50 Exercises You Should NEVER Do
On Saturday at 9:52AM we asked…
What exercises should you NEVER do?
You answered:
- "Probably want to avoid stiff legged good mornings or that is good mornings with LOCKED knees." –Randall McGrath
- "Squats in the curl rack." –Zach McFarland
- "Dumbbell flys...if you really don't enjoy having your shoulder in its socket, go ahead and go heavy on these!" –Christopher Langley
- "I don't check if the bosu ball is fucking or not. So...anything unstable, involving balls (yeah - those too) and body weighted exercises except for chins." –Lars Kvanum Kahlid
- "Almost every exercise has the right person and situation for it." –Zach Rounsaville
- "Ring Dips." –Max Kühnel
- "Anything light! I go to the gym to get strong, not to workout my ego like most of the 'tools' I see in the gym!" –Josh Cremeans
- "Curls on an upside down bosu ball while screaming." –Brian Blazovic
- "Flared elbow, pec isolated bench press. It would save a lot of time and effort if you just sliced open your pecs and shoved rusty nails into your rotators..." –Todd Bross
- "I am here for the 3-pound dumbbell curls. I don't want to get bulky! I want to tone! :trollface:" –Christle C. Guevarra
- "Head bob forearm curl quarter-squat calf raises a.k.a. 'shrugs' for gym rats." –Joe Fogiato
- "Anything half-assed. If you're going to do it, do it 100 percent." –William Bingham
- "Presses behind the head" –Shan Venasse
- "Cables crossovers...which reminds me of a good Dave Tate quote where he says, 'Trying to get a bigger bench by doing cable crossovers is like preparing for the SATs with a coloring book.' Ha." –Paul Moser
- "Smith machine deadlifts." –Mike Shaeffer
- "Behind the neck shoulder press. Say goodbye to your rotator cuff." –Shane Thomas Christy
- "Jogging!" –Jill Gardner
- "Triceps kickbacks. Unless your a post-menopausal woman. But even then..." –Daven Brigham
- "Anything in the Smith Machine!" –Junior Boyer
- "Tug Toner." –Seth M Kotelnicki
- "Angry cat deadlifts!" –Shawn Murray
- "Narrow grip upright rows and behind the neck presses. Too much risk of impingement." –Christer Dehlin
- "Partner-based Tug Toner exercises. Eye contact is AWKWARD!" –Jaime Espalin
- "Overhead work without scapulothoracic mobility, squats without trunk stability and ankle dorsiflexion, crunches if spine is already stooped, dips if a/c joints start to hurt, bench press or pullups if you can't control your shoulder blades, and anything in the squat rack that doesn't require a squat rack." –HeddFit
- "Squat thrusts!" –Mauricio Juarez
- "12oz curls...means your beer is too small." –Jamie Bruce
- "Tricep kickbacks." –Dan N. Meehan
- "Weighted kegels." –Adam Schlutt
- "Personal trainer directed wall sit. Also, shoulder shrugs on an Indo board (biceps curls are ok though)." –Bryan L. Walter
- "Behind-the-head shoulder press and behind-the-head lat pull downs. I got to say, there's some crazy shit on this thread. If you think squats and deadlifts are bad for you, then you're probably using incorrect form and were injured as a result...either that or you're anti-strength." –Jay Redbeard Oswald
- "Overhead squats and behind-the-neck pulldowns or presses." –Jim Connor
- "Lunges are great. Different function to squatting, and especially good for people with lower back injuries. Smith machine exercises are all shit. Wouldn't touch behind-the-head presses (or pulldowns for that matter) either." –Mat Hill
- "Barbell upright rows and behind-the-neck press. Both exercises work very well, but mess up shoulders in a bad way, so just don't do them. Twisting sit-ups can also cause herniated discs, so another one to avoid." –Robert Argus
- "I disagree with a lot of what's being said here from a serious standpoint. Behind-the-neck pressing/pulling movements I agree are dangerous IF IMPLEMENTED INCORRECTLY. There is a time and place for it, if you have the proper mobility. I'm surprised nobody listed side bends as a waste of time, as the number one wasteful movement, usually women are doing them to tighten the mid-waist which is just making it bigger - ha! For powerlifting applications, it would be much better suited to do heavy farmer carries and weighted abdominal work for the trunk strength needed." –Philip Asker
- "Sex." –Christle C. Guevarra
- "I agree with Phil. There are people who can press behind the neck and do upright rows without a problem. There is no bad exercise (except tricep kickbacks), only bad application." –Ian Tajiri Lubembe
- "Any exercise over 5 reps." –Greg Furmanek
- "Never is a strong word, but...triceps kickback, ab crunch machine, and hip abductor machines are done WAY too often by most gym-goers. And for 99 percent anything standing on a BOSU ball." –Brian Sealock
- "I recently saw a female at my gym doing dips on a swiss ball, that made me laugh a bit. Pretty much agree with everything that's been said with regards to the bosu ball. And I agree with Brian wholeheartedly about the ab crunch machine and hip ab/adductor machine." –Simon Jack Witney
- "Prowler® suicides while hungover ... Those just aren't pleasant." –Cameron Lichtwer
- "Squats on a half-cut balance ball. I guess if you're ever trying to perform squats during an earthquake doing that exercise would benefit you, but who the hell does that?" –Reo Stinson
- "Behind the back upright rows." –Vamshi Kappagantula
- "Anything involving bike shorts." –Frank Bookhardt
- "Curls in the squat rack, squats in a Smith machine, shake weight, behind the neck presses/pull downs if you don't know what the f*ck ya doing..." –Michael Cole
- "Donkey calf raises with a partner on your back." –Daniel Garcia
- "The only exercise you should never do is the one you don't know how to do correctly, or the one that causes you pain/irritation regardless of knowing how to do it correctly." –Jeff Duke
- "Naked box squats in the locker room." –Andy Bower
- "Are there stupid lifts? Yeah. Do I judge them? No. This is the problem that will never die with any bodybuilder, powerlifter, crossfitter, or the Gold's Gym pretty boy. They all think their workout is better than yours. Me, personally, I'll never ever do any curls, but that doesn't mean anyone else is wrong for doing them...just not on my power rack! Ha!" –Roger Cueva
- "Do NOT do 'table push-aways' if you ever hope to enter Rhodeston." –Cliff Privetera
- "I can't really think of an exercise to NEVER do. Think injuries, etc. Although a reverse band kettlebell clean and press can be dangerous. I suggest wearing straps, a mouthpiece, and a football helmet." –Clint Darden
Did we forget something?
If so PLEASE let us know in the comments below. What exercises do you feel should never be done?
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