At Home Fitness Results

JS268
JS268 Posts: 78 Member
edited December 21 in Fitness and Exercise
Hello! I was just wondering if anyone has had success with at home workouts, particularly with strength training and toning. My gym membership has recently run out but I still have a lot of toning to do =).

Would doing daily push-ups, lunges, squats, ab twists and planks be enough to tone up? Or would I just be wasting my time.

Thank you for taking the time to read this, I would love to hear your experience and opinion.

Replies

  • crisanderson27
    crisanderson27 Posts: 5,343 Member
    Hello! I was just wondering if anyone has had success with at home workouts, particularly with strength training and toning. My gym membership has recently run out but I still have a lot of toning to do =).

    Would doing daily push-ups, lunges, squats, ab twists and planks be enough to tone up? Or would I just be wasting my time.

    Thank you for taking the time to read this, I would love to hear your experience and opinion.

    Definitely. I lost 40lbs in 3mos doing nothing more than a bodyweight strength training program.
    Some of you have been curious about my workout that I used to lose the initial 35+lbs at home. Well, it was 100% bodyweight based, no weights. I'll lay it out here:

    This is your basic 5 x 5 template. (To clarify, 5x5 is 5 reps x 5 sets. The idea is to work at a difficulty level where you could only do maybe 7-8 reps on the first set, and are struggling to finish 5 reps on the last set). You would do strength training 3 times a week, say Monday-Wednesday-Friday with the weekends off. These are done "lazy circuits" style, with about 1 minute rest between each set (I use a FT7 HRM and keep my heart rate over 140). The explanations of the exercises you'll use for each group are farther below.

    Workout A
    1A. Knee dominant - 5 x 5
    1B. Horizontal push - 5 x 5
    1C. Horizontal pull - 5 x 5
    2A. Ab - flexion - 3 x 5
    2B. Ab - static 3 x 30 seconds

    Workout B
    1A. Knee dominant - 5 x 5
    1B. Vertical push - 5 x 5
    1C. Hip dominant - 5 x 5
    1D. Vertical pull - 5 x 5
    2A. Ab - rotation - 3 x 5
    2B. Grip and neck training - 3 x varies

    Exercise Progressions - with regular weight training you can just add weight to the bar. With bodyweight progression is mostly about changing your leverage. These are just a few examples, I'm sure we could come up with dozens more if needed. You can always add resistance in the form of a weighted vest or backpack or resistance bands.

    Explanations of exercise in order of difficulty (easy-hard)
    1. Knee Dominant -- squats, lunges, step-ups, bulgarian split squats, unilateral bent leg deadlift, partial one leg squat, one leg squat, box or stair pistols, full pistols.
    2. Horizontal Push -- pushups, decline pushups, resistance pushups, side to side pushups, stair one arm pushups, negative one arm pushups, full one arm pushups.
    3. Horizontal Pull -- body row, resistance body row, negative one hand row, incline one hand row, full one hand row.
    4. Ab - flexion -- crunches, situps, resistance or incline situps, reverse situp, resistance or incline reverse situps, hanging knee or leg raise, hanging pikes, rollout from knees, rollout from feet, dragon flag. Also included are oblique moves like side lying crunches with or without resistance and side lying two leg raise.
    5. Abs- static -- 4 point prone bridge, 3 point prone bridge, 2 point prone bridge, 4 point supine bridge, 3 point supine bridge.
    6. Vertical Push -- pike pushup, hindu pushup, divebomber pushup, decline pike pushup, decline hindu pushup, decline divebomber pushup, one arm pike pushup, negative handstand pushup, handstand pushup with head touching floor, full handstand pushup.
    7. Hip Dominant -- supine hip extension, good morning, one leg stiff leg deadlift, split one leg good morning, one leg supine hip extension, hyperextension, one leg hyperextension, natural glute-ham raise.
    8. Vertical Pull -- jumping or assisted pullups, pullups, resistance pullups, side to side pullups, negative one hand pullups, one hand pullups. All these can refer to chinups or neutral grip pullups as well.
    9. Ab - rotation -- twist crunches or situps, resistance or incline twist crunches or situps, russian twists, lying windshield wipers, standing rope rotations, hanging windshield wipers.
    10. Grip and Neck Training -- for grip you can use handgrippers, deadhangs from a pullup bar (especially a fatbar or gripping a towel). For neck nothing beats wrestlers bridges. If you are involved in a striking martial art or sport, finger and fist pushups are very important also.

