Tips from the Masters: The Proper Position for the Plank Exercise

The plank—seems easy enough to get it right, but many people do it entirely wrong. In this video, RealJock super trainer Billy Polson walks through the ideal body position for the plank exercise in order to focus on core strength and ideal posture positio Read more...

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• Devil's Triceps Press-Downs

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• Medicine Ball Chest Passes (2 to 1)

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• Dumbbell 45-Degree Angle Raises

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• Ask Billy Bean: Building Functional Arm Strength

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• Single-Arm Dumbbell Presses

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• Dumbbell Lateral to Front Raises

  Combine exercises to target more of the muscles of the shoulder complex—in this case, the front and middle deltoid muscles.

• Barbell Step-ups

  Work your legs on uneven ground—the barbell step-up is a simple and effective leg exercise that strengthens leg muscles while building balance and leg-muscle control.

• Cable Squats

  Cable squats aren't just a great leg exercise; they also activate your core, providing a more full-body workout.

• Medicine Ball Chop Squats

  Medicine ball chop squats are a great warm-up movement to get your blood going and wake up the muscles in your legs, as well as your shoulders and core.

• Cable Russian Twists

  Strengthen your core with a series of diagonal and horizontal chops, all resisted by a cable or tubes.

• Wide Reverse-Grip Pull-Downs

  For this variation of the classic lat pull-down, you’ll use a reverse grip and hold at the moment of full flexion.

• Stability Ball Elbow Rollouts

  Stability ball elbow rollouts are not only about how far you can move the stability ball; instead, they test your ability to control that rolling motion, and reverse its direction, without falling off the ball or grabbing with your legs.

• Weighted Stability Ball Crunches

  Doing crunches on the stability ball works your abs with a wider range of motion; adding a weight plate behind your head increases intensity across that wider range of motion.

• Single-Arm Rope Press-Downs

  Single-arm rope press-downs isolate and work the triceps muscles. The trick is to use proper form so you don't pass the resistance to your shoulders and biceps.

• Dumbbell Skull Crushers

  Dumbbell skull crushers work the triceps by moving the lower arm—but you also have to stabilize your upper arm, making the exercise more of a challenge.

• Seated Cable Rows

  Work your lats and rhomboids with seated cable rows, plus get the added benefit of posture training.

• Double Dumbbell Rows

  Double dumbbell rows work the major muscles in your back.

• Flat-Leg Medicine Ball Sit-up

  Medicine ball sit-ups ensure your abs work doubly hard, as they lift not just the weight of your upper body but the weight of the ball.

• Rope Hammer Curls

  Two-handed rope hammer curls are a great way to target the brachialis portion of the biceps.

• Single-Leg Cable Curls

  A cable curl is an excellent resistance exercise for targeted bicep work; a cable curl on one leg is a core exercise you won’t soon forget.

• Single-Leg Plate Curls

  Standing on one leg while you curl a weight plate doesn't just work your biceps; it also creates a simultaneous stability challenge for your core.

• Preacher Curls

  The preacher bench stabilizes your upper arm to give you maximum leverage for a correct bicep curl.

• One-Arm Medicine Ball Push-ups

  Push-ups with one hand on a medicine ball work your chest and shoulder muscles especially hard on the lowered side.

• Two Medicine Ball Push-ups

  For this variation on the push-up, your chest and core have to struggle to balance your body weight on an unstable base: two medicine balls.

• Incline Barbell Press

  The incline variation of the classic barbell chest press targets the upper area of the pectoral muscles.

• Single-Arm Alternating Dumbbell Curls

  Single-arm alternating dumbbell curls work the biceps of each arm individually while overlapping reps to get your heart rate up.

• Seated Dumbbell Hammer Curls

  Dumbbell hammer curls isolate and build the brachialis portion of the biceps muscle, making them a great addition to your biceps program.

• Triceps Bench Dips with Feet on Floor

  For this variation on the standard triceps dip exercise, you'll move in a diagonal movement to stretch your triceps and work their full range of motion.

• Dumbbell 21 Curls

  Dumbbell 21 curls use three ranges of curling motion—lower half only, upper half only and full range of motion—to make your biceps beg for mercy.

• Decline Bench Slow Roll-up Abs

  Decline abs work against gravity, with a vengeance. Not only is your head lower than your hips for this exercise, but you'll also have to go slowly on the up and the down.

• BOSU Single-Leg Taps

  This variation of the single leg tap abs exercise uses the BOSU ball to add additional levels of stomach-crunching difficulty.

• Tube Reverse Flys

  For an intense variation on the classic reverse fly, use tubes attached to a fixed point.

• Dumbbell Reverse Raises

  Dumbbell reverse raises target the rear deltoids, the muscles wrapping around the backs of your shoulders.

• Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Presses

  The standing dumbbell shoulder press works the core of the shoulder's deltoid muscle complex. Only do this exercise if your shoulders are free of pain or injury.

• Standing Dumbbell Arnold Presses

  The dumbbell Arnold press targets and isolates both the front and side heads of the deltoid muscles.

• Seated Leg Presses

  Leg presses are one of the few mass-building exercises where you can safely use a lot of resistance without joint stabilization.

• Hanging Leg Raises

  Hanging leg raises isolate and work your lower abs mercilessly. Focus on form to keep the work down low where it belongs.

• BOSU Obliques

  Use the BOSU ball to elevate your upper body as you do an oblique side crunch.

• Narrow-Grip Seated Rows

  Seated rows develop the entire complex of muscles in the upper back. Your success depends on isolating those muscles to perform the row.

• Single-Arm Pec Deck

  This variation of the standard pec deck asks you to do the exercise one arm at a time—helping you further isolate and focus on the center valley of your chest.

• Incline Push-ups

  Incline push-ups up the ante on the standard method by elevating your feet. The incline adds weight, and thus intensity, at the bottom of your movement.

• Flat Bench Push-ups

  Superset flat bench push-ups with other chest exercises like dumbbell flys to fatigue every inch of your chest.

• Single-Leg Knee Extensions

  These extensions will help you strengthen and bulk up your quads.

• Seated Reverse Flys

  Seated reverse dumbbell flys strengthen and develop the rear deltoids, the often-used but hard-to-isolate back of your shoulders.

• Seated Calf Presses with Leg Hold

  Make use of the your rest period on the incline leg press by sneaking in a set of seated calf presses—you’ll develop both strength and power in one exercise.

• Stability Ball Push-ups

  Here's a tough variation on the classic push-up that will increase the amount of weight you can lift in your traditional chest exercises.

• Dumbbell Up Rotators on Spin Bike

  The dumbbell upward rotator helps warm up the rotator cuff muscles. This on-the-bike variation adds an additional balance and coordination challenge as you must keep your cadence up while doing the exercise.

• Triceps Single-Arm Kickbacks

  Triceps kickbacks isolate and work the three heads that comprise the triceps muscle—with your elbow up behind you, you'll get no help from other muscle groups as you work to straighten your arm.

