FFC Personal Trainer using lat pulldown weight machine at the gym

Use These Weight Machines At The Gym For A Total Body Workout

When is the last time you used a weight machine at the gym? If strength training is part of your routine, these machines can come in handy, but a lot of gym-goers have no idea how to use these machines. These machines are a great way to introduce your body to new movements, and they can be helpful during busy times at the gym. If the squat rack is occupied or a fellow member has snagged your preferred size of free weights, there is likely a machine available that you can use to work the same muscles groups.

We get it, the machines section of the gym can be intimidating. You’re not sure what this knob controls, what that cable does or where to sit on the machine. To help you get started, we highlight three of our favorite weight machines at the gym in this post and show you exactly how to use them for a great total body workout. Let’s get started!

Weight Machine Safety And Etiquette

Before you start using the weight machines at the gym, there are a few important safety and etiquette tips to go over.

  1. Adjust the height of the seat, handlebars, etc and test that your settings are appropriate for your body before beginning the movement. Never touch the adjustment levels while you are performing an exercise!
  2. Check the weight stack on the machine and adjust to your preferred weight where you can perform 8 good reps. It’s always best to start with a lighter weight and adjust to a heavier weight if needed.
  3. Don’t let the weight stack slam at the end of your rep.
  4. If resting between sets, please allow others who may be waiting to work in between your sets.
  5. Wipe down the seats, handles, etc on the machine before moving on to your next machine.

Related: 8 Benefits of Using Weights In Your Fitness Routine

How To Use The Lat Pulldown Machine

The Lat Pulldown machine mainly focuses on the muscles in your back and works your biceps as well. After adjusting your seat height and selecting your weight, place your hands on the handlebars about shoulder-width apart. Grab the handles and then sit down. Your thighs should fit snugly under the pads.

Keep a nice tall posture with your eyes looking straight ahead. Exhale as your pull down on the handlebars, inhale as you return as you return the handles overhead. As you perform this exercise, your shoulders should be pulling down into your armpits, activating the lats. After your set of reps is complete, slowly raise the handlebars back overhead, stand and lower the weight gently.

How To Use The Leg Press Machine

The leg press machine works all of your leg muscles. The first thing to check when you’re using the leg press machine is the seat set-up. There is a lever on the seat that allows you to move the seat closer to and farther away from the platform where you place your feet. For the leg press, the starting position for the seat should be close to the platform. Next, select your weight and then take a seat.

Place your feet flat onto the platform at about hip-width distance. Make sure your lower back is pressed fully against the back of the seat and grab onto the handles on the side of the seat. Keeping your spine tall, press away from the platform so that your legs are extended. Be careful to keep a slight bend in the knee – there is no need to lock out your knees here. Inhale as you pull yourself back down to the platform, knees pointing slightly out. Before the weight plates touch, push yourself back away from the platform for the second rep.

How To Use The Chest Press Machine

The chest press machine works your chest, shoulders and triceps. To set up for the chest press, first check your seat height, then sit down and check that your wrists are lined up with your low to mid pec when you place your hands on the handlebars. This helps ensure that your shoulders are in a relaxed position. Lastly, select your weight on the machine.

After you’ve selected your weight, take a seat. There is usually another lever near the handlebars that controls how close or how far away your starting position is from your body. You don’t want your starting position to be back so far that your chest muscles are being stretched when you place your hands on the handlebars, but your wrists should be relatively close to your body to begin.

While gripping the handlebars, pull your elbows done to align them with your wrists. Make sure your spine is resting on the seat behind you, drive your feet into the ground to activate your legs and hips and exhale as you push the weight away from you. Inhale as you pull the weight back toward you, using your lats for control. Before the weight plates touch, push the handlebars back away from your body for the second rep.

20 Minute Weight Machine Workout

Put these three movements together for a great total body workout using the weight machines at the gym. Here is the workout:

10 Reps at the Lat Pulldown Machine

Rest – 30 seconds to 1 minute

10 Reps at the Leg Press Machine

Rest – 30 seconds to 1 minute

10 Reps at the Chest Press Machine

Rest – 30 seconds to 1 minute

Repeat this circuit 3 times. If the machines become occupied during your workout, you can mix in mountain climbers, dead bugs or planks while you are waiting. This workout should take you between 15-20 minutes to complete. You can also pair this workout with cardio for a great 30-40 minute workout!

