exactly what
you don't want to do. Contracting and or flexing the muscles of the neck
during an abdominal crunch is exactly what you want to be doing and is
physiologically correct. Another waste of time in the quest to build muscle
fast.

7) Smith Machine Bench Press- The bench press is a great muscle building
exercise but doing it in the Smith machine is not a good idea. Much like
the Smith Machine Squat, this exercise will cause you to develop a pattern
overload and will lead to injury. Pressing on the Smith Machine isolates the
pressing muscles and completely eliminates the use of the stabilizer muscles,
such as the rotator cuff. This will lead to imbalances that can transfer to
serious shoulder injuries. You can't build muscle when you are injured.

8) Bench Dips- This is another weight training exercise that I did for many
years and now regret. I routinely did this exercise with four 45 pound
plates on my lap. Little did I realize at the time that bench dips put your
shoulder in a very dangerous position and can eventually lead to serious
problems. While this exercise is useful in building muscle it is also
dangerous. If shoulder safety is a concern I recommend that you avoid
this exercise and stick with parallel bar dips for building muscle.

9) Concentration Curls- When it comes to weight training and building
muscle, everybody's favorite bodypart is biceps. Chin ups and barbell
curls are the best weigth training exercises for building huge biceps.
Concentration curls are not. This is a pure isolation movement which
supposedly puts a "peak" on your biceps. The only problem with that
is the fact that it is physiologically impossible to peak your biceps.
Muscles grow evenly along the entire length of the tissue from origin
to insertion. When looking at the effectiveness of an exercise one of
the key determinants in the results that it may produce is the amount of
weight that can be lifted. In a concentration curl it is very difficult to lift
a great deal of weight and thus it renders the movement ineffective. If
you want to build huge biceps, avoid concentration calls.

10) Bench Press to the Neck- (Incline Bench) This was a big favorite muscle building exercise of Larry Scott and Vince Gironda. It was supposedly a great
muscle building exercise for the upper or clavicular pectoral muscles.
The problem with this movement is that it will absolutely destroy the
shoulders and can easily lead to a pec tear. This is one movement
that you should stay very far away from in your quest to build muscle
fast.

11) Old School Pec Dec-This is the supposed muscle building exercise
machine which has you bend your arms ninety degrees while externally
rotating. You place your arms on the pads and then proceed to bring
the pads together in front of your body. This is not only dangerous for
the shoulder but is absolutely useless and will not build muscle at all.

12) Knee Break Squats- As mentioned earlier, the squat is the best
weight training exercise there is for building muscle. Some trainers and
coaches have advocated initiating a squat by first breaking at the knees
rather than the hips in an effort to put more stress on the quadriceps
muscles. The problem is that this also puts unnecessary stress on the
knees and severely limits the amount of weight that can be lifted.
Squats should be initiated by first breaking at the hips and sitting back
and down, not by breaking at the knees and pushing your knees forward
as you descend.

These weight training exercises are listed in no particular order.
Unfortunately there are many other weight training exercises that
are performed on a routine basis by many lifters that are also useless
and dangerous. Those listed above just so happen to be the worst.
If a weight training exercise causes pain, you should always avoid it.
If a weight training exercise is supposed to target a certain muscle
group in isolation and requires you to use extremely light weights it
is usually best avoided. The exception to this rule would be prehab
and rehab type exercises such as external rotation exercises for the
rotator cuff.

Train hard, train smart and focus on compound exercises and you will build muscle fast.Even if you are on weight loss programme, building muscle is a good thing. Muscle burns calories even when your doing nothing !