top 5 over rated exercise machines

[tbrady12]

Alright I want to hear what you guys think are the top 5 most useless exercise machines in the gym are!

Heres mine

1. Ab/ad machine- classic is seeing girls do these hr after hr
2. Any kind of ab machine- so many better exercises with bw
3. lower back ext machine. (one where you push back)- people do this with there lazy-boy couches all night- pushing back
4. Seated tricep extension machine- most the time there using more back and shoulders to complete the lift
5. horizontal leg press with (pin weights)-quads, quads, quads most people overtrain them then get knee injuries...i love the leg press but not these ones. ROM is ristricted as well.

[fitnessbyjay]

I can't think of many right now but cable cross-over is the most useless chest exercise I know. Regarding your choices, I love the cybex tricep extension machine and the seated leg press once in a while too.

[JWeisend]

Im not going to make a list but two I very much despise are:

Ab machine - If you have the ability to get down on the floor and do crunches, situps, leg raises, barbell roll-outs, etc. then by all means do it. Quit being lazy.

Lower back machine - Just the other day I saw a girl sitting there, lazily pushing back with next to no weight while TEXTING ON HER CELL PHONE! I wanted to just say get out so bad.

[Keltron]

Alright I want to hear what you guys think are the top 5 most useless exercise machines in the gym are!

Heres mine

1. Ab/ad machine- classic is seeing girls do these hr after hr
2. Any kind of ab machine- so many better exercises with bw
3. lower back ext machine. (one where you push back)- people do this with there lazy-boy couches all night- pushing back
4. Seated tricep extension machine- most the time there using more back and shoulders to complete the lift
5. horizontal leg press with (pin weights)-quads, quads, quads most people overtrain them then get knee injuries...i love the leg press but not these ones. ROM is ristricted as well.

lol, all very ghey machines. Don't forget the Good Girl and Bad Girl machines aka the add/abductor machines.

[fitnessbyjay]

lol, all very ghey machines. Don't forget the Good Girl and Bad Girl machines aka the add/abductor machines.

The adductor machine is actually very good for thigh development. I know pros that do it, really fills out your quads.

[BrooklynFit]

the bench press - way too overated. push-ups are a lot more effective, you use more core, and they develop your chest better.



































































































notsrs.

[fitnessbyjay]

the bench press - way too overated. push-ups are a lot more effective, you use more core, and they develop your chest better.






notsrs.

Flat bench is still overrated. Especially the mindset that doing sloppy singles everyweek will build you a big chest.

[Ascendancy]

Any ab equipment ever. If you want abs, squatting heavy ass weight will get you them in no time

[fitnessbyjay]

Any ab equipment ever. If you want abs, squatting heavy ass weight will get you them in no time

I'll see about that soon. I work up to 4 plates for reps on squats, but my abs suck, hopefully they'll improve now that I'm starting to do abs isolation work.

[jando]

I agree for the most part with a lot listed but there have definitely been times where i've had to use just about every single piece of equipment due to special circumstances.

I've definitely used the ab and adductor machines due to ankle injuries for a few people

[fitnessbyjay]

Tell me big adductors don't make your legs look better:



Note: I'm not saying beginners should hammer out on the adductor machine, but it can be a useful tool to bring up inner thighs.

[askthetrainer]

Alright I want to hear what you guys think are the top 5 most useless exercise machines in the gym are!

Heres mine

1. Ab/ad machine- classic is seeing girls do these hr after hr
2. Any kind of ab machine- so many better exercises with bw
3. lower back ext machine. (one where you push back)- people do this with there lazy-boy couches all night- pushing back
4. Seated tricep extension machine- most the time there using more back and shoulders to complete the lift
5. horizontal leg press with (pin weights)-quads, quads, quads most people overtrain them then get knee injuries...i love the leg press but not these ones. ROM is ristricted as well.

All machines w/ a single use are worthless in my book...

Free Motion Dual Cable Cross FTW

[tbrady12]

Tell me big adductors don't make your legs look better:



Note: I'm not saying beginners should hammer out on the adductor machine, but it can be a useful tool to bring up inner thighs.

what the hell is all over the skin???

[fitnessbyjay]

what the hell is all over the skin???

Talking bout the freckles or something?

[nsiegel5]

Tell me big adductors don't make your legs look better:



Note: I'm not saying beginners should hammer out on the adductor machine, but it can be a useful tool to bring up inner thighs.

Dear lord Freddy Krueger got jacked
Seriously, you couldnt find a picture of a normal human being to post about adductor development. This guys physique is putrid
Dont take advice from BBers who tell you to do addductor machines, if your squating properly youre hitting them and there really isnt much reason for iso work. Not saying it doesnt work, just saying its not necessary.

