From the time we're born, we’re fighting a constant battle with gravity. We celebrate successes such as picking our heads up for the first time, being able to sit up, standing up onto our feet, and taking our first steps. Our body is designed to lift itself, so why does it feel like obstacles such as walking upstairs, pulling ourselves up, or standing on one leg feel like such daunting tasks?

Because bodyweight exercises are hard.

Bodyweight training is one of the most intense and beneficial forms of strength training. Our body was designed to be able to lift and maneuver itself against gravity. The human body was pre-programmed with biomechanical processes to be able to do tasks such as pushing, pulling, crawling, and walking, but somewhere along this crazy journey of life, our body skewed our personal interpretation of these mechanics. Bodyweight training is your body’s opportunity to slowly reset the muscle imbalances and work through any pre-set compensations.

What Makes Bodyweight Training So Effective?

But what is it about bodyweight training that sets it apart from traditional lifting? When comparing traditional weightlifting and bodyweight training, both are very beneficial and very necessary styles of training that everybody should embrace for a well-rounded fitness lifestyle. Bodyweight training differs from traditional weight training because the premise of moving your body against gravity requires your body to work in a single, solitary unit. You cannot perform a tricep-specific dip without engaging your core, squeezing your glutes, and trying to hold your own bodyweight against gravity. You cannot perform a proper, strict pull-up if you solely engage your lats and your biceps. Your body is a machine that requires all components to work together to perform a task. This means your body will require greater muscular activation and stability to complete a single bodyweight exercise. 

Incorporating It Into Your Routine

Have you ever suffered from shoulder pain or knee pain? Have you been able to complete your push-ups or your prisoner squats with this pain? Most likely, the answer is no. Because you are lifting your own body through your given range of motion, your body will not push through pain to the point of causing further harm, unless you consciously tell your body to go through the pain. Therefore, bodyweight exercises are great for all fitness levels and for all levels of fatigue. You can start your workout with bodyweight exercises to warm up the body, you can end your day with those same movements to push your fatigue limits, or you can put these exercises anywhere throughout your workout to further enhance your core engagement and total body stability. The possibilities for bodyweight exercises are endless.

The Workout 

This workout is designed to target the most common biomechanics of both a race course and traditional life. You will strengthen your pushing mechanics, work through your pulling mechanics, and develop greater mobility and stability through core-specific movement training. This multi-directional and multi-planar workout will help to prevent injuries both on the course and off. Give it a try.

Perform 3 rounds of 10 repetitions.

Wall Angels

Push-Ups With Lateral Step 

Single Leg Reach

Dolphin Push-Ups

Split Squats (regular or rear-foot elevated)

Crab Walk

Dead Bug

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