Related: Looking for more workouts? Try this 20 Minute Kettlebell Workout

Contact us for a free training session

Post written by FFC Contributor Natalie Casper. Video and workout courtesy of FFC Fitness Director Mario Dato.

Day One Journey: Meet Juan

In late 2021, we asked our members, “What’s Your Day One?” Dozens of members shared their 2022 fitness goals with us, and we chose four members to follow on their journeys from Day One to Goal Accomplished! First up, let’s meet Juan!

Juan joined the FFC Family in 2012 after graduating from college. Over the years, Juan has worked on and off with a personal trainer and has also come to the club for cardio and lifting workouts on his own. One thing he hasn’t tried in his 10 years of membership with FFC? Swimming.

“Usually when I’m in a pool, I’m holding an alcoholic beverage,” Juan said with a laugh.

In his submission video, Juan said that it has been his goal to learn how to swim since joining the club.

“I have not achieved that goal yet, but I’m hoping that you all can help me learn how to swim and lead a healthier lifestyle of having that routine of swimming,” Juan said.

Typically, Juan hits the gym about three times a week, but he had a busy few months near the end of 2021 in his career as a Data Analytics Manager. By learning how to swim with our Day One program, Juan hopes that swimming will give him another reason to visit the club regularly.

Related: How To Stay Motivated To Reach Your Fitness Goals

“I also want to learn how to swim just to have a new life skill,” Juan said. “Global warming, riding sea tides, you never know,” he joked.

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Each of the participants in our Day One program is paired with a FFC Personal Trainer to help them achieve their goals. Juan is paired with Joy Miles, a 40+-time triathlete who has worked at FFC as a Personal Trainer for more than 12 years.

“I love teaching people, especially adults, how to learn to swim,” Joy said.

Joy learned how to swim just three months before her first triathlon, and her advice to new swimmers is to get in the pool often.

“Swimming is more technical than golf,” Joy said. “If you can get into the pool at least three times a week when you’re first learning how to swim, your swim IQ is going to jump dramatically, versus just swimming once a week.”

Related: Check out this beginner’s core workout from Joy!

During her first sessions with Juan, Joy introduced some balance drills and helped him get comfortable with putting his face in the water, which she said is one of the biggest learning curves for people when they are learning to swim.

“One of my homework assignments for [Juan] is to get the largest mixing bowl that you have, fill it with water, put your goggles on, and put your face in the water,” Joy said. “Exhale out in the water and turn your head to get that air.”

After he is more comfortable with breathing in the water, Joy will be working on stroke development with Juan. She said she is excited to be working with someone who is motivated and who is taking their swim lessons seriously.

“His attitude is really good, really positive for this because he wants to do this,” Joy said. “And that makes all the difference when it comes to learning how to swim.”

Joy is confident in Juan’s abilities to reach his goal, and Juan is looking forward to seeing how the program progresses over these 12 weeks.

“This is my first time doing something like this,” Juan said. “I just want to fully take it all in, learn a new skill and hopefully be up in the pool every day working out and getting my summer body in shape.”

Watch below for a sneak peek on all 4 of our Day One participants!

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Post written by FFC Contributor Natalie Casper.

Woman holding a kettlebell at her shoulder

New To Kettlebell Training? Try This Kettlebell Workout

When gyms (and just about everything else) shut down in early 2020, did you invest in at-home fitness equipment? Thousands of Americans were clamoring to get their hands on dumbbells, weight plates and kettlebells early during the Covid-19 pandemic, driving fitness equipment sales to increase more than 1000% from 2019, according to eBay.com data.

Perhaps you went to Target or Facebook Marketplace in the hopes of finding a pair of dumbbells, only to be left with a selection of kettlebells (if you were lucky to see anything other than empty shelves!). Whether the kettlebells in your living room are gathering dust or you’re curious about working with kettlebells at the gym, use this blog post as a guide for how to safely and effectively make the most of this versatile tool.

