Recently bodyweight exercise has been a lot popular with gyms being closed and certain lockdowns being imposed. So what exactly is bodyweight training? what all exercise can one do in it ? is it really beneficial as compared to weight training? If you heard about bodyweight training and not clear with the fact what is it and other questions in your mind regarding it read below.
Bodyweight training, as the name suggests, is nothing but certain strength training exercises where an individual uses its own body weight to provide resistance against gravity. Bodyweight training helps in improving stamina, power, flexibility, speed, balance, and coordination.
Our bodies have been fully equipped and adapted for bodyweight training if not weight training. Think were the kettlebells, dumbells, rowing machines, etc were they available in prehistoric times? The answer is no from the dawn of mankind human being has been doing exercises such as running, jumping, pull-ups, chin-ups, squats, and push-ups to be fit.
Push up is the most basic and the most effective exercise in bodyweight training. Push-ups work on pectoral muscles ( chest ), biceps ( arms ), and deltoids ( shoulder ). Push-ups are a great way to train the core muscles as well. Variations in the hand placement and leg placement in push-ups will target different muscles of the body for eg. Diamond push-ups target tricep muscles, and placing ur hand a little wider than normal will target more of the back muscles rather than chest.
Bodyweight training can target each and every muscle in the body with a combination of various exercises such as free weight squats, lunges both targets the leg muscles, chin-ups, and reverse grip push-ups target the bicep muscles, similarly different exercises for each body part can be performed. is great for people of all ages
Still not sold to the idea of opting for bodyweight training during this time till the gyms are closed ? in that case read below why bodyweight training should be a key component in your workouts whether you go to the gym or not.
Legit Reasons to Start Bodyweight Training Today
1. It’s free.
The first and foremost reason is that you don’t need to enroll in any gym or any fitness studio to perform bodyweight training. It can be done right from home with no equipment at all. Max you would require is a yoga mat.
2. There’s never an excuse to not work out.
The top 2 reasons for people not working out is lack of time or not living close to a gym or a fitness facility. But as compared to bodyweight training one require very little space, could be done anywhere in a park, room, hotel room, etc. And can be done as per convenience, basically its an anytime anywhere workout.
3. It’s a super-efficient workout.
Since there is no equipment or weights involved bodyweight training makes it easier to transition from one move to the next. With a minimum amount of rest or gap between two exercises, bodyweight training if done efficiently is short intensity HIIT workouts.
4. It can combine cardio and strength training
Bodyweight training is a combination of cardio and strength training exercises such as high knees or burpees are considered as cardio exercises whereas exercises such as pull-ups or chin-ups are part of strength training. But both the exercises are part of bodyweight training.
5. You can burn fat—fast.
Since it’s a combination of cardio and strength training just a few minutes of bodyweight circuit training can have a huge impact on the body’s metabolism resulting in greater fat loss.
6. At any fitness level, it’s challenging.
Bodyweight training is great as it can be modified according to the level of the person. Tricks such as adding extra reps, or doing the movement faster or adding a challenging or ballistic movement like adding a clap at top of each push up are just a few ways to make a simple workout more challenging.
7. You’ll gain core strength.
Core is not about just six-pack abs. A stronger core supports both the upper and lower body. And many bodyweight exercises engage the core.
8. It can increase your flexibility.
Bodyweight training is great for increasing flexibility. Bodyweight training involves a full range of motion which involves free movement of the joints as compared to restricted movements in weight training. It can improve the posture and is a less injury-prone style of workout.
9. You’ll never get bored.
One can easily get bored with few months of weight training involving run on the treadmill, lat pulls, bench press, etc. But as compared in bodyweight training a person can add countless no of variations which don’t only help break boredom but also helps in breaking plateaus and is a great confidence booster.
10. It can help with injury prevention.
Bodyweight training is generally safe regardless of experience, age, or fitness level. It’s less injury-prone as compared to weight training and in fact, bodyweight training is often recommended to people by a physiotherapist to patients suffering from chronic injuries.
Bodyweight exercise for older adults
Bodyweight training is very beneficial for not just the young, but it’s very beneficial for older people as well. Older people benefit through increased muscle mass, improved sleep patterns, decreased depression, increased mobility, increased bone density. Exercises such as squats, lunges, step-ups, planks, etc are beneficial for leg and core strength. And as elderly people are prone to lose balance and fall bodyweight training helps them to gain balance and reduce the risk of falls.
Precautions while doing bodyweight training
No matter what people say bodyweight training can still cause you injury if you don’t do a proper warm-up and a stretching routine. As certain movements can put a sudden jerk and pressure over joints and muscles and could cause an injury in case the body is not stretched and warmed up. Therefore one should always remember to stretch both before and after workout whether its bodyweight training, weight training or any other physical activity. And also one should keep themselves hydrated enough during a workout again the same goes wether its bodyweight training or any other form of physical activity.
The Final Conclusion
Each and every style of training has its own benefits with that being said I won’t say that bodyweight training is the best way of training but it does have a lot of benefits apart from the factors like being anytime anywhere low-cost workout. But during the pandemic, till the gyms don’t open if you don’t have equipment at home it’s better to do something rather than not doing anything at all. So get up from that couch shut down Netflix and take at least 40 mins from your day to maintain a healthy lifestyle.