Posts Tagged ‘body weight exercise’
This is the second part of the series “Body Weight Exercises for Size and Strength.” The first part centered in on specific exercises that you can do using only your body. However, there a few products that exist that I would recommend getting to help you get the most out of your bodyweight exercises. These products can enable you to perform exercises that you would normally not be able to do.
One of these products is the TRX Suspension Trainer. I highly recommend this training tool. When you buy the TRX Suspension Trainer Professional it comes with a DVD providing workout programs, a training guide showing you the different exercises that you can perform, and a storage bag. I could go on and describe all of the different exercises that you can do but it would be easier for you to watch a few videos. So I have included them below so that you can see the versatility of the TRX Suspension Trainer and how it can help take your body weight exercises to a new level.
This first video is called an atomic push-up. I know that you can tell by looking at it how difficult the exercise can be to perform.
The second video involves three Pittsburgh Pirates that use the TRX Suspension Trainer. They discuss how they use it. One of the things that I like about it is that it allows you to perform some body weight bicep exercises. The only other body weight bicep exercise that most can do is the chin-up or pull-up. This gives you more options. Check out the video.
This is kind of a cool video. Someone took a TRX Suspension Trainer on the the BART train in the Bay area and performed a workout on the train. It shows how easy and portable the TRX Suspension Trainer is. You can literally get a workout anywhere (even on the train).
This video discuss the concept of vector resistance. You have the ability to increase the intensity of any exercise by altering the angle of your body.
I firmly believe the TRX Suspension Trainer is a must to have for your arsenal when performing bodyweight exercises.
You can get a great workout for any part of your body with body weight exercises. In this post I want to review some of the exercises that you can perform for a great bodyweight workout for your back. The back is one of the greatest looking body parts when it has been developed correctly. You will find out as you have a chance to do many of these exercises that bodyweight exercises are one of the best ways to develop your back. In fact the great Arnold Schartzeneggar once said that if you want to develop your back then one exercise in particular was what you should concentrate on.
That one exercise is the pull up. If you want a big back then you need to do pull-ups. In this post we will cover a number of pull-up variations along with a few other back exercises.
Before I go any further let me state that the pull-up is the greatest of all bodyweight exercises. It is a pure strength exercise. Pull-ups can be very difficult for many people to do. If they are difficult for you then you can do a cheat pull-up. I provide an example of my son doing a cheat pull-up with a chair. You merely place one foot on a chair or stool and use it to give you the boost you need. Or you can attach an exercise tube to each end of your pull up bar so that it hangs to your waist or knee level when you are hanging from the bar. You would put one foot in this to give you an extra boost to help you get up.
Different grips on the pull-up bar will work different parts of your upper back. So experiment with your hand grip and see what results you get. So here we go.
The best pull-up exercise and potentially the most difficult to perform is the wide grip pull-up. This exercise will work your lats to a great degree and will be more responsible for wide lats than any other exercise.
The next picture shows what most consider to be a standard chin-up. It involves an underhand grip where the wide grip involved an overhand grip. This pull-up is also a great exercise for your biceps.
You can also perform the close grip pull-up with an overhand grip.
For a real challenge you can do the towel pull-up. These are quite difficult. This exercise is also killer on your grip since you need to grip the towel in order to do the pull-up.
This is a variation on the towel pull-up. One hand grips the towel while the other hand grips the bar. The staggered grip makes for a difficult and challenging exercise.
The pull-up is not the only bodyweight exercise for the back. Another great exercise is the inverted row. It works the same muscles as the bent over row. Simply support a weight bar between two different object (I used my squat rack) and perform the exercise as shown in the picture. You can also use a sturdy dowel rod or broom handle laid across two stools. My son has his feet on the floor in the first picture and to make the exercise more difficult he places his feet on the bench in the second picture.
For your lower back you can perform reverse hyperexetensions. I do not have a reverse hyper bench so we use a makeshift bench. I have a preacher curl bench. We slide it up to my old tablesaw and hook our feet under the tablesaw (not running of course). It works just fine.
You can also perform a superman exercise for the lower back. Lay on the floor on your stomach with your hands extended out above your head. To perform the exercise lift your head, arms and feet off the floor and hold them in the air for a count of 15 – 30 seconds. Rest and then repeat.
Oh, I almost forgot. Here is the picture of the cheat pull-up.
If you perform these exercises I think you will be pleased with the result. Give them a shot.
When I posted my Push-up variation post a little while back, I should have included Hindu push-ups. Hindu pushups are a fantastic exercise that are a little more challenging than the normal push-up. Hindu push-ups are a much more dynamic exercise.
Not only do they work your chest but they work your shoulders and triceps as well. I am sure others may be different but they tire me out much quicker than regular push-ups. Regular push-ups do not necessarily get my heart rate up but Hindu push-ups do. They can be used as a conditioning exercise and not merely a strength building exercise.
