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Summary
On episode 118 of 40+ Fitness, Coach Allan walks through 5 uncommon exercises most people are not doing but should be adding to their routine.
He picked these movements for a specific reason: they add variety so you avoid the plateaus and boredom that make people quit a program, they work the body in unfamiliar ways that build strength, balance, and endurance together, and outside of one exercise, they require no equipment at all.
He walks through the bear crawl, the duck walk, the wall sit, the mountain climber, and the Turkish get up, explaining the setup, the muscles each one targets, and how to scale reps or hold time to your current fitness level.
Links
- https://40plusfitness.com
Key Takeaways
- Variety keeps you from plateauing and quitting. Allan points out that people who stick with the same routine tend to get bored, get on the treadmill, decide they are tired of it, and quit instead of mixing in something new.
- The bear crawl builds upper body strength and lower body mobility at once. Squat down, lift your hips slightly, and move hand and foot together on all fours, roughly 20 yards out and back for someone in decent shape.
- The duck walk trains leg mobility and endurance in a deep squat. Get low with your tailbone near the ground, then walk forward by lifting one knee at a time, again about 20 yards out and back.
- The wall sit isolates the quadriceps. Slide your back down a wall until your thighs are close to parallel with the floor and hold, aiming for anywhere from 20 to 60 seconds depending on your strength.
- The mountain climber builds endurance with a little upper body work. From a hands and knees plank position, alternate driving one knee to the chest while the other leg extends back, aiming for 20 to 60 controlled reps.
- The Turkish get up is Allan’s favorite because it stacks strength, balance, and focus into one movement. You move from lying on your back with a weight held straight up, through a sit up, a bridge, a half kneel, and finally to standing, then reverse the whole sequence back to the floor, always keeping your eyes on the weight.
- Start light on the Turkish get up. Allan recommends learning the pattern with an empty fist first, then moving to a 3 to 5 pound dumbbell or kettlebell for 5 to 10 reps per side.
- Control matters more than speed on the dynamic moves. Because the mountain climber and Turkish get up involve quick transitions, Allan warns against jerking through the reps since that is where injuries happen.
- Nearly everyone can do these, cleared by a doctor or not. Every exercise scales by distance, hold time, or rep count, so the same 5 movements challenge a beginner and a fit exerciser alike.
