This is where the problems start. What is the “best” workout? And the fact is, there is not one workout program that is right for every person and every goal. So, instead of trying to find the absolute, ultimate best workout… use the workout that is best for you and your goals.

In my opinion, the use of bodyweight calisthenics and dumbbells is the best way to exercise for just about any goal. So, regardless of what workout program you decide is right for you, they should include bodyweight and dumbbell exercises. Here’s why…

Exercise Is About Movement

Unfortunately, when people think about exercise, they think about muscles. “This exercise works this muscle”. This way of thinking originated and was made popular by bodybuilders an is now mainstream. The problem is, the majority of exercisers are not bodybuilders!

The truth is, exercise is about movement. It is about being able to move your body around in an efficient manner. It is also about being able to move around other objects, of a variety of weights. That is why bodyweight calisthenics and dumbbells are great for training the body to move either with or without weighted resistance.

Bodyweight Calisthenics Are Perfect For Training Unweighted Movements

Many people have been trained to think that exercise is weight lifting and cardio. Use weight lifting to improve strength and build muscle. Everything else falls in the vague category of “cardio” and improves heart and lung function. This is the wrong way to think about it.

Just think of all the challenges of work, sport and life that require the ability to move your own body around. The real world is full of challenges that don’t fit into the weight training/cardio format. So, use bodyweight calisthenics to train the body to move the way it was meant to move… without added resistance.

Dumbbells Are Perfect For Training Weighted Movements

The other type of challenges you’ll face in sport, work and life requires the movement of a weighted object. And more often than not, this movement will be done with both limbs in unison, one at a time or in an alternating fashion. So, train yourself for these real world challenges by using dumbbells as your weighted resistance.

The furthest away from real world training you can get is using gym machines. Being strapped into these machines train muscles, not movements and make only small improvements to real world abilities. You do want to perform great outside the gym don’t you?

As you can see, the combination of bodyweight calisthenics and dumbbells is perfect for training the body to move both in weighted and unweighted situations. Not only will this improve performance for real world challenges, but it builds great looking bodies as well. To better prepare you for the challenges of bodyweight and dumbbell workouts, your body will shed that ugly fat, build athletic muscle and improve cardiorespiratory endurance. So, if you’re looking for the “best” workout, look no further than bodyweight calisthenics and dumbbell workouts.

About the Author

Coach Eddie Lomax knows training for high-performance is the real way to get the lean, muscular body you want. He combines bodyweight calisthenics and dumbbells into a workout system that would make an Ancient Warrior proud in: Gladiator Body Workout.

If you want to look and perform like a Modern Day Gladiator, now is your chance!

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Chin-up has a lot of variations. The most usual one is: negative chin-up. This one is for the beginners. Take a chair, stand on it, hold the bar, get yourself stretched towards floor, and now stand back on to the chair. Repeat it as per your strength on daily basis.

There are various other exercises that can also be followed. Firstly, stand and widespread your legs, as per your width. Make a contact between your hands and thighs. Your knees must be kept straight. Take the bottles of water in a manner as if you are holding a hammer. Raise your hand towards shoulders. This process is called as lifting. Now lower your hands to the initial position. Do the repetitions of 4 sets, with 16 wrap each. You should take special care about breathing. Breathe out from mouth while lifting and breathe in while getting down.

Next exercise for you is overhead grip curl. It sounds a bit tuff and yes, it requires much more effort as compared to other exercises. The standing position would remain same as the previous one. Here, a slight bend in your knees is affordable. Keep your hands on the lower thighs. Take the bottles again but this time in an opposite way. Again start the phase of lifting and lowering. Do make an attempt to make a contact with your shoulder. Do not let any kind of locking in your arms. If it happens, then unfortunately there will a pain in your arms for at least 1 month.

