5 At-Home Workouts for Men to Target Every Body Part

Men can get an excellent workout at home with just an exercise mat and a set of dumbbells.
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Finding the motivation to work out isn't always easy. Add in a commute to and from your workout and the need to look semi-presentable afterward and some days getting to the gym feels like climbing Mount Everest.

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The good news? You can get a solid workout at home, and you don't need a whole lot of equipment to do so, either. In fact, with a few dumbbells and the drive to get moving, even the busiest men can crush calories and build muscle in the living room, garage or backyard in no time.

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We asked experts to share their favorite at-home routines for every body part that guys can do pretty much anywhere.

Read more: How to Find the Best At-Home Workouts for You

1. Best At-Home Ab Workout for Men

When it comes to a killer core workout, certified personal trainer and SoulCycle master instructor Anthony McClain says he's a big fan of planks, side planks and hollow rocks. "For all three of these movements, it's not necessarily about repetitions but the time spent in each position or performing each move," McClain says.

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To do this workout, perform each of the following exercises for one minute, three times each. To modify, start with 30-second holds, increasing 15 seconds at a time.

Move 1: Plank

  1. Lie on your stomach with forearms on the floor and elbows beneath your shoulders. Feet should be flexed with toes on the floor.
  2. Push up so that only your forearms and toes touch the floor. Your body should be a few inches off the floor in a straight line, core engaged.
  3. Challenge yourself by switching between forearm planks and high planks (aka push-up position).

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Move 2: Side Plank

  1. Start lying on your side, right forearm on the ground and right foot on its side, planted into the ground, and left leg stacked on top. Your body should be in a straight line.
  2. With your core tight, lift your hips and knees off the floor.

Tip

Up the intensity by lifting your top leg. You can also lower and elevate your hips a few inches to target your obliques.

Move 3: Hollow Rock

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  1. Lie on your back with your legs straight and extend your arms overhead. Tighten your core while pressing your lower back into the floor.
  2. Lift your arms, chest and legs up, keeping your arms and legs straight.
  3. Rock forward and back without changing body shape.

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Tip

If you’re not ready for this move, stick to planks until you have the core strength to do a hollow rock with proper form.

Read more: The Perfect At-Home Workout for Men, No Equipment Necessary

2. At-Home Legs Workout for Men

Getting a good pump in your legs requires moves that target both strength and endurance. For at-home workouts, McClain likes to do lunges, lateral lunges and pulse squats.

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"Lunges allow you to really isolate the front leg when you go through the range of motion while your back foot is on a bench or chair, while lateral lunges allow you to target your glutes and your adductors as you step out," he says. To do this workout, perform each exercise for three sets of 10 reps.

Move 1: Lunge

  1. Stand with feet hip-width apart.
  2. Take a big step forward with one leg.
  3. Lower your body until both knees are at 90-degree angles. Pause.
  4. Push into your heel of the forward leg and drive back to start.
  5. Repeat with other the leg.

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Move 2: Lateral Lunge

  1. From standing, take a large step out to the right side.
  2. Move your weight to your right leg, bend your right knee and push your hips back. Make sure your knee stays over your toes during the lateral lunge and that your hips go way back to utilize your hamstrings for stability and an eccentric contraction.
  3. Stand back up and repeat on the other side.

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Move 3: Pulse Squat

  1. Stand with feet hip-width apart and arms stretched out in front of you.
  2. Perform a squat, making sure your knees are over toes, hips push back and abs stay tight.
  3. At the bottom of the movement, hold and pulse (lift and lower) a few inches before returning to standing.

Read more: How to Do Leg Workouts at Home

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3. At-Home Chest Workout for Men

David Chesworth, director of fitness at Hilton Head Health, understands that getting to the gym is not always easy. That's why he likes to have a few "anywhere workouts" ready to go. This chest workout is all about minimal equipment and optimal pump. If you're a frequent traveler, Chesworth says you can replace the dumbbells with resistance bands.

For this workout, you'll perform the exercises below in a circuit style, completing five sets of 10 reps for the first two moves and five sets of five for the push-ups. You'll need at least one set of dumbbells; start with 10 to 20 pounds.

Move 1: Shoulder Flexion Chest Fly

This exercise targets the pec minor chest muscles, but don't be surprised if you also feel your biceps and forearms working.

