Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Men's Fitness Complete Guide To Home Workouts PDF
Men's Fitness Complete Guide To Home Workouts PDF
COMPLETE
PLETE GUIDE TO
HOME
NEW!
UPDATED
AND
EXPANDED
WORKOUTS
BUILD MUSCLE
BURN FAT
SAVE MONEY
193
EXERCISES
XERCISES
DEMONSTRATED
MONSTRATED
IN DETAIL>>>>
ebooksdownloadrace.blogspot.in
magazine
COMPLETE GUIDE TO
HOME
WORKOUTS
By Jon Lipsey
Publishing Director Richard Downey The ‘MagBook’ brand is a trademark of Dennis Publishing Ltd,
Managing Director James Burnay 30 Cleveland St, London W1T 4JD. Company registered in England.
Digital Production Manager Nicky Baker All material © Dennis Publishing Ltd, licensed by Felden 2011,
and may not be reproduced in whole or part without the
Bookazine Manager Dharmesh Mistry
consent of the publishers.
Operations Director Robin Ryan
Managing Director of Advertising COMPLETE GUIDE TO HOME WORKOUTS ISBN 1-907779-29-9
Julian Lloyd-Evans
Newstrade Director David Barker To license this product please contact Hannah Heagney on
+44 (0) 20 7907 6134 or email hannah_heagney@dennis.co.uk
Chief Operating Officer Brett Reynolds
Group Finance Director Ian Leggett Advertising
Chief Executive Officer James Tye Katie Wood katie_wood@dennis.co.uk
Chairman Felix Dennis Matt Wakefield matt_wakefield@dennis.co.uk
While every care was taken during the production of this MagBook, the publishers cannot be held responsible for the accuracy of the information
or any consequence arising from it. Dennis Publishing takes no responsibility for the companies advertising in this MagBook.
The paper used within this MagBook is produced from sustainable fibre, manufactured by mills with a valid chain of custody. Printed at PCP.
The health and fitness information presented in this book is an educational resource and is not intended as a substitute for medical advice.
Consult your doctor or healthcare professional before performing any of the exercises described in this book or any other exercise programme,
particularly if you are pregnant, or if you are elderly or have chronic or recurring medical conditions. Do not attempt any of the exercises while under
the influence of alcohol or drugs. Discontinue any exercise that causes you pain or severe discomfort and consult a medical expert.
Neither the author of the information nor the producer nor distributors of such information make any warranty of any kind in regard to
the content of the information presented in this book.
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Contents
Getting started
7 - 27
Bodyweight
28 - 51
52 - 105
Extra kit
106 - 135
136 - 169
Kettlebells
170 - 189
Nutrition
200 - 208
4 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
W
elcome to the Men’s section and show you how to
Fitness Complete use big moves for maximum
Guide To Home muscle growth.
Workouts, a comprehensive If you’re really serious about
training resource for anyone building a home gym, you
who wants to exercise at may want to invest in a cardio
home. By using the exercises, machine or a multigym. The
advice and workouts in this home gym machine section
book, you’ll develop a lean will tell you what qualities you
and muscular physique. The should be looking for so you
moves and training systems make the right purchase.
we’ve selected will give you What you eat has as much
great results whether you’ve of an impact on your body
been working out for years shape as the amount of
or are a complete beginner. training you do. That’s why
All you have to do is make we’ve included a chapter that
sure that you structure your gives you clear advice about
workouts to give your how to eat healthily, where
muscles progressively fresh food is in and gimmicky
tougher training challenges. diet plans are off the menu.
Working out at home is There’s also a sample meal
incredibly accessible because plan and a thorough guide to
you can start without having sports supplements.
to buy any kit. If you want
to make fantastic progress, How to use this book
buying simple equipment such You can use the Complete
as dumb-bells and a gym ball Guide To Home Workouts
will allow you to do a wide whether you’re a beginner or
variety of workouts, helping an experienced exerciser. The
you to keep progressing and kit guide sections give you
stay motivated. The exercise demonstration dumb-bells and gym balls, advice on how to buy home
and workout pages of the which includes a gear guide, workout kit. The exercise
What’s in the guide? book are split into chapters 65 muscle-building moves demonstration pages show
This book starts with a clear involving different bits of kit. and 15 sample workouts. The you how to perform effective
and full guide to basic training The first contains all the best extra kit chapter explores moves with perfect form, while
theory. By understanding the moves you can do by using how adding a few simple the workout pages give you
key variables involved in a bodyweight alone, as well items such as a pull-up bar, examples of common training
workout, such as the number as some sample workouts medicine ball and resistance methods. You can then
of sets and reps you perform, you can use depending on band can allow you to train in design your own workouts
you stand a better chance what you want to get out of new and productive ways. The by arranging the exercises
of achieving the body you’ve your training sessions. That’s barbell, bench and kettlebell according to the principles of
always wanted. followed by a chapter on chapters complete the training your chosen training method.
Men’s Fitness 7
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Muscle myths
Don’t let these common muscle myths hamper your training
Myth: Weight training will and perform exercises Myth: It’s safer to lift target muscles and prevents
make you bulky that burn lots of calories. weights slowly injury by eliminating room
Reality: Even if you train Crunches burn comparatively Reality: In rehabilitation, for error. But the restrictive
regularly and push yourself to few calories, so they’re not patients are told to perform movements of machines
your limit, you won’t suddenly good for getting rid of your exercises at a slow tempo might actually increase the
sprout huge muscles. Training gut. And doing hundreds of to retrain their bodies to risk of injury. Machines are
properly will increase your any exercise is an inefficient execute movement smoothly, fixed and rigid and therefore
muscle size, but this happens way of training because if you a tactic that has crept into limit natural movement,
over time. If you don’t want can do that many reps the gyms. But as long as you’re whereas when you use
your workouts to have a movement isn’t challenging always in control of the free weights your body
muscle-building effect, you enough to stimulate new lifting and lowering phases naturally makes adjustments
need to adjust key variables, muscle growth. of an exercise you won’t throughout the exercise’s
such as how many reps you set yourself up for an injury. range of motion according to
perform, so they have more of Myth: Running is better for Indeed, performing reps with your strength level, speed of
either a strength or endurance fat loss than lifting weights speed trains the muscles to movement, and proficiency.
effect than a muscle gain one. Reality: Intense weights react quickly in unexpected,
sessions will burn plenty real-world situations, which is Myth: More training means
Myth: Endless crunches will of calories and have a how you really protect yourself more muscle
give you a six-pack fat-loss effect. High-intensity from injury. It also activates Reality: Muscle growth
Reality: Doing crunches circuits give you an aerobic more muscle fibres, leading happens while you’re
will strengthen and define workout, which improves to greater gains. recovering, not while you’re
your abs but it will do little to your heart and lung function, working out. If you don’t
remove any body fat that’s as well as strengthening Myth: Machines are safer leave enough time between
hiding them. You can’t lose muscles. Running is good than free weights sessions, you won’t let your
fat from any one part of your for developing your heart Reality: The makers of muscles complete the repair
body so, if you want to shift and lungs but won’t build weights machines advertise process that makes them
your spare tyre, eat healthily much muscle. that their equipment isolates bigger and stronger.
