Top 5 worst exercises

Cylphin60
Cylphin60 Posts: 863 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Thread title taken from the video.

In short, he lists the following as exercises that need to go.

Flys
Behind the neck presses
Upright rows
Good Mornings
Leg extensions

To my admittedly uneducated self, everything he says makes sense, and I'd like your thoughts on it. I do leg extensions, upright rows and flys as accessories, and am thinking about going with his alternatives.

Thanks folks.

Source video: 10.5 minutes long

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O6Y3WDY1tUo
«1

Replies

  • Lizarking
    Lizarking Posts: 507 Member
    edited February 2017
    No way am I sitting through 10.5 minutes of boring video.

    But, based on your post:

    Flys aren't awful.

    Let's replace BTNs with situps as worst exercise. BTN has its place.

    And good mornings are an amazing exercise, if you're not an idiot.


    Totally agree about leg extensions, though. They are awful and should go away.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    @Lizarking
    Except leg extensions do have a place in the right context.
    They were the first step in my rehab from major knee injury and subsequent surgery.

    Agree for the majority of people they aren't the best choice but that doesn't mean they are universally awful.


  • Lizarking
    Lizarking Posts: 507 Member
    edited February 2017
    Yeah, my PT put me on leg extensions after my knee was torn apart in a collision. I wish she hadn't .* But I didn't know then what I know now. They were so far behind they didn't even have me on CPM.


    * leg extensions cause constant ACL tension and incredible shearing forces. Literally the opposite of what you should be doing on a rebuilt knee.
  • Packerjohn
    Packerjohn Posts: 4,855 Member
    Lizarking wrote: »
    No way am I sitting through 10.5 minutes of boring video.

    But, based on your post:

    Flys aren't awful.

    Let's replace BTNs with situps as worst exercise. BTN has its place.

    And good mornings are an amazing exercise, if you're not an idiot.


    Totally agree about leg extensions, though. They are awful and should go away.

    I did sit though the video and thought it was great. I checked the bio of the presenter Jeff Cavaliere, his background includes head physical therapist and assistant strength and conditioning coach for a major league baseball team. IMO, someone that would definitely be considered an expert. Also IMO, he gave very well explained reasons for his picks and suitable alternatives. NOTE: He did say good mornings are a great exercise, however, most people don't have the mobility in the thoracic area to do them correctly (maybe that's the idiot thing)

    Sure you could include some other exercises like sit ups in a top 5 list. My personal way to evaluate the safety/effectiveness of exercises is to look at the opinions of several experts with Doctor, MS, etc behind their names and have worked with high level athletes. If you look around the exercises listed are critically panned by most experts.
  • Chef_Barbell
    Chef_Barbell Posts: 6,644 Member
    I love good mornings. They work my hammies like nobody's business.
  • Cylphin60
    Cylphin60 Posts: 863 Member
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    Lizarking wrote: »
    No way am I sitting through 10.5 minutes of boring video.

    But, based on your post:

    Flys aren't awful.

    Let's replace BTNs with situps as worst exercise. BTN has its place.

    And good mornings are an amazing exercise, if you're not an idiot.


    Totally agree about leg extensions, though. They are awful and should go away.

    I did sit though the video and thought it was great. I checked the bio of the presenter Jeff Cavaliere, his background includes head physical therapist and assistant strength and conditioning coach for a major league baseball team. IMO, someone that would definitely be considered an expert. Also IMO, he gave very well explained reasons for his picks and suitable alternatives. NOTE: He did say good mornings are a great exercise, however, most people don't have the mobility in the thoracic area to do them correctly (maybe that's the idiot thing)

    Sure you could include some other exercises like sit ups in a top 5 list. My personal way to evaluate the safety/effectiveness of exercises is to look at the opinions of several experts with Doctor, MS, etc behind their names and have worked with high level athletes. If you look around the exercises listed are critically panned by most experts.

    I thought it was an extremely well presented video as well, but I never thought of checking his credentials, thank you :)

    I'm glad I stumbled across that now as leg extensions are(were) my go to alternative to squats, but I'll follow through with his suggestions now.

  • Cylphin60
    Cylphin60 Posts: 863 Member
    MeganAM89 wrote: »
    This is probably the worst

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffJNZQsYxUY
    Got to admit, I have never seen that before...
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
    Chef_Barbell wrote: »
    I love good mornings. They work my hammies like nobody's business.

    Same.. love them!
  • Lizarking
    Lizarking Posts: 507 Member
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    Lizarking wrote: »
    No way am I sitting through 10.5 minutes of boring video.

