There are 3 crucial bodyweight exercises that everyone should be able to do AND, that everyone should put a lot of energy into.
1) Push Ups - we learned these as kids and surprisingly, I don't see too many people doing basic push ups anymore.
If you're shoulders are banged up from heavy benching and squats with a straight bar, then get busy on push ups
and give the barbell a break.
Focus on doing high reps and of course, perfect technique. Imagine your body is a 2 x 4 or a ruler, perfectly straight. Don't flare the elbows or sag your core, these are 2 common mistakes that destroy the push up.
Lock your arms out on every rep and perform a full range of motion. Half reps = NO reps in my book.
I started doing push ups in 1988 and haven't stopped since.
The older I get, the more important these push ups get!
2) Pull Ups - ALL grips here, not just underhand or overhand.
Mix them up. Close grip, wide grip, rings, etc.
Build up to doing high reps and high volume. If you struggle to perform more than a few reps, here's a few tips:
- Lose Body Fat
- Grease the Groove: Work Pull Ups 5-6 x week for the next month. Learn how to implement GTG Training Here:
If an athlete can bench 315 but can't do 1 pull up, STOP benching.
This means you are fat & weak.
I have seen a LOT of powerlifters and high school athletes who have a BIG bench and ZERO pull up strength. This is an injury waiting to happen. Get strong on pull ups, there is ZERO excuse.
Strong & Useless is a problem I speak about quite often. These 3 exercises will destroy the strong & useless problem. NO equipment needed. Just get to a playground or hang a pair of rings somewhere.
I do not want athletes benching with a bar until we see 40 push ups or 20 push ups with a 20 lb chain.
HOLD the standard!
You can do push ups more often than pull ups. Pull Ups done daily will lock up your lats and pecs so make sure to do plenty of stretching and foam rolling the lats.
If you're attacking Pull Ups for a 3 - 4 week cycle of Grease the Groove, add the following stretches / soft tissue release work:
- PVC Pipe Dislocators
- Foam Roll the Lats
- Dead Hang from Bars or Rings several times a day, 15-30 seconds each time
- Stretch the lats from various angles: Hold a upright bar / rack and lean back. Place both hands on a bench and sit back.
I also love the following for added shoulder health:
- band face pulls
- band pull aparts
- rear delt flys with chest support
- scare crow with gymnastics rings
- dislocators with PVC pipes & mini jump stretch band
3) Sprints - Can Herschel Walker be wrong!!??
I LOVE sprints, especially hill sprints.
Man, they make you feel powerful & fit to fight!
Sprints can be done 2, maybe 3 x week depending on your volume and intensity.
2 x week should be plenty if you hit these hard.
I've had so many questions on my Instagram regarding Bodyweight Bodybuilding I wanted to share the 3 favorites of mine.
Do these 3 exercises and you WILL be a BEAST.
NO gym required.
OWN the day and talk soon.
Live The Code 365,
--Z--
Bodyweight Bodybuilding
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Absolutely I would add plyometrixs jumps before the sprints for an added boost as well 2 or 3 times a week. plus maybe some jump rope for 3 to 4 times a week for 10 to 20 mintues. Crazy herchell walker is still doing pushups everyday and atleast 150 pullups a day as well not to mention dips on the parallel bars for 500 a day. https://www.muscleandfitness.com/athletes-celebrities/interviews/interview-herschel-walker-takes-fitness-mission-washington/
If we’re not learning from Herschel Walker, even as he is “older”, that is a mistake.
The power of bodyweight training is immense!
I know right? Crazy the fact he can handle that amount of workload. I know for me perosnally I can do plyometrics and sprints 3 times a week and jump rope for 3 to 5 times a week.
The pullups dips pushups 3 times a week with high volume.
But not herschel walker instead he does similar training everyday!!!!!!
This guy is obviously one of the if not the most consistent guy In athletics. and he is retired !!!!!