You can also load the glute bridge to increase your glute strength, which will carry over to your deadlift and squat, or perform sets of them unweighted as a warm-up. This exercise is a popular choice among trainers to target the glutes while reducing potential back or knee pain. Do this a few times, aiming to increase the time of your hold. If you can’t do a chin-up yet, try jumping up to get into the top position, hold yourself in that position for 10 seconds. Squeeze your shoulder blades together and pull up until your chin is at or above the bar. Hang from a pull-up bar with your palms facing towards you, set about shoulder-width apart.
This pull-up variant has you supinate the hands (turn them inward) when pulling your chin to the bar. Squeeze your shoulder blades together and row your chest to the bar, or as close as possible. It should be set just high enough that your butt and back are hovering above the floor. Lay under the bar, so the barbell is over the chest. Lay a barbell into the hooks of a power rack, set a few feet off the ground. This exercise is low impact, as you’re not loading the joints and muscles with weights.Or, if you’re at home, use a suspension trainer, a towel draped over a closed door, a sturdy broomstick between two chairs, or a tabletop. It requires little equipment - just a barbell and a rack.The inverted row is useful for both beginners, who can’t pull up their entire body weight, and advanced gym-goers, who want to perform high-rep back movements.Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Inverted Row Guide | Form Tips, Muscles Worked, and Mistakes () Benefits of the Inverted Row Advanced trainees can bust out a lot of reps to further tax their back. That said, it’s lower impact than both of those moves since you’re not using weight to stress your muscles but are instead fighting gravity. The inverted row is technically a horizontal rowing movement, as your body is parallel to the floor, making it comparable to cable rows. You’re pulling less of your body weight, so it’s easier to do for beginners while virtually recruiting all of the same muscles as a pull-up. Think of an inverted row as pull-up lite. Sink as deep as you can while keeping a straight back before standing back up. Extend your arms out in front of your torso as a counterweight, then slowly sit your pelvis straight downwards. The width and toe angle is entirely individual, so take time to find out what your body feels best doing. Stand tall with your feet in a comfortable stance. You’ll gain more leg muscle as the squat targets your glutes, quads, hamstrings, calves, and hip flexors.You’ll improve mobility as the squat has your body move through multiple planes of motion to complete the exercise.Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: The Air Squat () Benefits of the Squat Your core will also benefit, as the push-up is essentially a moving plank that forces your entire body to stabilize. You get on all fours, keep your back straight, and repeatedly lower yourself down and up - working the chest, triceps, and shoulders in the process.
The push-up is one of the most basic and effective moves for improving upper body strength. These moves have survived the test of time for a reason - they’ll help you achieve the muscle and mobility you’re striving for. On the list below, you’ll find 16 of the best bodyweight exercises that don’t reinvent the wheel, but do stand on their own merit. The right movements can help you get or stay flexible, and - if performed correctly - even sharpen your technique in your favorite barbell exercise. Repping out air squats probably won’t grant you a 500-pound back squat, but bodyweight training can build muscle, improve mobility, and be done virtually anywhere.Ĭonvenience isn’t the only selling point of bodyweight work either. If you’re an iron junkie who thinks calisthenics aren’t worth your time, you might want to rethink your position.