Many people assume bodyweight training is easy and ineffective. This is flat out WRONG!! Some of the strongest and most athletic people out there are exceptional at controlling their own bodyweight.
Here are 5 advanced bodyweight exercises that will HUMBLE you.
#1) Russian Push-Ups
This advanced push-up variation absolutely torches the triceps, chest, shoulders, and core, and is a LOT of fun to do!
Coaching Tips:
- Get into a plank position from your hands and feet.
- Position your hands so they are slightly closer together than during regular push-ups. In the bottom position, your elbows and upper arms should remain tight to your sides.
- At the top of the push-up, your shoulders, elbows, and wrists should be in a relatively stacked position.
- Before each rep, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine), and squeeze your glutes.
- Descend into the push-up and retract your shoulder blades (move them in towards your spine).
- Once your upper arms are approximately parallel to the floor, press your body backwards and touch your forearms to the floor.
- Then pull your body forward and perform the reverse movements so your elbows are directly over your wrists and forearms are in a vertical position.
- Then press away from the floor and to the top/starting position.
- When you are pressing your body away from the floor protract your shoulder blades (move them away from your spine and around your ribcage).
- As you are performing these movements, do not sink into your shoulders, and do not allow your body to collapse towards the floor, and do not allow your shoulders to shrug, or shoulder blades to elevate.
- For the duration of the exercise, your head, torso, and hips should remain in a stacked position. Do not allow your spine to hyperextend, round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, torso, spine, or hips to rotate, or neck to collapse.
- For the duration of the exercise, keep your core muscles braced (360 degree brace), and squeeze your glutes.
- In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.
Do 2-3 sets of 5-10+ reps.
#2) Pistol Squats
This exercise strengthens the glutes, hip flexors, quadriceps, hamstrings, and the muscles in the foot and lower leg.
Coaching Tips:
- Stand on one foot, and have a slight bend in your knee. Your head, torso, and hips should be in a stacked position.
- Fully extend the non-working leg, and plantarflex your foot (point it away from you). Contract your quadriceps and glutes on this side. Keep this leg close to the midline of your body.
- On the planted side, form a tripod base by placing your weight on the back portion of your foot, and the base of your big and baby toes. These parts of your foot should remain in contact with the floor for the duration of the exercise. Pretend you are suctioning or screwing your foot to the floor.
- Unlike step-downs where the non-working leg hangs down in more of a diagonal position, you will lift the non-working leg so it is in more of a horizontal position. This will be especially important as you approach the bottom position of the pistol squat. Otherwise your foot will strike the floor.
- Extend both of your arms so they are chest height, make fists, and generate tension in your upper body.
- Before each rep, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), and brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine).
- Now perform a squat and slowly lower to a range that allows you to maintain proper form.
- Once you hit your end range, press away from the floor and return to the top/starting position.
- When you are performing the pistol squats, pretend you are “pulling” your body down with your leg. Don’t just mindlessly drop down.
- Do not relax or lose tension when you are in the bottom position. Many people make this mistake.
- For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your knee to fall inside or outside of your foot.
- For the duration of the exercise, your head, torso, and hips should remain in a stacked position. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, excessively round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, torso, spine, or hips to rotate, or hip to drop on one side.
- In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.
Do 2-3 sets of 3-10+ reps.
If you can’t do pistol squats, here are two alternate options.
#3) Pause Pull-Ups
This exercise strengthens the muscles in the mid and upper back, improves shoulder and scapular controlled mobility, lumbo-pelvic stability, and grip.
If you are performing pull-ups correctly, the muscles in your mid and upper back, not your arms, should be doing the majority of the work!
Coaching Tips:
- Set your grip so your palms are facing away from you (pronated), and are slightly greater than shoulder width apart (or your preferred width). You may also use a neutral grip where your palms are facing one another, or a supinated grip where your palms are facing you.
- Set your body so it is in a relatively straight line from your head to feet (I call this a slight hollow body position).
