While there seems to be no limit to the number of exercises to target specific muscle groups, there are just a handful of exercises that should be performed no matter what the nature of a resistance workout.

These warm-up exercises help to maintain flexibility, improve range of motion, promote a strong healthy back, reduce long- and short-term likelihood of injury, and prepare the entire body for exercise.

On Your Bike

Have the client ride an exercise bike or perform some other sort of low level activity for about 5 to 10 minutes, taking care that he or she does not overexert. There is no need to increase the exercise heart rate any higher than the recovery heart rate will be while exercising. The point of this warm up activity is to prepare the "support systems" for exercise by first of all constricting blood flow to the organs and digestion, while re-routing and directing blood flow to the working muscles.

This in turn provides the muscles with oxygen and nutrients from start of the workout. if the client does not warm up in this manner, the heart rate during the first few minutes of the workout will be unnecessarily high due to the muscle's sudden demand for oxygen and nutrients, and the heart's desperate attempt to make up for this. Inadequate preliminary low level activity can result in not only a rapid pulse, but also increased respiration, and nausea.

Crunch Time

Providing there are no contraindications, it is now time ready to move on to the first daily movement -- the crunch. First have the client lie flat on the floor. Then have the client slowly raise the legs until he or she can sense the lower back make contact with the floor. While in this position, ask the client to exhale fully while raising the upper torso. You may choose to have the client hold this position for as long as possible. A sustained contraction will result in a more rapid energy depletion than if the client were to perform a long exhaustive, high rep set of conventional sit ups.

One variation is to twist at the "top" of the crunch. This involves the use of the intercostal and oblique muscles on the alternate sides of the abdominals.

Time for Antagonism

The next daily exercise is the antagonistic movement to the crunch -- the deadlift. It is important to remember that when a muscle contracts, its antagonistic muscle group is forced to stretch and relax optimally. Such benefits are why training antagonistic muscles during the same workout, in an alternating fashion, is highly recommended.

After a workout, it is equally important to stretch the same muscles just trained. Post-workout stretching should be performed to aid in workout recovery through increased relaxation and resultant enhanced blood flow. In addition, this improved collateral circulation allows for greater waste removal and a continual supply of healing nutrients.

Post-workout Considerations

After each workout, it would be beneficial to once again include 5 to 10 minutes of stationary cycling, or some other type of low level activity, for even more important reasons than before the workout. After a resistance workout, regardless of its intensity or duration, energy stores in muscle tissue cells have been depleted. 

For this reason, a continued cellular energy supply following a workout is invaluable when the goal is to reduce continued catabolism and expedite recovery.

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