The “big four” refers to the four workouts that trainers consider as the best in the strength training world. They are the dead-lift, bench press, squat, and shoulder press. All other strength training exercises have important functions, but they are only secondary to these ones.
The following are these four exercises in detail, their benefits and how they are done.
1. Dead-lifts
Dead-lifts are considered the kings of body builders. They improve your core strength, as well as increase muscle mass. Stand the way you would if you wanted to jump, then with your back straight and your hips low, take hold of the bar on the ground with both hands and lift it to your chest. Then stand and hold it for a few seconds at your legs.
2. Squats
Squats strengthen the quadriceps of your thighs, calves and hamstrings, providing you with stronger legs. Squats also cause the body to release more hormones like testosterone, human growth hormone and many other hormones that provide an anabolic environment, that builds muscles, among other benefits. Bend your hips forward with an arched back and bent knees. Put your hands on your head or stretch them in front of you, while you start going down and coming up.
3. Shoulder presses
It is considered impossible to build an impressive body without doing one of these. They improve your core strength and stability, while strengthening your delt muscles that are the muscles covering your shoulders, triceps and trap muscles. There are very many different types of shoulder presses, but the standard is done in a gym with a machine, where you seat or stand, and pull down a bar and take it up again, repeating the process again.
4. Bench presses
Bench presses are packed full with benefits including, building chest muscles, enlarging muscle mass found on the upper body, while increasing your core strength. The front of your shoulders that is anterior deltoids, brachii, triceps and back latissimus muscle, are also strengthened. It is done by lifting a weighty bar positioned above you when lying on your back, then squeezing your lower back and shoulder blades, bringing the weight slowly to your chest and returning it to the original position.
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