Many a times when I go to the gym and see personal trainers making their clients do something new, it makes me question their certifications along with their common sense!  

You go to the gym to augment your strength, your physique and your fitness.  But some trainers make you do questionable stuff to show that training with them is 'different.'  However, is different always better? You can decide that for yourself.  

Here are the 10 of the dumbest (and in some cases, outright dangerous) workout videos I have seen in 2018 so far:

1. Ego Pressing On The Leg Press

I have seen this multiple times at the gym. Trainers add plates to the leg press to satisfy egos. In no way does partial leg pressing help their clients. Here is how it can be outright dangerous: 

2. Curling In The Squat Rack

It is a golden rule of lifting. DO NOT CURL IN THE SQUAT RACK. Especially if you are blocking someone from squatting doing it!  And if you do, at least curl with a full range of motion. Unlike this: 

It is one of the reasons people cannot grow their biceps.

3. Deadlifting With Poor Technique

If you do not plan to compete in powerlifting, you can skip doing deadlifts. Yes, you read that right. There is no mandate of doing deadlifts.  It is an exercise where one can easily go wrong and hurt themselves due to poor technique: 

4. Functional Stupidity

How do you do this? Pick a compound exercise and insert a piece of functional equipment into it. Like jumping, running, etc. into it.  Make it unsafe as possible. As more the safety issue, better the exercise. Just like this: 

5. Using The Smith Machine To Satisfy The Ego

The Smith machine can be a great tool and can also help you work during injuries as a prehab or a rehab tool. But many people just use it to satisfy their egos: 

6. Quarter Squats

This is a favourite for many people. They load up the weight of more than twice of what they can do on the squat and do quarter squats. 

This must be a common sight at your gym as well: 

7. CrossFit

I have written a piece on why CrossFit does not make sense as a form of workout. It leads to people doing such questionable things at the gym: 

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ð via @jeff_fitness - - ðµð¾ð»ð»ð¾ð @GymFuckery @GymFuckeryTV @GenerationIronOfficial @Squat_Wolf - - ð¥ @gymfuckerytv - - - Send us your gym fails, comedy and memes (dm or email us) or use #gymfuckery to be featured.

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Oh, and funnily enough, the CrossFit games in 2018 had people slipping when squatting 450+ lbs because the platforms were wet and they could not care more to make them dry.

8. Fake Plates

Using plates that look like 20 kilos but are actually 5 kilos. Yes, that is a trend now to be popular on Instagram:

9. Fake Dumbbells

Fake weights have now become a thing with dumbbells too: 

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Lightweight baby ð³ð - - - - ð¥ credit @zoekfit - - Send us your gym fails, comedy and memes (dm or email us) or use #gymfuckery to be featured.

A post shared by gymfuckery™ (@gymfuckery) on Oct 12, 2018 at 7:07am PDT

10. Shadowboxing Anywhere

If you want to do boxing, join a boxing gym, and not do something like this: 

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Tag a mate who would lose this fight ð¤ via @ultimatecombat

A post shared by gymfuckery™ (@gymfuckery) on Sep 11, 2018 at 10:28am PDT

Author bio:

Pratik Thakkar is the co-founder and director of GetSetGo Fitness, an online fitness company. He is regarded as someone who will make it easy for you to understand the process by putting things in the right context and providing science-based recommendations for natural bodybuilding. You can reach out to him at pratik@getsetgo.fitness and follow him on Instagram and Facebook.