Many clients come to us claiming to have really bad knees. Many of the otherwise GREAT exercises that involve bending or stressing the knee are something many cannot do – even a little. They’re looking for core and upper body exercises that will help them burn fat without using their knees.Aerobic exercise such as spinning, for whatever reason, does not bother many knees. But lunges, etc…, oh boy, others can barely do them! And if they push, they cannot walk the next day. Here are some suggestions……If lunges cause you that much pain then you should definitely stay away from them for now but at some point you might want to correct the postural imbalance that’s causing the pain.
I find that for most of my clients who are 50-80 the problem is tight gluteus muscles, really tight hip flexors and quads or tight hamstrings, calves, hips and inner thighs. Getting length in any areas that are tight will make a huge difference and allow you more range of motion without pain plus improve your spinning workouts too.
There are 3 exercises I highly recommend for fat loss that involve zero lunging and virtually no leg work if done correctly. All the exercises below primarily work the core, gluteus, and lats (back) and they also burn tons of fat.
1. Dumbbell Swings or Kettle bell Swings If done properly you will feel nothing on the knee or shoulders and your entire core and gluteus do all the work. Once you can perform an overhead swing your lats (back) will get involved too. The alternating 1 arm swing is pretty cool too. Check out some great options at the link.
2. Renegade rows with or without pushups is one of the most vicious core and upper body exercises around. When doing it properly and with a decent amount of weight your heart rate will soar and you will sweat buckets. Check out your options at the link.
3. Finally another favorite is the kettle bell Clean and Press. This is an amazing exercise that works the gluteus, core, and entire back. It can be done so many different ways. Notice in the YouTube link how Rasul bends back from the hips (not a squat, 100% core) then drives through the hips to clean. Zero knee strain when done correctly and will blast fat like you wouldn’t believe.
Link for Dumbbell Swings
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bq5XRFOAfa4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bq5XRFOAfa4
Link for the Renegade Rows
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vyHls4EKqxU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vyHls4EKqxU
Link for the Kettle bell clean and press
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=se6MmJkx2h0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=se6MmJkx2h0
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