• Close-Grip Push-ups

  The close-grip variation of the standard push-up puts the hands closer together, which makes the triceps work harder and also challenges the front deltoids.

• Incline Dumbbell Flys

  The incline dumbbell fly works your upper and inner chest muscles in particular.

• Smith Machine Press

  The Smith machine press is an excellent exercise for isolate your chest muscles, particularly if you are having trouble stabilizing your bench press or doing bench presses using only your chest muscles.

• Standing Cable Curls

  Using the cable machine to work your biceps ensures you maintain resistance on both the curl up and return.

• Tube Pull-Downs

  Get a quality warm up and workout for your lats, traps, and rhomboids with the resistance of tube pull-downs.

• Tube Rows

  Tube rows are a great alternative to cable machine rows, because with tubes the resistance becomes greatest when the muscle is at its most flexed.

• Knee Tuck Floor Crunch

  Knee crunches work your upper and lower abdominals together, developing them in balance.

• Supersets For 12-Week Workout Programs

  Supersets are defined as a workout in which you do two or more exercises, one right after another, with little or no rest in between.

• Cable Triceps Bar Pull-Downs

  For this exercise, you'll turn a press into a pull so you can work those hard-to-reach parts of your three-headed triceps.

• Cable Triceps Bar Press-Downs

  The simple yet challenging cable triceps press-down isolates and builds the muscles of the triceps.

• One-Arm-Hold Push-ups

  For this variation on the standard push-up, you'll do three-second holds on alternating arms in between each push-up.

• Dumbbell Press

  Use dumbbell presses to target the entire body of your pectoral muscles.

• Tube Pull Up and Downs

  Warm up and work out your rotator cuffs, lats, and triceps with these simple yet effective up and down motions.

• Tube Press

  Want to reach the hard-to-train center valley of your chest? You've found your exercise.

• Floor Crunch

  The crunch is the classic abdominal exercise—and it really works, but only if you do it correctly.

• More Than a Six Pack: Lessons in Abdominal Strength

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• The Workaholic's 30-Minute Workout

  Too busy to work out? Don't despair. If you can spare 30 minutes a day, we can give you a healthy, strong body that looks good to boot.

• Stimulate Muscle Growth Through Exercise Variation

  Try changing from three sets of one exercise to one hard set of three different exercises to stimulate muscle growth and achieve new strength gains.

• Alternate Power Stability Ball Pike and Knee Tucks

  Pikes and knees over a stability ball target the entire abdominal muscle, both low and high.

• Plank Hop Ups and Down from Medicine Ball

  With a medicine ball under your chest in push-up position, blast off the floor with both hands and land with them on the ball.

• Flat Bench Straddle Hops

  To do straddle hops, you'll stand with one leg on either side of a Reebok step or flat bench, and jump from the ground onto the step with both legs.

• Single-Dumbbell Front Lunge and Power Row at Bottom

  For this lunge and power lunge combination, you not only train your legs and lats, you also make your entire body a stronger and more cohesively functioning machine.

• Side-to-Side Bench Vaults

  With your hands on a flat bench, jump both legs across the bench from side to side.

• BOSU Tuck Jumps

  Tuck jumps off a BOSU ball work every muscle in your legs—not only in the jump, but in the take-off and landing, in which you have to use stabilizing strength to balance.

• Alternate Scissor Switches Onto BOSU

  Scissor switches are the most murderous of lunges, since you change your leg position in mid-air. The additional challenge of doing them on a BOSU ball makes them even harder by adding a balance challenge.

• Hold-Weight Center Height Jump with Alternate Side Lunge Floor Taps

  This exercise demands reach in every direction. Holding a weight plate in your hands, you'll stretch up into a height jump, then laterally and down into a side lunge.

• Single-Leg Power Hops with Stepback Lunge Twist

  A single leg jump out of a lunge is a quad-buster. To take it to the next level, add a weight plate and an upper body twist between jumps.

• Speed Super Legs

  Super legs gives you a great overall leg workout because it combines four incredible leg exercises: squats, reaching lunges, jump scissor switches, and jump squats.

• Jump Scissor Switches

  This exercise asks you to jump between alternating lunges, switching your front leg with each jump. You'll build not just leg strength but also balance and coordination.

• Alternate Front Lunge Hold with Quick Alternate Dumbbell Rows in Low Position

  Hold a lunge while you do quick, strong rows through your upper back.

• Drywater Freestyle Kicks on Back

  For this great abs exercise, you'll hold your shoulders and legs off the floor while you do flutter kicks for 60 seconds.

• Speed Dumbbell Twisting Curls

  For this variation on the standard dumbbell curl, you'll combine a swift and powerful hammer curl on the upswing with a regular curl on the way down.

• Speed Alternate Ducks Under Smith Machine Bar

  Set a Smith machine bar at your chest height and duck from side to side underneath it as quickly as you can, stepping wide and sitting deep as you cross under.

• Speed Smith Machine Single-Arm Inverted Pull-ups

  You get to keep your feet on the floor for this one-armed speed modification of the classic pull-up, but it's plenty hard even so.

• Hold Squat Power Single-Cable Wide Pull-Downs

  For this exercise you'll stay in a deep squat as you do wide pull-downs with controlled speed and powerful force.

• Speed Hand-to-Feet Stability Ball Pass

  This Pilates-based exercise will help strengthen your core and train your balance and coordination. Add speed to the mix for increased difficulty.

• Speed Single-Cable Reverse Flys

  For this exercise, you'll focus on speed as you work cable reverse flys with a single arm in quick succession.

• Speed Hanging Side Twist Obliques

  The twist-and-lift of this hanging exercise makes you use your obliques to fight gravity as you bring your knees and feet upward in opposing directions.

• Gravitron Speed Neutral-Grip Pull-ups

  For this variation on the neutral grip pull-ups, you'll focus on controlled speed as you lift up quickly and powerfully.

• Boxing: Full Sit-Ups with Dumbbells and Alternate Cross Punches

  The combination sit-up and cross punch exercise works the abs and the shoulders.

• Heavy Bag Boxing: Squat Thrust Push-Up With Power Double Punch

  Combine a squat thrust, a push-up, and a powerful double punch for a killer leg and shoulder workout.

• Single-Cable Rope Power Overhead Skull Crushers

  Strengthen your triceps with this standing single-armed cable version of the skull crusher.

• Barbell Snatch

  For this favorite of power lifters everywhere, you'll use a barbell to train the explosive power of your legs, shoulders, and core.

• Medicine Ball Power Snatch to Toss-ups for Height

  Use a medicine ball to train the explosive power of your legs, shoulders, and core in a single exercise.

• Speed End of Bench Tricep Push-ups Drop Set

  For this variation of the standard end-of-bench tricep push-up, you'll max out three times on increasingly steep inclines, doing the push-ups with speed and power throughout.

• Quick Build Back Arches

  Back arches develop core strength while working your legs and shoulders.