    But, based on your post:

    Flys aren't awful.

    Let's replace BTNs with situps as worst exercise. BTN has its place.

    And good mornings are an amazing exercise, if you're not an idiot.


    Totally agree about leg extensions, though. They are awful and should go away.

    I did sit though the video and thought it was great. I checked the bio of the presenter Jeff Cavaliere, his background includes head physical therapist and assistant strength and conditioning coach for a major league baseball team. IMO, someone that would definitely be considered an expert. Also IMO, he gave very well explained reasons for his picks and suitable alternatives. NOTE: He did say good mornings are a great exercise, however, most people don't have the mobility in the thoracic area to do them correctly (maybe that's the idiot thing)

    Sure you could include some other exercises like sit ups in a top 5 list. My personal way to evaluate the safety/effectiveness of exercises is to look at the opinions of several experts with Doctor, MS, etc behind their names and have worked with high level athletes. If you look around the exercises listed are critically panned by most experts.

    Thanks for taking one for the team. Sounds like he's on point with good mornings then.
  • Mycophilia
    Mycophilia Posts: 1,225 Member
    Hardly the 5 WORST exercises. Bosu ball squats, 2-person power clean, suicide grip bench press and this monstrosity comes to mind as leaps and bounds worse than what's in that video lol.

    8r4etscsknzr.jpg
  • Cylphin60
    Cylphin60 Posts: 863 Member
    Mycophilia wrote: »
    Hardly the 5 WORST exercises. Bosu ball squats, 2-person power clean, suicide grip bench press and this monstrosity comes to mind as leaps and bounds worse than what's in that video lol.

    8r4etscsknzr.jpg

    I've never even heard of what you listed :D

    Which is probably why he focused on more common exercises. He's probably just trying to focus on exercises that a majority of people like myself used to think were "ok" and did them just because they seemed to be what everyone else was doing.
  • marrrisa
    marrrisa Posts: 44 Member
    Wow I had no idea leg extensions were so bad! I don't do them often, but will when I want to target my quads especially.

    Are there other good quad-targeted exercises I could replace them with? My gym doesn't have a great set up for what he recommended in his video.

    Also I've never done a good morning - I should add that! I am trying to work my hamstrings.
  • Lizarking
    Lizarking Posts: 507 Member
    edited February 2017
    marrrisa wrote: »
    Wow I had no idea leg extensions were so bad! I don't do them often, but will when I want to target my quads especially.

    Are there other good quad-targeted exercises I could replace them with? My gym doesn't have a great set up for what he recommended in his video.

    Also I've never done a good morning - I should add that! I am trying to work my hamstrings.

    goblet squats


    be very careful with good mornings.
  • maranarasauce93
    maranarasauce93 Posts: 293 Member
    Mycophilia wrote: »
    Hardly the 5 WORST exercises. Bosu ball squats, 2-person power clean, suicide grip bench press and this monstrosity comes to mind as leaps and bounds worse than what's in that video lol.

    8r4etscsknzr.jpg
    Oh god stuff like that is just awful. Also Turkish get ups with a loaded barbell or anything weighed on an Indo/balance board. Unless you go by jujimufu, you will get hurt doing most of that stuff.
  • Packerjohn
    Packerjohn Posts: 4,855 Member
    Lizarking wrote: »
    marrrisa wrote: »
    Wow I had no idea leg extensions were so bad! I don't do them often, but will when I want to target my quads especially.

    Are there other good quad-targeted exercises I could replace them with? My gym doesn't have a great set up for what he recommended in his video.

    Also I've never done a good morning - I should add that! I am trying to work my hamstrings.

    goblet squats


    be very careful with good mornings.

    I'm pretty sure I'm going down the right, maybe others can comment. IMO, the good morning is basically a hip hinge variation (with weight added on the shoulders). Dan John gives a good explanation in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=34saz57cxjs


    This article has several movements that produced a hip hinge (including the good morning) and build the hamstrings:
    https://www.t-nation.com/training/hardcore-hinging-for-hamstrings
  • jessef593
    jessef593 Posts: 2,272 Member
    edited February 2017
    They're bad if done incorrectly and under too much weight. Jeff cavalier has both a shoulder issue and knee issue which is why he might state that those are bad exercises. Good mornings are great and increase my deadlifts like no tomorrow, behind the neck presses are bad once again of using too much weight and done incorrectly. Every exercise can hurt you. Say deadlifts, I've never hurt myself doing them, and they've increased my total strength by so much. I know others who ego lift them everytime with terrible form and walk away holding their backs for the next two days. Purely because they HAVE to lift as much as they can everytime.
  • stephmph16
    stephmph16 Posts: 114 Member
    edited February 2017
    Mycophilia wrote: »
    Hardly the 5 WORST exercises. Bosu ball squats, 2-person power clean, suicide grip bench press and this monstrosity comes to mind as leaps and bounds worse than what's in that video lol.

