Most of us want to stay in shape and build muscle. Some of us just want it more than others. Many of us want to build muscle but don’t have the time, or maybe you have the time but you don’t necessarily feel like going to a gym and having to pay for the experience of building muscle.
Don’t worry. You can keep your money, get in shape and build muscle. And you never leave your home.
I’m going to break it down real easy for you. This is a great workout for men and women. It works the respective body parts you hold near and dear to your heart. These exercises will keep you toned and will build muscle.
Before we begin, let me give you a quick over-view: If you’re a guy — what do really want? Be honest now:
– Solid arms
– Bigger or broader chest
– Stronger legs and a rear end that doesn’t drag behind you like an Irish Setter looking for a bone.
So much for the men. How about if you’re a woman? You probably wouldn’t mind:
– Solid arms
– Breast that are firm and don’t sag
– Flat stomach
– Stronger legs (especially upper legs) and a butt that doesn’t…..well if you read what I wrote above regarding guys than there’s no need in me repeating it!
IS it me or am I noticing a trend here? I’m going to turn you on to a set of exercises that — if you do them consistently and remain committed — you will see a transformation in your body. This is no magic formula. You need to couple this with an attempt at eating right and following a smart diet. But if you can do that than with only about a 20-25 minute commitment a day you will see some serious changes!
O-k let’s start! Let’s first talk about arms and chest. You can do a simple exercise that will work both and you will feel the results immediately:
1) Incline Push-ups. I wish I could take the credit for these. In fact I just might, because I don’t see many people talk about the benefits of incline push-ups! We all know how to do a regular push-up. But did you know that above all – regular push-ups put unwanted stress on your lower back? How about getting rid of the potential for trauma and focusing on the muscle groups at hand. When you do an incline push-up (see photo) you take the weight off your lower back and shift the emphasis to your shoulders, triceps and pectoral muscles. You can do incline push-ups anywhere. Off a wall, against a desk, on an open door (which is cool, because it lets you drop deep into the doorway thus giving yourself more of an area to push out of which works the muscles even more. The trick is, you don’t want to straight, yet you don’t want to get too declined. The more of a decline the more your weight starts to shift on your lower back and that’s not good. To put more emphasis on your outer and upper pectorals, shift the position of your hands. For example, if you keep your hands in the “up” position (meaning your palms are down and arms are at shoulder with apart) there is a bit more emphasis on your triceps and upper shoulders. But if you twist your hands out, the emphasis is shifted more to your upper pectorals. Twist the hands so they face down and the emphasis is almost exclusively on your outer pecs. I recommend as a start you try 3 sets of 30 incline push-ups — doing 10 push-ups in each position. You should start feeling the pump around your second set. If you’re already in reasonable shape, try 3 sets of 50. Set a goal for yourself – try to eventually reach 4 sets of 100, and keep rotating your hands every 25 repetitions. Incline push-up are great. I love ’em. When I’m writing I always knock out a few sets between articles just to keep the blood circulating.
2) Weightless Squats. Next up is a simple exercise that will work your upper legs and your butt. Get a chair — preferably a chair that doesn’t have arm rests and place that behind you. Stand with your back facing the chair, legs spread a little bit wider than shoulder length, with your arms raised with the fingers interlocked behind your head. Keep your back straight and squat down going no further than the chair (see photo). You don’t want to sit on the chair! Ideally you should just barely touch it. Aim for 3 sets of 25. You will start feeling the pump around the second set. Try to increase to 3 sets of 50 and then 4 sets of 100. When you wake up in the morning, you may say something to the effect of, “Darn it, Gary — my butt feels like it’s tied in a knot!” Of course, there are variations to that phrase and most of them I can’t print here.
On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays I combine my incline push-ups with my weightless squats. To keep things varied I will do my push-ups first and then my squats. Then alternate between push-ups and squats and then start with squats and finish with push-ups. You can do everything in about 20 minutes or so.
3) Flat stomach. When I was a kid we used to do some silly thing called a teapot. You may remember it. You keep one hand behind your head and the let the other one drop down to your side. Then you do a side-bend (see photo). Who would have thought that the side-bend would keep those old love-handles from getting out of hand. Do 50 on the right and 50 on the left. Keep your back straight. Again, you want to do, 3 sets of 50, then work up to 3 sets of 75 and then 3 x 100. I do these on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Don’t tell anyone but you’ve just hit your major body parts in a way that promotes muscle growth. It didn’t cost you a cent and it didn’t take up a lot of your time! Add a little music and your good to go. There are variations to this theme, but if you keep this up for six weeks you will not believe the results. Six weeks may seem like a long time, but the time is going to go by whether you work out or not! So why not do something constructive while the days are passing by.
Timing is everything. I do my workout in the morning before I start to write. I also do something as a break in the afternoon around 2:00 but that is not necessary. What’s important is that you stick to your schedule! Monday, Wednesday and Friday for arms and chest. Tuesday and Thursday for your abdominals.
It’s like money in the bank! As a matter of fact it IS like money in the bank, because this didn’t cost you anything!