• Mountain Climbers

  Use your hands to support your upper body as you take big, explosive steps with alternating legs, bringing your knees all the way to your chest.

• Flat Bench Dumbbell Power Press Drop Set

  Combine the difficulty of a drop set with the challenge of adding speed and power to each dumbbell press for a killer chest workout.

• Side-to-Side POP Push-ups Across Reebok Step

  Imbalance and power add a new challenge in this exercise, in which you do push-ups with one hand on a Reebok step and one hand on the floor, then push off explosively so that your hands are briefly in the air in between push-ups.

• Standing Power Cable Chest Press with Alternate Front Lunge

  Add difficulty to the standard cable chest press by doing it with power out of a forward lunge.

• Dumbbell Squat Thrust with Speed Alternate Neutral Presses

• Alternate Dumbbell Swims and Dumbbell Cross Punches

  The back-to-front reach of a freestyle stroke followed by the lateral motion of cross punches trains the entire complex of muscles in the shoulder—deltoids and rotator muscles.

• Alternate Squat Thrusts with Surfer Switch Jumps

  For this exercise your mimic the motion of jumping onto a surf board by pushing off from a plank position into a surfer's stance, and then jumping your legs back to the plank.

• Power Hang Knee Tucks

  You'll need all the strength in your abs and upper body to do hang knee tucks. For this variation, you'll lift with power and speed.

• Double-Leg Power Hop With Stepback Lunge Twist Holding Plate

  To combine flexible strength with explosive power, try alternating jumps out of a squat with stepback lunges and upper body twists.

• Slow Super Legs

  Super Legs is one leg exercise you can't live without, particularly since it combines four incredible leg exercises: squats, reaching lunges, jump scissor switches, and jump squats.

• Heavy Medicine Ball Alternate 2-1 Arm Snatch

  Work your legs and shoulders simultaneously through a full range of motion, taking a medicine ball from the floor to overhead.

• Tuck Jumps

  Tuck jumps are the last word in simple power leg workouts. You jump into the air as high as you can, bringing your knees up in mid-air, and then land light.

• Speed Double and Single Line Hops

  For powerful, functionally strong legs, try double- and single-line hops, which help build muscle mass, strength and explosive power. For this variation, increase your speed and power.

• Double-Handle Low-Cable Speed Squats and Rows

  Use a cable machine to add resistance to a squat; follow with a row for your back muscles.

• Power Side-to-Sides Over Flat Bench

  Focus on explosive power and speed to work your legs top to bottom and side to side with these power side-to-sides over a flat bench.

• Speed Davies Test

  Test your shoulders (literally). From a plank position, you'll use each hand to tap the back of the other, alternating at top speed.

• Alternate Prisoner Lunges onto BOSU Ball

  Lunges on a BOSU ball add a balance challenge to the ordinary demands of a lunge.

• Long Jumps

  For a leg exercise with explosive power, try the long jump.

• Smith Machine Inverted Palms-Down Pull-ups with Release/Re-Catch at Top

  This inverted variation uses speed and power on the inverted pull-up to work the back muscles and the core.

• Speed Stability Ball Knee Tucks

  For this variation on this challenging abs cruncher, you'll do the knee tucks with controlled speed, increasing the difficulty level.

• Speed Dumbbell Hammer Curls

  For this variation on the dumbbell hammer curl, you'll lift and lower the dumbbells with speed and control for an extra level of difficulty.

• Speed Leg Swings

  For this variation on the classic lower abs exercise, you'll focus on controlled speed and power as you lift and lower your legs.

• Speed Full Situps

  The full situp is a great workout for the upper abdominals. For this variation on the standard, you'll focus on controlled power and speed throughout the entire set.

• Gravitron Speed Wide-Grip Pull-ups

  For this variation on the standard Gravitron wide-grip pull-up, you'll perform this set with a quick yet smooth motion for power development.

• Power Cable Ski Poles

  Simulate the intense lat and deltoid workout of cross-country skiing using a double-armed cable machine and a half-squat stance.

• Speed Cable Cross-Backs

  To target the complex of muscles at the back of the shoulder and between your shoulder blades, pull cables in opposing directions from shoulder level down to hip level.

• Hold Single Arm Plank

  This variation on the hold plank doubles the difficulty by asking you to hold that position with one arm at your side.

• Speed Alternating Dumbbell Curls and High-Speed Squats

  For a muscle-busting cardio burst, push as quickly as you can through sets of dumbell bicep curls alternating with squats.

• Power Stability Ball Lower Back Extensions with Pelvic Thrust

  Work your core, legs, and lower back by pinning a stability ball under your hips as you bring your upper body up and back off the ball in a powerful motion.

• Stability Ball Seated Alternate Cable Rows

  Get a great, isolated back workout by balancing on a stability ball as you perform rows with a cable machine.

• Single Cable Handle High, Alternate Swim Stroke, Wide Pull-down, and Squat

  For a back workout that hits your muscles from multiple angles, alternate single cable swim strokes with pull-downs. Throw in leg squats as an added bonus.

• Flat Bench Power Press Drop Set on Smith Machine

  For this drop set version of the press, you'll use the Smith machine to stabilize the weights, enabling you to power through heavier weights with speed and max out three times.

• Stability Ball Roller Coasters

  Use the stability ball as a pivot point to work both ends of your body: Push off from a squat with your legs in one direction, and then push back off the floor with your shoulders in the other direction.

• Single Small Medicine Ball Baseball Throw Against Wall

  A simple yet great warm-up exercise for your shoulders, core, and legs—work your shoulders and core by throwing a small medicine ball overhand at a wall.

• Medicine Ball Squat Thrust with Wall Rebound

  This torso-busting exercise unpacks the squat thrust into a new, more challenging form by using a medicine ball as both a weight and a pivot.

• Standing Power Cable Chest Press

  The power in this exercise comes from the challenge of doing cable chest presses with controlled speed.

• POP Push-ups

  To do POP push-ups, you'll blast up out of a deep push-up with explosive power, such that your hands come into the air for a moment.

• Flip Turn Abs with Jumps

  This explosive exercise works you in every direction, combining an abs-crunching reverse tuck to squatted tuck with an explosive vertical jump for leg speed and power.

• Dumbbell Clean and Press

  The exercise put squats between the elements of a clean and press for a maximized leg and shoulder workout.

• Medicine Ball Power Press Toss-ups for Height

  For this exercise, you'll use a medicine ball to throw high vertical tosses as you power out of a squat.

• Stability Ball Knees Speed Handstands

  Combine the shoulder benefits of a push-up and a handstand by using a stability ball under your legs.

• Cable Rope Power Overhead Skull Crushers

  This exercise forces you to keep tension in the cables throughout the range of motion, engaging your triceps from start to finish.

• Speed Tricep Dip on Gravitron

  Tricep dips are one of the oldest and greatest tricep-building exercises in the book. For this variation on the exercise, you'll do the dips quickly, focusing on speed, power, and control.

• Heavy Bag Boxing: Repeater Punches

  Put your shoulders through an intense (and intensely fun) speed round of repeater punches.

