Full Body Exercises

[the Khazar Kid]

What individual exercises can you think of that work more or less the entire body, instead of focusing on isolating specific parts like legs, abs, or arms as most exercises do? Isn't modern man already fragmented and isolated from himself enough as it is? Maybe what we really need are some full-body exercises like the 7 I have thought of here. Interestingly enough all of these require some form of free weights, the first five could conceivably be performed with Dumbells, Kettlebells, Bob Hoffman's infamous "Swing Bar", a Barbell, log, stone, furniture or anything that has weight and can be gripped. While the last two require paired one-handed weights such as Dumbells or Kettlebells. Please contribute any other full-body exercises you can think of!!

1. Toe Shrug: This is the "smallest" exercise in terms of movement involved and so can be done as a warm-up for the others. Basically a Toe Stand (for the Calves) and a Shrug (for the Traps) are combined together simultaneously to warm up everything between the calves and the traps for the exercises that follow.

2. Snatch

3. Power Clean

4. Deadlift

5. Shoulder Bridge: A Bench Press without the Bench, maybe more of a Grass or Dirt Press! Actually this is to the Bench Press what the Dand or Indian Push-up is to the straight-up-n-down Western Push-up. Both the Shoulder Bridge and the Dand combine flowing movement from the center with the arms, one can see how this is even more applicable to punching power! If you're using dumbells with this you can even add rotation to fists, like Karate punching or the Next-Governor-of-California-Press.

6. Indian Squat with Dumbells: The classic arm-swinging, toe-springing Baithak or Indian Squat with weight in each hand (You need a separate weight in each hand so the weights can clear your feet) thus making it into a Front Raise as well.

7. Iron Cross

Enjoy and please contribute any I haven't mentioned!

Jesse Peters

[the Khazar Kid]

Illustrations

1. Toe shrug: Here's the toe stand: www.bodybuilding.com/fun/2002/dbcalfraise1.jpg
www.bodybuilding.com/fun/2002/dbcalfraise2.jpg

and the shrug:
www.bodybuilding.com/fun/2002/dbshrugs1.jpg
www.bodybuilding.com/fun/2002/dbshrugs2.jpg

put them together to get the toe shrug

2.Snatch:
www.bodybuilding.com/fun/2002/snatch1.jpg
www.bodybuilding.com/fun/2002/snatch2.jpg

3.Power Clean:
www.bodybuilding.com/fun/2002/powerclean1.jpg
www.bodybuilding.com/fun/2002/powerclean2.jpg

4.Deadlift:
www.bodybuilding.com/fun/2002/bbdeadlift1.jpg
www.bodybuilding.com/fun/2002/bbdeadlift2.jpg

still more info on Deadlifts here:
www.bodybuilding.com/fun/bbinfo.php?page+BackDeadlifts

5.Shoulder Bridge: The amazing Joe Nordquest can demonstrate it much better than my skinny self can (scroll down the page):

www.bigsteel.iwarp.com/Gallery/Gallery7.html

[the Khazar Kid]

6. Indian Squat with dumbells: Some examples of baithaks here:

www.cbass.com/Furey.htm
www.trainforstrength.com/ex-11.shtml
And here's a front raise with dumbells: www.bodybuilding.com/fun/2002/frontdbraisetwo1.jpg
www.bodybuilding.com/fun/2002/frontdbraisetwo2.jpg
a pretty natural combination

7. Iron Cross with dumbells:

www.bodybuilding.com/fun/2002/ironcross1.jpg
www.bodybuilding.com/fun/2002/ironcross1.jpg

Jesse Peters

[txhapkido]

I like the deadlift and one arm press. I also do the toe stand with feet forward, toes out and toes in as it works all around the calf.

[BDKF]

Hi,

The exercise I enjoy is one called "The Bear." I have been doing it for a few months and I am impressed with what it has done for my strength, build, and definition. Anyway, here it is.

Begin standing with the barbell hanging around thigh level.
Step 1 - Perform a hanging clean
Step 2 - Perform a front squat
Step 3 - Perform an overhead press; bring the bar down behind your head
Step 4 - Perform a back squat
Step 5 - Perform an overhead press
Step 6 - Return to the starting position.

That is one repetition. I started with 4 sets of 6, then went to 3 sets of 10, now I am back at 4 sets of 6 with a heavier weight. Hope you like it.

Tony Kemerly

I use kettlebells as well and have found snatches, swings (both single and two handed), clean & jerks to be great for strenghtening your whole body. As mentioned, deadlifts and it's variations are great for overall strength (although I personally don't use traditinal weight training any more).

Here are a few other exercises that I've found really helpful in regards to core strength and/or full body conditioning:

"Turkish Get-Up" (http://www.t-mag.com/articles/159short.html) with a kettlebell.
High repetition one-handed deadlifts (sometimes called a suitcase deadlift) with a kettlebell/dumbell
Headstands (try it for rounds of a couple of minutes per set)
Handstands
Handstand push-ups
Windmills with Kettlebells
L-sit and tuck-sit with parallettes (http://www.american-gymnast.com/technically_correct/paralletteguide/page3.html) (and their variations)
Also an exercise from the
"Five Tibetan Rites" - Rite number four (http://www.shapeshift.net/5tibetans/). I've heard this exercise called "the table" or something similar by a yoga instructor in the past.

Enjoy!
Steven

[the Khazar Kid]

Wow! Great stuff! Thanks!

Jesse Peters

Have fun...
There are other exercises that I neglected mention that work large portion of your muscles are (i.e. not isolated to a specific muscle group):

For upper body strength:
Dips
Pull-ups (i.e. with your palms facing away from you)
Full-Contact Twists
Janda sit-up
Bottom-up Military press with KB
Under the leg passes with KB

Lower body:
Pistols / One-legged squat with or w/o weight (I usually hold my 1 pood KB)
Bootstrappers
Dands (Hindu Squats)
Bleacher Lunges (these are one-legged squat but supporting your 'free leg' on a chair/bleacher)

Steven

[the Khazar Kid]

Thanks! Are Dands also a lower-body exercise, as well as an upper-body (I've heard "dand" means arm) exercise? Also what are Full Contact Twists?

Jesse Peters

Sorry, dands are Hindu Push-ups... my mistake. That's what happens when I'm in a hurry. :o I guess it could still be a lower body exercise in the sense that it stretches your hip flexors, quads and such... :D

Full Contact Twist is an ab exercise done while standing. You put a barbell on it's edge (without weights) into a corner so it's stable, hold it in front of you and twist from side to side. It's hard to describe so I'll have to see if I can find pics somewhere. This exercise is shown in Pavel Tsatsouline's book and video called bulletproof abs.

Steven

[shotofan]

Swimming is one very good full body exercises. Also very good for cardio:D

[shotofan]

I also forgot one.. If you don't have acess to a pool or it is winter you can walk, jog or run with wrist and ankle weights