8 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Home vs gym
Working out at home and working out in a gym both have advantages
and disadvantages. Here’s how to get the most out of a home set-up
O
ne of the best things Expensive you to perform a wide variety Find your space
about working out gym fees can of exercises. Adding a couple Before you start, make sure
at home is that it’s be off-putting of accessories such as a you have enough space to
accessible. In fact, you could medicine ball, pull-up bar and exercise without damaging
start right now, even if you kettlebell will further increase either yourself or a priceless
don’t have any kit. That’s your options. Finally, a barbell family heirloom. A 2m by
because you can do lots of and bench will let you lift 2m space should just about
challenging exercises, such as heavy weights for real strength be enough.
press-ups and chair dips, just and size gains. Choosing a room with
by using your bodyweight. If you’re really serious about a high-ish ceiling is also
You can’t do everything fitness you can add a squat advisable, if you want to avoid
with bodyweight alone, but rack and cardio machines, but cracking your head or hands
the good news is you don’t if you’re starting out the simple during jumping moves. And
need lots of kit to lose fat and and cost-effective kit in the wherever you work out, don’t
build muscle. A gym ball and workout chapters can whip compromise form if you’re
a set of dumb-bells will allow you into excellent shape. tight for space.
Men’s Fitness 9
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
10 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
S
tarting a workout Once you understand these the session involves so, for Repetitions
without knowing what variables, you can decide how example, a superset workout The number of repetitions
you want to achieve, to use them to achieve your will typically involve doing per set you perform of each
what exercises you’re going muscle-building goals. There pairs of exercises performed exercise is, arguably, the most
to do or how you’re going to is, however, no such thing as back to back, resting between important workout variable.
perform them isn’t going to the perfect muscle-building sets of pairs of exercises The reps you choose to
give you optimum results. To routine. To understand that, rather than sets of individual perform will affect all the other
achieve your workout aims, you need to have a basic exercises. More information variables and will have a
you need to design and stick appreciation of what makes about these common routines huge impact on whether the
to a specific programme. your muscles grow. can be found in the workouts primary effect of your workout
But you can’t do that Resistance exercises section of each kit chapter as is developing muscle strength,
without understanding the create microscopic tears in you progress through the rest size or endurance.
key variables involved in how your muscles. Your body then of the book. Strength coaches generally
you perform each exercise responds to this stimulus It’s worth noting that the agree that certain repetition
and how you design your and your muscles repair following advice is a guide ranges have particular training
workouts. The main variables themselves to become bigger and that there isn’t one effects and these are shown
to think about are: and stronger than they were
Repetitions
before. But if you continue
to repeat the same workout,
The number of repetitions you
Also known as reps, this
is the number of times
your body will stop adapting
to the stimulus and your gains
perform of each exercise is the
you lift a weight or perform
a particular exercise within
will plateau. To avoid that
happening, you need to make
most important workout variable
a set. sure you regularly alter the perfect way of addressing in the box on page 14. Low
variables described above. workout variables. That’s reps in the one to eight range
Sets The exercises you choose partly because people are best for building strength,
Groups of repetitions to perform and the order in respond to training in between eight and 12 reps is
performed back to back. which you perform them will slightly different ways and best for adding muscle mass
also have an effect on the partly because strength and and 12 to 20 reps will develop
Rest results you see. This section conditioning research is muscle endurance. However,
The inactive time you take will give you all the information constantly evolving. But it’s these are broad guides and
between sets and exercises. you need to decide what reps, still rare that new findings are on a spectrum rather
sets, rest and tempo to use, challenge fundamental than self-contained blocks.
Tempo as well as a brief guide on workout principles and the Performing three or seven
The speed at which reps how to order exercises. reason that conventions, such repetitions of an exercise, for
are performed. The most common and as performing multiple sets example, will have a strength-
effective methods of grouping rather than single sets, exist building effect, but the seven
Frequency exercises have been given is because there’s substantial repetitions will have more of a
This refers to how often you workout names. These and credible sports science size development effect than
perform a workout. names tell you broadly what to back them up. performing three repetitions
Men’s Fitness 13
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
14 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
same effect on your muscles It’s also important to use the your joints and support your important to vary the tempo,
as doing the move slowly. right lifting speed within a rep. bigger muscles when you so try to avoid using the same
To maximise strength To make sure your muscles attempt heavy lifts. Another speed for every exercise and
and size gains, conditioning are under tension for long benefit is that slower lifting every workout.
research suggests that your enough, take one second to takes momentum out of
muscles should be under lift the weight, pause then take the exercise. Rest
tension for between 40 to 70 two to three seconds to lower. Some exercises, however, The rest you take determines
seconds per set, provided The reason you should take such as the snatch, have to whether or not you’re able to
you’re not using extremely longer to lower the weight is be performed at speed complete the next section of
low repetition ranges. Lifting that size gains are best made because they require your workout. As a rule, sets
in this way will cause you to during the eccentric (lowering) explosive movements to lift with few reps will require the
use anaerobic energy, which phase of the lift. Taking your a weight that’s heavy enough most rest. This is because
produces lactate and prompts time will also help you for you to get a training they train the nervous system
the release of testosterone recruit stabilising benefit. As with sets and fast-twitch muscle fibres,
and growth hormones. muscles, which protect and reps, it’s also which fatigue easily and take
Men’s Fitness 15
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
16 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Y
ou may think that offer all the benefits you get Keep cardio sessions intense activity followed by
adding long runs to from running, swimming or
2 short and intense periods of lower intensity
your home workouts cycling. To make sure you get When you start a run – or any recovery. Try the interval
will complement your muscle the best of both worlds, follow other type of cardio activity session in the box below.
