If you had to choose...

  • In your own personal opinions please - What is THE best exercise (choose 1 for each muscle) to TONE:

    Shoulders
    Biceps
    Triceps
    Chest
    Back
    Abs
    Obliques
    Lower Abs
    Butt
    Quadriceps
    Hamstrings
    Calves

    Just looking to see opinions, I already have a plan for myself, just thought it would be fun to see what everyones top choice would be. Thanks!

    Melissa
  • I really like Core Secrets and Pilates for all of the areas you listed. Core secrets is the one with the big ball. Boy oh boy, the one that really sticks out is hamstrings with core secrets. There is this one exercise that if you lay on your back with your feet on the ball and lift your butt equal with the ball...you will not be able to walk the next day. It wears my leg muscles out.
  • I really don't like doing ONE exercise for a muscle because I don't think it properly develops the muscle from all angles and through all ranges of motion. Also, everyone's body is different- you have a unique history which may make some exercises better or worse for you. For example. I love to do a lot of weighted exercises standing one-legged on the flat side of a bosu ball, but a less experienced lifter or someone with less well developed balance might kill themselves doing that. Also, if your primary goal is muscle hypertrophy, it's not very useful.

    However, I'll play your game:

    Shoulders- overhead press with dumbbells, done standing
    Biceps - dumbbell curls with a twist, done standing on a bosu ball
    Triceps - cable rope overhead extensions
    Chest - OK, I can't give ONE: dumbbell presses on a stability ball, pushups, dumbbell flyes, cable flyes, more pushups.
    Back- Which part of your back? Pullups and dumbbell one arm rows are a minimum.
    Abs - Hanging "knee ups" or "leg ups" if you are strong enough
    Obliques Hanging obliques
    Lower Abs - There isn't any such thing. It's one muscle.
    Butt - Deep squats and lunges
    Quadriceps - Deep squats and lunges
    Hamstrings - one-legged romanian deadlifts
    Calves - do as much on a bosu ball as you can and you don't need to directly work your calves

    So what is your program?

    Mel
  • Unfortunately, I never know what they're really called in the training world:

    Biceps - reverse skull crusher
    Triceps - skull crusher
    Chest - the rowing thingy
    Obliques - side crunches using a disk (anyone use this? it's great!)
    Lower Abs - toe drops
    Quadriceps - squats rolling down on a ball
    Hamstrings - the same one Stacy mentions
    Calves - calf raise

    Mel, about the abs. When I do regular crunches, I get an effect more near my belly button. When I do toe drops, I can feel it more near the pubic area (i.e., "lower abs"). My trainer gave me more exercises that seem to work on the "lower" abs, even though it's all one muscle, because she said that area was weaker.
  • See one reason I'd be scared of Mel as my personal trainer... Look at her list... Ok not really

    I can't say the best because well the best is to challenge your muscles with different exercises but I'll say what I like

    Shoulders- I like overhead presses but I like to do them seated.
    Biceps - hammer curls.
    Triceps - bent over tricep kick backs
    Chest - dumbbell flys lying on a bench
    Back- assisted pullups (one day I hope to do unassisted pullups but I need to lose weight and increase strength before that day comes)
    Abs - Planks!
    Obliques - twisting crunches
    Lower Abs - reverse crunches
    Butt - Lunges! Although I have a new favorite which I got from my Push DVD. It is a bridged kick up. Basically you do a bridge, then straigten one leg and kick up. My booty hurt for 2 days due to that one.
    Quadriceps - I have to say I have always loved the overhead lying leg press where you push weight up while you are lying down.
    Hamstrings - I like dead lifts, I may have to try them with one leg now and see what happens.
    Calves - donkey raises
  • Just so everyone is clear this was just a fun opinion game.
    But, Mel, since you asked...here's what I do for upper body:

    Shoulder: Overhead Presses, Alternating Front Raises
    Triceps: Tricep Extensions
    Biceps: Bicep Curls, Hammer Curls
    Chest: Chest Presses, Chest Flys
    Back: One-Arm Row
    Abs: Crunches on a ball, Side Twists with a ball

    Go easy on me for my choices, LOL, I'm 335 pounds and I'm not that far into it yet....3 months into cardio, couple weeks overall into strength training. Play nice with the newbie, LOL!

    Melissa
  • Shoulders - overhead press and side raises
    Biceps - tend to get a good workout on the lat pulldown and the seated rower so I don't target them specifically otherwise I'd never be able to punch the next day!
    Triceps - pushdown with the lat pulldown machine
    Chest - bench press
    Back - lateral pulldown with drop sets
    Abs - inverted hanging abs or knee-ups or high crunches with a partner
    Obliques - oblique crunches with plates and/or on a stability ball
    Butt - deadlifts
    Quads - running Ok that's not a weight exercise, erm... One legged squats with or without weights depending on the running and kickboxing schedule!
    Hammies - er... leg curls I suppose, but usually kickboxing
    Calves - don't work my calves at all - they are already BULGING and I want them to go down! A good one is weighted calf lifts though - I used to rock at those when I did them