• Heavy Bag Boxing: Speed Alternate Gut Punches

  Release your inner animal as you throw alternate gut punches into a heavy boxing bag, giving your shoulders, core, and legs a fast-paced workout.

• Superman Hold with Freestyle Kicks

  The addition of freestyle kicks to the Superman hold takes the lower back workout up a notch.

• Dumbbells-High Alternating Side Lunge and Shoulder Press

  Holding dumbbells at your shoulders while doing side lunges increases the weight in each lunge for a tough workout. The shoulder presses make it an upper-body workout too.

• Low Cable Bent-Bar Squat and Curl Holding High

  The constant cable tension in this combo bicep and leg exercise serves a dual purpose, providing excellent resistance for both your curls and your squats.

• Low Single Cable Squat Power Cross Punch

  This combination exercise works the legs and the shoulders by combining one of the greatest leg exercises (the squat) with a power-focused cross-up punch.

• Speed Low Single Cable Scissor Squat and Row

  For this variation on the single cable squat and row, you'll focus on controlled speed as you do the combo exercise.

• Stability Ball Pike-ups

  This exercise takes core-building to a new limit as you to use your abs to pike up from a plank position with your feet on a stability ball

• Barbell Russian Dead Lifts

  Russian dead lifts are a classic barbell exercise that many power lifters use to train their legs and core.

• Dumbbell Squats on BOSU Ball

  Train leg strength, balance, and coordination by doing dumbbell squats while standing on the rounded top of a BOSU ball.

• Power Flick Single Calf Raises

  For these single calf raises, you'll sit at a leg press machine and use speed and power to go fully onto your toe and stretch as far below the platform as you can with your heel.

• Power Press Single Leg Press

  For these power variations of standard leg power, you'll work to develop your speed and power in a single exercise.

• Multidirectional Speed Lunges with Floor Tap

  Forward lunges develop your quads and hip flexors; multidirectional lunges bring in your abductors and adductors, giving you a more complete leg workout.

• Alternate Walk Up-Downs Flat Bench

  Up-downs are a major workout for your calves, quads, and hip flexors, both as you lift yourself up onto the bench, and as you lower yourself back down.

• Wide-Grip Pull-ups on Gravitron with Slow Negatives

  For this variation on the wide-grip pull-up, you'll lower down from the top of the pull-up slowly for a count of five in order to work the muscles even more.

• Flat Bench Rope Curl Drop Set

  Take your biceps to the limit with max-out drop rope curl drop sets. With each drop you'll curl to fatigue, maximizing the work—and the gains.

• Power Tucks on Floor

  Power tucks match explosive power with slow control. From an extended position, you'll rapidly bring your legs and arms together in a tuck.

• On-Side V Toe Tap Obliques

  For this oblique buster, you'll lift your legs up to meet your arms in a V while lying on your side.

• Single Dumbbell Full Swing Shoulder Circles

  This shoulder warm-up exercise puts your rotator cuffs through a full range of motion, prepping them before you workout to help prevent injury.

• Standing Barbell Curl Drop Set Leaning Against Wall

  By leaning against a wall as you do these bicep curls, you'll stabilize your body and isolate the bicep muscles.

• Single-Arm Dumbbell Squats

  For the single-arm dumbbell squat, you'll train your major leg muscle groups but also your abdominal obliques as you engage them to counterbalance the weight held in one hand and keep you upright as you descend into the squat.

• Real Hanging Alternate Twisting Knee Tucks

  Add a tough twist to your abs routine with twisting knee tucks. You'll hang from your hands and swinging your bent legs from side to side, using your abs to lift.

• One-Arm Neutral-Grip Pull-ups on Gravitron Machine

  The Gravitron machine will help you learn to do a one-armed pull-up while helping you keep your motion consistent (and therefore safe).

• Standing Dumbbell Alternate Reverse Flys and Swim Flicks

  This exercise alternates reverse flys and swim flicks to build the muscles at the back of the shoulder.

• Smith Machine Single Palm-up Inverted Pull-ups

  You get to keep your feet on the floor for this modification of the classic pull-up, but given that you lift with only one arm at a time, it's plenty hard even so.

• Landmines

  Landmines offer a full body workout that tests your obliques, legs, and shoulder muscles.

• Lean Barbell Single Side Row

  Side rows work the entire complex of muscles in your upper back. For this variation, you use a barbell rather than a dumbbell so that you can be certain you're controlling your arm's motion.

• Dumbbell Alternating Chest Flys

  The one-armed alternating variation of the classic dumbbell chest fly increases the difficulty of the exercise and isolates each side of your chest individually.

• Decline Dumbbell Skull Crushers

  By doing skull crushers on the lowered angle of the decline bench, you'll keep tension in your triceps through the entire set, rather than releasing at the top of each repetition.

• Decline Situps

  Decline sit-ups intensify the battle between your abs and gravity by putting your shoulders below the horizontal.

• Alternate Lockout Push-ups on Dumbbells or Medicine Balls

  Doing push-ups while balanced on a couple of dumbbells or medicine balls seem too easy for you? Try adding a lockout at the top of each push-ups. Now that's a challenge.

• Dumbbell Chest Press Incline Reduction (Incline to Flat to Decline)

  These monster sets of chest presses will work your pecs from top to bottom, and then bottom to top, with incline, flat, and decline dumbbell presses.

• Dumbbell Alternate Lateral Raises with Top Hold

  This variation of the standard dumbbell lateral raise ups the ante with an isometric lift; you hold one arm out to the side as you raise the other.

• Dumbbell Step-ups to Balance and Arnold Press

  This combo exercise takes the Arnold press and step-up to the edge by asking you to do it all on one foot.

• Push-ups: Breakdance

  This exercise channels the breakdancer's combination of strength, agility, and balance. You'll take a standard push-up into a twist-out breakdance motion,

• Side-to-Side Steps Over Flat Bench

  To work your legs top to bottom and side to side, try these bench steps over a flat bench.

• Seated V Hold (Feet off Floor) with Twisting Medicine Ball Floor Bounces

  Rather than lifting your legs or shoulders, this abs exercise keeps your center still while you add the weight of a medicine ball and a turning motion to build core strength.

• Dumbbell Single Leg Freestyle Swim Strokes

  In this advanced version of the dumbbell freestyle swim stroke, you'll stand on one leg as you do the swim strokes to train your balance and coordination.

• Dumbbell High Squat and Twist Press

  Add a twist to a dumbbell squat and press to work the complex of muscles across the back of your shoulders as well as the tops.

• Fighting the Skinny Gene: A Workout for Ectomorphs

  Unable to gain muscle mass? You're probably an ectomorph. Try this periodized workout plan from strength specialist Devin Wicks.

• Headstand to Handstand

  This exercise will get you that much closer to doing a real handstand push-up.

• Dumbbell Multidirectional Reach Lunges with Shoulder Press

  Adding dumbbells and shoulder presses to your lunge routine turns a great leg exercise into a full body challenge.

