Bodyweight Training – How Effective is Training with Your Own Body Weight?
In this blog post, I will explain how you can train with your own bodyweight in an efficient, varied and fun way.
In the early days of my own strength training, I didn’t have much equipment and trained mainly with my own body, so-called bodyweight training. Mark Lauren (Fit without machines) had taken a liking to me back then and I used his “Bodyweight” app every day, always with the goal of moving up a level of difficulty (I even completed my trainer training with him in 2016).
Did I make progress in terms of strength and muscle building during this time? “Absolutely”.
Definition of Body Weight training
First of all, what is bodyweight training? Is mountaineering or climbing bodyweight training? Is it still bodyweight training if I use a pull-up bar or a sling trainer (e.g., TRX)? What about flexibility training? Does that count or is it just strength?
I believe there is no definitive answer to this question. For the purposes of this article, I believe that any form of strength training that uses your own body or gravity as resistance can be included. This means that tools such as a pull-up bar are acceptable (a house wall or tree branch could also be used).
What does an effective bodyweight training plan look like?
As I explained in my blog post on the lack of results with strength training, you have to use appropriate stimuli to get results. The body will not expend energy building muscle unless it absolutely has to.
So how do you know when the stimulation is enough? The best indication is if at some point you can no longer do the exercise, or at least it becomes very strenuous (and your form may no longer be clean). This should also be the case if the number of reps is appropriate for your goal.
For example, if you can only do 1 push-up or have to do 30 before you feel anything, the difficulty level is probably not well chosen.
What are the options for adjusting the strength exercises to create a stimulus?
The easiest way is to change the difficulty level. Let’s stay with push-ups: One way is to put your knees on the floor. On the other hand, you could change the incline and do the push-ups on the wall or on a table. These are only 2 variations. You can also take advantage of the fact that you have more strength when you are lowering (eccentric) than when you are pushing up (concentric). This means that you lower your body with your legs straight, but bend your knees to push up. To make it more difficult, you can raise your legs, put on a backpack, or do the push-ups with one arm.
You can use the number of sets and repetitions to determine the total volume for an exercise. If you have other exercises for the same muscle group (in this case, chest and triceps), those volumes should also be added. Frequency, or how often you do this plan each week, also affects the stimulus.
With all the factors mentioned above, we haven’t even considered the dozens of methods that exist in strength training. Clusters, supersets, trisets and circuits also influence the load and therefore the desired goal.
What are the best tools for effective bodyweight training?
There are now hundreds of small devices and tools that you can use for fitness training. However, since this article is about bodyweight training (see definition), here are my 3 favorites:
Pull-up Bar: There is hardly a better investment than a good pull-up bar. And they’re not even expensive. There are also some that won’t break your door frame and are safe. Here is an option for an Iron Gym pull-up bar that fits almost any door frame.
A sling trainer is an excellent investment. This can also be attached to the door or directly to the chin up bar. There are many brands available. One option is this sling trainer from Taurus.
I discovered the Powercube at a training session. This machine takes up a bit more space and is especially suitable for people who want to go in the direction of calisthenics. More on this in the next section.
Calisthenics— The Major League of Bodyweight Training
Calisthenics (Greek) means “beautiful strength”. This form of strength training has much in common with gymnastics. So it is not surprising that many calisthenics athletes come from a gymnastics background. I have always been fascinated by forms like the back lever (cover picture) or the human flag (below) and have been training for some time. The result could be much better (facial expression, duration), but it’s a start????
There are many good books on the subject or instructions via e-books.
Bodyweight training with Personalworkout
What does bodyweight training look like at Personalworkout? We always incorporate bodyweight exercises into our personal training sessions as well as our group training sessions.
The Bootcamps in Zug are ideal for bodyweight training, although we also use equipment.
The Hardest30 training sessions always include 10 exercises (each session is different). Some of them are usually done with your own body weight.
The ultimate home fitness plan—the 90 DAY Challenge Home or Light
A few years ago i set out to create the best in-home workout package that would improve strength and help you lose weight at the same time. The result is the 90-Day Challenge Light. This is our most affordable all-inclusive package that is completely customized for you.
On the other hand, our goal was to create an even more affordable package. The 90-Day Home Challenge uses a short test to place you in one of 5 levels. Each level lasts 3 months. In 15 months, you can go from being a complete couch potato to a fitness professional who has already mastered the basics of calisthenics.
Conclusion on bodyweight training
Bodyweight training can be very effective with the right know-how. To train the whole body, you need improvisation or at least some equipment (see above). I can also say from many years of experience with over a hundred clients that training at home requires a certain amount of discipline. It’s very easy to get distracted or find an excuse to skip today’s workout. A trainer can help you avoid this. If this article has motivated you to tackle a long-awaited goal, contact us for a no-obligation consultation.
For the best training tips, check out our free guide (GERMAN). Have fun with it!
Do you want professional and, above all, practical support for muscle building and body shaping? Then you’ve come to the right place. The personal trainers at Personalworkout will help you finally achieve your goal, with a success guarantee.
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