3 Exercises You Should Be Using...

1. Cobra & Superman - Sure there's not a lot of movement, but most the population suffers from lack of postural strength and stability in the posterior chain. Isometric Cobra and Superman holds are good for your external rotators, spinal stabilizers and glutes which are often neglected in many fitness programs. Throw these movements into your routine at least twice a week and work up to holding these positions for several sets, up to one minute in length. Make sure your low back and glutes are squeezed tight and your arms are externally rotated, thumbs turned out when performing the Cobra.

2. Woodchops - The Woodchop is essentially a total body, core and rotational exercise all packed into one and gets you moving in two of the three planes of motion the body moves in (it hits the transverse plane with the twist and the saggital plan with the squat down). Gripping a medicine ball, plate or cable squat down while reaching your hands to your hips and rotating the shoulders like you're winding up to spin. As you squat back up, extend your arms away from your and rotate the opposite direction. You want to pivot on the foot you're turning away from and move the resistance on an elliptical path up to about head height. You'll feel this in your quads, obliques, abs and shoulders.

3. Squat Press - This is a more user friendly exercise I like to lump in to the "Extremely Effective" category with the the likes of its more difficult cousin lift - The Clean and Press. The Squat Press ranks up there with one of the best total body movements around activating nearly all your leg muscles (if you properly squat down "ass to ankles"), lots of core and you finish up with a great vertical press. Medicine Balls, dumbbells, barbells, kettle bells, cowbells, you name it you and can squat press it. For the record, don't even ask why I am in the middle of a field in these photos, that was some other genius' ideas, but hey you can see the movement and the colors are pleasant...HAHA!