So how do you perform them? Here is how you perform Hindu pushups:
- From a standing position with your feet slightly wider than your shoulders place your palms flat on the floor several feet in front of your feet. Your feet should also be wider than your shoulders. Your arms and legs should be straight. You should in essence look like a giant inverted V.
- Without bending your legs lower your upper body towards the floor in sort of a swooping motion. You want to get as close to the ground as possible (nearly grazing your nose on the floor). As you swoop through you will begin to push your upper body back up into and upward dog (for all you yoga fans) position. Once you have reached this position, return to the original starting position. You do not swoop down through on the way back to the starting position. That would be known as a dive bomber push-up (another great exercise).
I would shoot for 3 sets of 15 – 20 reps to start. If you find this easy then increase the reps. Enjoy.
Portable Monkey Bar Gym
I ran across an interesting product today. It is called Monkey Bar Gym. They sell a number of portable pieces of exercise equipment that you can basically take anywhere you are going. It can pack away easily in your suitcase.
It allows you to use your body weight to get a great overall workout. Below you will see a video that shows you just some of the things that you can do with a couple pieces of equipment. Add these to your arsenal to maximize you bodyweight workouts.
The Tabata Protocol sounds like a new Robert Ludlum book. I can imagine a Jason Bourne like thriller set somewhere in western Europe where our hero is running from secret international spy agencies. However, the reality is that the Tabata Protocol is something much different. The tababa protocol is a really an exercise protocol. OK, I know some of you are asking, “What is a protocol?” A protocol is simply a way of doing something. In this instance, the tabata protocol is a particular way to perform an exercise.
If you think that a pushup or a bodyweight squat is a simple exercise to perform then you haven’t done it the tabata way. If you had, both your body and your mind would have remembered it. You will reap tremendous physical benefits from it if you can endure.
The tabata protocol was originally an exercise concept developed by Japaneese exercise researcher, Izumi Tabata. In a nutshell, a tabata exercise routine is a rapid rotation of exercise and rest lasting for 4 minutes. Sounds simple, right? Let take the pushup for example. You would do push-ups for twenty seconds and then rest for 10 seconds. And you will do this for eight rounds. It would look something like this.
| Event | Time |
| Push-Ups | 20 Sec |
| Rest | 10 Sec |
| Push-Ups | 20 Sec |
| Rest | 10 Sec |
| Push-Ups | 20 Sec |
| Rest | 10 Sec |
| Push-Ups | 20 Sec |
| Rest | 10 Sec |
| Push-Ups | 20 Sec |
| Rest | 10 Sec |
| Push-Ups | 20 Sec |
| Rest | 10 Sec |
| Push-Ups | 20 Sec |
| Rest | 10 Sec |
| Push-Ups | 20 Sec |
| Rest | 10 Sec |
| Total Time | 4 Min |
I promise you that at the end of the four minutes you will be in a fat burning zone. Your heart rate will be elevated, your chest and triceps will be aching, and you might even want to cry out for you mama. But we have only just begun. After all, we have only exercised for 4 minutes. If you string five exercises together, you will have a super fat burning workout beyond comprehension. You may have a hard time getting out of bed in the morning but after a couple of days you will be feeling better.
Here are five suggested exercises:
Push-ups
Bodyweight Squats
Pull-ups (or inverted rows)
Crunches
Jumps
Many people are unable to do pull-ups. If this is the case you can do a cheat pull-up (see video) or you can do an inverted row.
For the jumps, I mean nothing more than standing in place and continually jumping as high as you can for 20 seconds.
Give the tabata protocol a try and see what you think. I think you will agree it is one tough calorie burning, fat shredding, muscle ripping, fabulous exercise.
(The tabata exercise protocol and be very taxing. If you are a beginner or out of shape please consult a doctor and if given the go ahead begin with a different time frame. You could possibly to 15 seconds of exercise followed by a 15 second rest. Experiment with what you can handle initially.)
I read an article today from the UK. I just happened to run across it. Here is the link and here is a direct quote from the article:
“During my hour in the gym with Matt we never touched any of the machines that I would normally use and yet at the end of our workout I felt as if I had exercised every muscle in my body.
“Most gyms are full of equipment, whereas we only use a few pieces of equipment,” says Matt. “I can do a 35-minute circuit without using any of the machines.
“You can use your own body weight to realign your posture and get your muscles working properly.
“Certain machines in the gym can actually make problems worse, especially if you are not using them properly.”
For those of you who have used machines all of your life get ready for the challenge of a bodyweight exercise routine. Over the weekend I will write a post about a great bodyweight workout that is guaranteed to kick your butt and help burn fat and increase muscle. Stay tuned.
