7 Best Strength Building Exercises You're Not paying Attention To

Strength exercises help burn fat and improve your fitness, but most importantly they help build your strength and muscle. Every strength exercise in your workout program has a purpose - to make you stronger than you were yesterday.

Even the skyscrapers of New York need a strong foundation to stand on, don’t they. Bodybuilding, weight training and strength building - are no different. You need a strong core muscle foundation, otherwise you will fatigue faster. Don’t neglect the basics - even the simplest exercises can bring the most results. If you want increased strength, improved core stability and great overall fitness, then make time for these 6 basic but badass strength exercises in your routine.

#1. Push-ups

Push-ups appear quite basic, but take a second to think about it. This functional movement is good for training your upper body muscles. Your core is also engaged which allows for full range of motion to your shoulder blades.

How to: To begin this strength exercise - you need to be down on your knees facing the floor. Your hands should be shoulder width apart. Take a plank position by straightening your legs and supporting your weight with your hands and feet.Your trunk should be engaged. Now, squeeze your backside and lower your body to the ground slowly until your chest is just above the ground. Pause and come back to the starting position.

Tip: Normal push-ups can cause some discomfort. You will find that dip bars are an excellent way to do pain free push-ups. And they will help you up the difficulty level as you get stronger.

#2. Dips

Dips work your chest, shoulders, back and most importantly your arm muscles - they are a compound body-weight exercise. Dips are as basic as it gets. Bench exercises do good work - but a dip is better. That’s because when you do dips, your upper body is not supported by a bench. Your feet are in the air!! You have only your arms to rely on!!  Dips require more stabilisation and thus it activates many more muscles groups.

How To Do It: Stand straight between a set of dip bars. Place one hand on each bar. Take a small jump to get into the starting position. Your arms should be locked out. Flex your elbows, and lower your body until your arms are at a 90 degrees. Try not to swing, and keep form throughout the descent. Reverse the motion by extending your elbow, and push yourself into the starting position again.

#3. Inverted rows

Inverted Row is a key exercise for building wide shoulders and big arms.This bodyweight exercise has great opposing motion to work with pushups. This bodyweight exercise leads to a stronger pair of shoulders that promotes thoracic extension. It helps your posterior muscle stay functional and active and also strengthens your grip. Some fitness experts even consider it as a great anti-aging exercise.

How To Do It: Position yourself underneath the bar in a hanging position by holding the grip on the bar. Your heels should be on the ground and body straight. Now, start the exercise by flexing your elbows.  Pull your chest towards the bar. Reaching the top of the motion, pause for a second and get back to the initial position.

#4. Static Knee Raises

Static knee raises are one of the best abs exercises that activate your entire core. This exercise actually combines 2 exercises - the knee raise and pull-ups. Talk about laying on the burn! They are great for building strength in both your lower abs and upper abdominal muscles as well. Your legs are heavier than your upper body, so doing knee raises help you develop a really strong core.

How to do it: Stand between a set of dip bars and grab one with each hand. Tighten your body, while pulling your shoulders back and down. Keep your legs together and bend the knees up towards your upper body. Squeeze towards the chest, and then lower legs back down. Try not to swing as you do this exercise.

#5. L-Sits

L sits were a martial arts exercise that can help you build killer abs. It also works your triceps, lower back, obliques and quads. This brutal exercise will help you to build up your arms and chisel your abs. Your shoulders will become bulkier and you will get more power to deadlift. Overall, it’s great for building up your functional core strength very well.

How to do it: Stand between a set of dip bars and grab one with each hand. Tighten your body, while pulling your shoulders back and down. Slowly raise your legs up so that they are parallel to the floor. Maintain this position for as long as you can. Slowly lower back into starting position.

#6. V-Sits

Once you’ve mastered the L-sits then it’s time to move to the bigger leagues by doing V-sits. It builds flexibility, targets your abdominal muscles, tone your obliques and strengthens your back muscles. It also works on your quadriceps and hamstrings at the same time.

How to do it: Sit between the bars. Gripping the bars, lift yourself off the ground. Your elbows should be locked out. Keeping your legs straight lift them up till your chest. Hold for as long as you can, and then return to starting position.

#7. Parallettes Planche

This exercise helps you develop strength, coordination, and balance. Want incredible arm strength, powerful shoulders, and strong wrists? Planche is the answer! But, this exercise is not for beginners. Do this only after you’ve mastered all the above.

How To Do it: Holding onto the bars shift your body weight forward onto your shoulders. Slowly lift your feet off the ground. Your legs should be together and extended out. Hold this position for 5 to 10 seconds. Keep increasing the duration as much as possible.

With each of these strength exercises, you need to pay close attention to your form and execution. Keep at it and after a few workouts you'll surely begin to see noticeable gains in your strength and fitness. The most crucial thing about strength training is that you start. Just start somewhere. Stop overthinking and stop being nervous  - just go out and give it a shot!

And here’s your 10% OFF "RIMDIPB10" coupon on the RIMSports’ Dip Bar to get you started.