building work. In fact, it can these rules: – your body uses energy from As your fitness improves, you
have the opposite effect. its own fat supplies and the can increase the duration or
While cardio training will Don’t do weights and food you’ve eaten. After about intensity of intervals without
improve your heart and lung
1 cardio back to back 45 minutes of exercise it lengthening the session.
function and prepare your If your main goal is to build then switches to take energy
lower body for endurance muscle, keep weights and from your muscles, and Keep eating
events, it doesn’t have a great cardio sessions separate. will eventually break down
3 The right nutrition is
effect on muscle size. Doing Doing cardio immediately muscle tissue as you steadily vital to achieving the body
long, steady-state cardio before weights will leave you plod away. The solution, you want. If you’re doing
sessions can even break feeling tired and will lead to unsurprisingly, is to keep your both weight training and
down your muscle tissue, poor lifting performance. Doing cardio sessions to under 45 cardio it becomes even more
replacing bulky fast-twitch cardio straight after a weights minutes in length. important because you need
fibres with slender slow-twitch session can undo the muscle- To avoid losing out on the to fuel your exertions in the
ones that are better suited to building effects of a workout. cardio benefits of a long run, cardio sessions and still have
pounding the pavements for The answer is to do them make your sessions intense. enough calories to build the
mile after mile. on separate days, which gives The best way to do this is by muscle you’ve trained so hard
Weight training is good for your muscles time to recover doing intervals. An interval for. For more nutrition advice,
building muscles but it doesn’t between sessions. session involves periods of go to page 200.
18 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Pectorals
Pectoralis minor
Deltoids
Anterior deltoid (front) Jargon buster
(beneath the Medial deltoid (middle)
pectoralis major) Concentric contraction
Pectoralis major This is a controlled
Serratus anterior shortening of your muscle,
Biceps such as the upwards phase
Biceps brachii of a biceps curl.
Brachialis
Brachioradialis
Traps
Trapezius
Calves
Gastrocnemius
Jargon buster Soleus
Eccentric contraction
This is the controlled
lengthening of a contracted
muscle, such as the downward
phase of a biceps curl.
Men’s Fitness 19
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Pre-workout warm-up
Get your body ready for muscle growth and reduce your injury
risk with this quick pre-workout warm-up
T
he warm-up is one of the most
neglected aspects of a workout.
It can seem like a boring waste
of time but doing a proper warm-up will
help you avoid injury and get the most
out of the meat of your session.
The purpose of a warm-up is simple:
to raise your core temperature and
prepare your muscles for the work to
come. Doing some light cardiovascular
exercise, such as jogging on the spot,
will make your heart beat faster, which
pumps oxygen and nutrients to your
muscles and elevates your body’s
temperature. Warm muscles are more
elastic, which means you can work them
through a fuller range of motion to get
the best results from your exercises.
Once you’ve done that, do a few
dynamic stretches (described opposite).
These will target the muscles you’ll use
during the workout so they’re primed for
heavy lifting. Dynamic stretches involve
moving continuously, placing the muscle
under more tension with each repetition,
which prepares your muscle joints and
nerves for the actions they’re about to
perform. They differ from static stretches
(see pages 22-23) which, according to
the latest research, should not be done
before a workout. A recent study found
that pre-workout static stretches reduce
the power available to a muscle during
the workout, which has a negative effect
on strength gains.
When you start your workout you
should perform a warm-up set of each
exercise, where you do the move with
a light weight. This will allow you to
make sure your form is correct but
does not count as one of the sets you
plan to perform.
20 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
01 Step forward
and bend your
02 Step to the
side and bend
Lunge with knees Lateral lunge your knee
reverse flye Spread your
with twist Rotate your
arms wide body to the side
Men’s Fitness 21
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Post-workout
stretch
Do the following stretches after a
weights session to increase your
flexibility and reduce injury risk
P
ost-workout stretching to flush out toxins, meaning
is an area of weight you will be ready for your next
training that divides workout sooner.
expert opinion. Some coaches
think that it offers no benefits Better posture
and others recommend static Tense muscles can pull your
stretching, where you relax shoulders, hips and spine out
a muscle and hold it under of alignment, which can cause
tension for a specific period back pain.
of time without moving. The
majority advocate stretching How to stretch
at the end of a workout. After you’ve finished your
workout spend five minutes
Benefits of stretching doing some gentle cardio,
Static stretches lengthen such as jogging on the spot,
the muscle after it has to bring your heart rate down.
contracted as a result of Then perform the stretches
weight training and give opposite, paying particular
you the following benefits: attention to the ones that
target the muscles you worked
Greater flexibility during your session.
Regular stretching will allow Get into the stretch position
you to perform exercises and allow your muscle to
across a wider range of relax. As you place pressure
movement, giving you greater on your muscle you should
muscle-building effect. be able to feel it relaxing
and lengthening.
Fewer injuries You can slowly increase
When you have less tension in the pressure on the muscle
your muscles you significantly throughout the duration of the
reduce your chances of stretch but you should never
tearing muscle fibres or force it or ‘bounce’ because
tendons when you perform that can damage the muscle.
dynamic movements. Hold each stretch for
between 15 and 30 seconds
Faster recovery but if you feel pain stop
Stretching improves blood flow immediately to avoid making
to your muscles and helps a potential injury worse.
22 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Chest
With your palms
facing forwards, take
Hamstrings Glutes your arms back
Keep your front Stand on one leg to feel the stretch
leg straight and and balance the across your chest.
lean forward to feel bottom of your
the stretch in the raised shin on your
hamstring of your standing knee.
front leg. Sink down until
you feel the stretch
in your glutes. Traps
Pull gently on
your head and
pull your opposite
shoulder down.
Quads
Hold your ankle
and push your hips
forward to feel the
stretch in your thigh.
Triceps
Bend one arm at
the elbow and drop
it down behind your
Abs back. With your other
Lie on a mat with palms under your shoulders arm, push down
and your elbows tucked in. Then raise your gently on your elbow.
shoulders while keeping your hips on the ground.
