BEGINNER CORE WORKOUT 1 The core consists of all the muscles around your midsection with the primary muscles being the rectus abdominus (abs), obliques and erector spinae (low back). These muscles play a vital role in spine stabilization, balance and coordination—all of which are important in day-to-day activities. A strong core can also reduce lower [...]

JUMP SQUATS Start with a feet in a wide stance. Drop your hips down to the bottom of a squat while dropping your arms down to your side. Once you reach the bottom, swing your arms up and use your legs simultaneously to jump off the ground. Your arms should be up over your head [...]

DUMBBELL LUNGES WITH BICEP CURL Start in a standing position with both feet side by side with a dumbbell in each hand down by your side. Step out with one leg with a stride slightly larger than your normal walking stride. As your lead foot hits the ground, drop the opposite knee towards the ground [...]

SKULL CRUSHER The aptly named Skull Crusher got its name from a dumbbell or barbell banging ones forehead when being careful. Needless to say you want to perform this exercise correctly to avoid this from happen. A more formal name of this exercise is “lying tricep extension. Start sitting on the edge of a flat [...]

DUMBBELL FRONT RAISE Start in a standing position with your feet shoulder width apart and a dumbbell in each hand down by your side. Before your start the exercise you want to get into what call the “quarter squat” position. I call it the quarter squat position because it is similar to the top quarter [...]

V UPS Start on your back with hands extended up over your head. Keeping your arms and legs as straight as possible, lift them up off the ground and towards each other so that your body is in a “V” position. At the top of the exercise your butt should be the only contact point [...]

DUMBBELL LATERAL RAISE Start in a standing position with your feet shoulder width apart and a dumbbell in each hand down by your side. Before your start the exercise you want to get into what call the “quarter squat” position. I call it the quarter squat position because it is similar to the top quarter [...]

3 LEVEL CRUNCHES There are 3 versions of the crunch performed with this exercise: 1. Legs straight up in the air 2. Legs bent at the knees 3. Legs on the ground Start on your back with your feet up in the air and hands cradling the back of your head, just above the neck. [...]

DUMBBELL FLYS Start sitting on the edge of a flat bench holding a dumbbell on each knee. Slowly lower your body down so that you’re lying on your back while simultaneously lifting both dumbbells so that your arms are extended above you. Have your palms facing each other to start the exercise. Once in the [...]

DUMBBEL BICEP-SHOULDER PRESS (STANDING) Because you don’t have the bench to provide back support, the standing shoulder press is requires more core work. To compensate for lack of support you want to have your feet split apart, one forward and one back, with most of your weight on the front foot. As you perform the [...]