If you picked 4 exercises what would they be?

punisher73

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https://www.amazon.com/Power-Putty-...s=power+putty&qid=1561654857&s=gateway&sr=8-5

Another thing for grip strength I have used and really liked is Power Putty. Think of a very tough silly putty. It was designed and sold for rock climbers. I also like my Captains of Crush.

As to the video, I would agree with his choices if you have access to weights and a power rack.

Bodyweight is much tougher after a certain point.

Push ups working to a one arm push up
Squats working up to a one legged pistol squat
Handstand push ups working to a one armed one
Pull ups working to a one armed pull up.
 

dvcochran

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Does the angle of the pull-up really limit grip strength development? You're correct that it mostly only affects the angle used in the exercise, but what other angles would matter for grip? As I think through it, what other angles are you likely to use when gripping for maximum grip?

Your point about being able to squeeze (rather than hold) is accurate enough. There's some cross-over, but squeezing something that moves is a much better way to develop squeezing ability than simply holding something (including your own weight during a pull-up).
This makes me think of my Kali training. Each practice we spent time dropping the catching steel balls as hard as we could. Not only gravity but the force of "pushing" into the ball as you tried to catch it worked against you. One hundred with each hand and you definitely would be feeling it. The balls were about the size of a soft ball, maybe slightly bigger and all the same size regardless of weight. The heaviest were 15 lbs. Very good for grip strength.
 

jobo

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This makes me think of my Kali training. Each practice we spent time dropping the catching steel balls as hard as we could. Not only gravity but the force of "pushing" into the ball as you tried to catch it worked against you. One hundred with each hand and you definitely would be feeling it. The balls were about the size of a soft ball, maybe slightly bigger and all the same size regardless of weight. The heaviest were 15 lbs. Very good for grip strength.
this seems to have migrated from the context of the vid,which was, you could get a strong well balanced health body with only 4 weighted exercises, which is also the same conclusion as jim wendles 531 strength training program, you could do much the same with body weights but would quite possibly need more exercises unless your very good? at gymnastics and can do compound lifts in one movement/ exercise

the conclusion that you can mix and match your favourite 4 exercises and get the same balance and performance benefits is faulty. quite the contrary, if you include say push ups you also need to include some pulling exercise to get any semblance of a balanced body, but you've still got all those other muscles you haven't used,and if you suddenly find you've a need to lift something over head, you likely find you have little strength in that direction. unless you've been doing overhead lifts or hand stand push ups

so really, it's all 4 listed ( or a good few more for body weight)and then you can add your running and jumping and squeezing etal
 
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JP3

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I was unclear if the O/P only wanted bodyweight exercises, or if he wanted weight training stuff, too?

Bodyweight, I'd go with burpees, pushups, pullups & probably lunges.

Gym work, it'd be squats, deadlifts, weighted pullups and pick a cardio machine or hit the road (my preference. Get at least 4 miles, 4x/week) ws my best result-maker, any more and I'd be pulling muscle off, not holding it or putting it on, any less and I could tell in my wind conditioning).
 

MetalBoar

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The OP said strength training workout for the martial artist. I'm running with the assumption that I'm still doing training in my martial art and all the drills and such that go along with it (so if I box, I'm still hitting the heavy bag, doing pad work, sparring, etc.).

1st choice (assuming I had access to my current set of machines or equivalent quality equipment):
  • Leg press
  • Hip extension
  • Seated dip or a good chest press
  • Seated row (1st choice) or a good narrow, underhand grip pull down (good alternate)
2nd choice (assuming just free weights are available):
  • Dead lift
  • Squats
  • Bench Press
  • Bent over row
Last choice if I had no other options - body weight:
  • Wind sprints
  • Dip or push ups
  • Slow chin ups (working towards 1 minute up and 1 down or longer at a consistent speed)
  • Plank?
 

_Simon_

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Years ago I would've picked straight up strength-based exercises. Amongst probably deadlifts, squats, dips, chinups, bench, rows etc. Martial arts ones moreso pushups and variations, pullups, pistol squats, particular isometric holds.

But if it was just four exercises that I had to stick with, it'd be ones that focused more on mobility with strength. I've developed many imbalances due to too much focus on weights/resistance training for years, plus toooo many pushups (not always a good thing!), so I'm now focusing more on mobility type work in addition to weights. Exercises which work on the joint's range of control to maintain structural health and integrity rather than just muscular strength at certain ranges.

A work in progress [emoji14]
 
D

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Weights, weights, weights and weights.

Joking aside, pushups, squats, pullups and probably kettle bell swings. I dont think you can do 4 exercises and get stronger the NHS recommends you do a routine of cardio, resistance and/or strength exercises. Its something like a hour of each a week. (i dont recall if resistance is strength or not or if they use both on the website)


Doesn't seem feasible, but i think exercises which do multiple muscle groups are good. someone has probbly given a similar response to this but there isnt exactly much deviation to what you can do.

