Muscle Workout

TV coach and personal trainer Arne Derricks introduces you to effective training classics that form a functional training for complete muscle chains. Here we train the stretcher, the tension, pressure and core chain. Arne presents classic exercises for this training, which can be completed with your own weight as well as with the tools from the ARTZT Vintage Series.

Exercise 1: Extensor chain 1.0 – the squats

Important for the squats: First of all, stand up parallel and thus ensure a stable, slightly more than shoulder-width stance. Then you shift your weight slightly onto your heels. In addition, you consciously pull your arms down and back and build up a slight pressure between the shoulder blades. Then you go down slightly, with most of the weight on your heels. The knees go up to the height of the toes at most, you keep your arms stretched out in front of your body when going down. The legs are slightly turned outwards. This gives you the opportunity to be more flexible in the hips in the squat. In the squat look ahead and - very important - the back is absolutely straight. If you find this difficult, reduce the height or depth of the squat. The more mobile your hips are, the easier it will be for you to squat down with a straight back.

Variation: Stretcher Chain 2.0 - Progression with added weight

If this exercise works well, it's time to move on to Level 2. Arne uses the 3-kilo variant from the ARTZT Vintage Series medicine balls range, which includes six different weight classes of medicine balls.

As an additional weight, the medicine ball is carried along in the arm movement in the squat. This gives increased impact for the back due to the additional weight and the longer lever. The shoulders are also trained. Anyone who now also presses the ball together as much as possible when advancing their arms also integrates the chest muscles into this effective exercise. Don't forget to relax your facial muscles! When training the squats, Arne recommends performing the movements from all sides in front of a mirror.

Exercise 2: The Pull Chain - Deadlift

This exercise is often done with a weight bar, but Arne uses ARTZT Vintage Series medicine balls. But first the basics: Place your hands behind your head, elbows and shoulders form a straight line. Important: Your stomach is actively involved and gives your pelvis stability. Knees are slightly bent. Now imagine you are standing on the edge of an abyss with your toes and looking down. You won't fall until you put too much weight forward, so make sure your weight is on your heels so you have a secure footing for this exercise. Now bend straight forward from the pelvis with your back straight. You should feel the tension in your buttocks, the entire back of your legs is active in this exercise. Look down and back up from the horizontal. If this sequence of movements works – please check yourself in the mirror here as well – things will increase.

Variation: Pull Chain 2.0 - Reinforcement with additional weight

We use an ARTZT Vintage Series medicine ball to reinforce the deadlifts. Arne chooses the heavy 5 kilo ball for this exercise.

In level 1 you hold the ball in front of your body with stretched arms. With the deadlift you let the weight, i.e. the medicine ball, sink to just above the floor and come up again. Make sure that the shoulders are not pulled forward by the weight of the ball during the movement! If you want to make the whole thing a bit more strenuous, you take the ball in front of your chest with bent arms. You will see that this is even more demanding. Squeeze the ball properly. If you feel the pull in your buttocks and back of your legs, you're doing everything right.

Exercise 3: The push chain – the push-up

To make it more comfortable, we add the ARTZT Vintage Series gymnastics mat as padding for the next sequence. Let's start with the push-up on your knees. For this you kneel on the mat, you support your hands on the floor in front of the mat. Shoulders and pelvis are aligned, the angle between thighs and torso is greater than 90 degrees. The upper body remains in the fixed form and you now lower and raise it exclusively with the strength of your arm and chest muscles. Inhale down, exhale up. If level 1 works safely, it's on to the next more difficult level.

Variation: push chain 2.0

Instead of doing push-ups with your knees on the floor, try doing push-ups with straight legs every now and then. If it gets too strenuous, you switch back to your knees. In each training session, the number of long push-ups can be increased.

Here, too, there is an increase, namely again with the help of a medicine ball from the ARTZT Vintage Series. Arne chooses a slightly smaller one, for him this exercise is about shoulder stabilization and balance, among other things. To do this, he assumes the position from level 1 and supports himself with one hand on the ARTZT Vintage Series medicine ball. The ball is placed under his elbow. When performing the push-up, Arne now has a different load on the opposite side of his body. This exercise can be expanded and varied in many ways by changing sides and/or between long and short push-ups after several repetitions, or by rolling the medicine ball from one side to the next during the exercise. Of course, all of this not only benefits the muscles, but also the balance and body awareness.

Exercise 4: The Core Chain - Russian Twist

The abdominal muscle training should not be missing in any exercise series, but Arne came up with something else for this sequence instead of the usual exercises: the Russian twist. The Russian Twist is a twisting movement that is performed from the upper body. First you sit down on the ARTZT Vintage Series gymnastics mat with your knees slightly bent and your upper body stretched out. Now, with your back stretched, go back into the deckchair position and turn to the right and left until you touch the floor with your fingertips. Pay attention to stability in the torso and your stretched back, the turning movement comes from the lumbar spine. . The exercise becomes even more challenging if you lift your legs slightly and let them rock in the opposite direction to the arm movement.

Variation: Core chain 2.0

Of course, the culmination of this exercise should not be missing: We add an ARTZT Vintage Series medicine ball as additional weight and carry it to the side during the torso rotation movement.

These classic exercises provide you with a demanding, effective full-body workout that you can do almost anywhere. Have lots of fun with it!