By Zuurah Karungi

Are your workouts are not effective? Do you have injuries every time you exercise? Well Ivan Musinguzi a fitness instructor notes that different machines are used for different effects in the gym, you may not get desired effects if you use the wrong machines. This is how to use the different machines in a gym as given by gym instructor Ivan Musinguzi.

Stomach Roller

This works best for chest work outs, it heals and strengthens muscles on your lower back. Stomach rollers are most effective for cutting stomach fats and building a strong chest (six packs).

Usage

A stomach roller is around ball with handles on either side, it’s used by laying down straight, holding the two handles and rolling in front and back.

Biking bars

These work as cycling machines. They help on strengthening leg muscles.

Treadmill

It’s a motional machine used in strengthening body muscles by running, walking or jogging but in the same place. It acts as a substitute running.

Don’ts

Treadmill should be used for more than 4 hours. The speed should be gradual, from walking to jogging to running and not vice versa. You shouldn’t use a treadmill for more than four hours as it will exhaust you.

Extension Machines

Extension machines work on the quadriceps muscles in the legs.  You need to place your thighs in an inclined or horizontal position and move your legs back and forth.

Lat pull-down Machine

This cuts stomach fat. It’s along machine with a seat and swinging handle, you seat on the machine with your chest held high, hold the handle and pull it up and down.

Inclined bench press

This works on the upper chest and biceps. You lie down on a bench or another straight material and pull the machine up and down. This should be done by strong people to avoid injuries.

Leg press

This helps strengthen the leg muscles as well as quadriceps (front of the thighs muscles). You lie down on the machine, put your legs up and stretch to and fro.

Caution

A leg press machine is very effective but can also easily cause injuries. Your legs shouldn’t bend beyond 90% as it could fracture the bones.

Dumbbells  

The dumbbell works best on weight loss. It cans also be used to strengthen muscles like the biceps, chest and solders. Dumbbells come in different sizes so you choose according to your size. They are also recommended for cardio workouts.

“It’s not wise to use a certain weight just because your friend is using it everyone weighs differently so it’s better to exercise according to how much you weigh,” he says.

Calf work out machine

This machine is used to strengthen calf muscles.

Cable triceps bar / Cable Push up Pull Down

This machine strengthens the triceps (Front of the upper hand). It’s straight machine with a handle. You stand beneath and pull up and down. It’s effective in making the hand muscles strong but more effective on triceps.

Cable bicep bar

This machine works on the biceps (of the hand) it strengthens muscles. They are almost the same with the Cable triceps bar. The modern machine comes with its bench but you can substitute it with a home bench.

Stability ball

This is around ball that you sit on and balance. The ball can be used to make very many exercises but the most of them all are the abdominal exercises.  It can be used to;

Twist on the ball

Lie on the ball and put the feet on the ground, spread your hands and swing.

Pull the ball with stretched legs

Hold the ball tight on your ankles, lift the ball up as you also lift the upper boy to pick the ball. By this you will be strengthening the leg, abdominal and chest muscles.

Pull bar

It’s a machine in a raised place with grips that you hold with your hands and exercise by raising and falling method. It can also be used to build stronger solders