Project Alvin the ChipMunk to Alvin the ChipHunk: 5 Effective Gym Workouts

Ever since we were kids up until college, my brother and I always had this thin and scrawny built that we really didn’t like. We both had a crazy ideal body in mind—big, bouncy chests, shoulders so broad you almost couldn’t fit through doorways, six-pack abs that you can use to wash your clothes on, and meaty calves ripped with cuts. But when we look back at our old photos, it’s so hard to imagine how far from those ideas we looked like.

Throwback

We never knew it was possible to change our scrawny figure until we started getting serious and invested our time and some money in getting ourselves to where we wanted to be.

Personally, what got me started was simple and honestly superficial, but hey, we all have that one weird reason to get you started on something. For me, it was to get a love life. A legitimate long term relationship. #single

So, here, I’m sharing with you guys my favorite workouts at the gym. Routines that, hopefully, could also help you become a better you, as it did for me.

5. RUSSIAN TWIST + 1 MINUTE PLANKS

Russian Twists

One-minute plank

Everyone dreams of getting six-pack abs, but let’s face it, it’s one of the hardest body parts to work out. Focusing on an ab-workout alone will not cut it because there’s a layer of fat covering those six packs. The trick is to do a compound exercise to burn as much fat as possible with a proper diet to keep fat away from your stomach area. Also, doing the 1-minute Russian twists + 1-minute plank for 4 sets would help form and chisel your abs.

4. SQUATS

SQUATS

Pretty sure you’ve heard the saying “don’t skip leg day”. But, why? Well, because your legs allow you to perform a lot of workouts, and not only that, the more base strength you have on your legs, the more you can carry to build up your upper body. You’ll notice that when you start doing barbell squats, you could lift twice as heavy as you can than a bench press. This is because your legs are the biggest and the strongest muscle in your body (without getting too technical).

When performing this workout, I’m always conscious of my form. Making sure my head, spine, and back are aligned. When going down to do the squat, I imagine I’ll be sitting on a super small chair that’s for a small kid. That’ll give you the idea of how low you should go.

3. BENCH PRESS

Bench press

One of the favorite workouts and the core to my routine. This exercise is designed to develop those pecs you’ve always dreamed of having. Not only that, it also trains your triceps, back, and shoulders. Again, good package deal workout that will surely be effective, of course with the right form.

You may wonder how I ACTUALLY started all of this fitness hanash. Initially, as any individual who has no idea what he was doing, I started to go online and research. That’s the key! I found out what type of body form I have (I was an ectomorph), watched a lot of Youtube videos about workouts best for beginners and skinny guys, and on food diet. This helped me big time because it’s important to know what you’re doing and going to the gym prepared.

2. ALTERNATE BARBELL CURLS

Alternate biceps curls

I always find it hard to work out my biceps. To start off, I don’t have enough muscle or strength to lift them, so I usually go for the light-weight ones, around 10lbs. The time came when I could lift around 20lbs, but for some reason, I could only complete 8 reps using my right arm but not with the left. It becomes difficult when it reaches the 6th rep. But later on, my left arm was able to catch up. I love this exercise because not only does it target the biceps solely, you are also able to gauge if your left arm needs to keep up with your right. If you are able to complete the 4 sets 8 reps for both arms without a sweat, better move on to the next set of weights.

1. DEADLIFT

They are named that way for a reason. This notoriously effective killer workout aims to target all the muscles in your body with just one exercise—legs, back, traps, arms, and abs. The best package deal workout for me yet. I usually start with a base weight which is 40kgs and then add more weights until I can only max out 8 repetitions. After this workout, I usually feel really exhausted. But after resting for two minutes, am ready to kick ass again! If I was given the chance to only pick one workout to do forever, it would be this one. Trust me.

Of course, let’s not forget the mandatory gym selfie for us millennials because showing off your progress is essential to keep those compliments coming! (Kidding!)

If you liked the shirt and shorts I wore in this article, it’s from G3 athletic apparel! They offer a variety of clothes perfect for working out. The fabric’s of good quality and fits very well. Check them out and follow them on the following accounts:

G3 Athletic Apparel

Facebook: @G3AthleticApparel
Instagram:@g3athleticapparel

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