Again you need to follow the same tips for breathing in and out. If not followed then there may be a pain in your ribs for 15 minutes. This time you need to repeat it for 3 sets and 20 wraps each (if you are not the beginner). To tone up any part of body, by doing workout, you should always concentrate on your diet. Avoid sugar and fats in the diet. Food with rich content of sodium is not good for you, if you go for workouts. Consume good quantity of proteins to attain attractive and big biceps. If you eat chicken then make sure its skin is removed.

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What’s Needed?

Good running shoes. You’ll need some dumbbell weights and a flat bench. Doing it on a flat bench is a bit easier. Modified moves can be done on a stability ball.

Ladies: Recommended weights, 8-10 pound dumbbells.

Gentlemen: Recommended weights, 10-15 pound dumbbells. Or whatever is comfortable, find the right weight for you.

Cardio

20 Minutes. Running Tips – Body Check Points:

1. Your Chest is out and up, expands the lungs
2. Look straight ahead
3. Your Abs is firm
4. Walk or Run engaging your heal to your toes lightly
5. Allow your arms to swing naturally at your side
6. Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth

Following exercises are done with dumbbells –

Bicep Curl: Feet shoulder width apart. Knees slightly bent. Hold the dumbbells in a way that your palms face the body. Keep your back straight. Now, bring the dumbbell up to your shoulders and exhale while bringing it up.

Triceps Dumbbell Kickback: Position your body over the flat bench. With the stability ball, position yourself in a split-squat stance. Feet should be secure on the floor. Knees slightly bent. Position your arm in line with your back. Extend your arm backward until your arm is straight. Return the arm to the bent position.

Dumbbell Flat Bench Press: Lay face up on your flat bench. With stability ball, slide down the ball into the small of your back. Raise your dumbbells together over chest and repeat. Your hands should remain facing your legs.

Dumbbell Fly: Lay face up on your flat bench. With stability ball, slides down the ball into the small of your back. Remember to keep your feet on the floor and that too flat. Bring the dumbbells together and repeat.

One-Arm Dumbbell Row: Position your body over the flat bench. With the stability ball, position yourself in a split-squat stance. Feet should be secure on the floor. Knees slightly bent. Hold the dumbbell in your hand and allow your arm to extend fully. Pull the dumbbell upward to the hip and let your elbow go up as far as possible. Stabilize your hips and keep your back flat.

Dumbbell Squats: Stand with your feet shoulder width apart. Now, go down in a seated position and then return back to the original position. The main advantage of this exercise is you can do it without using weights.

Walking Lunges: Take a large step forward and bend your knees. The knee on your forward leg should stay above the ankle, while the rear knee nearly touches the floor. Return to the upright position and repeat on the other side.

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In addition, the deltoids, along with the latissimus dorsi, are largely responsible for the illusion of a wide shoulder girdle. If this is combined with a 6 pack it gives the appearance of what is known as the “V-taper”.

There are a variety of exercises you can use build bigger shoulders, but the key with all of them is to follow a progressive training program that allows you to constantly improve. Only by improving will your shoulders get bigger. These improvements can come in the way of added weight, more volume, or less rest. As long as you are improving (and eating) the muscle will come.

So with that, let’s take a look at some of the best exercises for building bigger shoulders!

Bradford Presses

This movement is named after a 1930′s Olympic lifter named Sam Bradford.

Start with a weight that is about 20-25% lighter than what you can military press. Take a slightly wider than shoulder-width grip on the bar. You will begin in the traditional military press position with the bar in front you. From this position you will press the bar until it is just above the top of your head. Once you get to this height you will bring the bar over your head and lower it down behind your head into the behind the neck press position. From the position you will again press the bar to a height just over your head and then lower it back down in front you back to the position in which you started.

This is one repetition. Complete 6-8 reps for 3-4 sets.

One important technique point is to make sure that you keep looking straight ahead throughout the movements. Resist the temptation to duck your head down, which will not only make the exercise easier, but can also lead to some pretty severe neck and upper back injuries. Don’t do it!

This movement will really blast your deltoids and will also greatly improve your serratus anterior strength which will help your starting strength in all pressing movements. If you are someone who struggles to get the bar off your chest during a bench press, this exercise is for you!

