How OFTEN do you SWITCH EXERCISES?

[Girlwonder]

I heard that variety in exercises is also important but when I tried alternating exercises as for hamstring curls for 1 week then deadlifts the 2nd week, I find that when I come back to doing my hamstring curls the 3rd week, I get weaker Do you guys know what I"m talking about??

 

[granby140]

http://boards.elitefitness.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=214813

 

[Mad Max]

You shouln't be alternating deadlifts with hamstring curls. Deadlifts nail you glute and the curls hit the hams, one is a power movement and the other isn't. You should alternate deadlifts with hacksquats or another power exercice like a hip slead. You want the same movement but a excercise that hits it from a different angle. Hope that helps.
---PEACE---Mad Max

 

[ANVIL276]

It's more important for the seasoned veteran than for the novice.
If you have less than 1 year of serious training then you would be better off getting stronger on core exercises.
Variety is a useful tool when you hit a platau.

 

[Girlwonder]

You shouln't be alternating deadlifts with hamstring curls. Deadlifts nail you glute and the curls hit the hams, one is a power movement and the other isn't. You should alternate deadlifts with hacksquats or another power exercice like a hip slead. You want the same movement but a excercise that hits it from a different angle. Hope that helps.
---PEACE---Mad Max

ok what if i switch from hams curls to basic squats? i did that and i also got weaker(my hams i meant)
p.s what is "core exercise" ?

 

[Nelson Montana]

That ain't it.

The reason you're weaker is the reason it's effective.

When you stick with one exercise, the body adapts and becomes more efficient at performing it. That's why if you want to bench more weight, you practice benching, not developing the pecs. In order for a muscle to grow it must work harder, not easier.

You need to choose whether you want to be strong or muscular. Sure, when you get muscular you get stronger and when you get stronger you get more muscular, but they're side effects of each other. It's possible to be good at one and not very good at the other.

The muscle doesn't care what the weight is. It only knows stress.

(BTW: Lot's of people will disagree with this, but they're wrong).

 

[Mad Max]

Core exercises are the basic movements that you should do when you first start bodybuilding, if your goal is to put on size. Bench press, squat, deadlist are some basic core excersises that will help you develope a base before sculpting your body. If your goal is to build up a good fame to sculpt then these are what you should include in your workouts.
Whenever you work a muscle there are individual muscles in each bodypart. Lets take the leg, you have the ham, glut, quad. If your working out your legs assuming you want to add mass on all these muscles you should do excersises that target each muscle. For glutes switch up deadlifts with lunges, hacksquat, hipslead. Then you should hit up the hams. Depending on your gym there should be at least 2 machines or cable you can use. So what i'm saying is don't leave out any of the muscles so that none of them will fall behind. If you can't do all in one day slpit it up for leags twice a week.If your only doing specific exercises that mainly hit the quad then of course the glutes and hams are gonna get weak and possibly lag.
---PEACE---Mad Max

 

[Girlwonder]

Madmax, um....hacksquat???hipslead??? I've never heard of exercises like that? how do you do that???

Ok so for ex: 1 week I do seated hams curls then the other week I do lying leg curls(or single lying leg curls) right??

 

[Mad Max]

You got it. I'm just saying make sure you work each seperate muscle of the bodypart and make sure you hit each one every week. If your just beginning I would look for a good book that illistrates all the basic and intermedieate excersises. It will make it alot eaisier for you to plan future workouts when you have more to pick from.
---PEACE---Mad Max

 

[Girlwonder]

You got it. I'm just saying make sure you work each seperate muscle of the bodypart and make sure you hit each one every week. If your just beginning I would look for a good book that illistrates all the basic and intermedieate excersises. It will make it alot eaisier for you to plan future workouts when you have more to pick from.
---PEACE---Mad Max

hey you still haven't told me what hacksquat and hipslead is???I'd like to try some new exercises