• Cable Seated Rows Drop Set

  For this exercise, you'll max out four times using progressively lighter weights, increasing the burn but also the build in your back muscles.

• Cable Tricep Bar Press-Downs Drop Set

  For this exercise, you'll max out four times using progressively lighter weights to get every ounce out of work out of your triceps.

• Barbell Russian Dead Lifts to Barbell Romanian Dead Lifts with Barbell Dead Rows

  From Eastern Europe comes this power lifter's dream: a combination Russian dead lift, Romanian dead lift, and barbell dead row.

• Dumbbell Freestyle Swim Stroke Drop Set

  This exercise mimics freestyle swimming to strengthen the shoulders in general and the rotator cuffs in particular. Adding a drop set to the mix works those muscles to the max.

• Dumbbell Twist Curls Drop Set

  This bicep exercise demands that you "rep out," taking your biceps to total fatigue and forcing the development of new, stronger muscle fibers.

• Single Medicine Ball On the Shelf Crunches

  To do these crunches, you alternate holding the ball in your hands and with your legs to push both your upper and lower abs to the limit.

• Downhill Ski Series

  Some of the strongest legs in the world belong to skiers. So who better to provide us with a killer leg set than the Colorado Women's Ski Team?

• V Situps with Heels on Wall and Legs Straight

  For a power abdominal workout, try a V Sit-up. With a wall to provide leg support, you can reach higher and push your abs harder.

• Single Calf Raises

  Build the strength in your calf muscles with this simple exercise that uses the weight of your body to isolate, flex, and stretch your calves.

• Dumbbell Walking Lunges

  Walking lunges give the muscle-building benefits of traditional lunges with the additional benefit of balance and control training.

• Heavy Medicine Ball Chops: Center, Diagonal, Side-to-Side

  To train your entire body—arms, legs, core, and back—try this sequence of medicine ball chops.

• Stability Ball Rollout

  Tired of crunches? Do them upside down. Just roll a stability ball slowly away and then back toward you for a great abs workout.

• Stability Ball Hammer Dumbbell Curls

  Hammer curls are tough to begin with; try doing them while balancing in a modified squat against a stability ball.

• Dumbbell Regular 21 Curls (Lower and Top Half) to Preacher Curls (Full Range Set)

  For these curls, you'll do half curls (bottom to middle and middle to top), and wind up with a set of full curls against a preacher bench to further isolate the bicep muscle.

• High Bar Alternate Knee Cross-ups

  Give your oblique abdominals an intense workout as you lift up from a hanging position and touch your knees to your elbows.

• Smith Wide Inverted Pull-ups with Hold at Top

  This inverted pull-up works the back muscles—the lats and traps specifically. The hold at the top makes it that much harder.

• Stability Ball Dumbbell Reverse Flys

  For this exercise, just stabilizing your upper body on the stability ball gives your legs a great workout, while you work your shoulders one at a time using dumbbells.

• Single-Leg Single-Cable Swim Strokes

  You may have done swim strokes before with the cable machine, but this version asks that you do them on one leg.

• Alternate Hand Kiss Wide-Grip Pull-ups

  The kiss in this pull-up is the reward for the extra hard work your lats will need to do to get up to kissing level in the first place.

• Cable Baseball Throw Rotators

  Warm up your rotator cuffs with this cable machine exercise that mimics the classic overhand baseball throw.

• Single Dumbbell Windmill and Arnold Press

  The windmill is all about maintaining form and position. Add a press to the mix and it's a serious challenge to your legs, shoulders, and core.

• Rope Tricep Press-Downs

  This tricep exercise doesn't quit—literally. Instead of releasing between repetitions, you keep tension on the rope for the entire long, brutal set.

• Gravitron Tricep Dips Drop Set

  This tricep dips exercise includes a total of three drop sets using progressively lighter weights that will eek out every last dip you have in you.

• Dumbbell Swings on Single Leg

  This combination exercise mixes dumbbell lateral and front raises with a one-legged support to train your shoulders, legs, balance, and coordination.

• Dumbbell Squat and Press

  Combine the powerful squat with the shoulder press, and you have a one-two muscle workout that builds both your upper and lower body.

• Hands on Stability Ball Push-ups with Feet on Flat Bench

  Try this great stability ball variation on the old favorite push-up to help increase the amount of weight you can lift in your traditional chest exercises.

• Alternate Rope Tricep Overhead Extension and Squat

  Take a tricep extension straight into a squat for an intense variation on two standard exercises.

• Hold Plank with Cross-Kick Under

  This core-busting exercise starts with a basic plank position and then attacks it from both ends by asking you to bring your foot up to meet your opposite hand.

• Hang Knee Tucks

  Hang knee tucks are tough. You'll need all the strength in your upper body to bring your knees up over your head in a tuck, and even more to lower them back down.

• Medicine Ball Situps on Stability Ball

  The addition of the medicine ball to the stability ball sit-up ups the ante by adding additional weight that your abs need to lift.

• Flat Bench Dumbbell Flys

  The classic dumbbell fly works your chest and your inner chest muscles in particular. It's an essential part of any chest-building regimen.

• Single Leg Side-to-Side Line Hops

  Develop speed, strength, and coordination with single-line hops, a simple exercise you can do just about anywhere.

• Flat Bench Barbell Press

  There's a reason that the bench press is the weightlifting gold standard. It's not just the lift from your chest—you need to engage your abs and back to get through these safely.

• Shoulder Dumbbell or Plate Circles

  This shoulder exercise warms up and strengthens the shoulders using simple circular motions.

• Face Down on Incline Bench Dumbbell Rotate and Press

  This exercise helps you warm up and strengthen the entire shoulder complex for power with resilience.

• Cable Bar Tricep Pulls and Tricep Press

  This combination pull and press exercise isolates and works the three heads of your triceps for well-rounded strength.

• Dumbbell Squats

  Try the dumbbell version of the squats, one of the most useful exercise you can do at the gym—no other single exercise encourages more muscle growth.

• Stability Ball Straigh-Leg Hip Raises on Heels, Heel Curls, Bent-Knee Hip Raises, and Straight-Knee Hips Raises

  Use this set of variations on standard hip raises to push your legs and legs to the limits of endurance.

• Mock Military Pull-ups on Squat Rack with Feet on Floor

  These military pull-ups push your back muscles to their limit; modifications mean you can work up to the hardest level in stages.

• Dumbbell Squat Thrust with Alternate Lockouts

  A strong legs and back demand a powerful core for support. Train all three with this exercise.

• Barbell Squats

  Squats are probably the most useful exercise you can do at the gym—no other single exercise encourages more muscle growth.

• Single Cable Swim Strokes

  The single cable swim stroke isolates the major muscles in your upper back for a challenging workout that mimics the downward movement of a standard freestyle swim stroke.

• Single Cable Scissor Squat and Row

  The single cable scissor squat and row works the legs and back in unison, training strength, coordination, and balance.