Hip flexors
Step forward into
a lunge so that Biceps
your back knee With your palms
is in contact with facing backwards,
the ground. Keep press your arms
your body upright behind you to
and push your feel the stretch
hips forward. in your biceps.
Lats
Kneel down and extend one arm out so it rests
on the ground. Press down on your leading arm
to feel the stretch down your side.
Men’s Fitness 23
24 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Foam rolling
Use this recovery tool to simulate a sports massage
F
oam rolling is an release is a form of therapy
increasingly popular that relaxes these muscles. Hamstrings
part of post-workout Balance on your hands
recovery when it comes to How it works with one or both of
injury prevention. It has similar Foam rolling breaks the cycle your hamstrings on
effects to a sports massage of inflammation that leads to the roller. Roll from the
with the added advantage that fibrosis, or thickening of the glutes to the knee.
you can use it on yourself. connective tissue, that causes
The purpose of foam rolling the muscular tension that
is to improve your muscles’ results in further inflammation.
range of motion and reduce Myofascial release provides
muscle soreness. The target sustained, gentle pressure for
is the fascia – the soft part a short time, which relaxes the
of the connective tissue affected muscles, increases
that supports and protects circulation and fluid drainage
the muscles. and stimulates the stretch
reflex of the muscle and
Why you need to do it connective tissues.
Overtraining, impact or injury
can restrict the fascia, resulting What you need
in muscular inflammation, Reebok Short Roller, £19.49
pain and tension. Myofascial (Amazon.co.uk).
Hip flexors
Balance on your
forearms with one
hip on the roller.
Roll from your upper
thigh to your hip.
Men’s Fitness 25
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Iliotibial band
Position the roller under
the outer thigh. Roll from
your hip to your knee.
Glutes Quads
Start in the same Balance on your
position as for the forearms with one or
hamstring roll, but both thighs on the
move the roller to roller. Roll from your
your backside. hips to your knees.
26 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Chest
Lie on the floor with
the roller at the base
of your chest and your
arm outstretched. Roll
towards your underarm.
Men’s Fitness 27
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Bodyweight
introduction
Start building muscle right now
using just your bodyweight
I
f you’ve bought this book you have to push a significant
but haven’t yet got round to level of resistance while
buying any workout kit, don’t balancing on one leg. Controlling
worry. You can start building your own bodyweight will also
muscle straight away by doing give you practical strength
bodyweight exercises. because you’re working with
For a muscle to grow in size the load you carry around
and strength, it has to move in everyday life.
against resistance (in this case, There are lots of bodyweight
yourself) to create microscopic moves you can do to target
tears in the muscle fibres. These your core muscles, which you’ll
fibres will heal to be bigger need to develop if you want to
and stronger than before. You progress safely to doing big lifts
still have to follow the training such as a lunges with dumb-
principles outlined in the previous bells or even a barbell.
chapter so you may need to You can use bodyweight
adjust your tempo, for example, exercises to target any muscle
if you want to work in a muscle- group. However, as you improve
building rep range. If you do that, you’ll find it increasingly difficult
you can start gaining muscle to achieve the overload that will
before you’ve bought any kit. lead to muscle growth. When
This chapter begins by that happens, introducing some
demonstrating moves that will of the basic bits of kit outlined in
target different muscles. Once later chapters will help you avoid
you know how to do the moves, getting stuck in a training rut.
we’ll show you how to put You should, however, still include
them together to achieve your bodyweight exercises in some of
particular muscle-building goals. your workouts because you need
Bodyweight exercises such to constantly refresh and tweak
as one-leg squats are good at the way you work out to make
developing joint stability because sure your muscles are stimulated.
Men’s Fitness 29
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Bodyweight | Exercises
01
Chair dip
Target: triceps
Develop your
triceps with
this compound
bodyweight move,
which will also
improve shoulder
joint stability.
02
Chair dip
with leg lift
Target:
triceps, core
Raising your
leg introduces a
rotational element
to the exercise,
which calls on your
core to stabilise
the movement.
30 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Exercises | Bodyweight
03
Table
chin-up
Target: biceps,
lats, forearms
Use a table as
a prop to build
your biceps.
04
Crunch
Target: upper
abdominals
Work your abs
to build a solid
six-pack with
this classic mid-
section move.
Men’s Fitness 31
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Bodyweight | Exercises
05
Reverse
crunch
Target: lower Movement
abdominals Contract your abs,
then curl your knees
Hit your easily towards your chest,
neglected lower keeping your knees
bent at 90˚
abs with this
Pause at the top,
simple move. then lower slowly to
the start
Start position
Keep your head and
shoulders on the floor and
your arms by your sides
Your thighs should be
vertical and your knees
should be bent at 90˚
06
Oblique
crunch
Target: obliques
Work your side
abs for a fuller
development of
your abdominals.
32 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Exercises | Bodyweight
Start position
Start with your fingers 07
by your temples and
crunch up to bring your Bicycles
right elbow to your left
knee while extending your Target:
right leg
abdominals
Use this dynamic
move to hit your
mid section from
a range of angles.
Movement
Twist your torso to the
other side to bring your
left elbow to you right
knee while extending
your left leg
Use your abs to control
the move and try not to
strain at the neck
08
Plank
Target: core
Develop the
muscles that
support your
spine with this
classic static
stability move.
Start position
Position yourself so your
feet are together and your body
is straight from head to heels,
with your elbows underneath
your shoulders and your head
looking down
Hold the position as long
as possible without letting
your hips sag
Men’s Fitness 33
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Bodyweight | Exercises
09
Side plank
Target: core
Hold the plank in
a different way to
target your core
muscles from a
new angle.
Start position
Position yourself
so your elbow is
directly underneath your
shoulder and your body
is in a straight line from
head to heels
Hold the position
for as long as you can
without letting your hips
drop, then repeat it on
the other side
10
Side
plank star
Target: core
By raising your arm
and leg you bring
other muscles
into the move
and increase
the challenge
to your core.
Fit tip
Do more than crunch
For an all-round abs routine include
flexion exercises such as a crunch, two-
point box, oblique crunch, woodchop
and static holds such as the plank.
