LIFT

The BEST exercises for every muscle

Episode Summary

In this episode of the LIFT podcast, we’re tackling one of the most common (and misunderstood) questions in fitness: What are the best exercises for each muscle group? Spoiler alert: there’s no single “best” exercise, but there are ways to evaluate and choose exercises that give you the most bang for your buck.

Episode Notes

In this episode of the LIFT podcast, we’re tackling one of the most common (and misunderstood) questions in fitness: What are the best exercises for each muscle group? Spoiler alert: there’s no single “best” exercise, but there are ways to evaluate and choose exercises that give you the most bang for your buck.

Here’s what we cover:

The Two Pillars of Exercise Selection:

• Overload capability: How easy and efficient it is to progressively overload an exercise.
• Lengthened position: Does the exercise effectively load the muscle when it’s in its lengthened state?

Breaking Down Muscle Groups:

• Chest: Why machines often outperform free weights for overload and stability.
• Back: The importance of stable rows and vertical pulling movements like lat pulldowns.
• Shoulders: Why cables and machines are superior for lateral and rear delt training.
• Arms (biceps & triceps): Exercises like preacher curls and Smith machine JM presses that tick all the right boxes.
• Legs: Why hack squats, leg presses, and seated hamstring curls are more effective than traditional barbell lifts for most people.
• Calves: The underrated importance of straight-leg calf raises and why seated calf raises miss the mark.

The Trap of Social Media Clickbait:

• Debunking viral “best exercise” posts and why flashy variations often don’t deliver results.
• How to evaluate exercises critically using the two key criteria above.

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