Plate Front Raises

This movement is a simple one. All you need is a weight plate. The beginning lifter will start with a 25 pound plate, while advanced lifters can use a 45 pound plate, or even a 100 pound plate.

Grab the plate with your hands at the 9 o’clock and 3 o’clock positions, just like you are holding a steering wheel. With your elbows straight, raise the weight up in front of you and continue until it is all the way over your head. Many lifters stop the movement once they get to eye level, but you are losing a lot of the benefit by doing so. From this position simply lower the plate back to the starting position.

This movement is a great finisher for the front deltoids after a pressing movement like Bradford presses. Because your hands are in a neutral position (thumbs towards the ceiling) it also puts the shoulder joint in a much healthier position than barbell front raises.

Do 2-3 sets of 10-15 reps here.

Lean-away Dumbbell Lateral Raises

Now that your front delts are toasted from the first two exercises, it’s time to move on to finishing off the medial deltoids (outer shoulders). This is the part of the shoulder muscle that really contributes to your upper body width.

Lateral raises are a great way to target this area. So, let’s look at how to do this unique lateral raise exercise.

You are going to start with just one dumbbell in your hand. Your free hand should hold on to something sturdy like a power rack at shoulder height. You will then shift your feet so that they are directly under your free hand. At this point you should lean away from your free hand so that you are holding yourself up with the power rack. From this position you will simply perform a lateral raise.

This variation really targets the top half of the movement, while the bottom half will be very easy. Make not to use too much momentum in the bottom half of the exercise, or you will short-change the muscle building tension in the top-half.

Complete 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps per arm.

So there you go! A great shoulder workout that shouldn’t take you more than 30 minutes to complete. Remember, the key with any workout is consistent progression.

Eat big, train hard, rest long. Repeat this process month after month and you will have a muscular body you will proud of!

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Get videos and tips on how to do DB cleans and presses and more of the best exercises for the upper body.

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First of all you have to decide on the exercises to be done each day. Some exercises focus on a specific muscle while other exercises are helpful for several muscles workout at one time. The important thing is to make sure each muscle can rest for at least a full day before exercising it again. So, you should do a full-body weight training routine, every other day (with cardio exercise in between) or you can alternate different muscle groups like arms exercise on one day, legs on another day, upper back and chest on next day and so on.

Body muscles grow during rest. If you don’t give your muscle adequate time to recover, you’ll directly interfere with the muscle building process. When you lift weight, you put stress on the muscle to an extent that it breaks down at the cellular level which results in increased protein synthesis and produces thicker muscle fibers. This process begins 2-3 hours after the workout and lasts up to 24 hours. If you put stress on the muscle before this process is complete then you break down the muscle fibers before they’ve had a chance to rebuild and hence it can have undesirable effects.

You should learn how to do exercise properly (the extension of movement, correct stance and proper posture, etc.) as this will not only reduce the effectiveness of the movement, but also increase the risk of injury. So, try to begin the exercise with light weights. Practice will improve your form. For muscle building process, you need to stress the muscles, so till the final rep of your final set, your muscle should be exhausted. You can add one or more reps if you are in good form. If stress on muscles is less then you need to add on some weight.

For effective muscle building you need to give your body the proper building blocks. Don not eat too much of junk food. You can have supplements which can give you energy and aid in muscle recovery and repair, but, they should be taken in conjunction with a consistently followed exercise regimen and a proper diet. You should increase the amount of complex carbohydrates and proteins in your diet like egg, low fat yogurt, and whole grain carbohydrates like oats and whole-wheat bread. Try to avoid sugary and processed foods as they interfere with the glucose levels and immune system. You should drink a lot of energy drinks, water and juices during exercise to avoid water retention from the body. Protein drinks can also be taken after workouts to repair and rebuild lean muscle tissues.

For better results you should change your workout schedule every 3-4 weeks to avoid your body from adapting to stress. This can be done by increasing weight and changing exercises.

