I love training beginners. They always allow me kick their butts ever so quietly – unlike my regulars, who tell me where to go on a regular basis. I heart the regulars too as I adore sarcasm and spunk.
Beginners, however, hold a special place in my heart.
They haven’t heard all my jokes yet (I have about six of them that I rotate through), they never complain, they never flip me the bird and they always see results.
You see, no matter what program you give a beginner exerciser, they will see results. Their body is like a sponge and whatever exercise you give them, their body will soak it up.
A beginner will experience all new ways to move, firing up all new muscle fibres and experiencing all new growth in a short time. And that’s cause it’s all new.
It would take an experienced exerciser about three months to see the same gains a beginner makes in as little as four weeks.
When I start with a beginner, I always teach them six base moves. These moves are, I believe, the foundation to all other exercises, and once that beginner is no longer a beginner, I can start layering more advanced movements on top of that base move so they keep seeing results.
Squat. A squat is a basic movement for any person with fully functioning legs. Everyone squats on a daily basis (ummm... the toilet), and it is one of the fitness tests that therapists will give the elderly to see how functional their lower body is.
To not squat is to do your body an injustice.
Push-up. Someone once asked me why I love push-ups so much and I replied, “because they teach people how to push away from the dinner table,” Now you can see why my classes and clients flip me the bird.
Truthfully, though, we should be able to push our own body weight and if you are unable to (due to an injury), ask your physiotherapist for some safe pressing movements to keep the muscles in your upper body strong.
Pull-ups/rows.
Whether you are pulling your own body weight up using a pull-up bar, or performing a pull up off a TRX, or using a dumbbell for a one-arm row, or my personal fave, rowing with one arm using a cable machine, you should not neglect this base move.
A pull-up/row fires up all the big muscles of the back, thus keeping your core and shoulders happy.
Plank. Using your core, in a lengthened position, to support your spine is something that makes my heart warm faster than Ryan Gosling, Brad Pitt and Jason Statham combined.
I hate ab crunches because they do not train the abs in a real-life pattern and they do not prepare us for sport or life. Planks do.
Lunges. “To err is human, to lunge is divine.” A lunge trains the big guns in the lower body and core like a squat does, but now the feet are staggered making this even more true to life.
I mean, how many times have you been caught off balance in your life (not emotionally – that’s a different kind of column) with your feet firmly planted? Not often. We are usually offset in our stance, or on one leg, or moving through space. That’s why a lunge is so awesome.
Bridges. Most people use their glutes to sit, but I prefer they use their glutes to extend the hips (the way the body intended), which is why the bridge made the top six.
Bridges are one of the best exercises to do to train the glutes and you can do one anytime and any place. All you need is a piece of floor, some space to lie down and the ability to engage your glutes to lift your hips up.
PJ Wren is a local personal trainer who can be reached at www.fitnesswithpj.com. Check out the new season of Fitness with PJ now airing on Delta TV.