34 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Exercises | Bodyweight
Movement
Twist over to one 11
side, keeping your
legs straight and your Lower-body
Start position shoulders on the floor
Russian twist
Lie on your back Don’t let your feet
with your arms out to touch the floor and
the sides and your legs alternate sides with Target: lower
straight up in the air each rep abdominals
By transferring the
rotation to your
lower abdominals,
you can do this
move without
any kit.
Movement
Contract your abs 12
to bring your arms and
legs up to meet above Jackknife
your stomach, keeping
your legs as straight Target: upper and
as you can
Squeeze your abs lower abdominals
hard at the top of the This move requires
move and lower to
a strong core to
the start as slowly as
you can maintain perfect
form and is great
for developing
a large part of
your abs.
Start position
Start with your arms
behind your head, held
off the floor, and your feet
together, also off the floor
Men’s Fitness 35
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Bodyweight | Exercises
13
Squat thrusts
Target:
core, quads
Get your heart rate
up and work your
core with this tiring
move, which is
also good for
developing your
leg speed.
Start position
Begin in a
press-up position
Movement
Jump your feet forward
to land them so your knees
are under your chest
Jump your feet back
to the start and repeat
the move
14
Table
pull-up
Target: mid-traps,
lats, rhomboids
Use your
bodyweight
and a simple
prop to build a
muscular back.
36 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Exercises | Bodyweight
15
Table
pull-up
and reach
Target:
mid-traps, lats,
rhomboids, core
This move builds
strength and
requires good core
control to stabilise
the movement.
16
Two-point
box
Target:
lower back
This move is
excellent for
strengthening
the muscles that
support your spine,
reducing your
chance of injury
Start position Movement during big lifts.
Kneel on all-fours, Your body should form
then bring your elbow to a straight line from foot to
meet your opposite knee fingertips – don’t let your
beneath your stomach hips rotate
Keep looking down and Hold that position for a
stretch your arm and leg count of two, return to the
out straight start and repeat on the
opposite side
Men’s Fitness 37
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Bodyweight | Exercises
17
Dorsal
raise with
shoulder
rotation
Target:
lower back
This move protects
your lower back
from injury and
the twist at the
top of the move
intensifies the
muscle contraction. Start position Movement
Start by lying on your Lift your chest off the
front with your face and floor, twisting your thumbs
shoulders off the floor and back so they point towards
your arms out to the sides, the ceiling
palms facing down Squeeze your shoulder
blades together at the top
of the move
18
Press-up
Target:
chest, triceps
Do this classic
move to build your
chest and arms.
38 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Exercises | Bodyweight
19
Diamond
press-up
Target:
triceps, chest
Placing your thumb
and index fingers
together shifts the
emphasis on to
your triceps.
A C
Men’s Fitness 39
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Bodyweight | Exercises
21
Jump
press-up
Target:
chest, triceps
Develop your
fast-twitch muscle
fibres by pushing
up explosively so
both palms leave
the floor.
22
Press-up
with knee lift
Target: chest,
triceps, core
Adding a knee lift
to the press-up
challenges your
core because it’s
forced to stabilise
your body in an
awkward position.
40 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Exercises | Bodyweight
23
Decline
press-up
Target: upper
chest, triceps,
shoulders
By raising your feet
you place more
emphasis on your
upper chest.
24
One-leg
press-up
Target: chest,
triceps, core
Keeping one leg
raised while you
perform the move
will challenge your
core because
you’re trying to
keep stable while
balancing on
Start position Movement one leg.
Get into a press-up Lift one foot off the
position with your hands floor and lower your chest
beneath your shoulders to the floor, keeping your
and your body in a straight elbows pointing back
line from head to heels rather than out
Complete your reps for
that set and swap legs
each set
Men’s Fitness 41
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Bodyweight | Exercises
25
Squat
Target: quads,
glutes, hamstrings
This classic
lower-body move
builds muscle and
stabilises your
ankle, knee and
hip joints.
26
One-leg
squat
Target: quads,
glutes, hamstrings
Doing the move
on one leg
ensures you get
balanced muscle
development as
well as improving
your stability,
coordination and
leg-pushing power.
42 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Exercises | Bodyweight
Start position
Lower into a 27
squat, then push off
explosively to jump Squat jump
off the ground
Target: quads,
glutes, hamstrings
This move
develops explosive
power, which is
useful for activities
such as sprinting.
Movement
Absorb the
impact as you land
and sink straight into
the next repetition
Start position
Position yourself so 28
your shoulders and hips
are pressed against a Wall squat
wall and your knees are
bent at 90˚ Target: quads,
Hold the position
for as long as you glutes, hamstrings
can without breaking Holding this
good form
isometric position
will flood your
muscles with lactic
acid, so do it at the
end of a workout to
completely fatigue
your legs.
Fit tip
Wiggle when you squat
For squats and lunges, wiggle your toes
at the base of the move. If you can’t,
it means your weight is too far forwards.
Push up through your heels, not toes
Men’s Fitness 43
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Bodyweight | Exercises
29 Movement
Take a stride
Lunge forwards and lower
yourself in a fluid
Target: quads, motion until your front
knee is bent at 90˚ and
hamstrings
your back knee nearly
This dynamic Start position touches the floor
move tests your Stand upright with Keep your front knee
your feet together and over your front toe and
coordination your hands on your hips your back upright
and builds lower- Push back to the
body strength. start, then lunge
forwards with your
opposite foot
A B C
30
Lunge jump
Target: quads,
hamstrings
Adding a jump to
the move develops
your explosive
power while testing
your balance and
coordination.
44 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Exercises | Bodyweight
Start position
31
Place one foot on
the chair with your back Chair
upright and your arms step-up
by your sides
Target:
glutes, quads
This exercise
builds practical
strength because
Movement it’s similar to
Push up with your the movement
leading leg then step
back down the way you make when
you came climbing stairs.
32
Movement One-leg
Keeping your back
straight, tilt forward deadlift
from the hips, rather
than the waist, until you Target:
feel a strong stretch in hamstrings
your hamstring, then
straighten up again Strengthen the
backs of your legs
with this move
that also improves
Start position your balance.
Stand on one leg
with your hands by
your sides
Men’s Fitness 45
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Bodyweight | Exercises
33 Movement
Bend at the elbows
Inverted to lower your upper
shoulder body until your head
almost touches the floor,
press then press back up
Target: shoulders
It’s difficult to target
your shoulders
using bodyweight
alone, but this
move will get
them working.
