Bodyweight Workouts: No excuses
Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Zac Tunstall of Hood Workout, a site with videos on how to perform bodyweight exercises in the comfort of your own surroundings.
All of us have body weight (many of us have more body weight than we want). This body weight is a perfect tool you can use to aid you in your workouts. I have heard more excuses than I would like to share from various people about why they do not exercise. There is no excuse. There are hundreds of exercises that you can do right now while reading this blog.
Pushups are a great place to start. If you cannot do a normal pushup begin by doing pushups from your knees. If you cannot do many reps of pushups, practice by doing them on your knees to improve endurance. Go ahead try to do a few now. Once you feel comfortable with pushups try doing advanced routine, triangle pushups, wide stance, clapping during the pushup, double clapping, one arm, handstand pushups, etc… There is a never ending supply of upper body workouts built into you.
Squats are a great lower body workout. Starting out, you can just do reps of your own body weight. Why not stand up and try to knock out 10-20 squats now? While you are standing go ahead and do a few calf raises to make yourself feel better and look better. If you generally squat 500 #’s try doing one legged squats with just your body weight, concentrate on your balance.
Why not combine the two exercises and do some burpees? To do a burpee, start in a pushup position, do the pushup, then quickly jump feet forward to a squatting position. From that position jump up (bring your knees into your chest and stretch your arms into the air). Drop back down into a squat, than jump your feet back and fall into the pushup position to start again.
Here are a few other suggestions of things you can do “right now” from your office or home. Tricep presses from your chair, arm circles, crunches, air bikes, situps, jack knifes, isometrics, aerobics, run, walk, jumping jacks, and many more… You can walk to a local park and do some pull-ups, dips, and other various bodyweight exercises.
You can do bodyweight workouts anywhere anytime. They take up very little space and can give a solid workout. They are used in the hood, street, prisons, and even in the corporate world. Gyms are great, the one thing they are not, is an excuse. After you have your doctors’ approval to begin working out or are deemed fit enough to start, there really is no reason why you are not working out. There really is no excuse to not begin working out and to continue your routine at all times.
Zac – Great post, I like the idea of being able to workout anywhere, anytime, and without the need for costly gym memberships. Thanks!
Thanks Mel. These are just the basics, there are many more advanced routines that will leave you out of breath and exhausted.
great post.thanx.i think the idea of working out anytime is great.
I spent a month out of town on business a year or so ago. I was in an extended stay hotel with no gym. I was feeling lethargic because I was eating out every meal, working 12-13 hours a day and not working out beyond pushups. I needed something to just let me feel good.
That is the jist of why I started with bodyweight workouts. There are really no excuses. You can workout every muscle with your own body weight. I am in the process of trying to drop 30 pounds and discuss it in some of the daily post.
Good to hear someone else talk about body weight workouts. There are no excuses for not exercising when your your own body weight against gravity is more than enough for a strenuous session. I’ll be checking out your blog for sure.
Appreciate it. I am continually trying to find new things. I will be trying to post my own videos soon…
I have been training with pull ups and chin ups so that I can be like the guys in the videos on hoodworkout.com
Hopefully I can as well (the more advanced stuff is sick). Those Ruff Ryder videos are sick. A few of the others are as well. I do not think it is impossible for anyone to do it. You just have to make it a priority. With bodyweight workouts, there is no real excuse.
I agree, those RR videos make it look easy but it’s really hard. They must have worked at it a lot. Even when I could do 15 pull ups I found it hard. And I use to do pull ups every day. Those guys are amazing to be honest. Are there any more recent videos?
Good to hear someone else talk about body weight workouts. I have been training with pull ups and chin ups.
keep going this way soon we all could have a 8 pack 😛
Great post! The good thing about bodyweight exercises is that you can do it practically anywhere without any fitness equipment. With these advanced tips, anyone can add variety to a workout.
One common problem I hear from gym newbies is that they don’t know how much weight to start off with. The beauty of these excercises are that there is no guess work and you cant get lazy. Its gauranteed to push you.
Great article.
Totally agree with this post! The best exercises are body weight ones! People who think they are not hard enough, have not done them right or intense enough! Try doing them as a HIIT, Circuit training. It is awesome! I do it all the time!
Thanks for another great post! 🙂