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The Idea of Progressive Resistance

This is just a fancy term that means you need to keep pushing yourself. Your body will get used to an exercise, especially if you always do the same number of reps at the same intensity. The exercises that challenge you today will be easy in a few weeks. Plus you may end up getting bored with them.

We can’t have that. Boredom and complacency will kill your progress. My advice to you is the following.

Take time to learn the exercise and do it correctly.
Don’t be a number person. If I say do ten reps and you are at ten but you can probably do three more with good form…go for it! Those last reps are where gains are made.
Don’t be in a hurry to move up too fast. This is not a race, ou are only competing with yourself. When you see one of my workouts, you may need to bump a couple exercises up to the next level. You also may need to make a couple easier. Not a big deal, in fact that is smart thinking.

I have three levels of each exercise here. I will also create another page with more advanced exercises but don’t worry about that now.

Warning: I couldn’t afford to pay for a good looking model to perform the exercises, so you are stuck with me.

The Exercises

I am grouping the exercise in progressions. Same body part, just a little more challenging.

Level 1

Level 2

Level 3

Legs

Squats

Ball Squat Instructions

Muscles Worked: Quads Coaching Cues 1. Feet shoulder width apart. 2. Toes facing forward or slightly turned out. 3. Feet and knees press out slightly to create joint stability. 4. Go down as far as comfortable. Work on getting to parallel. This means your femur (leg bone) is parallel with the floor). 5. Do not push ball against the wall. Slide with it. You want your shins to be close to vertical. If you get any knee pain do this: 1. While standing, grab your ankle and stretch the quad for 30 seconds. Try to bring your heel to your butt. Then stretch and try to bring the knee in so it isn\’t sticking out. 2. You may need to move your feet further away from the wall. 3. You may need to angle your toes out more.

Box Squat Instructions

The box squat is the traditional way to ensure you are squatting to the correct depth each rep. It is a very safe exercise to do and very effective. You can use a box, chair, table or bench. Just make sure it is sturdy enough to support your weight. You can always start with a higher box and work you way down. Coaches Cues Feet are shoulder width apart, toes pointing out slightly. As you lower, reach back with the butt as if you were going to sit down. You want your femur (Thigh) to be parallel when sitting, so choose an appropriate height box. Your lower leg should be nearly vertical when sitting. Lightly touch and pop up. Don’t bounce! The biggest mistake I see is not sitting back into the squat. Try and not lock you knees at the top.

Bodyweight Squat Instructions

Coaches Cues Feet are shoulder width apart, toes pointing out slightly. As you lower, reach back with the butt as if you were going to sit down. You want your femur (Thigh) to be parallel when sitting, so choose an appropriate height box. Your lower leg should be nearly vertical when sitting. Lightly touch and pop up. Don’t bounce! The biggest mistake I see is not sitting back into the squat. Try and not lock you knees at the top.