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SQUATS!!

moreno89
moreno89 Posts: 210 Member
edited January 20 in Fitness and Exercise
hi all...well i just started doing squats but i heard you really don't gain much of a booty unless you use weights? well i can't afford a gym membership nor do i have the time to go,so i was just wondering what can i use? i only have 3 and 5 pound dumbbells? i heard thats not enough weight! what can i do?

Replies

  • leanmeanrunningmachine
    leanmeanrunningmachine Posts: 56
    Sure it is enough. Do all the variations of squats. Google it. You can move the weights lots of different ways you can move your feet out in side to side all of it. You can even put your balance ball on the wall and do squats on the wall.
  • ChrisLindsay9
    ChrisLindsay9 Posts: 837 Member
    You might be able to find a lot of variations of squats and other exercises here:

    http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/finder/lookup/filter/muscle/id/14/muscle/glutes

    (you can filter by equipment available, in your case bodyweight and dumbbells).

    Good luck!
  • phjorg
    phjorg Posts: 252 Member
    hi all...well i just started doing squats but i heard you really don't gain much of a booty unless you use weights? well i can't afford a gym membership nor do i have the time to go,so i was just wondering what can i use? i only have 3 and 5 pound dumbbells? i heard thats not enough weight! what can i do?
    the key to building mass is to constantly increase the resistance of the movement. so it's enough to start, but what's your next step for when you outgrow that amount of weight and need to progress?

    there are ways to do with with bodyweight though by doing different movements. But with squats alone, it's a pretty standard movement and limited outside of adding more weight to the barbell if you want to increase resistance.
  • contingencyplan
    contingencyplan Posts: 3,639 Member
    Understand that your lower body isn't going to know the difference between your bodyweight unloaded and an extra 3-10 lbs of weight. It takes a tremendous amount of weight to challenge the muscles in the lower body, after all, they can push hard enough to launch your bodyweight off the ground and into the air.

    I think that people make a huge mistake when they purchase dumbbells and gauge the amount they should be working with on their upper body strength. The fact is bodyweight alone is enough to work the upper body muscle groups sufficiently. Working the lower body, however, without adding an extra degree of balance work or impact work, requires adding weight. And lots of it.

    Also, another key thing to bear in mind is progression. you WILL get stronger as you go and you WILL need to keep increasing the weight you're working with to keep it challenging to keep seeing progress. Are you able to purchase any equipment for your house at all? What does your budget allow for?
  • waldo56
    waldo56 Posts: 1,861 Member
    Start doing squats one legged (start with split squats (also called bulgarian split squats or rear foot elevated split squats).

    As basic one legged squats get easy, move on to harder variations (like skater squats, pistol squats, and shrimp squats).
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