Full-body workout

Here's a question: Which is better, a kipping pullup or a dead-hang pullup?

I am guessing most of you don't know or have not really thought about it. The kipping pullup requires a full body snap to perform the movement. Strength coaches and trainers dislike them. Many view them has a way to cheat a pullup, but I will get back to that shortly.

As for the dead-hang pullup, it is all about muscle isolation in a single movement. Dead-hang pullups are old-school and a very effective way to build upper-body strength.

These two pullup methods illustrate two very different schools of thought regarding workout methods. Crossfit, gymnastic and parkour trainers love kipping pullups for the very fact it incorporates multiple body systems. On the other side are fitness trainers, sports coaches and strength coaches, who see kips as a waste of time with little benefit to building muscle.

So who's right? The answer, in my opinion, is they are both right. When it comes to physical fitness, how do you weigh the pros and cons of full body workouts vs. muscle-isolation or "split" workouts?

The human body is made up of three distinct components that drive your movements: the nervous system, the skeletal system and the muscular system. These components are known as the kinetic chain. When it comes to getting fit, all three systems of the kinetic chain must work together for you to move, build and perform physically.

Full-body workouts build a well-balanced body by hitting all muscle groups in one workout. This overall approach of strengthening and conditioning is the most natural way to achieve well-rounded fitness.

The best way to understand the kinetic chain is to think of the body as one muscle all interconnected. You're only as strong as your weakest point, so if our body's kinetic chain has weak points, injury and performance issues are sure to follow.

For most of us, when we set out to build and improve our bodies, we tend to do both full-body workouts and muscle-isolation. The reason I used kipping pullups to outline our kinetic chain is because when done correctly, they are a very good example of a multiple body system exercise.

Many old-school fitness trainers and coaches are just starting to understand the need to incorporate new methods of multiple body systems into their strength training. It does not need to be an all or nothing approach. Dead-hang pullups, for example, are designed for maximum muscle-isolation to build strength and muscle mass quickly. This aspect is lacking in many full body workout programs.

When you look at the pros and cons of limiting one of the components of your multiple body systems during any exercises, it will ultimately affect movement and overall function of the others.

Fitness trainers talk a lot about technique, whether for full-body training or muscle-isolation training. Technique is important to prevent injury and allow for proper development and gains in your separate muscle groups and movement patterns. When you use all the components of the multiple body systems together efficiently, you're giving your body a much better overall workout.

So why bring this up? Most of us that head to the gym everyday to lift weights and do a little cardio are performing muscle-isolation exercises which are good and can be very important depending on your goals. Body-builders have very specific goals of building and defining muscle groups and areas of the body for example. A person competing in a Tough Mudder or Spartan obstacle race will want a full-body workout like Crossfit, which puts a huge focus on the kinetic chain and multiple body systems in its exercises.

Before we begin to overhaul our bodies with an exercise program, it is important to understand the basic physiological mechanisms involved.

I believe when you decide on improving your health and fitness, you need to be educated on best practices for your fitness goals. With exercise, a one-size-fits-all approach does not work so each persons needs are always a custom fit. The movement system of the human body is all interconnected, joints and bones are connected to tendons and ligaments, which provide movement and stability. Muscle systems are attached to tendons, and all systems are controlled by the nervous system. The integration of our primary movement systems are often overlooked when we work out.

You should also keep in mind how your body type influences your response to health and fitness training. It is important to understand your goals and build your body and overall fitness with a full-body approach and use muscle-isolation to augment those triceps, abs and glutes.

Judd Jones is a director for the Hagadone Corporation.