    None of these lists have to end here. If you get strong enough you can always add resistance to your full range of motion one limb exercise. Or if you can do more than 5 one hand pushups do decline one hand pushups, or start working on one hand hindu and then eventually one hand dive bombers, and so on.

    The nice thing about this routine is it scales dramatically depending on your fitness level. If you can't do even ONE regular pull up, you can scale it down and do assisted pull ups (legs on a chair), or ballistic pullups (where you jump to provide the initial momentum). It's actually easier to do properly when you're very unfit...because once you're healthy and strong...you're going to be searching for challenging enough exercises to only allow you 5 reps max by the finish of the 5 sets.

    Make sure you keep your protein up, and get adequate rest. This program is very, very effective.

    As proof:

    7434194_2240.jpg7434194_1237.jpg

    7434194_8492.jpg7434194_7770.jpg

    Again, 3mos, 40lbs.
  • Stefanie7125
    Stefanie7125 Posts: 462 Member
    i don't have enough discipline for home fitness (or anywhere else for that matter), but my son does. He has really improved his physique (?) with pushups, pull ups and some weight lifting all at home. He also does Insanity occasionally.
  • Coco_Puff
    Coco_Puff Posts: 823 Member
    A stability ball will give you a great workout and they're not much money. If you can add some dumbbells with removable plates, they are great for lunges, squats, and deadlifts. When you use the ball, look up on google how to do a Prone Jack Knife. They are killer on your core!
  • wackyfunster
    wackyfunster Posts: 944 Member
    I only work out at home, and have had infinitely better results since building my home gym (no more 30 minute drive to the gym = I actually work out 3x/week now). Really all you need is a good squat rack with some bars to protect you while benching, and a barbell and weights. A vkr tower for chins/dips can be had for like $80. That and a bench, and a couple of olympic dumbell handles (that way you can use the same collars/weights as you do with your barbell) and you have a full-featured gym!
  • JS268
    JS268 Posts: 78 Member
    Okay, thanks for the feedback everyone :happy:
  • LiveforChange
    LiveforChange Posts: 115 Member
    BUMP LOVE THE INFO
  • Blessedmommy_2x
    Blessedmommy_2x Posts: 419 Member
    I have never had a gym membership... lost ALL my weight working out at home with a combination of body weight exercises and cardio. So it CAN be done! :wink:
  • crisanderson27
    crisanderson27 Posts: 5,343 Member
    I have never had a gym membership... lost ALL my weight working out at home with a combination of body weight exercises and cardio. So it CAN be done! :wink:

    Definitely!! I did it with bodyweight and no cardio.

    And congratulations on your success...you look great!
  • InfinitePoss
    InfinitePoss Posts: 60 Member
    I used to be a gym rat but I have lost over twenty pounds in the past two months, and achieved more strength and definition than I have had in year working out at home doing Power 90. The program can get pretty boring but it has a good mix of resistance and cardio.
  • EPICSRT
    EPICSRT Posts: 222 Member
    I say it's totally possible!!

    I started MFP almost a year ago now and most of my workouts have been Jillian Michael's and more recently dumbbell's at home. I have an adjustable weight bench, a set of Jillian 3, 5, 8 pound dumbbells (used with her DVD's), a pull up bar and a set weider core adjustable 50 pound dumbbell's and have spent less than the cost of a years gym membership. As others have pointed out, their are tons of body weight exercises you could do too.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/572262-300-consecutive-days-of-mfp-w-pics-almost-60-pounds-lost

    About 20 more days and I'll have some new photos to post!
  • waldo56
    waldo56 Posts: 1,861 Member
    Definitely. I lost 40lbs in 3mos doing nothing more than a bodyweight strength training program.

