Hey Komrades! Cat Kom here. My clients are always asking me: “What’s your favorite exercise for the ____?”

I’m always happy to answer, but in general, I LOVE exercises that absolutely work your muscle group of choice with pinpoint accuracy while avoiding injury. Basically, the biggest results with the least amount of negative impact. And trust me, they’re out there! It just takes a little time and effort to find them.

So, for a little fitness inspo, I’m listing my favorite basic exercises from head to toe – starting from the toes to the nose!

Calves – Spinning

 
My favorite exercise for the calves is – you guessed it – Spinning! I love surprising people with the fact that a Spin class isn’t just a quad and hammy killer, but a fantastic way to shape calves. You guys, I used to not have calves, seriously. It took YEARS of Spinning to add the beautiful little pop in the lower leg when I step in my heels that I have now. LOVE IT! Plus, it’s a fusion workout, meaning you can build muscle mass and burn fat – what’s not to love about that?

Hamstrings – Deadlift

Overall, the deadlift is just one of my absolute favorite workouts. From start to finish, they’re amazing for powering up those quads, back muscles, shoulders – you name it. But for hamstrings? Just awesome. I especially love the single leg deadlift. For both though, just make sure you’ve got the proper technique before trying it.

Quads – Interval Sprints on the Treadmill or Outside

For your quads? Keep it simple. About 30 minutes of interval sprinting on the treadmill or outside in a hilly area will put you on the road to #quadgoals.

Inner Thigh – Sumo Squat

 
Ahh, the elusive inner thighs. We all tend to skip this part of the body because it’s just too darn difficult to target, but lucky for you, the sumo squat can work those inner thighs, glutes, and more.

Glutes – Split Squat

The key to getting your best booty is the split squat – seriously. This move is so simple and can be modified with the addition of dumbbells or losing the incline.

Back – Resistance Band Lat Pull-Downs

I love how resistance bands can help me achieve cut back muscles. Seriously, you can take them anywhere, they work in almost any environment where you can anchor them, and they’re perfect for isolating your lats.

Core – Pilates Double Leg Extension

 
What do you think my favorite core exercise is? Nope! Think simpler. A double leg extension only needs gravity and the weight of your legs to put your core to the test.

Where’s that burning feeling coming from? Oh, just your abs.

Chest – Dumbbell Chest Fly

This is absolutely one of the best exercises you can do to isolate your chest muscles. This intuitive exercise may seem graceful, but it’s a great calorie burn and an awesome way to build mass.

Biceps – Seated Single Arm Rotating Bicep Curl

Nothing wrong with a classic exercise – if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. This simple flexion workout just requires a seat and a decent pair of dumbbells, so it’s okay to skip the fancy incline pull-ups and crow poses sometimes!

Triceps – TRX Tricep Extension

 
Is there anything TRX can’t do? They’re absolutely magical for full-body workouts, but a tricep extension on a TRX is especially graceful, and you’ll feel like superman while you’re doing it.

Shoulders – Dumbbell Straight Arm Lateral Raise

Work on those nicely toned shoulder caps? For delts to die for, I love the lateral raise with dumbbells. These are amazing for isolating those shoulder muscles, and you can perform them standing up or sitting down!

This begs the question, “this is right for Cat, but is it right for me?” Honestly, the best exercise for you is one you’ll ACTUALLY DO! You’ll like it because you’re getting results, it feels intuitive, and it doesn’t leave you feeling sore or hurtin’ in a bad way.

That being said, that means you gotta try it out for yourself. If you really want REAL results with REAL people getting fit, join me at Studio SWEAT onDemand with a 7-Day Free Trial. That’ll give ya access to hundreds of the hottest workouts featuring yours truly and my team of kick-butt, motivating trainers.