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Muscle building workouts mainly consists of three vital procedures. One of them is the weight lifting. Walking and jogging does not provide the building block for muscles. Weights have to be used in order to develop muscles. Each and every body part can be worked out with weight lifting. Starting with shoulders, biceps, triceps, legs and calf muscles, chest and back alongside some cardio exercises and abs and sides related exercises. These exercises must be done properly in order to get the desired result.

There are numerous exercises that are present for working out the muscles. But the one that includes compound movement gives the best result. In compound movement exercises, more than one muscle part of the body is required. So, by indulging in such exercise forms, you can work out for various muscles, at the same time. The most effective exercises consist of bench press related exercises, squats, military press and dead lifts. These all exercises are very important and relates to a specific portion of the body. Shoulder exercises should include military press while chest should include bench press related exercises. Squats are beneficiary for leg muscles build up and dead lifts are meant for the back. Weight lifting is important to get the proper shape.

The second important procedure consists of the diet. Diet is important for the building up of the muscles. Try to engulf those food items that are high in the content of proteins. Without the intake of proteins, muscle build is not possible, naturally. Try to go for leafy vegetables, fruits, brown bread, skimmed milk and its product, cereals and lean meat. Fish is also rich in protein content. It has to be kept in the mind that you have to eat big, in order to attain a big muscle. Negligence of a balanced diet can result in several complications. Also, try to avoid the intake of fatty food products. Consumption of oily and junk foods should be avoided. Try to consume enough calories and it is better to stay away from sugary products like cakes, cookies and candies.

The third procedure includes the intake of the proper rest. Rest is essential for the completion of the process of muscle build up. Without the proper rest, there is a chance of breaking up of the muscle tissue and you may take more time as compared to the one taking proper rest. Do not perform the same exercise (same body part) on the consecutive days. Also, overtraining should be avoided and always be motivated.

Muscle building workouts are not easy to attain and requires lots of patience. You have to be constantly performing these different workouts in order to build up the muscles and thus, boost up your personality and confidence in the process.

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Triceps can be exercised at home only with a regular and honest schedule. As of course you need to take care of your diet along with the workout. The intake should remove the arm flab. Do not go for any synthetic diet which is not advised by a diet expert. Two categories for triceps are bodyweight exercises and heavy weight exercises.

A common exercise for triceps is “Triceps’ pushups”. It is like normal pushups but in this you need to bring your hands closer. Try to touch the thumbs of both of your hand.

1. Firstly, lie down and be in the regular posture i.e. normal posture.

2. Move your hands closer so that the thumbs intersect with each other. Maintain the linearity of your back and try to lift up as you do in normal pushups.

3. Lift should be the maximum. Avoid any locking in your joint.

4. Steadily come back on the floor with all force on your hands and feet.

5. Repeat it for 4 sets a day with 16 wraps.

List of alternatives begins with bear walks or crab walks. Get yourself into the position of bear or crab as per your choice. Now start walking like them in the house itself. In this way you can increase the efficiency of your cardio system as well.

Next is the triceps dip. Get a bench or a chair with non slippery legs. Don’t sit fully on the bench. Now hold the bench from both sides of your body, by making a contact of your hands and hip sides. Move into the air and lift up-down. Make such moves thrice a day with 20 wraps each.

You can also opt for the shadow boxing to your mattress. It seems to be a bit kid dish but is really effective. Get your mattress stand taking support of a wall. Set a target point on the mattress. Start punching it without bending your wrist. Another advantage of such act is that it helps in fat burn.

Next for you are the dietary tips. Take the advised amount of proteins and avoid the food with rich content of fat, sodium and sugar (glucose). You must follow the diet instructions strictly.

Workout is not all about heavy exercises. You can go for some fun loving sports. Running and swimming are some of them. This will help you tackle with your fat.

To formulate the ultimate conclusion, go through the list of tips. A treasure of exercises is there to tone up the triceps. But triceps pushup and bench dips are the most effective ones that you can do easily anywhere.

