No matter your goals, exercise is intended to make daily life easier and more enjoyable. Looking closely, each and every exercise mimics one of the foundational movement patterns of which the human body was designed to be capable. By prioritizing these types of movements in your workouts, the muscles involved will respond by growing stronger and help you out in daily life, even if you don't realize you are using them! Think of the times you are sore. Those times remind you that the muscle you worked in a prior workout are also put to work outside of "workouts."
Push
How to: Visualize yourself with phenomenal posture, sliding your shoulder blades into your back pockets. Spine tall and core engaged. Push away from your body, either in front or above.
Muscles worked: Chest (pecs), shoulders (delts), triceps
Exercise: pushups, military press, bench press, lateral raise, tricep dips
Real-world transitions: pushing a grocery cart, pushing a door open, putting away books, pushing someone out of your personal space
Hinge
How to: Standing with feet hip-width apart. Keep core tight and spine straight. Push your hips behind you while your chest leans forward. Think of keeping your shoulder blades together and flat back. Continue leaning forward like you are standing behind a short wall until you feel a stretch in the backs of your legs and glutes. Then contract your glutes and hips to return to a standing position.
Muscles worked: Back (latissimus dorsi, rhomboid, trapezius), Abs(abdominals), back of legs (hamstrings), booty (glutes)
Exercises: glute bridge/ hip thrust, good morning, deadlift, RDL, toe touches, kettlebell swing
Real-world transitions: closing a car door with your hips, lifting a laundry basket from the floor
Pull
How to: set your shoulders back and low. Reaching out in front of you, grab something and bring it toward the center of your chest or reaching above you, bring something to your shoulders. No matter the angle, visualize sliding your shoulder blades together like you are holding a pencil between them
Muscles worked: Back (latissimus dorsi, rhomboids, trapezius) biceps, rhomboids
Exercises: Row, lat pulldown, dumbbell pullover,
Real-world transitions: pulling yourself up to a counter, pulling a dog on a leash, pulling something from a shelf.
Squat
How to: Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Keep your core tight and back straight. Lower and push your hips behind you, like you are sitting back into a chair until your thighs are about parallel with the floor. Then stand up by driving most of your weight through your heels.
Muscles worked: Quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, calves
Exercises: Goblet squat, wall sit, lunges, barbell squat, chair stand
Real-world transitions: getting out of a chair, climbing chairs, squatting to tie your child's shoes
Twist
How to: Using your core, rotate your shoulders/chest toward a different direction from your hips or vice-versa (rotating your hips in a separate direction from your upper body)
Muscles worked: Abdominals, obliques, spine
Exercises: Wood chops, Russian twists, bicycle crunches, windmill
Real-world transitions: reaching to the back seat of your car, closing a door behind you, gardening
Carry
How to: Hold something at your sides, in front of you, or above your head. Maintain beautiful posture by puffing up your chest and stretching your spine to be as tall as possible with a tight core.
Muscles worked: forearms, legs, core, back, shoulders, abdominals
Exercise: farmer's carry, overhead carry/march, zercher carry
Real-world transitions: carrying suitcases, carrying a child, unloading groceries