Bodyweight exercise

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Bodyweight Exercises are strength training exercises that do not require free weights; the practitioner's own weight provides the resistance for the movement. Movements such as the push-up, the pull-up, and the sit-up are some of the most common bodyweight exercises.

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[edit] Advantages

Because they do not require weights, bodyweight exercises are the ideal choice for individuals who are interested in fitness but do not have access to strength training equipment. Weights can be incorporated to increase the difficulty of most bodyweight exercises and some exercises do require some sort of apparatus to lean on or hang from, but the majority of bodyweight exercises require only a floor. For those exercises that do require equipment of some kind, a substitute can usually be improvised, for example using a tree branch to perform pull-ups.

[edit] Disadvantages

Bodyweight exercises use the practitioner's own weight to provide the resistance for the movement. This means that the weight being lifted is always the same. This makes it difficult for less experienced athletes to achieve a level of intensity that is near their one rep maximum, which is desirable for strength training. Other methods for increasing intensity include using additional weights (such as wearing a weighted vest or holding a barbell or plate during a sit up) or by altering the exercise to put yourself at a leverage disadvantage (such as elevating the feet or using only one hand during a push-up). Gymnasts make extensive use of this last technique by doing much of their training with straight arms (such as iron crosses, levers, and planches), a mechanically disadvantaged position.

[edit] List of exercises

  • Burpees
  • Crunch
  • Dip
  • Jumping Jack
  • Press up, or push up
    • Diamond Pushups
      • Similar to traditional pushups, only placing hands together so a diamond is formed between joined thumbs and index fingers.
    • Hindu Pushups
    • Planche Pushups
    • One Arm Pushups
    • Plyometric Pushups
      • Similar to traditional pushups, only launching up as fast as possible, so that hands coming off the ground.
  • Pull up, or chin up
    • One Arm Chin up
  • Sit up
    • Russian Twist
      • Secure your feet either by placing them under something or by having a partner hold them. Begin doing situps but when you're in the "up" position, clasp your hands in front of you. Moving only at the trunk, rotate to one side. At the end of your range of motion, quickly reverse the movement and rotate to the opposite side. Repeat in a rapid fashion for the full number of reps.
  • Squat
    • Squat Thrusts
      • Stand with feet together. Squat down and place your hands on the floor next to your feet. In an explosive movement, jump feet backwards into a push-up position, jump feet back between hands and stand up. Add intensity by adding a jump after you stand up.
  • Pistol, or one-legged squat
  • Handstand Pushup
    • Face wall then do a handstand, facing away from wall, feet resting against the wall. Bend your arms so your body drops halfway, then straighten back up. Repeat for 10 sets.
      • Alternately, drop your body down halfway then hold for 30 seconds in stress position.
  • Lying Hip Swing
    • Lie on your back with the legs pointed up, arms on the ground extended to each side, Maintain straight legs and swing your legs all the way to the left and then all the way to the right. Stop just short of touching the ground with the feet.
  • Leg Lifts
    • Lie on your back with your hands under your buttocks. Lift your feet about six inches off the ground, legs held together. Spread your legs as wide as possible, while keeping legs off the ground. Move legs back together. Return to rest position. Repeat for 20 reps.
      • As an alternate, keep feet off ground in stress position for 30 or 60 seconds.
  • Mountain Climbers
    • Assume pushup position, with hands on floor with shoulders over hands. Tuck one leg under torso with other leg fully extended. Keeping weight on balls of feet, as quickly as possible, "climb" alternating legs back and forth in a jogging-type motion.
  • Grasshoppers
  • Side Bends
  • Box Jumps
  • Roman Chair
    • Stand against wall. Slide halfway down wall, as though you were sitting down, if there were a chair. Thighs should be parallel with ground with knees bent 90-degrees. Hold your arms out, straight, so they're also parallel with floor. Hold position for 60 seconds.
  • Pike Press
  • Reverse Bridge
    • Lie on floor, face up, arms extended over head. Make a bridge so your back is arched and your body supported by arms and legs. Maintain in stress position for 60 seconds.
      • An alternate is to assume same position, then gently balance on head so that body weight is supported by head and legs. Maintain in stress position for 30 seconds.
  • Front Levers
  • Back Levers
  • Planche
  • Reverse Planche
  • Iron Cross variations (including inverted, Maltese, and Victorian)
  • Rainbows: move the body from a reverse planche through a hand stand to a planche or the reverse.

[edit] See also

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