    8r4etscsknzr.jpg

    Holy crap to that last guy, lol

    Why are bosu ball squats a no?

    OP I enjoyed watching this video, thank you for sharing.

    eta: Nevermind, this makes sense http://www.menshealth.com/fitness/squats-bosu-ball
  • Cylphin60
    Cylphin60 Posts: 863 Member
    Lizarking wrote: »
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    Lizarking wrote: »
    No way am I sitting through 10.5 minutes of boring video.

    But, based on your post:

    Flys aren't awful.

    Let's replace BTNs with situps as worst exercise. BTN has its place.

    And good mornings are an amazing exercise, if you're not an idiot.


    Totally agree about leg extensions, though. They are awful and should go away.

    I did sit though the video and thought it was great. I checked the bio of the presenter Jeff Cavaliere, his background includes head physical therapist and assistant strength and conditioning coach for a major league baseball team. IMO, someone that would definitely be considered an expert. Also IMO, he gave very well explained reasons for his picks and suitable alternatives. NOTE: He did say good mornings are a great exercise, however, most people don't have the mobility in the thoracic area to do them correctly (maybe that's the idiot thing)

    Sure you could include some other exercises like sit ups in a top 5 list. My personal way to evaluate the safety/effectiveness of exercises is to look at the opinions of several experts with Doctor, MS, etc behind their names and have worked with high level athletes. If you look around the exercises listed are critically panned by most experts.

    Thanks for taking one for the team. Sounds like he's on point with good mornings then.

    I'd be one of the guys that meets his example with the lack of mobility. I've watched several how to videos, and I'm pretty sure I'd regret trying them.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Cylphin60 wrote: »
    Thread title taken from the video.

    In short, he lists the following as exercises that need to go.

    Flys
    Behind the neck presses
    Upright rows
    Good Mornings
    Leg extensions

    To my admittedly uneducated self, everything he says makes sense, and I'd like your thoughts on it. I do leg extensions, upright rows and flys as accessories, and am thinking about going with his alternatives.

    Thanks folks.

    Source video: 10.5 minutes long

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O6Y3WDY1tUo

    I didn't sit through the video, but here's my take in general...

    If I do flys, I do cables...heavy dumbbells can leave your shoulders compromised. Upright rows can also cause shoulder impingement. Good mornings aren't the worst, but they're not the best and it's probably best to keep the weight pretty light...IMO, you're just better off doing SLDs or RDLs. I don't recall the last time I did leg extensions...pretty sure I was a teenager.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    edited February 2017
    Mycophilia wrote: »
    Hardly the 5 WORST exercises. Bosu ball squats, 2-person power clean, suicide grip bench press and this monstrosity comes to mind as leaps and bounds worse than what's in that video lol.

    8r4etscsknzr.jpg

    I do bosu ball squats with dumbbells...they've been great for stability, but the weight is really light...but it's helped a lot with balance and stability. I do them with the bosu flipped over.
  • Cylphin60
    Cylphin60 Posts: 863 Member
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    Cylphin60 wrote: »
    Thread title taken from the video.

    In short, he lists the following as exercises that need to go.

    Flys
    Behind the neck presses
    Upright rows
    Good Mornings
    Leg extensions

    To my admittedly uneducated self, everything he says makes sense, and I'd like your thoughts on it. I do leg extensions, upright rows and flys as accessories, and am thinking about going with his alternatives.

    Thanks folks.

    Source video: 10.5 minutes long

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O6Y3WDY1tUo

    I didn't sit through the video, but here's my take in general...

    If I do flys, I do cables...heavy dumbbells can leave your shoulders compromised. Upright rows can also cause shoulder impingement. Good mornings aren't the worst, but they're not the best and it's probably best to keep the weight pretty light...IMO, you're just better off doing SLDs or RDLs. I don't recall the last time I did leg extensions...pretty sure I was a teenager.

    That's pretty much the gist of the video :) He mentions impingement a lot...
  • Dreamcrusher16
    Dreamcrusher16 Posts: 1,263 Member
    MeganAM89 wrote: »
    This is probably the worst

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffJNZQsYxUY

    Megan this made me lol
  • Leadfoot_Lewis
    Leadfoot_Lewis Posts: 1,623 Member
    Okay, admit I didn't care to sit through a 10 minute video (sorry!).