• Bent Over Single Pull-Downs

  This exercise builds on the Step Back and Single Rows exercise to give your back a powerful combination workout.

• Step Back and Single Rows

  Pair the leg-strengthening benefits of the lunge with the powerful cable row for your back.

• Hand to Feet Stability Ball Pass

  This Pilates-based exercise will help strengthen your core and train your balance and coordination.

• Dumbbell Squat Thrust with Shoulder Press

  This powerful combo exercise focuses on the legs and shoulders, but trains the entire body.

• Dumbbell Punches - Side-to-Side, Cross Up, Cross Down, Hooks

  Get the shoulders of a boxer without ever entering the ring. This exercise builds your shoulders with a series of classic boxing moves, with weights in each hand to up the ante.

• Cable Chops - Diagonal Down, Side, Diagonal Up

  Strength and flexibility—you have to have both. This exercise strengthens your shoulders and legs while developing your reach and coordination.

• Stability Ball Push-ups and Knee Tucks

  The stability ball push-up and knee tucks is a two-in-one workout that focuses on your chest and abs while simultaneously improving overall core muscle strength, balance, and concentration.

• Wide-Grip Pull-ups

  The Gravitron machine is excellent for pull-ups because it provides you with the support to do pull-ups while maintaining proper form, allowing you to max out your muscles. The wide-grip pull-ups focus the work on your lats in particular.

• Push-ups

  Good trainers love push-ups because they work the entire chest and triceps while also training coordination and stamina.

• Hold Plank on Elbows and Toes

  Looking for a great, simple core-strengthening exercise? The hold plank makes the front and back muscles of your trunk work in tandem, helping you build a strong and balanced core.

• Single Leg Twisting Dumbbell Curls

  Balance is everything in this combo bicep curl, which combines a one-legged stance with a hammer curl on the upswing and a regular curl on the way down.

• Flat Bench Freestyle Kicks

  The flat bench freestyle kick mimics the freestyle swim kick in a dry land environment, workings the legs and hips.

• Hands and Toes Walk Out and Back

  The hands and toes walk out and back is essentially a slow and methodical change in position from a pike position to a plank position. Sounds easy? It's not.

• Alternating Lunges and Scissor Switches

  This exercise starts with alternating lunges, one of the best full-leg workouts available, then adds in scissor switches, which are essentially jumping alternating lunges that build not just leg strength but also balance and coordination.

• Dumbbell Straight-Leg Dead Lift and Dead Row

  The dumbbell straight leg dead lift and dead row combines these two challenging exercises into a tough workout for your leg and back muscles.

• Double and Single Line Hops

  If you want powerful, functionally strong legs, try double- and single-line hops, which help build muscle mass, strength, and explosive power simultaneously.

• Prisoner Squats

  These simple introductory squats can be done at home or at the gym. Great for learning the movement without risking injury to the back or legs.

• Dumbbell Turkish Get-ups

  This exercise trains your entire body to work as a unit as you rise up from lying on your back on the floor to a standing position, all while continuously holding a dumbbell straight up above you.

• Hold Lunge with Single Dumbbell Rows

  By maintaining a lunge while doing dumbbell rows, you train not your legs and lats, but also your balance and coordination.

• Alternate Dumbbell Front Lunge to Dumbbell Laterals

  Front lunges train the major muscle groups in the legs, giving you strong thighs and glutes. Adding the lateral raises develops the shoulders while also raising your heart rate and burning calories.

• Hands on Stability Ball Push-up to Feet on Stability Ball Push-up

  A great variation on the classic push-up that will increase the amount of weight you can lift in your traditional chest exercises.

• Side Pillar Hip Lifts

  Many people neglect the obliques in their quest for strong center abdominals. Side pillar hip lifts address that by working out your right and left sides individually.

• Alternate Stepback Lunges with Plate Twist

  Using a weight plate and body twist adds an intense edge to the classic lunge.

• Stability Ball Knee Tucks

  Knee tucks are more than an abs cruncher. The use of the stability ball trains your abs to have a greater degree of stability and control, while also improving your shoulder stability and endurance.

• Gravitron Wides Drop Set Pull-ups

  The wide-grip pull-ups focus the work on your lats in particular, and the drop sets increase the work for your muscles.

• Daily Workouts for Lean Athletes

  We're getting closer to rolling our 90-day workout program out in its entirety. Check out a sample daily workout from the Lean Athlete program.

• Dumbbell Up Rotator

  The dumbbell upward rotator helps warm up and strengthen those easy-to-injure rotator cuff muscles.

• Dumbbell Step-up with Shoulder Press

  The dumbbell step-up with shoulder press is an excellent shoulder and leg combo workout that strengthens the legs, core and shoulders while also training coordination and balance.

• Calf Raises

  This exercise will strengthen and build powerful calves.

• Medicine Ball V-Hold Crossover

  Train your abs and entire core as you move the weight of a medicine ball from side to side while holding your body piked in a core-busting 45-degree V position.

• Seated One-Leg Press

  The seated one-leg press is a safe and effective way to focus on leg muscles without putting extra stress on the lower back.

• Reverse Dumbbell Raise

  The reverse dumbbell raise builds up the back portion of the shoulders as well as the traps, improving posture and reducing neck strain.

• Standing Dumbbell Shoulder Press

  The standing dumbbell shoulder press is great for focusing on the core of the deltoids, especially if the exercise is performed in conjunction with seated lateral raises.

• Drop-Down Lunges

  Drop-down lunges not only strengthen the quads and glutes individually; they also greatly improve overall balance and flexibility.

• Single-Arm Cable Reverse Pulls

  Athletes love cable machine exercises because they mimic the continuous movement patterns they use while playing sports. The single-arm cable reverse pull provides continuous tension in your deltoids throughout the range of motion, strengthening both your

• Seated Arnold Press

  Good trainers love this strength-training exercise because it targets and isolates both the front and side heads of the deltoid muscles.

• Seated One-Leg Press

  The seated one-leg press is a safe and effective way to focus on building the leg muscles without putting extra stress on the lower back.

• Smith Machine Chin-Ups

  This exercise introduces the chin-up and makes it manageable until you can move on to the unassisted version.

• Hold Plank with Single Dumbbell Kickbacks

  By maintaining a plank position, you'll strengthen your abs and at the same time work your triceps.

• Backbend Hold

  Do as gymnasts do: This exercise develops flexibility, balance, and core strength.

• Dumbbell Good Mornings with Arnold Shoulder Press

  This exercise develops strength in your core while it builds muscle in your limbs.

• Super Legs

  The one leg exercise you can't live without, it develops both strength and power.

• Stability Ball Skiers

  Keep your movement controlled through this ab exercise and you'll see results.

• Single Dumbbell Toe Tap Abs

  A variation on the standard toe tap, this version adds the weight of the dumbbell to further challenge your abs.

• Standing Cable Chest Flys

  Chest flys develop the pectoral muscles for a broad, strong chest. Try it in addition to the bench press.