Start position
Place your feet on a
chair or box and put your
hands on the floor beneath
your shoulders
Shuffle back with your
hands and bend at the hips
until your body forms an
inverted V-shape
34 Start position
Stand with your feet
Woodchop shoulder-width apart
and your hands in front
Target: core, of you
Squat and twist
lower back,
to one side so your
quads, shoulders hands are outside
Develop your ability one of your knees
to transfer force Movement
from the lower to Stand up and twist
to the opposite side,
the upper half of lifting the heel you’re
your body with this twisting away from and
raising your hands over
sporty move.
your shoulder
46 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Workouts | Bodyweight
Full-body workout
T
he best thing about means making sure you have 1 2
full-body workouts is a pushing motion for every
that they allow you pulling motion you do and that
to work a large number of you spend a roughly equal
muscle fibres in a short space amount of time on your upper
of time. The result is that and lower body.
your body releases a flood Opt for compound
of growth hormones that will exercises (multi-joint moves
make your muscles get bigger that work several muscle
and stronger. They’re great if groups at once), as these will
you’re new to training because give you maximum muscle-
they get your muscles used to building benefits.
weight training without putting Leave abs-specific
them under too much stress. exercises, such as the crunch,
The downside of this to the end of your workout
workout is that it’s hard to fully because you don’t want to 3 4
exhaust your muscle fibres. exhaust your core muscles
before they’re called on to
Designing your workout stabilise your spine in more
The key to a sound full-body demanding moves such as
workout is balance. That a table pull-up.
5 6
Men’s Fitness 47
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Bodyweight | Workouts
Circuit training
T
his is a great option with no kit. Aim to target as 1 2
if you’re short on time many different muscle groups
or if your main goal is as possible and alternate
fat loss. By doing different between upper and lower
exercises back to back with body moves to make your
no rest in between you keep heart work harder without
your effort level high and experiencing excessive
force your heart to pump muscle fatigue.
blood to different parts of Include a mix of pushing,
your body, giving you both a pulling, lunging, bending
cardiovascular and a muscle- and rotational moves, to give
building benefit. Circuits aren’t your workout balance. You
the best way to build muscle, should also try to complete
but they will help you to look the reps quickly but without 3 4
lean and defined. compromising good form.
Once you’ve completed the
Designing your workout circuit, rest for three minutes
Circuits require you to move then do it all again. The fitter
swiftly from one exercise you become, the more circuits
to the next, which is easier you’ll be able to complete.
5 6
48 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Workouts | Bodyweight
Men’s Fitness 49
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Bodyweight | Workouts
5 6
Explosive power sample workout
Legs and back
1 Squat | Sets: 3 Reps: 12 Page: 42
50 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Workouts | Bodyweight
Superset workout
A
superset is two opposing muscle group works. 1 Superset A 2 Superset B
exercises performed They also give you balanced
back to back with no muscle development.
rest in between. Once you Other common forms
have finished both exercises, include non-competing
you rest before performing supersets, which target
the superset again, just as unrelated muscle groups such
you would do with a regular as pairing a lower-body move
set. The reason for doing with an upper-body one, and
supersets is that they are post-exhaustion supersets,
time efficient because you’re where you do a multi-joint
reducing the amount of rest move followed by a single-
you take during a workout. joint move targeting the
You can pair any two same body part.
exercises to form a superset,
but the most popular option Designing your workout
is to create antagonistic If you’re going to do
supersets, where the two antagonistic supersets, for
moves work opposing body each exercise find one that
parts. An example would be works its polar opposite, so
to perform a press-up, which if you do one exercise that
works your chest, then a targets your quads do another
table pull-up, which works that targets your hamstrings.
your back. The advantage Biceps exercises should be
of antagonistic supersets is paired with triceps moves and 3 Superset C 4 Superset D
that they give one body part so on. After each superset, rest
a chance to rest while the for two minutes and repeat.
2 Superset B
One-leg squat | One-leg deadlift
Sets: 2 each side Reps: 10-12 Page: 42/45
Men’s Fitness 51
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Dumb-bells &
gym ball
introduction
A set of dumb-bells and a gym ball
can give you serious muscle gains
T
he foundation of any home A gym ball is excellent at
gym set-up should be a set increasing the instability of an
of dumb-bells and a gym exercise, which will improve your
ball. The reason they’re so useful core strength. The greater the
is that they are so versatile. instability, the harder the exercise.
You can target any body part For that reason, a gym ball is a
in a variety of ways, increasing great tool to use in conjunction
your chances of losing fat and with a set of dumb-bells because
gaining muscle. you’ll struggle to complete your
This chapter will give you sets of unstable exercises, even if
a wide variety of exercises for your heaviest dumb-bell is 10kg.
each major body part. You can Of course, there are some
then begin to explore a range things that you can’t do with
of workout techniques that will dumb-bells and gym ball. If you
make sure you keep challenging want to do heavy compound lifts,
your body and help you get which will burn lots of calories
bigger and stronger. and flood your body with muscle
Dumb-bells allow you to growth hormones, you’ll need to
fatigue your muscles easily within invest in a barbell and bench.
your desired rep range, helping But before you do that you need
to build new muscle. The fact that to build a solid base of fitness.
you hold one in each hand gives And even once you introduce a
you balanced muscle growth bar and bench into your routine,
and develops your stabilising you should still do dumb-bell and
muscles because you’re forced gym ball moves to get an all-
to control their movement. round training effect.
Men’s Fitness 53
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Dumb-bells and
gym ball gear guide
A gym ball and a set of dumb-bells are the cornerstone of
a home gym. Here’s what they do and how to buy them
Gym ball
What it does is durable. The cheaper the with your knees bent at about
Gym balls, also known ball, the more likely it is that 90˚ and your feet flat on the
as stability or Swiss balls, you’ll need to replace it after floor, so taller people will need
promote increased joint and a few months, so buy one a larger size than shorter
core stability by forcing the that’s anti-burst. You need people. Use the following
body to stabilise itself on an to make sure it can support guide to find the right size:
unstable surface. Stability your bodyweight and any
balls are relatively cheap and additional weight such as
portable so they’re perfect for a pair of dumb-bells. User height Ball size
home training.
