What’s the best exercise in the world? The answer to this depends on your fitness goals; you’re not going to squat for stronger arms or expect a heavy deadlift to deliver cardio gains.
But some moves boast enough benefits to warrant a place in pretty much any workout plan.
To help you track them down, iFit trainer Hannah Eden has picked three of her favorite all-rounder exercises and explained why she rates them so highly.
If you want to build a stronger, more resilient body, you might want to count them among your favorites too.
Hannah Eden is an iFit trainer and the founder of Hannah Eden Fitness. Her first steps in the fitness industry came as a CrossFit athlete, and she has since expanded her training and coaching to specialize in functional strength training, kettlebell exercises and animal flow. Eden is currently training for her first Ironman event, less than a year after giving birth to her son.
1. Kettlebell swing
- Stand upright with your hips slightly wider than shoulder-width apart, holding a kettlebell in both hands in front of your hips.
- Bend your legs slightly and, keeping your back flat, hinge at the hips to lean forward and allow the kettlebell to fall between your thighs.
- Drive your hips forward explosively to stand upright. With your arms straight throughout, use this momentum to swing the kettlebell up in front of you until it’s at roughly eye-level.
- Allow it to fall back between your thighs and repeat.
Benefits
Eden loves the kettlebell swing because it’s a dynamic exercise. “Think of it almost like a ballistic deadlift, rather than a squat,” she advises.
It uses a hinging movement from the hips to build functional strength and power along your posterior chain (the muscles along the back side of your body).
“Keeping your posterior chain strong is going to benefit anything else that you do….
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