Callisthenics is gaining incredible popularity and in recent years has been increasingly relegating bodybuilding to the background. Moreover, training without weights is much more interesting and diverse than routine work in the gym. In addition, they are much cheaper, and sometimes even completely free, if there is a minimum set: a horizontal plank, jump rope.
Earlier, it was believed that exercises with their own weight for gaining mass and strength are ineffective, although modern research and the experience of many athletes clearly demonstrate the fallacy of such judgments. With proper training and proper approach, you can increase strength and muscle mass without any problems.
The basics of bodyweight workout for beginners
The stereotype that mass gain when working without weights is almost impossible was born largely due to improper training. Also, many lovers of training with their own weight initially incorrectly prioritize the formation of the program. If you want to make your workouts effective, you need to remember a number of mandatory rules:
- No multi-repetitive sets (20-40 times or more);
- Each movement should be slow, concentrating the load on specific muscles;
- You need to exercise often, but at the same time devote a sufficient amount of time to rest;
- No isolatin work, only basic movements that involve as many muscles as possible;
- Nutrition plays a key role in achieving results;
Now, first things first. Firstly, the growth of muscle volume and strength and multi-repetitive sets are almost mutually exclusive factors. If you want to regularly progress not only in the issue of endurance, but also in muscle strength, then you need to carefully perform each repetition. Each movement in the negative and positive phase should be slow, concentrated, and at the peak point it is necessary to make a slight delay.
How often do you need to work out with bodyweight?
Almost any training program without weights includes daily work, which simply eliminates the achievement of the main goal. If you want to develop strength, and therefore muscle volumes, which are always adjusted to the load, then you need to exercise moderately. No overtraining, sufficient recovery, all this is no less important than in bodybuilding. Also, scientists have proved that the anabolic hormones that are produced due to physical activity, maintain an increased concentration for 48 hours. This means that you need to train at least once every two days. If you prefer daily training, then you need to correctly distribute the work into different muscle groups by day. This will ensure a constant concentration of the necessary hormones at a high level, but will not lead to overtraining,
If you train your entire body at a time, it is best to do it every other day with stacksteroids.com. In the days between workouts, you can put cardio, stretching and other types of active recovery. This is useful not only for the muscles, but also for the cardiovascular system, the central nervous system, and the muscles themselves. When training every day, distribute the load so that it does not repeat, for example:
- Monday – lower body (legs, calves);
- Tuesday – back and chest;
- Wednesday – muscles of a core;
- Thursday – arms (biceps, triceps, forearms);
- Friday – upper body with a bias on shoulder training;
- Saturday – whole body / legs / back;
- Sunday – rest.
One day a week must be left to rest, otherwise, even with the distribution of muscle groups, sooner or later overtraining will come and affect underreporting. Exercising one muscle group more often than 2 times a week is extremely undesirable. It is also worth considering that between sets you need to rest for 50-60 seconds, and between heavy ones – 90 seconds. The optimal number of sets and reps is 5 sets of 10-15 times for each movement.
A greater number of repetitions will develop endurance, therefore, to concentrate on power progression and muscle gain, you need intensive, but not exhausting work with small sets.
What bodyweight back exercises will help to gain weight?
Briefly summarizing the whole variety of movements, the exercises for gaining muscle mass will be reduced to three whales and their variations:
- Pull-ups;
- Push ups;
- Squats
As for the latter, disputes can often arise, because inexperienced workers will avoid leg training, explaining this by improving the lightness of the body, but the pros always pay sufficient attention to this muscle group. Initially, these three exercises become the basis, regardless of the level of training. As they progress, they are supplemented by other movements or various complications, in order to avoid adaptation of the body and stimulate muscle growth.
- Changes in the grip, arm positioning and performing movements in pull-ups (reverse, wide/close grip, archer, pull-ups on one arm, etc.);
- Uneven push-ups, archer (archer), push-ups with narrow arms, push-ups on fists, with cotton, push-ups on one arm, etc.
- Squats with a close/wide setting of legs, squats on one leg (gun), squats with additional movements (lunges, jumping, etc.).
It is important to understand that in training with your weight for muscle gain it is also important to regularly complicate the task and the work performed. This stimulates the body to produce hormones, does not allow you to adapt to the current level of load, and accordingly increase muscle mass and strength.
After mastering the basic movements at an average level, you can add other exercises, for example:
- Planks;
- Climbing a rope without arms;
- Exit with force on the crossbar;
- The bar and various types of static exercises;
- Plyometric exercises;
- Push-ups against the wall upside down.
In general, the calisthenics has a sufficiently rich arsenal of exercises and movements to provide good training and constant progression. The main thing is to develop the right attitude, discipline, and train systematically.
The Importance of Nutrition and Recovery for Muscle Gain
Any athlete, regardless of sport, will tell you that it is impossible to reach their potential without quality recovery and proper nutrition. In bodybuilding, one can easily “deceive” physical abilities by increasing volumes with the help of pumping and other “inalienable attributes” of this sport. When working with your own weight, your appearance will always emphasize the real level of fitness, therefore strive to develop strength, it is this indicator that will affect the increase in muscle volume (muscle volume is directly proportional to strength).
Also, we must not forget that muscles grow during rest, because quality sleep is the main key to achieving success. If you exercise poorly, you will not grow. The same will happen if you train too hard, but don’t devote 7-9 hours of sleep a day.
The final “cornerstone” is nutrition. If you do not provide the muscles with enough nutrients and calories, they will not be due to what to grow and the return on training will be minimal.