Size: Gym balls come in 1.50-1.64m 55cm
What to look for different sizes. You want to be 1.65-1.81m 65cm
Durability: Check that the ball able to sit on top of the ball 1.82-2.00m 75cm
Dumb-bells
54 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Men’s Fitness 55
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
01
Dumb-bell
curl
Target: biceps
Using dumb-bells
works your biceps
evenly, giving
you balanced
muscle growth.
56 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
03
Concentration
curl
Target: biceps
By locking your
elbow in place you
remove any upper-
arm swing and
focus the stress
on your biceps.
Fit tip
Stretch your triceps
to build your biceps
To get the most out of your biceps
04
moves, do a triceps stretch before each Gym ball
set of bicep curls to temporarily weaken dumb-bell
the triceps. Provided you follow good preacher curl
form on the bicep curls, you should be
able to get bigger arms, faster Target: biceps
As well as hitting
your biceps, this
is a great move
for developing
coordination of
your shoulders,
hips and core in
the frontal plane
of motion. Use a
lighter weight to
make sure you
perform the
move correctly.
Men’s Fitness 57
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
05 Start position
Stand with your
Hammer curl back straight, your
shoulders back and
Target: biceps your core braced
Grip the dumb-bells
Curling the weight
with palms facing
with a neutral grip inwards and tuck your
takes some of the elbows into your sides
emphasis off your
biceps and places
more stress on
your forearms.
Movement
Curl the weight
without rotating your
wrists and make sure
you keep your elbows
tucked in
Avoid rocking back
and forth because
this allows you to use
momentum to complete
the movement
06 Start position
Stand with your
Hammer curl back straight, your
with twist shoulders back and
your core braced
Grip the dumb-bells
Target: biceps
with your palms facing
Performing the inwards and tuck your
move one arm at elbows into your sides
a time encourages
you to stay
upright and take
momentum out
of the move. By
rotating your wrists Movement
at the top of the Curl one dumb-bell
up at a time, turning
move, you target your wrists out at the
your biceps from top of the move to
place extra tension
two angles.
on your biceps
58 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
07
Gym ball
lying triceps
extension
Target:
triceps, core
Doing a triceps
extension on a
gym ball calls on
your core muscles
to stabilise
the movement.
Start position
08
Start with your torso
upright and the weight Dumb-bell
above your head with overhead
your arm straight
triceps
extension
Movement
Lower the weight Target: triceps
slowly by pivoting at
the elbow and keeping This move
your upper arm still encourages you to
Keep your body stabilise your body
upright throughout
the move while working the
long head of the
triceps brachii for
defined muscles.
Men’s Fitness 59
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
09 Start position
Bend forwards at
Two-arm the hips and keep your
dumb-bell back in its natural arch
Start with your
kickback elbows bent at 90˚
Target:
triceps, core
Work the triceps
on both arms
and challenge
your core at the
same time. Movement
Straighten your
arms while keeping
your upper arms as
still as possible
Keep your core
braced throughout
the move to maintain
a neutral arch in
your spine
10
Gym ball
chair dip
Target:
triceps, core
Increase the
challenge to your
triceps and core by
placing your feet
on a gym ball.
60 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Movement
11
Contract your abs to
curl your chest towards Gym ball
your knees, keeping crunch
your lower back in
contact with the ball Target:
Pause at the top of
the move to squeeze abdominals
your abs, then lower Using a gym
slowly to the start
ball increases
your range of
motion, giving
your abdominal
muscles a fuller
workout while
the instability
challenges
your core.
Start position
Touch your fingers to
Fit tip your temples and lean
as far back as you can
Stay on the ball on the ball
Gym balls are great because they’re
wobbly. This forces your muscles,
including your abs, to work harder to
stabilise your body during any exercise
than if you were on a solid surface
12
Dumb-bell
crunch
Target: upper
abdominals
Adding weight
rather than doing
more reps will have
a better muscle-
building effect on
your abs so, if you
find crunches easy,
add resistance by
Start position Movement using a dumb-bell.
Keep your feet on the Contract your abs to
floor and your knees bent lift your shoulders off the
at 90˚ throughout the move floor, pause at the top of
Hold your head off the move to squeeze your
the floor but keep your abs, then lower slowly to
lower back in contact the start
with the floor
Hold the dumb-bell
to your chest
Men’s Fitness 61
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
13
Gym ball
oblique
crunch
Target: obliques
(side abs)
Hit your abs
from the sides
and get a broad
range of motion
by performing an
oblique crunch on
a gym ball.
14 Start position
Hold your body in a
Gym ball straight line from head
side plank to heels, and position
your elbow directly
Target: core under your shoulder
Use your core
Plank exercises muscles to control
are great for the instability
Hold that position
developing core for as long as possible
strength. Doing without letting your
them on a gym ball hips drop, then repeat
the move on the
makes them even opposite side
more challenging.
62 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
15
Side plank
with lateral
raise
Target:
core, deltoids
Adding a lateral
raise to a side
plank increases the
challenge to your
core and improves
your coordination.
16
Gym ball
jackknife
Target: upper and
lower abdominals
The instability and
range of motion
involved in this
move allow you
to hit both your
upper and lower
abdominals.
Men’s Fitness 63
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
18
Seated
Russian twist
Target: obliques
Work your side
abs and your core
with this functional
exercise that is
good for sports
that involve
twisting moves.
64 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Start position
19
Start with your
shoulders resting on Gym ball
the ball, your body dumb-bell
in a straight line and
a dumb-bell at arms
Russian twist
length above your head
Target: core
Using a gym ball
takes some of the
strain off your lower
back but still poses
a challenge to your
core muscles.
Movement
Twist your torso to one
side until your arms are
parallel to the floor
Twist back to the
opposite side, looking
towards the dumb-bell
Men’s Fitness 65
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
21 Start position
Start with your
Bent-over back straight, your
flye core braced and your
shoulders retracted
Lean forward from
Target: upper
the hips, not the waist
back, shoulders Stand with your
Get a strong feet shoulder-width
apart and bend your
upper back with knees slightly
this move that Hold the dumb-bells
develops scapular together just in front
of your knees,
retraction (the keeping a
action of pulling slight bend
your shoulder in the elbows
blades together).
