Going to the gym isn't for everyone. Perhaps you have long working hours, family commitments, children, or you just don't enjoy the gym. The good news is, building muscle at home with your bodyweight is not just possible, but effective and efficient.
Now don't get me wrong, if you have plans to compete as a power lifter, step on stage as a bodybuilder or enter the world of strongmen, you are going to benefit from external weight and the gym will support your needs better. However, if you are looking to build muscle, increase your strength, appearance and enjoy the multitude of benefits that come with resistance training, you can get great results at home!
When I talk to most clients, they generally want to lose weight and look more "toned". What does "toned" really mean? It means they want to lose fat and look leaner with some muscular definition.
Losing fat without resistance training will likely lead you to end up looking like a skinny version of your current self - missing the toned effect which is so often desired. Bodyweight exercises are a great way to build muscle and create the "toned" look without the cost or inconvenience of going to a gym.

How do you build muscle?
To build muscle, known as hypertrophy, you need to continually challenge your muscles . Progressive overload is key, which means gradually increasing the resistance, or intensity of your workouts over time to continually force your muscles to grow and adapt. It is unlikely you will be able to increase the intensity of a workout every week, but over time you should be able to identify clear progression. For bodyweight exercises you can apply progressive overload by increasing the number of repetitions (reps) you complete of an exercise, increasing the number of sets, increasing the range of motion, slowing down the tempo thus increasing the time the muscle is under tension, change to a more challenging exercise or reduce the rest time between sets.
There are two primary types of muscular hypertrophy: myofibrillar hypertrophy and sarcoplasmic hypertrophy. Without getting too technical, this is how to achieve each of them:
1. Myofibrillar hypertrophy is achieved by resistance training with heavy resistance for low to moderate reps.
2. Sarcoplasmic hypertrophy is achieved through higher repetitions, typically 8-15, lower resistance and shorter rest periods.
Many exercise programs include a mix of both types of hypertrophy training to achieve well-rounded muscular development.
How to build muscle with bodyweight exercises
Crucially, the body has no concept of the source of resistance applied to the muscles. Therefore, it doesn't matter if resistance is created by dumbbells, barbells, resistance bands or even your own bodyweight.
This means we can achieve both types of hypertrophy with bodyweight exercises. To create an effective routine, you will want to work all the major muscle groups evenly across the space of a week. I'm personally a big fan of full body workouts and if you take this approach, 2- 3 workouts a week is a great place to start.
When developing an exercise program try to include each of the following:
Knee dominant movements like squats and lunges which primarily focus on your quadriceps, glutes and hamstrings.
Hip dominant movements like bridges and hip thrusts which work your glutes, hamstrings and lower back.
Upper body push movements such as press ups, dips and pike push-ups which focus on your chest, shoulders and triceps
Upper body pull movements including bodyweight rows, pull ups or chin ups. If you have no equipment, body rows can be achieved using chairs or a sturdy table. These movements focus on your major upper back muscles, biceps and forearms.
Core focused movements such as planks or mountain climbers.
Example beginner bodyweight workout
Squat 12-15 reps for 2-3 sets
Press Ups (or variation of) 12-15 reps for 2-3 sets
Glute Bridge 12-15 reps for 2-3 sets
Reverse Snow Angel 12-15 reps for 2-3 sets (included as a no equipment option).
Plank hold for 20-30 seconds for 2-3 sets.
Take 90 seconds rest between each set and repeat the workout 2-3 times per week on non-consecutive days to allow your muscles time to recover and adapt.
Remember, it is also crucial that your nutrition supports your training efforts if you are looking to build muscle. Ensure you consume plenty of dietary protein, form a range of sources, which is particularly important if you are on a plant-based diet as it will ensure you ingest adequate quantities of all the essential amino acids.
Conclusion
You can build muscle with your bodyweight, without needing specialised gym equipment, if you understand the basic principles of hypertrophy, use progressive overload and create the right stress on the muscles worked.
If you need help creating a bodyweight, or any, exercise program, to support your fat loss journey visit my website on this link
Martin
healthfocusedfitness.fit
Comments