    Anyway...I absolutely LOVE Behind the Neck Presses. Upright Rows are fine if you lean forward a bit and use a VERY wide grip, bringing the barbell up just below the sternum. That said, Sumo Deadlift High Pulls should be on the list, along with Bosu Squats (as already mentioned) and pretty much anything that involves one of those stupid balls.



  • maranarasauce93
    maranarasauce93 Posts: 293 Member
    jessef593 wrote: »
    They're bad if done incorrectly and under too much weight. Jeff cavalier has both a shoulder issue and knee issue which is why he might state that those are bad exercises. Good mornings are great and increase my deadlifts like no tomorrow, behind the neck presses are bad once again of using too much weight and done incorrectly. Every exercise can hurt you. Say deadlifts, I've never hurt myself doing them, and they've increased my total strength by so much. I know others who ego lift them everytime with terrible form and walk away holding their backs for the next two days. Purely because they HAVE to lift as much as they can everytime.

    Agreed it's all about form and over use. Ex: even standard overhead pressing can put one at risk for shoulder impingement, especially if they use improper technique or are hypermobile.
  • LeoT0917
    LeoT0917 Posts: 206 Member
    I also watched the video. Thank you for making it available in your post. The video was very well done and the trainer was very good at explaining why he would substitute better alternative movements for "the five." As he very clearly stated in the video, it is not that the moves have NO merit, but that the benefits of performing "the five," do not outweigh the potential risk of injury.

    Made sense to me and I will definitely modify some of my workouts accordingly

    Thanks again.

  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    Lizarking wrote: »
    No way am I sitting through 10.5 minutes of boring video.

    But, based on your post:

    Flys aren't awful.

    Let's replace BTNs with situps as worst exercise. BTN has its place.

    And good mornings are an amazing exercise, if you're not an idiot.


    Totally agree about leg extensions, though. They are awful and should go away.

    I did sit though the video and thought it was great. I checked the bio of the presenter Jeff Cavaliere, his background includes head physical therapist and assistant strength and conditioning coach for a major league baseball team. IMO, someone that would definitely be considered an expert. Also IMO, he gave very well explained reasons for his picks and suitable alternatives. NOTE: He did say good mornings are a great exercise, however, most people don't have the mobility in the thoracic area to do them correctly (maybe that's the idiot thing)

    Sure you could include some other exercises like sit ups in a top 5 list. My personal way to evaluate the safety/effectiveness of exercises is to look at the opinions of several experts with Doctor, MS, etc behind their names and have worked with high level athletes. If you look around the exercises listed are critically panned by most experts.

    I like a lot of his videos as well. And whether you agree or don't agree that those exercise are "the worst" (and who really cares anyway), his alternatives are improvements. I use a lot of his stuff w/my clients, esp the shoulder exercises.
  • bketchum1981
    bketchum1981 Posts: 130 Member
    Burpees
  • Mycophilia
    Mycophilia Posts: 1,225 Member
    I do bosu ball squats with dumbbells...they've been great for stability, but the weight is really light...but it's helped a lot with balance and stability. I do them with the bosu flipped over.
    Why are bosu ball squats a no?

    I probably should have clarified that I meant loaded barbell squats on a bosu ball. Something like this:

    c1fbhwywrjx6.jpg
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Mycophilia wrote: »
    I do bosu ball squats with dumbbells...they've been great for stability, but the weight is really light...but it's helped a lot with balance and stability. I do them with the bosu flipped over.
    Why are bosu ball squats a no?

    I probably should have clarified that I meant loaded barbell squats on a bosu ball. Something like this:

    c1fbhwywrjx6.jpg

    Yeah, no...wouldn't do that...I'm pretty sure I'd break my neck just trying to step off with a barbell on my back.

    What I do is strictly for stability and balance and very light weight and I do an overhead press at the top of the squat.
  • Cylphin60
    Cylphin60 Posts: 863 Member
    LeoT0917 wrote: »
    I also watched the video. Thank you for making it available in your post. The video was very well done and the trainer was very good at explaining why he would substitute better alternative movements for "the five." As he very clearly stated in the video, it is not that the moves have NO merit, but that the benefits of performing "the five," do not outweigh the potential risk of injury.

    Made sense to me and I will definitely modify some of my workouts accordingly

    Thanks again.

    That was my take away as well. I used leg extensions fairly often, but am substituting with his suggestions going forward. Flys are another I'll find a replacement for.

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