Hey spook,

looks like you know a bit about this stuff. Can you help me out with this?

I've been doing ab work like a madman since I was 14 (push ups as well). Problem is, I have neglected my back, hamstrings etc... So now I'm in this situation: my abs are really tight, but because of my weak back etc... I have back problems, an unstable core and a resulting bad posture.

So I was wondering: can you or anyone else recommend some exercises to strengthen my core (back, hamstrings) ??? The less material needed, the better.

Thanks amigo

Oh for sure. I do have quite the varied routine, but the bench seems to be working a little too well over the others. I'll likely just cut down on the sets.

At the current time, I do 44 pushups, 88 situps, 60 jumping jacks, and some stretching daily, when I don't go lifting.

Pushups are a great exercise, though.

You're probably thinking about non-lifting stuff, but a good one is deadlifting. If you are doing a sensible weight you shouldn't need a hernia belt. This is pretty much my only lower back exercise.

A good one without weight for back and hams is where you lay on your stomach with your hands at supporting your hips and lift up your legs while looking ahead. You cross your legs, then switch which is on top/bottome, etc. I forget what that one is called.

Chin-ups are great for upper back, and do a little lower back too I think. Bent over rows, where you take a weight and lift it toward your chest, either with one hand and a dumbell or both and a bar, do the same muscle in a different way.

Trying to describe them, you don't really get the full idea of the right posture (with deadlift and rows) to take when doing the exercise, so either look up the exercise online or ask someone. My posture was a bit off with a few exercises because I learned from a book or someone who didn't bother to correct me.

Push ups will work the upper back. Lunges will build the legs and help with the posture problem.

For your lower back the already stated supermans are great.

Lay prone and put your arms out in front of you. Raise your arms and legs up so that you are balancing on your abdomen and squeeze at maximal heigh and contraction for a count of two, and go back down. Do these in the same manner you would do crunches, when it comes to sets and reps and such.

For your upper back pullups are great because you can turn lots of things into a pullups bar. What you can do is take a broom handle and lay it across two stable chairs, and lay under it, doing sort of an upside down pushup. This will work your lats very well.

For Glutes, there are two that I reccomend.

The Glue-Ham raise is where you anchor your feet securely under something that is no way going to raise up with your body weight. Start it a kneeling position, and let yourself forward, and attempt to slow yourself with your glutes. Push up off the floor and pull yourself up. Eventually you can do this as a calisthenic without pushing off the floor.

The one legged squat is another great one. Commonly called the pistol. What you want to do is put one leg out in front of you, and squat down with the other, not raising your heel off the ground. Keep your torso as erect as possible, and your knee as far back from hanging over your toe as possible. Many people can't do these properly and compensate with their quads and lose the benefit of the exercise. If you can't perform a whole repetition, go down to a chair, a step (great because you can slowly step up) or something similar.

Hope that helped, feel free to ask any questions.

At age 6 I could do 300 complete and correct pushups with no pauses or rests. I could bench 300 pounds at age 9. I freeweighted 45 pound weights as a warmup, and got up to 80 at my prime. I owe all of this to my wheelchair that I pushed daily for at least 10 miles a day.

I've gotten fat and lazy since getting a power chair, but my core muscles are still as strong as they'll ever be. I can bench 140, and can freeweight up to 45/50. I can also hold my endurance for 150/200 pushups, but I get mega tired.

I think freeweight/benching PLUS bodyweight training will balance you between core and specific muscle groups. You might not be your strongest in ONE area, but you'll be more than strong enough in all areas.

At 6, when I shouldn't even HAVE significant muscle groups, I was able to lift more than my trainer. This says something for bodyweight training, as I had pushed my own weight around all day.

JediKirby

Sadly, the most push-ups I've ever done in one "sitting" recently is 20 -- usually I can only do 10. Most girls have more upper body strength than I do ;_; It's what I like to call the Bugs Bunny physique :p

'Tis a good idea, I might just join in.

Problem is, I'm too lazy to stop being lazy.

Bah. Pushups. When I do those, the world is pushed down. [/shameless ripoff] :p

At the beginning of the year, I had a routine of 50 pushups and 100 crunches every evening. I've slacked off since then, but I still do it occasionally.

My usual max for consecutive pushups is 35.

I've done about 50 today, since I started today. My upper stomach/lower chest hurt.