[fitnessbyjay]

Dear lord Freddy Krueger got jacked
Seriously, you couldnt find a picture of a normal human being to post about adductor development. This guys physique is putrid
Dont take advice from BBers who tell you to do addductor machines, if your squating properly youre hitting them and there really isnt much reason for iso work. Not saying it doesnt work, just saying its not necessary.

Find a picture of a regular joe to show how big adductors make your legs look better, wut? Of course I need a pic of someone with big adductors lol

Some guys can develop great adductors with squats and leg presses, examples Jay Cutler and King Kamali. Other guys have a hard time filling up their inner thighs and that's when it comes in handy. Like I said, this is great for more advanced bodybuilders, I'm not close to that level myself. I was just bringing another point into the discussion.

EDIT: But I agree, women doing endless sets on these is always stupid.

Dave Henry in 2002 vs. 2008 - He gives much credit to the adductor machine for filling out his inner thighs.


vs.

[ThePinsir]

1. Ab/ad machine- classic is seeing girls do these hr after hr

this, this, this, this, THIS!! I don't think a single woman at my gym knows what a squat is...

[HardWork.]

I can't think of many right now but cable cross-over is the most useless chest exercise I know. Regarding your choices, I love the cybex tricep extension machine and the seated leg press once in a while too.

What do you have against cable crossovers?

[fitnessbyjay]

What do you have against cable crossovers?

Nothing personal. I just feel they are useless.

[rdferguson]

Nothing personal. I just feel they are useless.

Obviously at 150lb, I don't have much to say when it comes to high level bodybuilding other than what others have said from their own experience. But I will say this:

The way I look at it, assuming there's no reason that you can't do the big compounds normally and effectively, there's not really much point in doing an isolation exercise unless it allows you to do something more with the muscle than what you could do before. I actually think this gives a lot of qualification towards the use of the cable crossover, because it allows more ROM in shoulder lateral flexion than the bench press or any standard DB chest exercise, so it has something to offer that bench press and flies can't normally provide. Just my opinion.

[nickmanzoni]

Find a picture of a regular joe to show how big adductors make your legs look better, wut? Of course I need a pic of someone with big adductors lol

Some guys can develop great adductors with squats and leg presses, examples Jay Cutler and King Kamali. Other guys have a hard time filling up their inner thighs and that's when it comes in handy. Like I said, this is great for more advanced bodybuilders, I'm not close to that level myself. I was just bringing another point into the discussion.

EDIT: But I agree, women doing endless sets on these is always stupid.

Dave Henry in 2002 vs. 2008 - He gives much credit to the adductor machine for filling out his inner thighs.


vs.

Those ab/ad machines really work wonders! I mean: they even made his head large and square looking...oops that's the steroids.... Probably had something to do with the leg development too....

[regl8r]

x2 Nick

I don't beleive a word a pro bodybuilder says.
-Adductor to fill out quads
-All natural
-Bicep Routines from muscle mag
-Just use cell tech/no-xplode
-etc

Ya sure

[Rval86]

I dont believe much of anything top IFBB pros say but I've learned a ton about bodybuilding just from reading the contest prep journals of guys like layne, tommy jeffers, kurt weidner etc. Its comical how many people reference top IFBB guys' training methods as being relevant to a conversation about how to train clients. "well Ronnie and Jay love this exercise, so it MUST be good..."

[Keltron]

The adductor machine is actually very good for thigh development. I know pros that do it, really fills out your quads.

Tell me big adductors don't make your legs look better:



Note: I'm not saying beginners should hammer out on the adductor machine, but it can be a useful tool to bring up inner thighs.

Find a picture of a regular joe to show how big adductors make your legs look better, wut? Of course I need a pic of someone with big adductors lol

Some guys can develop great adductors with squats and leg presses, examples Jay Cutler and King Kamali. Other guys have a hard time filling up their inner thighs and that's when it comes in handy. Like I said, this is great for more advanced bodybuilders, I'm not close to that level myself. I was just bringing another point into the discussion.

EDIT: But I agree, women doing endless sets on these is always stupid.

Dave Henry in 2002 vs. 2008 - He gives much credit to the adductor machine for filling out his inner thighs.


vs.

Unless you're specializing in training bodybuilders who plan on competing, thinking about "filling out" specific muscles, is a pretty bad way of going about selecting exercises for your client.

[sjmacka]

lol, all very ghey machines. Don't forget the Good Girl and Bad Girl machines aka the add/abductor machines.

Just spit my corn flakes all over the place. Never heard that before. F-ing funny!!

[tbrady12]

Dear lord Freddy Krueger got jacked
Seriously, you couldnt find a picture of a normal human being to post about adductor development. This guys physique is putrid
Dont take advice from BBers who tell you to do addductor machines, if your squating properly youre hitting them and there really isnt much reason for iso work. Not saying it doesnt work, just saying its not necessary.

totally agree...

[fitnessbyjay]

Unless you're specializing in training bodybuilders who plan on competing, thinking about "filling out" specific muscles, is a pretty bad way of going about selecting exercises for your client.

