What is the most underrated gym exercise? It seems everyone is doing the same thing, but some machines and stations are never touched.
This question suggests you’re taking your strength training seriously. If you were just going through the motions you would probably not ask this question. Welcome to the world of the enlightened.
Most people will either work their way through the machines or, if there is a machine circuit, they may do that. That’s not a bad call because if the gym is big enough to include circuits it will have ensured they are carefully designed to ensure a balanced whole-body or upper-lower-body workout is completed. A high-ish intensity circuit is far better than staring in the mirror doing bicep curls.
It’s often impossible to get to the bench press or Smith machine. The cables are another favourite, as are triceps and biceps stations. During peak times you may struggle to find a bench in the dumbbells section and, depending on how small the space is or how busy the gym gets, you may have to stand in a queue to access a treadmill.
In years gone by the squat rack used to be like a ghost town with the odd tumbleweed rolling past, but Instagram and TikTok seem to have revived its fortunes thanks to the booty craze. That’s the first win for social media I can remember in about a decade.
Movement pattern
However, without disrespect to machines, if you are capable and have been taught proper form, training through functional movement patterns delivers the most effective and balanced training.
The most underrated exercise, according to the trusted old Water Cooler, is a movement pattern, not just one specific exercise: the hinge. Besides Gen Zs creating social media content with hip thrusts, I barely ever see people performing the hinge movement.
The hinge is a fundamental lower-body pattern in strength training and functional fitness. It involves flexing at the hips while pushing them backwards, keeping the spine neutral, with minimal knee bend. This movement loads the posterior chain, which comprises the hamstrings, glutes and lower back, and generates power through hip extension when returning to a standing position, or unflexed hips.
It strengthens the posterior chain while reducing the risk of lower back injury by teaching proper bending mechanics to take load off the spine. It improves posture and counters the negative effects of sitting all day. What few people appreciate is that it boosts athletic power and performance; it enhances explosiveness in running, jumping or even golf. It builds core stability and makes everyday tasks safer and more efficient due to increased functional strength.
The hinge is a fundamental lower-body pattern in strength training and functional fitness. It involves flexing at the hips while pushing them backwards, keeping the spine neutral, with minimal knee bend.
You’d think these benefits would be enough to convince people to learn how to properly perform Romanian deadlifts, kettlebell swings, hip thrusts, glute-bridge variations, cable pull-throughs and more.
But alas, an obsession with quads leads to imbalances. Many people live through the mirror — if you can see it, train it and forget about the hinge and pull movements. This is not about aesthetics; it is about functional imbalance.
Quad dominance over the posterior chain can lead to tight hip flexors and underactive glutes and hamstrings, creating a knock-on effect. When people don’t know how to hinge, they often overload their lumbar spine when doing daily tasks. This is an injury risk.
Muscular imbalances, especially weak glutes and hamstrings, will lead to poor mechanics in performing squats or deadlifts. Besides resulting in lower output, it will have a cascading effect, increasing the risk of injury such as hamstring strains, sacroiliac pain or knee issues.
No two bodies are identical but there are some tell-tale signs of an underdeveloped posterior chain. It can result in slouching or an exaggerated curve in the lower back as the body tries to maintain balance without sufficient support from the back of the hips and legs. There may be a forward pelvic tilt, poor hip mobility and chronic tightness in opposing muscles from underutilising the posterior chain.
This doesn’t mean that starting to hinge will miraculously cure all your heartache and lower your tax bill, but it is an important component of the main functional movement patterns: squat, hinge, lunge, push, pull, carry and rotate.
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