What Are The Benefits Of Kettlebell Training?

Using kettlebells can help simplify your workout routine because you typically only need one or two kettlebells for a workout, and you can hit every major muscle group in the body during a kettlebell workout. In particular, kettlebells are excellent for strengthening your posterior chain – the glutes, hamstrings, etc – and because these are the body’s biggest muscles, kettlebells can deliver a calorie-torching workout.

Depending on the number of reps and the amount of rest between sets, kettlebell training can also count as cardio training. Popular kettlebell exercises, like kettlebell swings for example, raise your heart rate while building strength.

Additionally, many kettlebell exercises including the kettlebell press which we go over below, are done unilaterally – one side at a time. Unilateral work can help improve your balance and strengthen the stabilizer muscles in your core.

Basic Kettlebell Safety

Before you get started with kettlebell training, there are a few important safety tips to go over.

  1. Remove all rings, watches and other jewelry from hands and wrists before beginning a kettlebell workout.
  2. Wear shoes with a flat sole, or perform kettlebell movements in socks so you can feel the ground.
  3. Make sure to grab the correct weight. Keep in mind that most kettlebell weights are listed in kilograms. 1 KG = 2.2 lbs. Typically, women will start with a 10kg, 12kg or 16kg kettlebell while men usually start with a 16kg, 20kg or 24kg kettlebell.

How To Kettlebell Goblet Squat

The first move in our kettlebell workout is the Goblet Squat. To perform a kettlebell goblet squat, begin by picking up the kettlebell with both hands and holding it right below your chin. Remember to keep your elbows in close to your body, and be careful not the rest the kettlebell on your chest but to hold slightly away from your body.

With your feet in shoulder-width position, squat down, aiming to bring your elbows down to the inside of your knees. Then, drive away from the ground to stand up nice and tall. That’s one rep!

How To Kettlebell Deadlift/Hip Hinge

The hip hinge that is performed in the kettlebell deadlift is a foundational movement for other kettlebell exercises like the swing, the clean and the snatch. When you are performing the hip hinge correctly, you should feel your glutes and hamstrings fire up. You should not feel pain in your lower back while performing this movement.

Begin by standing directly over the kettlebell. Reach down to grab the kettlebell. Hinge your hips backward, keeping your shoulders higher than your knees and hips higher than your knees. Drive through your feet to stand up tall. That’s one rep!

How To Kettlebell Press

You may need a lighter kettlebell for this movement than you used for the goblet squat and deadlift. Once you’ve selected a weight that you feel comfortable pressing overhead, begin by picking up your kettlebell with both hands and bringing it up to one of your shoulders. This is the kettlebell racked position. When you’re in this position, straighten your wrist to ensure your knuckles are facing the ceiling.

From here, engage your core, squeeze your butt and press the kettlebell straight overhead, keeping your bicep close to your ear when your arm is fully extended. Bring the kettlebell back to that racked position before pressing overhead again. Once you’ve completed the set on the first side, bring the kettlebell to the ground, lift again with both hands and bring the bell to the racked position on the opposite shoulder. Perform the press for the same number of reps on this side of the body.

Related: Strengthen your abdominal muscles with this beginner’s core workout

20 Minute Kettlebell Workout

This kettlebell workout will give you a total body workout using just one or two pieces of equipment in 20 minutes:

10 Kettlebell Goblet Squats

Plank – 30 seconds

10 Kettlebell Deadlifts

10 Kettlebell Presses (5 on each side)

Reduce reps by 1 in every round (9 reps of each movement, 8 reps of each movements, etc) until you reach 1 rep of each movement. Keep the plank at 30 seconds each round. This workout should take you about 15 to 20 minutes to complete.

Related: Looking for more workouts? Try this total body dumbbell workout

Contact us for a free training session

Post written by FFC Contributor Natalie Casper. Video and workout courtesy of FFC Senior Fitness Director Sarah Ashenden.