Top 5 Overrated Workouts—and Smarter Alternatives

Tired of workouts that waste your time? Ditch these 5 overrated exercises and try smarter moves that actually build muscle and burn fat. Read now.

You ever notice how some workouts feel more like performance art than training? Jumping around, flailing, sweating like you’re being chased by a bear. But hey, if it feels hard, it must be good, right?

Yeah… no.

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: a lot of the stuff you see online (and maybe in your routine) is junk food for your joints. Flashy, exhausting, mostly useless.

Just because something’s hard doesn’t mean it’s helping. Some of these moves are basically banging your head against the wall and calling it cardio.

So here it is—five “must-do” exercises that are wasting your time (and maybe wrecking your back). Plus, what to do instead if you actually want results that last longer than your post-workout high.

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1. Burpees: Painfully Pointless

Ah yes, the burpee. Fitness Instagram’s favorite torture move. Loud, sweaty, and they make you look heroic. Except… they kinda suck.

Break it down:

• No real strength gains

• No muscle growth

• Barely helps with fat loss unless you’re doing hundreds (which… good luck)

Bonus? They wreck your lower back when you’re tired—which is the only way most people do them.

Do This Instead: Jump Rope

Way less obnoxious. Way more useful.

• Burns 10–15 calories a minute

• Builds coordination and rhythm

• Easier on your joints

• Cheap and fits in your sock drawer

Unlike burpees, jump rope teaches timing and control—not flailing like a collapsing toddler.

Jump rope burns a lot of calories—roughly 10-15 per minute—without pounding your joints like burpees or running do. It’s one of the few cardio options that doesn’t come with a side of regret.

Skip the floor-flailing. Grab a rope. Feel like an athlete, not a punishment victim.

2. Bosu Ball Squats: Training for the Cirque du So-Lame

You’ve seen it. Someone wobbling on a half-ball, pretending to be a ninja monk. Meanwhile, their muscles are quietly screaming, “What are we doing?”

Let’s be clear:

• Instability = less force

• Less force = less muscle activation

• Less activation = less progress

Translation: you’re rehearsing for injury, not training for strength.

Do This Instead: Just Stand Still

Lift heavy things on solid ground. Not sexy. Just effective.

• Squats

• Deadlifts

• Lunges

• Presses

These are the moves that built strong humans before likes and filters existed.

Lifting on stable ground leads to better strength and muscle gains than balancing on some wobbly half-ball. It’s not rocket science—your body pushes harder when it isn’t busy trying not to fall over.

Stop wobbling. Start working.

3. Tricep Kickbacks: The Arm Day Lie

Kickbacks look cute. They feel like you’re hitting your triceps. But that burn? Mostly your stabilizers panicking—not muscle growing.

Why they suck:

• Only hit your triceps at the top

• No stretch = no gains

• It’s the “tippy-toe curl” of tricep training

Smarter Swap: Skull Crushers or Overhead Extensions

These hit your triceps where it matters—under stretch.

• More tension

• More growth

• Less pretending

And if you slow down the lowering part? That’s where the magic (pain) happens.

Movement that stretch your muscles under load—like overhead extensions are proven to build more size than tiny, cute exercises done in a cramped range.

Ditch the pink dumbbells. Upgrade.

4. Sit-Ups: The Zombie Crunch That Won’t Die

People still do these? For abs?

Let’s review:

• Mostly hits your hip flexors, not abs

• Strains your neck and back

• Reinforces your bad desk posture

• Burns zero belly fat

Also, when’s the last time you “crunched” anything in real life?

Upgrade: The Ab Wheel

It doesn’t lie. You roll it out, and either your core fires… or you faceplant.

• Trains anti-extension (a.k.a. actual core function)

• Hits your whole front chain—abs, obliques, lats, glutes

• Scales easily (start on your knees)

The ab wheel fires up your core way more than a sit-up ever will. it trains your body to resist movement (which is what your core is actually for), not just curl forward like a shrimp.

No more crunches. Just real core work.

5. Long-Distance Running for Fat Loss: A Beautiful Waste of Time

Running can be great—for your head. But for fat loss?

It’s like trying to chop down a tree with a spoon.

Why it fails:

• Burns some calories, not a ton

• Beats up your joints

• Spikes hunger, eats muscle (if you’re not lifting)

• Your body adapts, so you need more and more

Better Approach: Lift. Walk. Eat Like an Adult.

• Lifting keeps your metabolism from tanking

• Walking burns calories without wrecking your knees

• Food controls fat loss. Period.

Studies have shown that lifting weights while eating like a grown-up leads to more fat loss than just jogging your soul away. Muscle keeps your metabolism alive. Cardio just makes you hungrier.

Run if you love it. Just don’t pretend it’s the key to fat loss.

Bottom Line: Ditch the Fitness Theater

Most of this stuff looks good on TikTok, Instagram and facebook but sucks in real life. You’re not here to impress an algorithm—you want a body that works.

Here’s your cheat sheet:

• Burpees? Jump rope.

• Bosu ball stunts? Lift on solid ground.

• Kickbacks? Use real tricep work.

• Sit-ups? Ab wheel.

• Jogging endlessly? Lift, walk, eat smart. Repeat.

Train like you mean it.

Found this helpful?

And tell me—what “miracle move” have you ditched lately?