    Lots of good stuff, but why no static strength or static/dynamic combos (like lever-rows or planche pushups).

    Granted static strength is a little different, but it is extremely effective, and the resistance goes really high.
  • Will_Thrust_For_Candy
    Will_Thrust_For_Candy Posts: 6,109 Member
    I'm a big fan of the Jillian Michaels DVD's as well! I just bought a new one from Walmart a couple days ago, No More Trouble Zones and it's all strength training and it's awesome! The DVD's are super cheap too, so you don't have to spend an arm and leg to get started!

    Good luck :)
  • crisanderson27
    crisanderson27 Posts: 5,343 Member
    Definitely. I lost 40lbs in 3mos doing nothing more than a bodyweight strength training program.

    Lots of good stuff, but why no static strength or static/dynamic combos (like lever-rows or planche pushups).

    Granted static strength is a little different, but it is extremely effective, and the resistance goes really high.

    Mostly because they weren't on the program when I got it. I've made some very small changes to it for myself...but in overall, it's the same one setup by Cheesedog over at bodyweight culture. I figured that if I got the results I did from it, and others the results they've had since I shared it...there wasn't much reason to change it up.

    You're definitely right though.
  • waldo56
    waldo56 Posts: 1,861 Member
    Definitely. I lost 40lbs in 3mos doing nothing more than a bodyweight strength training program.

    Lots of good stuff, but why no static strength or static/dynamic combos (like lever-rows or planche pushups).

    Granted static strength is a little different, but it is extremely effective, and the resistance goes really high.

    Mostly because they weren't on the program when I got it. I've made some very small changes to it for myself...but in overall, it's the same one setup by Cheesedog over at bodyweight culture. I figured that if I got the results I did from it, and others the results they've had since I shared it...there wasn't much reason to change it up.

    You're definitely right though.

    Well I'm about to embark on straight up bulking with bodyweight alone. Just taking a calorie pause at maintenence at the moment and about to take a week strength training break (or serious volume reduction) first.

    2x a week I'm going to focus on legs with pistols, 100m hill sprints, and lunges (which has thus far proven to be an extremely effective combo for me).

    1x a week I'm going to work dynamic strength with one arm pushups, one arm emphasized chins, lever rows, headstand pushups, and dragon flags.

    1x a week I'm going to work static strength with front lever, back lever, planches, and handstands. (Working on the progressions, I can't hold the full version of any (but handstands)).

    Bulking is all about the eating.
  • crisanderson27
    crisanderson27 Posts: 5,343 Member
    Definitely. I lost 40lbs in 3mos doing nothing more than a bodyweight strength training program.

    Lots of good stuff, but why no static strength or static/dynamic combos (like lever-rows or planche pushups).

    Granted static strength is a little different, but it is extremely effective, and the resistance goes really high.

    Mostly because they weren't on the program when I got it. I've made some very small changes to it for myself...but in overall, it's the same one setup by Cheesedog over at bodyweight culture. I figured that if I got the results I did from it, and others the results they've had since I shared it...there wasn't much reason to change it up.

    You're definitely right though.

    Well I'm about to embark on straight up bulking with bodyweight alone. Just taking a calorie pause at maintenence at the moment and about to take a week strength training break (or serious volume reduction) first.

    2x a week I'm going to focus on legs with pistols, 100m hill sprints, and lunges (which has thus far proven to be an extremely effective combo for me).

    1x a week I'm going to work dynamic strength with one arm pushups, one arm emphasized chins, lever rows, headstand pushups, and dragon flags.

    1x a week I'm going to work static strength with front lever, back lever, planches, and handstands. (Working on the progressions, I can't hold the full version of any (but handstands)).

    Damn boy, lol. That should definitely do the trick!

