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Bodyweight Training only, anyone?


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Hey hey,

 

So I'd been planning to (and eventually still will) get together a dumbbell collection and a bench, and try some the routines you guys suggested - however, I see that due to money and time constraints, it may not happen in time before I move to where I'm going - however, I don't want to abandon training completely until I can get more weights together - all I have right now is a 20 pound dumbbell and, a big rock. Seriously. And this rock isn't exactly ergonomic and balanced. It's heavy, though, and I credit it for some muscle gain, but it's a bit ridiculous.

 

So I was thinking, what the heck about bodyweight training? I don't have a lot of bodyweight to throw around - maybe 135 or 140 pounds of it, but hey. I have seen the links to "Calisthenics Kingz" or whoever he is, that guy with the insane muscles who does such mad things as vertical pushups...now, I'm not going to be him, but what I'm getting at is, can I still gain appreciable muscle using bodyweight exercises?

 

I was considering this book: http://www.rosstraining.com/nevergymless.html - "Never Gymless". I see the word "strength" stressed a lot - and believe me, I do want functional strength to go with increased muscularity, however, I would also like the *visible* increased muscularity to go with that strength, you know what I mean?

 

My main concern is that of pushups - my elbows and wrists complain when I try them, perhaps I'm doing them incorrectly?

 

But I do like the appeal of not needing much more than my own body and a couple of resistance bands. What I need to know, is can I still (at least as a temp. solution until I can get weights) achieve the increased muscle and strength I desire?

 

I'd like to hear your thoughts on this before I go ahead. Thanks everyone!

 

Cheers,

 

R.

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"My main concern is that of pushups - my elbows and wrists complain when I try them, perhaps I'm doing them incorrectly?"

 

Try diffrent stances - first off, if you don´t have pushup stands (I don´t have any myself), make sure you do them on your fists (on a carpet or blanket) - much better for the wrist.

 

Then, try to find the stance that suits you. I have found for myself that a shoulder wide stance, maybe a tad more, with my fists at 45° degrees (like so / \ ) put the least strain on my elbows and wrists.

It might be diffrent for everyone, and as far as I heard, it doesn´t matter much at first, as long as it´s comfortable.

 

There are a lot of ways to make bwe´s harder, so there is a lot of headroom. I started my pushups on my knees (on a pillow for comfort) and after just 7 month of excersise, I recently started doing them on a chair If your joints hurt, try to find an easier way to do the excersise, and give them time to adapt.

 

Btw, your rock sounds kinda cool I started with 2-litre plastic bottles filled with water and sand (ca 5-6 lbs)

 

About strenght/muscle growth: If you are just beginning, I´d say, don´t worry about that. I don´t either. My strengh grows gradually as do my muscles - and if you want to grow muscle you will need a good amount of strenght anyways to begin with, otherwise you can´t lift hard That book looks like a good thing to start.

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Some of the info on beastskills.com should appeal to you.

 

You could also try what I think are called tiger press ups. Like a normal press up but your hips are raised up high and your hands are closer to your feet. This throws more emphasis on the deltoids. If you find them easy you could put your feet on a chair and your hands close to the chair - again with your hips high. Then you'll be doing something half-way between a normal press up and a handstand one. You could also do press ups where you put your hands near your hips. This also gives the deltoids a lot of work to do.

 

If your wrists hurt do what makke suggests and try different hand positions or use handles.

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Wow, those were some great links!! I have my share of bodyweight stuff. I have two of Ross's books and I like them both. If I had to chose one, I would buy Never gymless, as it has better work out listed for you.

 

I really like http://www.trainforstrength.com/, the price is very reasonable for what you get. I like the fact that his workouts are on audio, so you can put it on your ipod and go to town from there, good stuff.

 

Matt furey has some stuff, which in many circles can cause a debate which can lead to a war of words. Love him or hate him, I really love his royal court. Looking for 3 good excises for overall body strength, give his royal court a try. Buy his book used on amazon or ebay.

 

 

kevin

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D'oh! Can't believe I somehow missed those. Many thanks. And yeah, regarding Matt Furey, even a bit of reading up produces a debate-o-rama! I think for now I'll check out Never Gymless, in conjunction with everything else suggested here. Thanks guys.

 

R.

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Try this exercise to hit the arms, the 'High Incline Triceps Press':

 

Also, the slide push up for the chest (this one seems to be a closely guarded secret):

 

Slide Push-up:

 

This is one of the best chest building exercises I've ever come across, and very few people even know about

it! The slide push-up applies resistance to the horizontal adduction action of the pectorals.

To perform this exercise you must first go to the local discount exercise equipment store and purchase one

of those "slides" you used to see on every 2-AM fitness infomercial. (Note: Slide push-ups can also be performed on a linoleum or wood floor with a small towel under each

hand).

 

Put the "booties" on your hands (or towels under your hands) and assume a traditional push-up position

where your body is perpendicular to the slide. Your hands should be slightly wider than shoulder width

apart. Lower yourself until your chest touches the slide, then push up while simultaneously pulling the

hands together. At the top position, the thumbs should almost be touching.

Next, "walk" your hands out to the original starting position (hands slightly wider than shoulder width) and

continue for the prescribed repetitions. If you're advanced, "push" your hands out to the starting position

instead of "walking" them out. For this exercise, it is best to increase the reps first. Once you can perform

10 sets of 5 reps, increase the load (add weight).

 

Some more good exercises here:

 

http://www.fightingarts.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=15833023&an=0&page=0

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