These exercises may be what you are currently doing in the gym. Some trainer may have suggested you to use them. They appear to do something, but in reality they don’t do jack! Sorry, but it’s time to toss these exercises into the trash, as they are wasting your time. Why? Short answer says that they serve no true purpose functionally and they don’t serve the proper purpose for your muscles. Want an example? Do a biceps curl and flex your pecs. Feel like you did something? Yes. In reality, you drew focus away from your biceps using a muscle that serves no purpose for your biceps. Interested? Keep reading.

Plate Circles

These are intended to be a warm-up exercise for your shoulders. That is where it should end. You may be thinking, what is a plate circle? It’s the exercise you see MMA wannabe’s performing in the gym. Grab a plate and basically circle it around your head. No need for detail, since you don’t need to do them. They are a waste of time beyond a warm-up. Why? They serve no purpose. There is no functional movement that would best utilize this exercise. It does not work from a physiological standpoint, or any other purpose. Warm-up however you please, but for pete’s sake, leave this one alone. You don’t need to warm-up your shoulders with a 45 pound plate in this fashion.

Replacement Exercise: The “exercise” above is intended to give a nice workout (and a deep burn) for your shoulders. The alternative here would be a nice giant set.
Giant Set:

• Front Raise: 8-10 Reps
• Lateral Raise: Muscle Failure
• Bent-Over Lateral Raise: Muscle Failure
• Upright Row: Muscle Failure
• *Do not drop the weights. Complete each exercise, one after the other, without rest.

Plate Pushes

Only God knows why. Seriously, there is no purpose for this exercise. It’s the exercise where you grab a plate and hold at chest level. Thrust it straight out and back. The only reason I explained it is because I had no luck finding the name of this exercise. Another exercise that serves no purpose in any fashion. If you want a shoulder burn, do a nice drop set of front raises. If you are looking for an easy way to dislocate your shoulder, well find your own path to that. There are easy ways to provide a solid burn to your muscles, but this exercise is not one of them. Skip it, and forget about it!

Replacement Exercise: Front Raise (drop set). Pick a weight you can perform for 8-10 reps, then reduce the weight by 25% and perform as many as possible. Drop the weight again by 25% and finish off as many as possible.

Anything with a Bosu Ball

The Bosu Ball is an exericse ball cut in half and placed inside a nice plastic platform. The claim is that it really works your “core”. Yes, what a good way to develop your “core”, right? WRONG! You will begin losing strength with this piece of equipment immediately. If you want a stronger core, learn how to engage it first. Then perform exercises geared towards actually working your core region. Hips, glutes, flexors, extensors, and transverse abdominis. The last thing I need at the gym is some weenie losing their balance because they were trying to do a 1-legged military press while standing on a bosu ball. Unfortunately, people will not feel bad for you if you fall off one of these things. It’s a waste of time, energy, and muscle.

Replacement Exercise: Simply lose the damn ball, and bam, your strength returns, and your trembling legs are more stabilized. If you want core work, include exercises that directly strengthen the core. Limit use of machines and back supports whenever possible.

These are just a few of the many exercises that do nothing. The list goes on, especially since people continue “creating” new exercises. It’s simple, understand the function of the muscle, and progressively overload that muscles. People really make this much harder than it is in the pursuit of their goals. Trying to make this harder than it is will ultimately lead to serious injury. Lift smarter so you can lift harder.