"Say No To Fufu Exercises"Choosing the Right Exercisesby Doug Jackson, M.Ed., CSCS, Don't get caught up in new gimmicks when choosing the right exercises for your goals. Many trainers will hate me for what I share with you today. So will fitness magazine editors... But, I've had enough of it, and I want share the truth with you... Many "new" and "cutting edge" exercises will not help you changeyour body the way you want. I refer to these category of exercises as "fufu exercises",otherwise known as "foofoo exercises". And unfortunately, many fufu exercises start with one end inmind...profit. Trainers want to sell more sessions and magazine publishers want to sell more magazines... And an easy way to do that is to give the perception that there are new exercises and breakthroughs that will "render everything else obsolete" (okay I stole the last phrase from the advertisement of a new workout supplement). Let me tell you something...after training hundreds of people andworking with many of the best trainers in the country: I stickwith the basics. Don't get me wrong. There are new ideas, concepts, and exercisesthat are useful. In fact, my friend and Family Fit Plan co-author Jonathan Ross AionFitness.com, is one of the leading thinkers when it comesto using new concepts to enhance programs and results. But as I often say, each of the new concepts and exercises are just one more tool to use in the toolbox, not "the answer". So what are the fufu exercises? Sometimes it is an isolation movement that focuses on such a small muscle area that you get a very small bang for your buck. Other times, the exercises that fill this category are a complex of three or four different exercises combined at once, often with a stability component (maybe a stability ball or BOSU ball) added in. For example, let's say it's an exercise that: Has someone stand on a BOSU ball with their right leg, keeptheir left leg raised in a hip and knee flexed position, andperform a dumbbell shoulder press with their left arm. Look... that's great if you want to be a professional '1-leg BOSUball stander with contralateral 1-arm shoulder press expert", but no one is going to convince me that this type of exercise should be the core programming for a client who wants to transform their physique. This brings me to the last aspect of fufu exercises: Fufu exercises are exercises that don't specifically and effectively help you reach YOUR specific goals. Look, most people I know want to look good, feel energetic andconfident, and be healthy. Most want to tone up, enhance theirmetabolism, strengthen their bones, and slim down. A lot of these fufu exercises do not specifically help in thisregard. With the balance and stability demands of some of theseexercises spread through the body, there is virtually no overloadin any muscle area of the body. In other isolation-based movements, the overall muscle area worked is so small that it's simply not a good use of your time. Muscular overload is what stimulates the body to remold itself into a more tone organism. If you want to reshape your body in record time, you must pickexercises that work a medium to large amount of muscle at once and are designed in a way where overload is possible (not too many other variables thrown in). Don't get me wrong. There is a place for balancing and stability,as well as isolation movements in a person's program (especially if their goals are performance or rehab based), but we shouldn'toverlook the classic,"old school" exercises that transformphysiques with their ability to create muscular overload. My clients results speak for themselves. Stick with the basics. Challenge yourself. Be consistent. If you are looking for a program that addresses these problems and works for you, you can rely on my Fitness Now and Forever program to take your fitness to the next level. You can order at FitnessNowandForever.com Dedicated to your health, fitness, and human potential, Doug Jackson, M.Ed.,CSCS |