If you've read what I wrote in this thread, I never said it was an exercise everyone should be doing. I said they can be useful for advanced trainees.

x2 Nick

I don't beleive a word a pro bodybuilder says.
-Adductor to fill out quads
-All natural
-Bicep Routines from muscle mag
-Just use cell tech/no-xplode
-etc

Ya sure

-Of course they don't admit to using steroids because a) they're illegal and b) they will lose their sponsorship. It's not like they're going out calling themself the "Natural IFBB King" or anything. They just don't admit it when they're asked for obvious reasons.

And I was actually wrong when I said Dave credited them for his size, it was his trainer, Dante, creator of DC training and one of the most respected guys in this business. Some nice quotes from him about the issue:

Raul to each his own....but Ive bombed away with heavy weights for over a decade and still ended up with inner thighs that were subpar in my eyes. I tried sumo squats for over a year, sumo presses, sumo box squats, and then tried every single foot stance i could and it helped a little but not greatly. Finally i tried the adductor machine and they finally came up. Do i wish I had to do them? Hell no! they suck and are so painfull--the pain the next day is unlike anything because its such a unique movement. I rest pause these last like Inhuman and Nemo for 15-20 reps and then pull myself toward the weight stack for the extreme stretch (after last rest pause with my legs still outward I pull myself down and try (and i do mean try because its excruciating) for 45-60 seconds)---Most guys never have to do these, for some reason their inner thighs grow right along with their leg movements (King Kamali comes to mind-check his inner quads)......im not saying to forgo heavy leg movements and only do these Raul--its just something Ive had to personally do myself because there isnt another exercise I know of that will get me past this weakness.

----

No the platz pics are to prove how important that area is to have fully developed. I want people to train legs with squats hacks and leg presses **** heavy and hard. But heres the concept Raul, and you and the other guys on this board that I personally train can comment on this. I have you guys doing reverse grip one arm cable curls for the top of the forearm. Have you guys seen another movement that puts on as much muscle mass as that one does on the top of the forearm? I havent. Maybe some other guys genetics allow them to get that from hammer curls or whatever but most people who I have do that cable curl movement are shocked 3 months down the road on how different their forearm looks. Does that mean i want people to forgo heavy curls, preacher curls and dumbell curls? No. Trust me Raul if i could get away with not doing the adductor machine I would. I cant find anything else that does what it does. Its no more and no less than that. I do it as an afterthought just for me personally (or for anyone else who has the same weakness I do) after I get my main bombs away leg training done. ----I dont want people doing froofy isolation movements especially when your going to get bigger front delts from a 405lb incline press than a 25lb front raise and bigger rear delts and traps from heavy deads, tbars and bent over rows with 300-600lbs than bent over laterals with 25lbs....but personally I cant get the inner quads up without this machine raul (and Ive racked my head with different ideas trying as stated)--they just wont grow in the present plane of action of leg presses, squats and hacks for me

---

And I do know what your saying--no doubt that beginning guys should focus on the big three leg movements and only worry bout things like this many years down the road......and the majority of them will never have to worry bout inner thigh mass because it will grow proportionately (seems to do that for 90% of the people who train) but for some reason I got put in the other 10%

Or you can stay close minded and keep thinking inside the box.

[BEhave]

If you've read what I wrote in this thread, I never said it was an exercise everyone should be doing. I said they can be useful for advanced trainees.



-Of course they don't admit to using steroids because a) they're illegal and b) they will lose their sponsorship. It's not like they're going out calling themself the "Natural IFBB King" or anything. They just don't admit it when they're asked for obvious reasons.

And I was actually wrong when I said Dave credited them for his size, it was his trainer, Dante, creator of DC training and one of the most respected guys in this business. Some nice quotes from him about the issue:



Or you can stay close minded and keep thinking inside the box.

As far as bbing, they use anything. The body can't tell the difference between a machine and a free weight as far as muscle building goes, at least thats what one of my profs says. From a bbing standpoint, I don't see a prob with isolating a body part with a machine, I don't see a prob with machines in rehab setting or situations where a person has an injury and must work around it either.

[guitarbb]

Tell me big adductors don't make your legs look better:


Note: I'm not saying beginners should hammer out on the adductor machine, but it can be a useful tool to bring up inner thighs.

Gear helps

[regl8r]

@FitnessbyJay

Thanks for the article. I never said that ad/ab machine was usueless that was some posters above me. I just said take everything pros/BB trainers say with a grain of salt. I know pros work hard but gear changes the game completely. I look at pics of Dave Henry and I see everything has grown proportionally. This trainer wants to take credit for something so he says I made his inner thighs grow by doing this... I am so great. Well of course your trainee is on enough juice to kill a small horse (+ Diet/Genetics) that everything he does is going to make him grow.

I'll throw em in my leg day for the hell of it and see what happens in 2 months.