Tenshu, if you're talking about weight lifting, squatting is awesome. Works your thighs and lower back.

and because your arms were 6 inches of pure muscle.

That's somewhat true. My arms are still thicker than anyone I know. I can fit my female friend's underpants, who is averaged size, around my bicept. How I found this out is classified.

Oops, forgot to say how many I do. 65 pushups a night, aiming to get that higher, and 150 situps. My arms hurt.

Everybody should just swim a ton, like me, it is so good for you and makes you look awesome. I swim for 2hrs a day 2 1/2 on saturdays, always between 5000-8500 short course yards(i once did 11,000) or 3500-5000 long course meters. i eat pretty much whatever i like and i don't have to worry about gaining wieght. The most push-ups i have ever done was a little over 100.

I swam pretty much everday from age 8 to about 13 (I lived on Cyprus back then), and loved it, but probably wouldn't go far enough to pay to go to pool every week nowadays. But then, on the other hand, it's not too bad of an idea...

Although I also eat whatever I like. Which is a lot.

Yeah. Swimming is an awesome work out brecause you get cardio and work out your entire body. Tones really well.

Grand total, I did about 110 yesterday throughout the evening, and 10 today because I'm coughing so much I almost puked a minute ago.

Oh, and Bruce Lee did TWO FINGER PUSH-UPS. TWO FINGERS.

Bruce Lee is the man. He could send someone flying by punching them from one inch away.

Sunday I did 45 pushups. Monday I did 20 pushups. And today, I did no pushups. :p

His 2 foot punch speed was something like 2/500th of a second. Lemme check real quick on Wikipedia.

Two fingers and two thumbs.

Wikipedia says only 2 fingers.

I don't care, that's still badass.

No, but he could make them sit down in a chair.

If I'm not at my dorm, I do 80 push ups before lunch, 80 push ups, before dinner, and 80 push ups before I sleep along with some stretches on Sundays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays (otherwise I do only one 80 set when I'm at the dorm).

If I'm not at the dorm on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays - I do 105 push ups sometime during the day and another 105 at night. I also end the night with 105 sit ups. Saturdays are special, I do additional stretches on that day along with kicks. When I'm at the dorm, I only do 105 push ups though.

The one inch punch isn't nearly as impressive as his ability to close distance in fractions of seconds.

You must be absolutely ripped.

I'm about to get back into the routine of staying fit. The only thing I'm curious about is when is the best time to do work outs/exercise? I used to do them in the evening before I would go to bed. Would it be more ideal to do it in the morning when you first wake up? Before or after breakfast? Or does it even matter??

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Push-ups

And one of the pictures mentions Bruce Lee's feat.

The afternoon is best because your body is working in full gear. Night is alright, but it can make it diffcult to go to sleep soon after because you get the body kicked up into high gear.

I don't really think I am. Really it's not too bad, it just takes alot of time and dedication.

What Avenger said is good for resistance training, but cardio should idealy be done before you eat for the day. That was your metabolism is boosted before you even begin calorie intake of the day, and it'll stay that way. That said, if you're going to do cardio and resistance at the same time, the afternoon works just fine.

Also, your body will burn fat for energy instead of trying to metabolize what has just come from your stomach.

That is why boxers run in the morning before breakfast. They burn fat, and then recover before their gym workout after work.

Um...Every time you run your metabolism is boosted. It stays boosted for about 45 minutes after you finish running, depending on the intensity of the workout.

Running, no matter what time of day, burns fat. Always. Running before you eat means you're only burning off caliroes/fat before you've put them into your body.

The best repition of ANY exercise you can do, which most people forget, is to do it slow. Your muscles actually work harder (and you produce better gains in both size and strength) on the reverse way up to what you would believe it to be.. (complicated, so here';s an example:)

Bicep Curl.

Your muscles actually get their main workout, best workout, best gains, and best strength gains, on the curl down, not up.

Curl up - Gain
On the way back down - Greater gain if done slower

The same goes for all exercises, depending ont he exercise, as I've stated. Pushups can be the same. You get a greater gain if you go slower on the way down, instead of the way up.

Licensed personal trainer, people.

Same.

I'm too lazy to even eat sometimes, when I'm absolutely starving.

I'm too lazy to blink and breathe sometimes..

I'm too lazy to go to the bathroom, so I pee in a bottle.