Is there a best workout for fitness or toning? To decide which is the best workout you would first of all have to decide how you are going to measure pre-eminence.
Realistically you would have to look at the best workout for various purposes, because there is no pre-eminent form of exercise that can be said to be better than all others overall.
So to look at the best workout, we need to choose some different categories:
- Cardio: Arguments over the top form of cardio usually include old favourites such as biking, swimming and running. Swimming gets a lot of votes because it works the whole body, and rowing, on an indoor ergometer, can also make claims on the top prize, but for getting you in shape in the shortest possible time, it's hard to beat running.
- Strength training: Using weights is clearly the number on way to build strength, so the argument here is about which exercises do that best. For building leg strength, there is nothing to equal the awesome power of squats, while for the upper body, the ultimate exercise is bench press.
- Core training: An essential part of any training program, the Swiss ball is probably the most useful piece of equipment, Pilates the most effective system.
- Flexibility: Ignored in many workout programs, flexibility is an important area, and there is no better way to improve your flexibility that yoga.
So if you combine some running, some weights. Pilates for your core, and yoga for your flexibility, you'll get in pretty good shape!
