Exercises I Have Omitted from My Programs

by  John Izzo  

I'm getting older. Period.When I was 22 and bustin' ass in the gym--I felt like alot of the cool cats that you read about today. I was lifting like there was no tomorrow--spending 2-3 hours in the gym belting out tons of presses, squats, and pulls. Next day, I'd wake up and only think about hitting the gym again. Now in my late 30's, time is very precious to me. Unlike my early twenties when all I cared about was choosing a  shirt that made me look big and wondering where to take my date on Friday night; today I have more responsibilities. Because of my added responsibilities as a home-owner, husband, business owner, and overall caring fun-loving guy....I need more time outside of the gym. This doesn't mean my love for weight-lifting and fitness is any less than it was 20 some-odd years ago; it just means I need to make my workouts more effective and more efficient.

And because of this I need to cut out certain exercises that really don't do me any good or have similar movements that can be loaded in a more effective way.

I have eliminated certain exercises because frankly, I have found them conducive to over-training or generally wasting time. We typically relate over-training to the frequency of a particular exercise used in a program. For instance, we think that if one performs too many bench presses or too many curls that it leads to shoulder or elbow problems. For example, a painter can paint a wall with a brush, then go into another home and place wallpaper up, and then go home and fix a door frame. He then experiences shoulder pain. What activity is to blame for this acute sign of chronic things to come? Is it the brush, wallpaper, or door frame? However, the excessive and repetitive movement is to blame. Anything performed frequently and excessively can cause wear and tear on the body. This continuous and 'purposeful' stress needs a balance. And that balance comes from routine maintenance in the form of scheduled massages, body work, self myofascial release, rest, and relaxation.

• Behind the neck pulldowns
• Behind the neck presses 
• Upright rows 
• Isolated Calf Raises 
• Front DB Raises 
• Barbell Shrugs