No Gym? 5 of the Best Bodyweight Exercises

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We’re back to the basics with this one! Bodyweight exercises are convenient and simple and they should certainly have their place in every fitness enthusiast’s training plan, whether it’s part of a lighter recovery day or included in a high-intensity workout. Bodyweight exercises challenge even the most seasoned of workout advocates. Think you have a pretty good squat? Try them without weight, hold the bottom of a squat and ask someone to analyze your position. You may find little discrepancies in some of your movements simply by moving without any weight at all. The best part about them though is that you don’t need to leave the house to get one heck of a workout in. Check out our top 5 favorite bodyweight exercises you can do just about anywhere!

1. Ab Rollouts

These are one of our favorite core exercises to perform. You can do this on your knees like Lauren below. Once you get a little more advanced, try performing it on your toes, while keeping your legs off the ground the entire time. The goal is to keep your trunk as rigid as possible without letting your lower back arch. Focus on tucking your hips underneath your core and keeping everything as tight as possible.

2. Air Squats

Air Squats are an extremely important compound movement for building strength and form. The squat is crucial when performing them with weight, so training this movement without weight is a great way to understand how to properly move. Air Squats will challenge your quads, hamstrings, glutes and core in a tremendous way. If your form isn’t the greatest yet, perform them facing a wall with your hands up over your head. If you lose your balance or touch the wall, take a step back. This will be a good indicator if you need to work on some mobility and flexibility issues. Believe us, doing these without weight can still get those legs burning. Try them on their own or within a circuit!

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Day 81/84: #legday ? Today I took a step back and spent some time working on my #squatform. I find it super hard to activate both my #quads and my #glutes at the same time and evenly in both #legs ? I usually feel it only in one #leg or the other… that’s why I need to work on it ? I did a bunch of body weight #squats in front of the mirror watching that my knees don’t cave in, that I’m doing proper depth, etc. ? . After that I did the actual #legworkout in the #gaugegirltraining 12 week training program, and it left my quads and hamstrings shaking ? It was a great #workout, I attribute half of it to the morning coffee (I don’t usually drink it, so when I do I feel it) and the other half to the #bodyweightsquats and proper #warmup ? . Then I went for a run to train for the 10k race I have in December. Today I ran 3,1km in 20 minutes, walked for 5 minutes, and ran 3km in 20 minutes. . And finally I went back to the gym and finished the workout with calf raises ? I didn’t want to do them before running because I wanted them fresh ? . . #gymvideo #gymvideos #workoutvideo #workoutvideos #girlswholift #fitgirl #fitgirls

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3. Push-Ups 

These another extremely important movement everyone in the fitness world should be practicing. If you find that they’re too easy, there are a ton of different variations to make them more challenging. Grab a partner and try these high five push-ups, or bring your hands in a little closer and try some diamond push-ups. Doing push-ups properly is super important, so unlike the traditional way of pushing your elbows all the way out to a 90 degree angle, try bringing your elbows in a little closer to the body at about a 20 degree angle to ensure you keep those shoulders safe and don’t put yourself at risk for a shoulder impingement. Add push-ups or push-up variations into your bodyweight circuit for a great upper body workout!

 

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Jamming with the head coach himself ? @hungskee.barlionz @barlionz @barlionzarmy #pushupsfordays #califam

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4. Pull-Ups

Pull-Ups are one of the best exercises to build strength and mass throughout your back and biceps. You can switch them up with a close grip, wide grip or mixed grip (one palm facing in and one facing out). A muscle-up is a fun progression to the pull-up. It does take a ton of strength and coordination, but it’s great if you’re looking to push yourself. The key points to remember for a pull-up are (1) keep the core tight and engaged the entire time and (2) focus on keeping your ribs tucked down towards your belly button.

5. Bulgarian Split Squats 

If you haven’t added these bad boys into your training plan, you most definitely should. They are fantastic for tackling any imbalances in your legs and they have a tremendous strength-building component. With so many variations like the one shown below, you can get those legs burning and growing in no time. They are also great for working on ankle and hip mobility, so if you’re looking to work on your mobility or keep it light on a training day, these are a great choice. The main things you want to remember are (1) don’t let your front knee get out over your toes, (2) keep your knee in line with the toes by slightly sinking your back knee down and back and (3) keep that chest up!

 

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One of the MOST underestimated exercises out there. I feel like people didn’t do Bulgarian split squats up until the past year or two when they realized the hype is indeed real ???. I love them because my tight hips don’t feel as limiting. Some personal tips: -point your foot slightly outward and allow your knee to follow the same direction. I feel more engagement in my glutes this way. -try different forms like: weighted, resistance, tension pulses, jumps. -stay in control and push through your heel. -slow eccentric = bigger burn. ⬇ This is the time you save this post & try it out. My coach @kyedaley introduced me to this resistance band version and I secretly hate / love him for it haha. ✅okay now that you did that, go get yourself some @1upnutrition BCAAs so your legs aren’t super sore and mad at you ??. Discount: FLORES1UP ❤. – #1upnutrition #becomebetter #bulgariansplitsquats #bcaas

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Looking for more training posts? Check out Training for Pull Ups: Tips If You Can’t Do Them Yet.

The post No Gym? 5 of the Best Bodyweight Exercises appeared first on FitMinutes.