This Functional Workout Uses 4 Different Types Of Exercise To Build A Bigger, Stronger, Fitter Body
Training for optimum fitness can be tough. We show you how to build your best body ever

June 1, 2011

Young man lifts weight in gym/ sex

Just like a protein shake, an effective sports workout depends on the right blend of ingredients. That’s why this workout emphasises four different types of exercises: explosive, knee-dominant, hip-dominant and functional.

Explosive movements improve your ability to generate power; knee-dominant exercises train your front thigh muscles; hip-dominant exercises strengthen your hamstrings, gluteal muscles and lower back; and functional moves allow you to twist, turn and balance.

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Together, they give you an edge: “The athlete who can react explosively and move efficiently in all directions finishes first every time,” says certified strength and conditioning specialist Robert dos Remedios. Follow Dos Remedios’s workout plan:

Your Goal: Elevate Your Game

Your Time: 30 Minutes

1.Clean Pull (Explosive Exercise)

Roll a barbell to your shins. Grab it with an overhand grip, feet shoulder-width apart. Keeping your back flat and arms straight, squeeze your glutes as you straighten your legs, rise onto your toes and shrug your shoulders. Pause, then lower the bar.

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The Plan: Perform four sets of five repetitions in weeks one and three. In weeks two and four, do four sets, decreasing your reps and increasing the weight each set. Do five reps in your first set, four in your second, three in your third and two in your fourth.

2. Curtsy Lunge (Knee-Dominant Exercise)

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and a barbell across the back of your shoulders. Keeping your hips facing forwards, step back with your right foot and place it to the left of your left leg as you bend your knees, lowering your body. Push up to the starting position and repeat with your left leg back. That’s one repetition.

The Plan: Do three sets of 10 repetitions in weeks one and three. In weeks two and four, do four sets of five reps.

3. Good Morning (Hip-Dominant Exercise)

Stand with a light barbell across the back of your shoulders. Keep a slight bend in your knees and maintain a slight arch in your back throughout the move. Push your butt back and bend forwards at the hips until your chest is parallel to the floor. Contract your glutes, push your hips forwards and raise your torso to return to the starting position.

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The Plan: Perform three sets of 10 repetitions in weeks one and three. In weeks two and four, do four sets of five reps.

4. Woodchopper (Functional Exercise).

Attach a rope handle to a high-pulley cable. Stand with your left side towards the weight stack and your feet slightly more than shoulder-width apart. Grab the rope with both hands. Keeping your arms straight, bend your knees as you pull the handle down and across your body until your hands reach the outside of your right lower leg. Reverse the motion and finish your reps before switching sides and repeating the move.

The Plan: Do three sets of 10 repetitions in week one, four sets of 10 reps in weeks two and four, and five sets of five in week three.