It’s prime time in the gym on a Monday evening, and chest is the major muscle group you want to workout. You can’t start your chest workout with bench press because all of the benches are occupied, so instead, you decide to begin your workout with tricep pulldowns with alternating dips. That would be a great choice if you were preparing to start an arm workout, but considering today is chest day, you wouldn’t want to start the workout with secondary muscle movements. You would actually be doing your body a disservice by fatiguing your secondary muscle groups because it will take away from the strength of the primary muscle group (chest).
When programming a workout, it’s crucial to be conscious of the muscle groups that are being attacked, engaging the larger muscle groups (Multi-joint) with explosive or compound exercises, followed by smaller (single-joint) exercises. For example, on a leg day you would not want to do leg extensions before doing leg presses or squats. Studies have proven that training larger multi joint to single joint progressions will maximize the total resistance lifted during the workout (Dr. Len Kravitz Ph.D). Studies have also proven that exercise order plays an intricate role in fatigue of the body, meaning your body is going to have more stamina and strength early on in the workout. As your body starts to fatigue, the amount of weight and repetitions will decrease, therefore in the exercise progression we work mutli-joint to single-joint. For years body builders believed, from a muscle mass standpoint, working single-joint to multi-joint was the best progression. Luckily, with the advances in science and medicine, we have learned that the opposite is true.
In conclusion, it is ideal to work from large to small muscle groups in a exercise progression. However, from a trainers standpoint, determining whats best for the individual clients needs will vary. You need to make sure that you are not setting your client up for potential harm. One must always weigh the risk versus the reward in all programming techniques. The training business is only as strong as your clients, and if the client is injured then so is the business.
WORKOUT PROGRESSION
Upper body: (use a weight that you can complete between 15-25 reps)
Chest Press complexed with Push Ups
Incline Chest Press complexed with Bench Dips
Chest Flys complexed with tricep pulldowns
Laying Over head Pullovers complexed with Neutral grip Dumbbell Bench Press
Lower body: (use a weight that you can complete between 15-25 reps)
Leg Press complexed with Reverse Lunge Leg Kicks
Barbell Squats Complexed with Squat Jumps
Step ups complexed with Walking Lunges
Leg extensions complexed with Hamstring Curls