While most personal trainers will agree that training with weights is a surefire way to build muscle, they're not the only tools worth using. Your own body weight is more than enough resistance to strengthen your body from head to toe.
And just when you thought you'd exhausted the library of body-weight exercises, three personal trainers want you to give their favorite, most underrated equipment-free moves a try.
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1. High Knees
"I like this movement and think it's pretty underrated because you choose how challenging it can be," Mathew Forzaglia, CPT, tells LIVESTRONG.com. "This can be done as a max-effort exercise or at a low to moderate intensity."
- Start by standing tall with your feet at shoulder-width apart.
- Explosively drive your right knee up toward your chest as you bring your left elbow forward.
- Quickly switch sides, bringing your right foot down and driving your left knee up.
- Alternate side as quickly as possible, using the momentum from your arms to drive your legs high.
Tip
To modify this exercise (either to fit your fitness level or to go easier on your knees), Forzaglia suggests doing a standing march.
2. Hollow Hold
The hollow body hold is amazing for core strength and stability, K. Aleisha Fetters, CSCS, tells LIVESTRONG.com. Make sure to keep your breath consistent and steady.
- Lie on your back with your arms extended overhead and legs out straight.
- Using your core, lift your head, shoulder blades and legs off the ground. Keep your biceps by your ears and actively press your lower back into the ground to ensure you're engaging your abs throughout the entire exercise.
- Hold this position and remember to breathe.
3. Walking Lunge
Lunges are a single-leg exercise, which means they'll not only improve any muscle imbalances you may have between your left and right sides but they'll also fire up your core. Plus, you can easily make these more challenging by adding a pulse (a small bounce up and down at the bottom of the lunge), Carolina Araujo, CPT, tells LIVESTRONG.com.
- Start standing with your feet hip-width apart. Make fists with both hands and lift them up to your chest.
- Step a few feet forward with your left foot.
- Lower into a lunge until both knees are bent to 90 degrees. Your back knee should hover just above the ground, and your front knee should be stacked over your ankle.
- Hold for a beat before pushing through your front foot to step forward with your left leg.
- Drop into another lunge with your left leg in front.
- Continue this pattern as you walk forward.
4. Superhero
"I think these don't get much attention, and they're super important to balance out the body and improve posture," Forzaglia says. "Most body-weight workouts are heavily [front-of-body] focused, so we need to activate [the back of our bodies], too."
- Lie flat on your stomach with your arms and legs extended out straight.
- Engage your core and squeeze your glutes and lift your arms, chest and legs off the ground. Remember to keep your legs straight throughout the movement so that your glutes stay engaged.
- Pause for a moment, then release back down.
- Repeat.
5. IYTA Raise
"The upper back needs a lot of love, and it's the most challenging area of the to hit with your body weight and zero gear," Fetters says. This exercise will do the trick.
- Lie on your stomach with your legs and arms extended. Your feet should be about hip-width apart and your biceps should be alongside your ears.
- Squeeze your glutes and engage your back to raise your legs, arms and torso off the ground.
- With your thumbs up, pulse your arms 5 times in this "I" position.
- Widen your arms to about a 45-degree angle or a "Y" position. With your thumbs up, pulse your arms 5 times.
- Widen your arms even more so they're perpendicular to your body at about a 90-degree angle or a "T" position. With your thumbs up, pulse your arms 5 times.
- Move your arms back behind you so they're about 45 degrees from the sides of your body or an "A" position. With your thumbs down, pulse your arms 5 times.
- Repeat this process going back the opposite way — "A," "T," "Y," "I" positions.
6. Triceps Push-Up
- Start in a high plank with your body in a straight line from head to hips to heels.
- Squeezing your elbows close to your ribs, bend your elbows and lower your body until your chest hovers just above the floor (or as far down as you can comfortably go).
- Press into your palms and use your triceps to press back into the high plank.
- Repeat.
Tip
If this feels too challenging, you can drop down to your knees and perform a modified version of this exercise, Araujo says.
7. Single-Leg Romanian Deadlift
"These are extremely beneficial for everyone, especially runners," Forzaglia says. "Single-leg Romanian deadlifts build strength in the hamstrings and glutes but also improve stability in the ankles, knees and hips, promoting better balance."
- Stand with feet hip-width apart, a slight bend in both knees, hands on your hips.
- Engage your core and simultaneously press your butt back and hinge your hips forward, extending your right leg behind you. Press your left foot into the ground while doing so, and keep your left leg slightly bent.
- Hinge forward and continue lowering until your torso is parallel to the ground or you feel a pull in your glutes and hamstrings (whichever comes first). Keep your shoulders rolled down and back (so they are in line with the hips).
- Press into your left foot, squeeze your glutes and reverse the movement to return back to the standing start position.
- Repeat for the designated number of reps before switching legs.
8. Body-Weight Squat
Although body-weight squats have a reputation for being an easy exercise, they're rarely done with great form, Fetters says. "If you really dial in on them, they can be very challenging, and they are foundational to your overall fitness."
- Stand tall with your feet hip-width apart and brace your core. Focus on keeping your feet rooted into the ground and your core tight the entire time.
- Extend your arms out in front of you and slowly bend your knees as you push your hips back to lower toward the floor. Focus on lowering your body as if you were going to sit on a chair.
- Lower down as far as comfortable, or until your thighs are parallel with the floor.
- Pause for a moment at the bottom of your squat.
- On an exhale, reverse the motion by pressing through your heels to return to standing. As you stand, lower your arms back to your sides.