
Embarking on a strength training journey doesn’t necessarily require a gym membership or expensive equipment. With just your body weight, you can build muscle, improve your fitness, and enhance your overall health. Strength training doesn't make you “bulky” as some people fear, instead it helps strengthen your bones and speeds up your metabolism which are both things that begin to decline as we age. The weight of our body is plenty to get us started with strength training, and as you begin to progress you can make investments into equipment or gym memberships to ensure that progress never stops.
Why Choose Body Weight Training?
1. Accessibility: No need for a gym or equipment. Perhaps you have made a decision that you want to get into strength training. Strength training is receiving a lot of positive publicity at the moment especially to help us as we age, it is also being heavily popularised by women who are going through the menopause. If you are just dipping your toes into the world of strength training then the accessibility benefits of bodyweight strength training mean you can get started with zero costs!
2. Convenience: Can be done anywhere—at home, in a park, or while travelling. Alongside being extremely accessible, body weight strength training is also really convenient. Driving to the gym and back in my home of Northampton can add 1 hour to my day easily when the traffic is bad. By training at home you end up wasting less time, this is especially important for those of us with a busy family and or work life. With so many of us now working from home, being able to sneak off for a few minutes here and there to fit in some exercise has never been easier. Don't assume workouts need to be these long and intense sessions you see on films and social media. A few minutes is a great starting place and workouts can also be split up throughout the day.
3. Scalability: Exercises can be modified to match your fitness levels. They can be made harder or easier based upon your current level. This makes it very easy to see progress which helps keep us motivated. You can vary the number of reps and sets you perform, the type of exercise and the order of exercise within the workout which means that there are so many ways to make adaptations and get the perfect workout for you.
4. Comprehensive Workout: Engages multiple muscle groups and improves functional strength. As opposed to isolating individual muscles, like what happens with gym machines or toning tables, bodyweight training recruits the full body which builds core strength and has more of a crossover to normal life. This means that bodyweight training is more functional. So many movements cross over into normal life and help us with everyday tasks which can get harder as we age. Here are some examples;
-Squat = Getting in and out of a chair
-Push Up = getting yourself up off the floor if you fell
-Single leg deadlift = picking up something small and light off the floor
Hopefully by now you are recognising that body weight strength training should be featured in your workout regime. Great!! Here are the key principles of body weight training to ensure that you get the results you deserve and stay safe whilst doing it!
Four Key Principles of Body Weight Training
1. Consistency: Regular workouts yield the best results. By forming a consistent habit of training regularly you will experience a lot of progress. The best way of doing this is picking a set number of workouts to complete in a week (3 is a great starting place) and then choosing the days and times you are going to do them. By setting this goal and agreeing with yourself you are more likely to achieve your targets. The next level here is by using social accountability like in this blog post here;
www.pocketcoach.online/post/why-accountability-is-key-to-fitness-success.
Social accountability helps you stay consistent by encouraging you to train. Having your training at home means you can steal time here and there and break the workout up into sections to fit in with your day.
2. Progression: Gradually increase the difficulty of exercises. This is true for everyone that exercises. All too often we get comfortable and complacent with a particular exercise and the number of reps of the exercise that we do. This stifles progress because we need constant stimulus to grow. All of your workouts should be challenging enough to force progress, but not so challenging that you risk injuring yourself.
3. Form and Technique: Proper form prevents injuries and maximises effectiveness. By using proper form you ensure that you are targeting the specific muscle and or purpose of the exercise. We all have stronger and weaker areas of our bodies, and when we get tired or try new things our default is to go to the areas where we are stronger and neglect the areas wee are weaker. This means our strong parts keep getting stronger and our weak parts weaker. This leads to imbalance through the body which in turn will often lead to injuries.
4. Rest and Recovery: Allow muscles time to recover to avoid overtraining. Ensure that you are eating extra protein and drinking more water because the demands on your body have now increased.
Final Thoughts
1. Set Realistic Goals: Start with achievable goals and gradually increase the challenge.
2. Listen to Your Body: If an exercise feels too difficult or causes pain, modify or rest.
3. Stay Hydrated: Drink plenty of water before, during, and after workouts.
4. Track Progress: Keep a workout journal to monitor your improvements and stay
Motivated.
5. Seek Guidance: If unsure about form or progression, consider consulting a fitness professional or using instructional videos. Youtube is full of fantastic professionals providing very informative videos. Just search the exercise and pick the video with the most views.
If you would like to try one of our free bodyweight programmes where you will get regular input from a REAL COACH then click here;
Conclusion
Strength training with your body weight is an effective, versatile, and convenient way to build muscle and improve fitness. By incorporating basic exercises, maintaining consistency, and following proper techniques, you can achieve impressive results. Start today, and enjoy the journey to a stronger, healthier you.
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