• Single-Leg Flat Bench Stand-Ups

  This exercise develops quadriceps, hip flexors, and hamstrings while also building core strength in your legs.

• Height Jumps on Wall

  Height jumps help you develop the explosive power required for any sport by requiring you to reach, stretch, and test your limits.

• Half-Twist Jump Squats

  Developing your legs isn’t just about building bulk. This exercise builds muscle, power and speed, all at once.

• Lower Back Extensions

  This exercise isolates and strengthens the often-neglected lower back muscles.

• Saxon Bends

  Working your abs requires stretching them—here you contract one side as you stretch the other.

• Incline Dumbbell Curls

  Isolate your biceps with this exercise and you'll get big gains in your guns.

• Standing Dumbbell Tricep Kickbacks

  Triceps add shape to your guns. This exercise is a must for sculpted upper arms.

• Dumbbell Hammer Curls with Drop Set

  To build your biceps, you sometimes need to push them over the edge. This exercise forces you to do as many reps as you can.

• Reverse Dumbbell Flys on Incline Bench

  This exercise developes the back of your shoulders. The incline bench helps you isolate your rear deltoids.

• Standing Barbell Rows

  How do you get a strong back and legs from one exercise? Try this for whole body benefit.

• Dumbbell Windmills

  Arms, legs, back, core—this exercise covers all the bases. The result is full-body strength and improved muscle control.

• Not Your Grandfather's Pull-Up

  Intense and effective, the inverted pull-up takes building a strong and muscular back to a new level. How many reps can you do?

• Neutral Grip Pull-ups

  Intimidated by the pull-up? Start out with the Gravitron, which can help anyone achieve a strong back.

• Lopsided Single Dumbbell Push-ups

  A more intense version of the classic push-up, this exercise focuses more weight on the lower side of your chest.

• Wide-grip lat pull-downs

  When done properly, wide-grip lat pull-downs will help you build a broader, stronger back and improve your posture.

• Olympic Bar Bicep Curls

  The classic Olympic bar bicep curl builds bicep strength for more power in sports and, of course, more stretch in your t-shirts.

• Narrow-grip lat pull-downs

  This pull-down variation gives a good stretch to your back muscles, which must stay flexible to keep your spine in good alignment.

• Standing Dumbbell Rows

  The exercise can correct an imbalance in muscle strength that comes from favoring one side in sports like tennis or bowling.

• Incline calf press

  Incline calf presses strengthen your calf muscles, which power your spring for jumping and running movements.

• Dumbbell Lateral Raises

  The best basic exercise for strengthening the middle deltoids and broadening the shoulders.

• JoeTraining Series: Hanging leg raises

  So your upper abs are nice, but you just can’t get that bottom portion tight.

• Single Dumbbell Straight-Arm Snatch

  Serious weightlifters love snatches for their full-body-workout potential and have been practicing them for time immemorial.

• Shoulder Push-ups

  Build up to handstand push-ups using these introductory shoulder push-ups, which work the shoulders hard but not too hard by applying only some of your body weight.

• Squats and Plyometric (Jump) Squats

  This combination exercise alternates body weight squats and plyometric jump squats to give your legs and body a maximum workout.

• JoeTraining Series: Make friends and calves

  Donkey calf raises are so old school, "the old timers like Arnold Shwarzenegger used to do these," NYC superstar trainer Steve Lischin said.

• JoeTraining Series: Score for your core with the medicine ball catch

  "It might be a little old school, but the medicine ball catch is a great way to work the core," NYC trainer to the stars Steve Lischin said. "It's also a fun way to exercise with a buddy."

• Powerlifter shatters records, stereotypes

  John Hudson, 40, a powerlifter from Champaign, Ill., won the Open and Masters 40-46 Divisions at the World Association of Bench Pressers and Deadlifters (WABDL) National Championships in Dallas, Texas.

• Dumbbell fly to press

  This exercise combines the benefits of a traditional dumbbell press with the pec-stretching benefits of the fly.

• Floor bridge hold

  The floor bridge hold is an excellent core-strengthening exercise.

• Floor crunches

  A well-executed crunch works the center abs muscles and lower abs muscles in particular; a poorly executed crunch strains the neck and does little for the abs.

• Floor leg raises

  The floor leg raise is one of the great abs exercises, isolating the lower abs in a slow torture fest that builds great abdominal strength.

• Gravitron Dips (Chest Focused)

  These pec-focused Gravitron dips work the pec muscles more than the triceps.

• Step-ups

  The step-up is a simple and effective leg exercise that strengthens leg muscles while building balance and leg-muscle control.

• Squats

  Squats are probably the most useful exercise you can do at the gym—no other single exercise encourages more muscle growth.

• Plyometric Jump Squats

  Build your explosive power with plyometic jump squats and you'll be able to sprint faster, jump higher and perform better

• Stability ball crunches

  Doing crunches on the stability ball allows you to work your abs with a wider range of motion.

• Stability ball floor leg curls

  Stability ball floor leg curls isolate the back side of the leg—with a particular focus on the hamstring.

• Alternating T Push-ups

  The T push-up variation offers all of the benefits of the standard push-up, plus the added benefit of strengthening the shoulder's rotator cuff muscles.

• Walking lunges

  Walking lunges give the muscle-building benefits of traditional lunges with the additional benefit of balance and control training.

• Shh, sexy muscle secrets

  Newsflash, homo! Men are attracted to more than just big chests and arms.

• Stability Ball Reverse Hyper Back Extensions

  This exercise helps address the high-risk lower back region by strengthening those muscles without putting high-weight pressure on it.

• Smith Machine Inverted Pull-ups

  This simple variation on the pull-up works the back muscles—the lats and traps specifically.

• Single Cable Squat and Row

  The single cable squat and row works the legs and back in unison, training strength, coordination and balance.

• Leg Swings

  This classic floor exercise gives a tough workout to your abdominal muscles, with a particular focus on your lower abs.

• Dumbbell Hammer 21 Curls

  Want to push your biceps to the edge? Try dumbbell hammer 21 curls, which use three ranges of curling motion to work your biceps to the bone

• Alternate Side Lunges with Shoe Taps

  The shoe tap of this weights-free variation of the side lunge forces you to go all the way down, giving your hamstrings and adductor (inner-thigh) muscles a much-needed stretch.

• Standing Dumbbell Curls

  A properly executed dumbbell curl isolates the biceps muscles and keeps them engaged throughout the movement.

• JoeTraining series: Cable rows for great back development

  Beef up your back, shoulders and core with New York City celebrity fitness guru Steve Lischin’s ultimate cable rows.

• Standing Barbell Curls

  The classic standing barbell curl is a staple of any biceps-building exercise regimen.

• Stability ball center and oblique situps

  These center and oblique situps are staples of stability ball abs workouts, providing excellent muscle isolation

• Reverse Fly on Pec Deck

  Reverse your position and face inward toward the weights on the pec deck machine, and you can give your rear deltoids and shoulders an excellent workout.