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How Many Days a Week Should A Learner Weigh Lift?

As a rule you must not do more than three days a week. If you over due the first week you will grow to be very soar and there is a good chance you will quite after the first demanding week. After a couple of weeks try to intensify your reps weight lifting and add in an bonus day. Most novice weight lifting programs stress this three day a week plan. Another factor to consider besides how many days one weight lifts, is how heavy he or she is lifting. As a general rule women ought to start off with approximately a 10 pound weight and adjust the weight as needed and men should start off with 20 pounds and also adjust as needed. Depending on your goals, you may want to increase the weight overtime and keep the reps the same, or you might want to keep the weight the same and intensify the reps. This will help you to see your progress and abolish injury as this is a slow progression to hitting your goal

Admired Type of Beginner Weight Lifting Programs

The pyramid principle is a very admired program which has been in effect since Arnold Swarzeneger was in Diapers. This principle essentially means that as your reduce the number of reps in the sets, you increase the weight. As an instance lets use squats, in the first set you do 15 reps. The second step you will increase your weight but just do 13 reps. The third step is a repetition of the second and then on your fourth set of squats you will intensify your weights yet again and this time only do 9 reps.

Why is the Pyramid Principle Ideal?

Many people who apply the pyramid principle in their exercise use it as a method to condition their muscles and to grow to be stronger by always increasing their weights. This plan is very effective. Keep in mind as a beginner not to over do the weights, less is more in the beginning and avoiding injury is the key to success. Fundamentally to perform the weight lifting program for starters based on the pyramid principle effectively, there are certified instructions to pursue. The first is that you use a spotter before lifting up any kind of weight, no matter how light you may think it is. Using weights while doing certain exercises like squats, bench presses and barbell curls can vary. Then, each type of work out you do, you will have to find the exact weight to use.

Finding the Correct Weight

To find your best weight merely pick up a smaller weight and try to do one rep with exact form, if you can finish this then you have found your weight. Once you find this weight, then you can follow and easy visual aid which states that the first week you ought to use 55% of the max weight for the first repetition, 60% for the second and third set and 65% for the fourth set. Listen to your body and don’t over do the weights for the reason that this will not increase your muscle, nor tone it any quicker you will chance an injury and loose all the progress that you have gained in the last few weeks. This is an exhilarating time for the beginner as he or she will be assess how much he or she has improved since commencing their weight lifting action plan for beginners. So keep to the plan and remember not to over do the weights and don’t forget to stretch following all your workouts.

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The traps are actually made of three distinct areas: upper fibers, middle fibers, and lower fibers. The upper fibers are responsible for shrugging the shoulders up towards the ears, as with a traditional shrug exercise. The middle fibers help to retract the scapulae during rowing movements. The lower fibers are responsible for pulling the scapulae downward, like in a pullup.

As you can see, to train the entire trapezius muscle will require a variety of exercises, as just doing shrugs will not suffice. So let’s look at sample workout designed to hit all of the areas of the traps.

Shrug Pulls

This is a variation of a movement used by Olympic weightlifters. However, it seems to be a favorite of just about everyone who wants to use as much weight as possible on their shrugs. Perform this exercise just as you would a regular shrug, except that at the beginning you will bend slightly at the hips and explosively thrust the hips forward to get the bar moving. This creates momentum that will allow you to carry heavy weight through to the top of your shrug.

This exercise will target the upper traps. Most bodybuilding exercises are typically done more slowly, so this explosive movement will complement your other training and really help to blast your traps into new growth.

Start out with 4 sets of 4-6 reps.

Band Face Pulls

Band exercises aren’t just for physical therapy! That said, you are going to need to make sure you find a band that is strong enough to provide you enough resistance. To do this exercise wrap the band around a stable post at eye level. Face towards the post and grab an end of the band in each hand. Step back away from the post so that when your arms are extended there is tension in the band. From this position you are going to do a rowing motion, bringing your hands towards your face. Concentrate on squeezing the scapulae together and downwards as you do this.