- Flex your glutes and quadriceps. If you do not have the option of fully extending your legs, bend your knees, have your feet behind you, and flex your glutes and hamstrings.
- Before each rep, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine), and lightly close the space in your midsection/think about wrinkling the front of your shirt like you would during a dead bug.
- Now initiate the movement by using the muscles in your mid and upper back and draw your shoulder blades in towards your spine and down towards your opposite hip, and simultaneously drive your elbows in towards your sides and down towards the floor. As you are doing this, think about pulling the bar down to you versus thinking about pulling yourself up to the bar. This will help eliminate slack and will help prevent you from “jerking” your pull.
- As you are approaching the bar and are completing the rep, continue with this same shoulder blade and arm movement, and pretend you are trying to crush oranges in your armpits. This will help you use more back!
- In the top position, do not allow your elbows to flare out. Your body and upper arms should resemble an “arrow,” not a “T”.
- Make sure your chin passes the bar, but do not look up and reach with your chin.
- In the top position, pause for 2-3 seconds.
- Now smoothly lower yourself to the bottom position.
- During the lowering/eccentric component, do not keep your shoulder blades pinned. They are meant to move, and should perform the reverse movements as they did during the ascending/concentric component and should spread apart from your spine, move around your ribcage, and away from the opposite hip.
- In the bottom position, your elbows should be close to fully extended, but not hyperextended.
- For the duration of the exercise, maintain the pull-up specific body position described above. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, or torso, spine, or hips to rotate.
- In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.
Do 2-3 sets of 3-10+ reps.
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#4) Shrimp Squats
This exercise strengthens the glutes, quadriceps, hamstrings, and the muscles in the foot and lower leg.
Coaching Tips:
- Stand on one foot, and have a slight bend in your knee. Your head, torso, and hips should be in a stacked position.
- As for the non-working leg, keep it bent and close to the midline of your body. Flex your glutes and hamstrings on this side. Aim to keep your heel close to your glutes for the duration of the exercise.
- Hold your forefoot with your hand that is on the same side of your body.
- On the planted side, form a tripod base by placing your weight on the back portion of your foot, and the base of your big and baby toes. These parts of your foot should remain in contact with the floor for the duration of the exercise. Pretend you are suctioning or screwing your foot to the floor.
- Before each rep, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), and brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine).
- Now perform a squat and slowly lower to a range that allows you to maintain proper form.
- Once you hit your end range (a range where you are able to maintain proper form), press your body away from the floor and back to the top/starting position.
- When you are performing the squats, pretend you are “pulling” your body down with your leg. Don’t just mindlessly drop down.
- Do not relax or lose tension when you are in the bottom position. Many people make this mistake.
- For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your knee to fall inside or outside of your foot.
- For the duration of the exercise, your head, torso, and hips should remain in a stacked position. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, torso, spine or hips to rotate, or hip to drop on one side.
- In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.
Do 2-3 sets of 3-10+ reps.
#5) Lateral Pike Pulses
This exercise strengthens the hip flexors, and improves lumbo-pelvic stability. Start off using a much lower object and only increase the height of the object as your hip flexors get stronger.
Coaching Tips:
- Sit on the floor, fully extend both of your legs, and point your feet away from you (plantarflex).
- Your head, torso, and hips should be in a stacked position.
- Place an object to one side of your lower legs.
- For the duration of the exercise, keep your legs and feet completely together.
- Place your hands so they are on the outside of your thighs, and lightly rest your fingers on the floor.
- Take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), and brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine).
- While keeping your legs fully extended and feet plantarflexed, lift your legs over the object in a lateral direction, and then back to the starting position.
- For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your legs or feet to strike the object or the floor.
- For the duration of the exercise, your head, torso, and hips should remain in a stacked position. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, excessively round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, torso, spine, or hips to rotate, or weight to shift from hip to hip.
- For the duration of the exercise, keep your core muscles braced (360 degree brace around your spine).
- In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.
Do 2-3 sets of 6-12+ reps.
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