    One thing...I've always found one arm pushups to be awkward, and less than effective due to the weird range of motion. What i prefer is what I call a 90/10 pushup, where your other hand is simply used for stability, and no lifting. The range of motion is far more natural, and the 'effect' feels more solid.

    What do you think about those?
  • waldo56
    waldo56 Posts: 1,861 Member
    Definitely. I lost 40lbs in 3mos doing nothing more than a bodyweight strength training program.

    Lots of good stuff, but why no static strength or static/dynamic combos (like lever-rows or planche pushups).

    Granted static strength is a little different, but it is extremely effective, and the resistance goes really high.

    Mostly because they weren't on the program when I got it. I've made some very small changes to it for myself...but in overall, it's the same one setup by Cheesedog over at bodyweight culture. I figured that if I got the results I did from it, and others the results they've had since I shared it...there wasn't much reason to change it up.

    You're definitely right though.

    Well I'm about to embark on straight up bulking with bodyweight alone. Just taking a calorie pause at maintenence at the moment and about to take a week strength training break (or serious volume reduction) first.

    2x a week I'm going to focus on legs with pistols, 100m hill sprints, and lunges (which has thus far proven to be an extremely effective combo for me).

    1x a week I'm going to work dynamic strength with one arm pushups, one arm emphasized chins, lever rows, headstand pushups, and dragon flags.

    1x a week I'm going to work static strength with front lever, back lever, planches, and handstands. (Working on the progressions, I can't hold the full version of any (but handstands)).

    Damn boy, lol. That should definitely do the trick!

    One thing...I've always found one arm pushups to be awkward, and less than effective due to the weird range of motion. What i prefer is what I call a 90/10 pushup, where your other hand is simply used for stability, and no lifting. The range of motion is far more natural, and the 'effect' feels more solid.

    What do you think about those?

    I didn't care for them as much. It was hard to say just how much I was getting out of that 10%.

    Once I got one arm pushups I didn't actually care for them too much (like you said, awkward) and put them on hiatus because of some shoulder tendonitis, focusing instead on static strength which is much less aggravating to the tendonitis.

    I've recently gone back to them, including the GTG work where I did a rep here and there through the day last week. They are different now. I'm a good bit stronger now all around and I'm able to do them much more cleanly. There are two different variants, hand outside the shoulder and hand under/inside the shoulder. The hand outside the shoulder variant is easier, when my form slips I end up doing that version, that one feels weird and crappy though. I can also do them strict form, hand under the shoulder (slightly turned in), feet shoulder width apart, with virtually no hip or shoulder rotation. That one feels like a pushup. A really hard one. With only one hand. Obviously the tension in the rest of the body is a lot different though, but that isn't really where the focus is.

    Keep getting stronger and you should find that the awkwardness goes away.
  • JS268
    JS268 Posts: 78 Member
    So would doing something like this 5 times a week produce progress?

    Pushups- 10 reps 3 sets
    Squats and/or Lunges -10 reps 3 sets
    Planks (side and basic plank) 30 secs 3 sets and/or Russian Twists: 22 reps 3 sets

    This looks so pathetic compared to the crossfit I used to do xP
  • crisanderson27
    crisanderson27 Posts: 5,343 Member
    So would doing something like this 5 times a week produce progress?

    Pushups- 10 reps 3 sets
    Squats and/or Lunges -10 reps 3 sets
    Planks (side and basic plank) 30 secs 3 sets and/or Russian Twists: 22 reps 3 sets

    This looks so pathetic compared to the crossfit I used to do xP

    That depends on what you consider progress really. Will it increase your strength measurably? No...not really, its missing some key elements (progressive loading mostly, but also your plan doesn't hit some critical body parts). If you find the workout challenging at all, it won't be in short order...and then what will you do? The other thing it is missing is rest. You don't get stronger efficiently without giving your muscles a break.

    I hate to keep pointing at my workout...and though it might be imrpoved on, it's pretty comprehensive as/is. 30-45 minutes, 3x a week. If you want to run two days a week on top of it, feel free. I'd suggest a day or two of complete rest though in between.

    It works.
This discussion has been closed.