  1. Start with dumbbells in each hand, resting at your sides with palms facing forward.
  2. Raise your arms until they reach shoulder height.
  3. Then, bring the dumbbells together until they're touching end to end. Hold for a few seconds before lowering.
  4. Maintain straight arms the entire time. If you have elbow pain, give your elbow a slight bend.

Move 2: Pec-Deck

This exercise targets the pec major and minor, but you'll also feel it in the shoulders.

  1. Holding a dumbbell in each hand, stand with arms shoulder-height, parallel to the floor and out to the sides.
  2. Bend your elbows so your wrists are directly above your elbows.
  3. Keeping your upper arms parallel to the floor, bring your elbows and forearms as close together in front as possible. Open back up for one rep.

Move 3: Push-Up

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  1. You have three options when performing push-ups: wall push-ups, incline push-ups or floor push-ups (on your knees or toes).
  2. On the fifth set, do as many reps as you can with good form.

Read more: 5 Workouts for Strength Training at Home

4. Back Workout for Men at Home

Not only do your back muscles help with pulling movements, they also keep you upright throughout the day. Work these important muscles with this workout from celebrity personal trainer Gunnar Peterson.

Modify it by performing these four back exercises in a straight circuit, doing three sets of 10 to 12 reps or do the first two moves and the last two moves back to back with no rest in supersets for three sets of 10 to 12 reps.

Move 1: Pull-Up

  1. Stand under the pull-up bar and grab the bar using a pronated grip (palms facing out).
  2. Lift your body off the floor and pull yourself up until your chin is level with the bar.
  3. Pause, then lower back down.

Move 2: One-Arm Dumbbell Row

  1. Stand on the side of a weight bench, feet shoulder-width apart, with a dumbbell on the floor.
  2. Reach down with one hand and grab the dumbbell with a neutral grip.
  3. Place the other hand on the bench for stability. Bend forward at the hips so the torso is slightly above parallel to the floor with the dumbbell hanging down.
  4. Pull the dumbbell up toward your torso until it touches the side of your chest. Pause. Lower the dumbbell slowly.
  5. Repeat on other side.

Move 3: Pull-Up

See above.

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Move 4: Two-Arm Dumbbell Row

  1. Grab a dumbbell in each hand.
  2. Bend your knees slightly and bend at the waist.
  3. Keep your upper body still and lift the dumbbells to your side.
  4. Squeeze at the top and pause. Slowly lower the weights.

5. At-Home Arm Workout for Men

Including biceps and triceps exercises in an overall fitness routine is a priority for a lot of guys. That's why Chesworth paired the following moves together for a killer superset workout guaranteed to build arm muscle from the comfort of your home.

Perform the following exercises back to back, alternating between two exercises that work opposing muscle groups (i.e., biceps and triceps). Complete three sets of 10 reps for each exercise. You'll need at least one set of 10- to 20-pound dumbbells.

Superset One

Move 1: Triceps Push-Up

  1. Assume the forearm plank position with your hands directly beneath your face and touching or almost touching.
  2. Press up, straighten your arms, and then bend to return down to forearm plank to complete one full rep.

Tip

You have three options for this exercise: wall, incline and floor.

Move 2: Biceps Curl

  1. Hold dumbbells by your sides with palms facing forward.
  2. Flex your elbow and curl the weights up toward your shoulders.
  3. Return back to the start to complete one full rep.

Read more: Workouts for Different Parts of the Biceps

Superset Two

Move 1: Overhead Triceps Extension

  1. Hold one dumbbell overhead with both hands.
  2. Keeping elbows close to head, bend elbows and allow the weight to drop behind your head.
  3. Straighten your arms back up toward the ceiling for one full rep.

Move 2: Hammer Curl

  1. Hold weights by your side with palms facing your thighs.
  2. Bend your elbow and curl the weights up toward your shoulders.
  3. Return back to the start for one rep.

Superset Three

Move 1: Triceps Kickback

  1. Starting at the top of a bent-over row position, straighten your arms and extend forearms behind you.
  2. Bend your elbows back to start for one rep.

Move 2: Reverse Biceps Curl

  1. Hold weights by your side with palms facing behind you.
  2. Bend your elbow and curl the weights up toward your shoulders.
  3. Return back to the start for one rep.

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