I probably should explain my reasoning:

Pushups are good caliphetics movement for a few muscle groups, squats are the same more focusing on legs, pull ups are pretty good for building upper body strength and kettlebell swings work out your arms, legs and core and to incorporate some weight moving in there.

I have heard mixed things about sit ups and how good they actually are.
 

jobo

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Weights, weights, weights and weights.

Joking aside, pushups, squats, pullups and probably kettle bell swings. I dont think you can do 4 exercises and get stronger the NHS recommends you do a routine of cardio, resistance and/or strength exercises. Its something like a hour of each a week. (i dont recall if resistance is strength or not or if they use both on the website)


Doesn't seem feasible, but i think exercises which do multiple muscle groups are good. someone has probbly given a similar response to this but there isnt exactly much deviation to what you can do.

I probably should explain my reasoning:

Pushups are good caliphetics movement for a few muscle groups, squats are the same more focusing on legs, pull ups are pretty good for building upper body strength and kettlebell swings work out your arms, legs and core and to incorporate some weight moving in there.

I have heard mixed things about sit ups and how good they actually are.
the nhs set the bar really low, if they recommend high intensity training then they will have people being admitted to the cardio unit left right and centre, so they recommend an hour of moderate training, which if your going from nothing, is a good step forward, but no use at all if you actually want to be FIT,


if your going close to flat out, as you should be, then it's extremely difficult to do an hour of either, most people would fall over at 5 mins, if you mean spend an hour, 45 mins of which is resting in between sets, then yes that's very do able I was listening to this conversation in a pub, where this over weight and clearly out of condition woman was bragging to her friend, that she spent two hours at the gym, three times a week, which made me wonder what she was doing there for the other 1hour 55 mins, as it clearly wasn't exercise

but you can get quite fit on 5 mins a day, provided you use that time productivity

the problem with push ups, is if you have your feet clamped, your exercising you hip flexors more than anything else, and most people don't need tighter hip flexors, have your feet free and a 20 lb weight on your chest and you getting benefit to you abs,, though you still need some lateral movement
 
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Fedora

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Upper body push, upper body pull.
Something for the legs. Add some cardio.


Examples:
Pushes: Overhead press / bench press / dips.
Pulls: Chins / rows / deadlift
Legs: Squat / lunge / carries
Cardio: KB swing / KB snatch / skip rope
 
D

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the nhs set the bar really low, if they recommend high intensity training then they will have people being admitted to the cardio unit left right and centre, so they recommend an hour of moderate training, which if your going from nothing, is a good step forward, but no use at all if you actually want to be FIT,

Its what they deem the MINIMUM standards you should do as far as i recall. Spread out over the week is also listed as well, its not a hour long session i think its meant to be something like several smaller sessions balanced out with the other listed requirements, i really cant be bothered to open it to quote it at the moment. :p And their entire motif is as stated, getting people to do something rather than nothing as a step up.

It at least doesnt have you doing only cardo/calisthenics exercises (i know the two are different, but some calisthenics are used for cardio/warm up by some people more than a resistance exercise) and lists a portion of strength exercises to do, i dislike a focus on just calisthenics as it gets you good at moving your own weight but not a outside weight, or at least you have no experience in how to move something heavy not attached to your own nervous system/body.


the problem with push ups, is if you have your feet clamped, your exercising you hip flexors more than anything else, and most people don't need tighter hip flexors, have your feet free and a 20 lb weight on your chest and you getting benefit to you abs,, though you still need some lateral movement

Just to confirm did you mean push ups or sit ups? Because i think under the confines of the 4 exercises given it should be a decent all rounder, obviously not including running and such. And i dont think i chose any really specialist move set or advanced variation of any.


But again feel like stating i don't agree with the notion you can get fit/stronger with only 4 exercises as you need a bunch of different exercises to strengthen your body in different ways. And your goals influence what you will do/should do and all that same with any impairment in your body. And i don't consider doing boxing, running or what ever as a way to get good at what ever listed as a exercise as the sub components have more than 4 in it. Unless the sport in question is to only get good at 4 specific exercises. :p
 

jobo

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Its what they deem the MINIMUM standards you should do as far as i recall. Spread out over the week is also listed as well, its not a hour long session i think its meant to be something like several smaller sessions balanced out with the other listed requirements, i really cant be bothered to open it to quote it at the moment. :p And their entire motif is as stated, getting people to do something rather than nothing as a step up.

It at least doesnt have you doing only cardo/calisthenics exercises (i know the two are different, but some calisthenics are used for cardio/warm up by some people more than a resistance exercise) and lists a portion of strength exercises to do, i dislike a focus on just calisthenics as it gets you good at moving your own weight but not a outside weight, or at least you have no experience in how to move something heavy not attached to your own nervous system/body.




