Body weight exercises are great when it comes to building strength, maintaining endurance, and building stamina. These workouts are natural exercises which means you don’t need any machines to perform them. You only have to utilize body movements to exercise. Body weight exercises are simple but very effective as they help keep your muscles strong and your physique looking good.
Following are some effective body weight exercises for building strength:
- Push-Ups
When it comes to your upper body, push-ups are the best body weight exercise. They work your triceps, shoulders, chest, and even your abdominals and core muscles. By changing your hand position or elevating your feet, you can target different muscles. If you spread your hands out farther apart, you work your chest more. On the other hand, you target your triceps more if you bring your hands closer together.
- Pull-Ups
Pull-ups are another great body weight exercise that target your upper body. They work most of your forearms, biceps, traps, lats, and even a little of your chest. You can target different muscles of your body by holding the bar in different ways. A closer grip will work your biceps more. A wide overhand grip will work your lats harder. And you will feel a harder pull in your biceps if you use an underhand grip. No matter how you do it, pull-ups are a great workout.
- Planks
A staple in yoga and Pilates, planks are similar to push-ups but with planks, you hold yourself in position for a count of ten instead of lowering yourself to the ground. This position contracts all of your muscles as it stabilizes your body. Planks are ideal for working all the major muscle groups. The thing with planks is, they are easy to do wrong. However, if you do them right, you will feel the effects in nearly every muscle in your body.
- Squats
Working your lower body is just as important as working your upper body. When it comes to lower body exercises, squats are the best body weight exercise. Squats are a great way to build hip flexors, hamstrings, and quadriceps. They work all the muscles in your legs. You can switch these up by using different foot positions such as a narrow or winder stance or a split stance.
- Sit-Ups
Sit-ups are a great body weight exercise that target your core muscles. They help you get that six pack you want. Perform a variety of sit-ups to work your whole core. Sit-ups work your entire mid-section if you use a larger range of motion. If you want to work your obliques, then it is recommended that you perform side to side sit-ups. It’s very important to use proper form otherwise you risk straining your back.
These are just a few of the many effective body weight exercises that you can do in the comfort of a small space. They are simple but very effective exercises that will help you build strength and stay in shape. Now that you know about them, it’s time to put them into your body weight workout routine that works.