This exercise is great for the middle traps and can result in a phenomenal pump if done for high repetitions.

Do 3 sets of 15-20 reps.

Incline Plate Raises

This is a rarely used exercise that is great for the low traps. To do this exercise lie face down on a 30-degree incline bench. Grab a plate in your hands at the 3 o’clock and 9 o’clock positions. A 10 or 25 pound plate (5 or 10 kilos) will be adequate for most lifters. With your elbows straight begin to raise the plate up, just as you would with a standing front raise.
The first half of the exercise is easy due to your position on the bench. However, it is necessary to avoid using momentum to complete the more difficult second half of the movement. You should also use a slow eccentric tempo, especially in the top half.

Do 3 sets of 10-12 reps.

So that’s how you do smart trapezius training. Replace the typical meathead workouts of barbell shrugs, dumbbell shrugs, and machine shrugs with this more balanced program and you will be rewarded with better development and a healthier shoulder joint.

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Learn more with videos and guides on how to do scap depressions and more of the best trapezius exercises.

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The problem with this style of training is not only that it makes you look bad from the back, but also that it can set you up for injuries. This style of training results in strong, tight muscles on the front of the body, and weak, loose muscles on the back. This situation can put joints in a bad situation, especially the shoulder joint.

To avoid this it is important keep a balance among all of the types of work you do. One of the easiest ways to do this is to match the amount of pressing you do with an equal amount of rowing. So if you do 4 sets of 8 on the bench press and 3 sets of 12 on the incline press, you have a total of 68 reps. This is now your goal volume for rows and other upper back exercises. You don’t need to match this number exactly, just be somewhere in the same area. This volume goal could be accomplished in a variety of ways, such as 2 different exercises for 3 sets of 12 each (72 total reps), or one exercise for 5 sets of 12 (60 total reps).

This simple technique will go a long way in preventing shoulder injuries and will improve your upper back size greatly. So let’s take a look at some exercises to use with this protocol.

Inverted Rows

Lifters should develop a base level of strength with body weight exercises before moving on to barbell and dumbbell exercises, so the fat man pullup works well here. The easiest way to perform the exercise is to use a bar in the Smith machine just above waist height. You will then lay face up on the floor under the bar and reach up and grab it with both hands using an overhand grip just outside your shoulder-width. From here, raise your hips off the floor so that only your heels are on the floor. Your body should be in a straight line from head to heel. From this position squeeze the shoulder blades together and pull yourself towards the bar. Keep pulling until the bar touches your lower chest or upper abs. Lower back to the starting position and repeat.

To make the exercise more challenging, try putting your feet up on a box or wearing a weight vest. Most lifters will find these modifications unnecessary at first, as the exercise is fairly difficult already.

Start out with 4 sets of 6 to 8 reps.

Chest Supported Rows

Free weight, cable, and bodyweight exercises should be staples of your program, but there some machines that are worthwhile as well. The chest supported row is one such machine. The exercise is fairly simple: just put your chest on the pad and grab the handles and start rowing. The key here is to stick your chest out throughout the exercises and avoid rounding your shoulders forward. You should emphasize pulling the shoulder blades together and downwards.

Do 3 sets of 12 reps.

Cable Scarecrows

This is a great finishing exercise for the upper back that really focuses-in on some the smaller muscles of the upper back. Set-up facing a double cable stack set at waist height. Grab the left handle with your right hand, and the right handle with your left hand. Take a step back and have your arms out in front of your with your elbows straight. From this position pull your shoulder blades together and open your arms up as wide as possible. Return to the starting position and repeat the movement for the desired number of reps.

Perform 2 to 3 sets of 12-15 reps.

And you’re done! A quick and dirty upper back building workout. You can give your upper back its own session, or combine it with your biceps or chest training.

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Learn more with videos and guides on how to do chest supported rows and more of the best exercises to build upper back strength.

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