Bodyweight Training
For Fat Loss

by Craig Ballantyne CSCS, M.Sc.
Turbulence Training

The first things that comes to mind when someone mentions 'fat loss' are often cardio machines, dieting, and boring, monotonous exercise programs. You probably would never think 'Spiderman Pushup', 'Prisoner Squat', 'Bird Dog', or 'Mountain Climber'.

But each of these bodyweight exercises has a valuable role in a fat loss program.

In today's fitness world of commercial gyms jam-packed with fancy machines, it's not surprising that bodyweight exercises "get no respect" in the fight against fat. But the truth is, bodyweight exercises will help you build a better body quicker than most machines.

Just think how hard pushups, pull ups, bodyweight rows, and lunges are compared to your favorite single-muscle machine at the gym. And often the harder the exercise, the better the results.

Now you might be thinking that bodyweight exercises are limited to: - Squats - Sit-ups - Push-ups - And maybe some lunges and chin-ups. And if you are a beginner, you might think that all of those exercises are out of league. But that's not the case.

In fact, there are dozens of bodyweight exercises including a handful of essential beginner bodyweight exercises that can be done lying on the floor. These are essential for beginners to master because they help you build the strength in forgotten muscle groups - the ones you don't see in the mirror.

Exercises such as: - Lying hip extensions - "Bird Dogs" - Modified ab curl-ups - Stability Ball Leg Curls - Step-ups are just a few of the many exercises that advanced personal trainers are using with beginner clients to "activate" the correct muscle groups and prepare you for future, more advanced workouts.

You might have heard about the need to get your body in balance, or the need to correct muscle imbalances. With bodyweight exercises, you learn to do this before you are ready for more advanced strength training exercises.

I truly believe that the worst thing that a beginner can do for fat loss is to start into a 5-day per week traditional cardio program. But that's what most people do... because 'cardio equals fat loss' in the mainstream opinion.

But this is fat-loss suicide. Why?

Because you are going to get hurt if you do that.

Without strengthening the muscles and removing some of the physical imbalances that so often plague a beginner, you are going to end up in the physiotherapists office in the next month or so.

In fact, here's an important bit of information that my colleague Alwyn Cosgrove, CSCS, said to me in an interview... "Research (Jones et al., Sports Med. 18(3): 202-214, 1994) has shown that the intensity required by the average sedentary person trying to improve their cardiovascular system will likely create an excessive structural overload - in fact in this study there was a 50-90% injury rate in the initial six weeks of training."

Do you see the bottom line?

You are almost guaranteed to injure yourself if you are a beginner that jumps directly into an aerobic training program without strength training. That's why I have built-in progressive bodyweight-based, strength workouts for beginners to use in addition to an increased activity level to burn more calories.

Protect the body, build the body, but don't breakdown the body.

In the beginner workouts, we use lying hip extensions, the Bird Dog exercise, a modified Ab curl-up, and other modified strength exercises to help even the newest beginner make the correct progression into advanced fat loss workouts.

Then we throw in some exercises with the Stability Ball (not those silly 'try-and-stand-on-the-ball' un-necessary and dangerous exercises, but more floor-based exercises that strengthen the back of your body. In this case, the Stability Ball Leg Curl helps strengthen your glutes and hamstrings.

And these progressions were not just pulled out a magic hat.

I've used these progressions with at least a half-dozen men over 300 pounds, so they will work for you.

But don't be fooled into thinking that bodyweight exercises are only for beginners. The 'Spiderman Pushup' is one of the most difficult, fun, and challenging pushup variations I've come across in my 16 years in the gym.

Here's how to do it:

- Keep the abs braced and body in a straight line from toes (knees) to shoulders.

- Place the hands on the floor slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.

- Slowly lower yourself down until you are 2 inches off the ground.

- As you lower yourself, slowly bring your right knee up to your right elbow.

- Keep your foot off the ground as you do so.

- Push through your chest, shoulders and triceps to return to the start position, and return your leg to the start position.

- Alternate sides until you complete all repetitions.

- Keep your body in a straight line at all times and try not to rotate at your hips.

With clients, I'll often use the Spiderman pushup as one 4-6 exercises in a bodyweight circuit for fat loss.

We'll often do the bodyweight circuits in place of traditional interval training.

To design a bodyweight circuit, simply alternate between upper- and lower-body bodyweight exercises.

Here's a sample:

1) Prisoner Squat

2) Spiderman Pushup

3) Reverse Lunge

4) Inverted Bodyweight Row

This is an advanced bodyweight circuit, but with beginners and intermediate levels I substitute less intense exercises (including some floor exercises) to give them their own circuits.

At the very least, you should be using bodyweight exercises in your general warm-up (instead of walking for 5-minutes on the treadmill - as that really doesn't prepare you for much).

For a warm-up, we use very easy bodyweight exercises (chosen for each individual's relative fitness) to get their muscles and joints prepared for the Turbulence Training workouts. A simple squat and an easy push-up are the two most common exercises I use in bodyweight warm-ups, but there are dozens of different exercises that can be used.

Bodyweight exercises are an effective, creative, challenging and fun way to get results.

Sincerely,

Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS

Author, Turbulence Training

P.S. Don't forget... As one of your bonuses for ordering Turbulence Training , you'll receive a 4-week bodyweight program with beginner, intermediate, and advanced versions. These are great workouts for holiday and business travel, so you don't have to stress over missed workouts.

P.S. Turbulence Training is the best program for busy lives...

"In November of 2005, I noticed that I had put on a significant amount of weight. I had avoided getting on the scale b/c I was afraid to see how bad the # was. With my job, I had many client lunches/dinners frequently and I wasn't taking into the consideration of how much it was impacting my weight. I was still working out, but didn't have a solid program that I committed to. I went to the gym when I had time. When I finally got on the scale I noticed that my weight hit an all time high of 228lbs!!! Not good, when I know my optimal weight for my frame is 210lbs. The last 3 months I committed to Turbulence Training and made some modifications to my diet outlined in the TT program. What I realized is that the workouts were more intense, I burned more calories and I made it out of the gym in less time then I previously did. This worked well for my busy schedule and it was simple to commit to this program. After a 3 month commitment, I am happy to say I am now back at 210lbs and feel better then I have in years. All thanks to the TT program. I have tried many programs and this is the most effective and simple program I have ever used. I recommend to anyone that faces the same busy work/personal life that I do."

Dion Guerin, Sales Account Manager, Toronto, Ontario

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