If you are interested in building a rock solid, age defying, muscular, strong body, this message is for you.

The squat is a no joke exercise. You must respect this exercise or you can be seriously injured. Take your time to learn the correct form. Build your upper back, lower back, quads, hamstrings, abs and calf muscles so that all the links in the chain is strong. You should also have a decent level of balance and flexibility. It would also help to have good cardiovascular conditioning.Your body uses oxygen more efficiently when your cardiovascular endurance is in a good range.

Many strength training exercisers avoid this exercise because they have been injured doing it.  Many are also intimidated by this exercise because they know someone who has been hurt doing it.

I want to be clear. Please be patient when approaching the barbell squats. Start with a weight that is not too challenging and work slowly to increase it.

The demonstration in the video below is with a weight that is a little more than twice my body weight. The total weight is 365 pounds. This is comfortable for me because I stop before I reach failure. This weight is just right for me to stay safe. If I was to go up in the weight I would wrap my knees and have someone with experience spotting me.

Body weight barbell rows represent the foundation of the upper body exercises along with unassisted pull-ups.

Most exerciser avoid these exercises for a number of reasons. The only reason that is acceptable would be a medical reason. In many cases these exercises are avoided because they are extremely challenging. They can also be complicated. It is much easier to use a machine that does most of the work for you.

If you are new to exercise and you are in poor physical shape it is fine to use the machines for a few months. The basic idea is to get the muscles ready for the real exercises.

Think of the next level in your training with the ultimate goal being able to use your existing body weight as the resistance you want to move with good form.

Develop a mindset of getting stronger if you are weak relative to your body weight. Once you can effectively move your body weight  or greater for multiple repititions,  using the largest muscles in your body,  you will dramatically impact how you look and perform.

Demonstrated below is the barbell rows with 225 pounds which is approximately 50 pounds more than my body weight.

My clients work at a level subject to their health history, strength training experience and their personal drive.

The basic idea is to learn proper technique and execution before pushing yourself to the limit. Keep in mind however, that it is by pushing yourself to the limit that you will achieve your greatest results.