• Flat Bench Leg Lifts

  The flat bench leg lifts exercise hits the lower abdominals directly for an excellent isolated workout.

• JoeTraining series: Butt-blasting leg curls

  One of his most hated exercises, the leg curl is the one clients want to get out of the way fast because it’s so difficult, but the benefits are amazing, New York City trainer Steve Lischin said.

• Three biggest body building mistakes

  Take it from me, I made a lot of mistakes early on. I’ve always been the type that had to learn everything the hard way. After my first three years in the gym, I had made little progress and a lot of mistakes. I want you to learn from my biggest mistakes,

• Triceps Bench Dip

  This classic triceps exercise gives your tris a powerful workout.

• Full Situps (With or Without Dumbbells)

  The popularity of the crunch has meant the death of the full situp in many workout routines. The truth of the matter is that the full situp is a significantly harder exercise than the crunch.

• Stability Ball Dumbbell Skull Crushers

  Don't let the name scare you away from this tried-and-true triceps builder. Proper focus on technique and use of appropriate weights will keep you from bonking yourself on the head when doing skull crushers.

• Around the Gym: Armed and dangerously hot

  Unlike some trickier muscle groups—like calves and glutes—strong, muscular arms are part of most every gay man's workout routine.

• Front Lunges with Shoelace Tap

  This modified lunge without weights gives your legs a great workout and improves flexibility.

• Squat thrust (aka burpies)

  Squat thrusts, or burpies as they are commonly known, are much beloved by trainers, athletes and bodybuilders alike because they combinet the benefits of the squat with the added bonus of the jump for explosive training.

• Dumbbell freestyle swim stroke

  The dumbbell freestyle swim stroke exercise mimics freestyle swimming to strengthen the shoulders in general and the rotator cuffs in particular.

• Stability Ball Dumbbell Presses

  Balance is everything in this variation of the classic dumbbell press. Using the stability ball as your "bench" forces you to maintain your balance and keep your core muscles engaged, which is turn isolates your pectoral muscles.

• JoeTraining Series: Curl your way to beautiful biceps

  Arguably one of the most basic and popular exercises on the planet, the bicep curl can be made extraordinarily difficult by adding an isometric component.

• Medicine Ball Tosses—Up and Side

  Guys who can't throw balls will hate this exercise at first, but that's part of the point. The medicine ball up and side tosses not only give your whole body a workout, they also provide coordination and balance training so lacking in many modern-day gym-

• Around the Gym: Put some beef on your buns

  "I like big butts and I cannot lie!"
  
  In his 1995 chart-topper "Baby Got Back," Sir Mix-a-Lot declared his love for bountiful booties—and he's not alone! While most men enjoy bigger backsides, not everyone has ample and well-proportioned

• JoeTraining series: Push-ups that push your limits

  Don’t underestimate the power of the push up, says NYC fitness expert Steve Lischin. "Everybody thinks of the push up as an entry level exercise or something that’s not as hard as or good as one with weights. They’re wrong."

• JoeTraining series: Bench press does not mark your worth as a man

  No, the weight of your rack on the bench press isn’t the measure of your worth as a man. “People make the mistake of looking at the bench press as their mark as a human being,” NYC’s hottest trainer Steve Lischin said. “It’s generally not that.”

• JoeTraining series: Reverse lunge, do it backwards for maximum impact

  “Oh no, not the lunge,” your knees scream. Never fear little knees, there’s another way to do it.

• JoeTraining series: You don’t know squat

  So you think you know squat? You don’t know squat like this. Trainer Steve Lischin gives RealJock a step-by-step approach that gives you the full benefits of this body-building basic.

• End-of-Bench Tricep Push-ups

  The close grip on the end-of-bench tricep push-up isolates the triceps muscles by putting more of the burden on pushing the body up and down on the triceps instead of the pectorals.

• Baseball Balance Taps

  The baseball balance taps exercise provides an excellent way to improve your balance and coordination with a simple movement you can do at home or at the gym. This exercise also strengthens the smaller stabilizing muscles in your joints, which will allow

• Dumbbell Chop

  This variation of the standard shoulder dumbbell extension provides a full range of body motion and incorporates leg and core work as well. It's also an excellent warm-up exercise as it works the entire body.

• Get hard and lean with kettlebell training

  If the Russian special forces and the U.S. Marine Corps strength train with it, it's got to be good. Meet the kettlebell, a big, heavy ball of iron that will give you a body that screams "ripped."

• Pump and run: The lying pullover to a press

  The lying pullover to a press throws an effective curveball at your chest, back, shoulders, and triceps, and offers a comprehensive, time-effective workout when you've only got 15 minutes to spare. Learn the drill.

• Smith Machine triple-threat workout

  All you need is a Smith machine, your body weight, lots of intensity, and about 15 minutes to thoroughly nail your chest, back, and arms (biceps and triceps). Ready to rumble?

• Beef up your chicken legs

  They're supposed to be the biggest and strongest muscles in your body. So why do your legs look like Chicken Little's? These five exercises will put the beef in your backside, the ham in your hamstrings, and the crunch in your calves.

• Triple threat triceps

  Fact: The triceps comprise 66 percent of the upper arm. Don't ignore such prime real estate. Learn the best way to build triple-threat triceps.

• Stability ball push-up crunch

  The stability ball is an oft-overlooked, but very powerful workout tool. Check out this one-two muscle punch that gets your abs and your upper body in one simple exercise.

• Ultimate abs in 10 minutes (or less)

  When you shed your shirt in public you want to reveal washboard abs. Learn how to get hardcore abs in less than 10 minutes a day.

• Battle for the bicep bulge

  Are powerful, baseball-sized biceps the stuff of your dreams? Not if you follow our four-step plan a couple of times per week to work your biceps from every angle.

• Build a better back

  Latissimus dorsi. Middle trapezius. Spinal erectors. Rhomboids. They're some of the strongest muscles in the body, and to be a successful athlete you need them to be strong and well balanced. Get the information you need on the major muscle areas.

• The art of the pull-up

  Pull-ups are one of the most effective—and most dreaded—exercise routines in the planet, giving almost your entire upper body an intense workout. Learn the proper form and get the info you need to build up to an impressive set that will leave yo

• Build bigger, better shoulders

  Few sights stop you in your tracks faster than a man with an impressive pair of shoulders. Want to be that man? Follow our five-step plan.

• The art of the push-up

  Want a complete upper body workout? Forget fancy machines and million dollar trainers. Learn the art of the pushup—it'll get ya (in a good way).

• Power pecs

  Want pectoral muscles you can brag about? Learn how to build them big, proportional and, most importantly, powerful in Power Pecs.

• Demystifying core training

  Core training supplies a solid base for strength, stamina, and correct form just about any sport. Find out why you need to strengthen your core, and how to do it.

• The perfect squat

  It's the best—and some say the most dangerous—exercise you can do for your lower body. But it's a must for serious strength trainers. Learn how to squat like a pro.