Just to confirm did you mean push ups or sit ups? Because i think under the confines of the 4 exercises given it should be a decent all rounder, obviously not including running and such. And i dont think i chose any really specialist move set or advanced variation of any.


But again feel like stating i don't agree with the notion you can get fit/stronger with only 4 exercises as you need a bunch of different exercises to strengthen your body in different ways. And your goals influence what you will do/should do and all that same with any impairment in your body. And i don't consider doing boxing, running or what ever as a way to get good at what ever listed as a exercise as the sub components have more than 4 in it. Unless the sport in question is to only get good at 4 specific exercises. :p
yes I meant sit up, fundamentally resistance training is resistance training, weight exercises don't general mimic real word issues you come accross either, they just give a base of strength for you to apply when necessary,

if 4 are enough depends what your fitness goals are, but they can certainly be so, if your goals are a strong healthy balanced body with a good aerobic capacity rather than having a specific goal to run fast or jump high or what ever. it's less that 4 are enough for all eventualities rather those 4 are a requirement for moire or less any sporting endeavour, which you then add to as you see fit.

you can do the same 4 with different weights and intervals to build strength strength endurance, endurance and out and out cardio. it does give an indecation that the gym myth is a myth and you can get at least comparable results with a bare minimum of equipment or no equipment at all. just as its a myth that the effectiveness if exercise has time critical component, like how many mins you do a week for example, increasing the time you spend exercising may in factse have the effect of decrease your fitness, dependent of course on how you measure fitness
 
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Gerry Seymour

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Its what they deem the MINIMUM standards you should do as far as i recall. Spread out over the week is also listed as well, its not a hour long session i think its meant to be something like several smaller sessions balanced out with the other listed requirements, i really cant be bothered to open it to quote it at the moment. :p And their entire motif is as stated, getting people to do something rather than nothing as a step up.

It at least doesnt have you doing only cardo/calisthenics exercises (i know the two are different, but some calisthenics are used for cardio/warm up by some people more than a resistance exercise) and lists a portion of strength exercises to do, i dislike a focus on just calisthenics as it gets you good at moving your own weight but not a outside weight, or at least you have no experience in how to move something heavy not attached to your own nervous system/body.




Just to confirm did you mean push ups or sit ups? Because i think under the confines of the 4 exercises given it should be a decent all rounder, obviously not including running and such. And i dont think i chose any really specialist move set or advanced variation of any.


But again feel like stating i don't agree with the notion you can get fit/stronger with only 4 exercises as you need a bunch of different exercises to strengthen your body in different ways. And your goals influence what you will do/should do and all that same with any impairment in your body. And i don't consider doing boxing, running or what ever as a way to get good at what ever listed as a exercise as the sub components have more than 4 in it. Unless the sport in question is to only get good at 4 specific exercises. :p
There's some relatively recent research that suggests we can get some real longevity and fitness benefits from just 5-10 minutes of moderate exercise a day. It turns out that small amount of movement has significant impact on quality of life.
 

vince1

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Body weight only, or could we throw in one piece of equipment like a kettlebell or dumbbell? I’ll asterisk the one using a single kettlebell...

Push-ups
Pull-ups/chin-ups
Planks
Turkish get-ups*

If no kettlebell is allowed...
Burpees/squat thrust

I also like to add biking and fast walking or just long walks.
 

jobo

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I also like to add biking and fast walking or just long walks.
biking/ cycling, is a really bad exercise for introduction out of alignment issues, road cycling particularly, mountain biking less so, to the point that you need a whole exercise routine to put right all the out of balance/ over use injuries it causes, its not a good way to over all fitness, its something you have to be fit to do ,
 

Gerry Seymour

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biking/ cycling, is a really bad exercise for introduction out of alignment issues, road cycling particularly, mountain biking less so, to the point that you need a whole exercise routine to put right all the out of balance/ over use injuries it causes, its not a good way to over all fitness, its something you have to be fit to do ,
I wasn't aware of that - haven't really looked into biking much over the years. Can you point me to some info?
 

vince1

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biking/ cycling, is a really bad exercise for introduction out of alignment issues, road cycling particularly, mountain biking less so, to the point that you need a whole exercise routine to put right all the out of balance/ over use injuries it causes, its not a good way to over all fitness, its something you have to be fit to do ,

I have introduced casual cycling and walking long distances to my exercise routine over the last five years and have experienced great benefits. I made no mention of road cycling or mountain biking. I use to be a runner many years ago and have no more desire to run and suffer the impact of sore joints.I do a lot of stretching as well before biking and martial arts. I know many people that use to run that have switched to biking and find it easier on the joints than running.
 
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