Movement
Raise the weights
straight out to the sides
without moving your
upper body
66 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
23
Gym ball
dumb-bell
reverse flye
Target: back,
shoulders, core
Chest and
shoulder pressing
moves work
the front of your
shoulder. This
move will help
you achieve
balanced muscle
gains because it
Start position Movement works the back of
Use a light weight and Raise the dumb-bells, your shoulders.
keep your stomach on the keeping your arms in
centre of the ball the ten-to-two position
and your thumbs
pointing towards the
ceiling to activate your
stabilising muscles
Pause at the top of
the move and lower the
weights slowly
24
Dumb-bell
upright row
Target: upper
traps, shoulders
Develop your
upper back and
shoulders while
increasing
your upright
pulling strength.
Men’s Fitness 67
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
25
Dumb-bell
shrug
Target:
upper traps
Add size to your
upper back with
this balanced
move, which will
also help stabilise
your shoulder
girdle and reduce
your chances
of sustaining a
shoulder injury.
Movement
Raise your shoulders
straight up without
Start position bending your elbows
Start with your and hold the top
palms facing inwards position for one or
two seconds
Movement
26 Press the weights
up, then lower slowly
Gym ball to the start
dumb-bell
chest press
Target: chest
Using dumb-bells
for this classic
chest exercise
will give you
a good range
of movement,
balanced muscle
development and
will recruit your
glutes and core to
stabilise the move.
Start position
Support your head and
shoulders on the ball and
hold the dumb-bells at
chest level
Brace your core and
make sure that your body
is straight form head to
knees and your knees are
bent at 90˚
68 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
27
Gym ball
press-up
Target:
chest, triceps
Performing a press-
up on a gym ball
forces your chest
muscles to control
the movement,
which will help
when you come
to perform heavier
pressing exercises.
28
Gym ball
decline
press-up
Target: chest,
shoulders, triceps
and core
Resting your feet
on top of a gym
ball adds instability,
to give your core a
good workout.
Men’s Fitness 69
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
33
Gym ball
dumb-bell
flye
Target: chest
This exercise
primarily targets
your pecs but
also recruits your
core and glutes to
stabilise the move.
Movement
Have a slight bend in
your elbows and lower the
Start position dumb-bells in an arc out
Support your head to the side
and shoulders on Use your chest muscles
the ball to return the weights to
Keep a straight line the start without arching
from head to knees your back
with your knees bent
at 90˚
A C
34 Movement
Push up powerfully and
Dumb-bell twist your body, rolling on
T press-up to the sides of your feet
and keeping your body in
Target: chest, a straight line
Raise a dumb-bell
shoulders, arms overhead with your arm
and core straight, then return to
the start and perform the
Turn the press-up move on the opposite side
into an explosive
move that works
your body in more Start position
than one plane Grip the dumb bells with straight wrists and position them below your shoulders
Keep your body in a straight line and your elbows tucked in to your body
of motion. Keep your feet shoulder-width apart and don’t let your hips sag
70 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
31
Gym ball
dumb-bell
pullover
Target: chest,
lats and core
Use this
single-joint move
to hit multiple
muscle groups.
Movement
Lower the weight
slowly behind your head,
keeping a slight bend in
Start position your elbows
Support your head Use your chest muscles
and shoulders on the to pull the weight back to
ball with the dumb-bell the start but avoid arching
in both hands above your back to aid the move
your chest
Engage your core
and keep your feet flat
on the floor
Movement
32
Hold the dumb-bells
by your sides and lower Dumb-bell
until your thighs are squat
parallel with the ground
Don’t round your Target: quads,
back and keep your
knees in line with glutes, hamstrings
your feet Hit several major
Push back up
muscle groups
through your heels
at once with this
must-do leg move.
Start position
Stand with your feet
shoulder-width apart
with your toes turned
out slightly and your
core muscles braced
Men’s Fitness 71
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
33 Movement
Grip a dumb-bell with
Dumb-bell both hands and lower
sumo squat until your thighs are
parallel to the floor
Keep your knees in
Target: quads
line with your toes and
By taking a wider keep your back upright
stance you place
more emphasis
on the inside of
your quads.
Start position
Take a wide stance
with your toes pointing
out slightly
34
Dumb-bell
gym ball
wall squat
Target: quads
This is a great
move if you’re
unused to doing
squats because
using a ball will
engage your
core and improve
your coordination
for this kind
of movement.
Start position
Place the ball behind
your lower back
Movement
Let the ball roll up
your back as you squat
72 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Movement
35
Step forward and,
in one fluid motion, Dumb-bell
bend your front knee lunge
and lower your back
knee until it almost Target: quads,
touches the floor
Keep your torso hamstrings
upright throughout the Build muscle,
move and make sure
increase your
your front knee is over
the front toe power and improve
Push off the front foot your coordination
to return to the start
with this classic
leg move.
Start position
Stand with your feet
slightly apart, your back
upright and the dumb-
bells by your sides
36
Dumb-bell
side lunge
Target: adductors
Focus on your
inner thighs to
make sure you
don’t have any
weak spots in
your legs and
improve your
properioception
– the body’s
ability to sense
its movements.
Men’s Fitness 73
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
37 Movement
Step back into a
Dumb-bell lunge, bending your
reverse back leg so your
back knee nearly
lunge touches the floor
Keep your torso
Target: quads, upright throughout the
hamstrings move and make sure
your front knee is over
By stepping your front toe
backwards instead Push off the back
of forwards you foot to return to the start
target your quads
and hamstrings
in a different way
and increase
the coordination
challenge.
Start position
Stand with your feet
slightly apart, your back
upright and the dumb-
bells by your sides
38 Start position
Try to find a chair
Dumb-bell or box that is no
chair step-up higher than knee
height and place one
Target: foot flat on the top
Keep your back
quads, glutes upright and hold
This exercise has the dumb-bells by
your sides
real-life benefits
because you do
this move every
day when you
climb stairs.
Movement
Push up with
your leading leg
while keeping your
back upright
Step back down
with your trailing leg
and repeat as before
for all your reps before
swapping sides
74 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Movement
40
Hold your hands
out in front of you and, Gym ball
as you lower, twist Bulgarian
your torso to one side,
alternating sides with
split squat
Start position with twist
Rest the instep each rep
of your back foot
on the ball and plant Target:
your front foot so it’s quads, glutes
facing forwards Removing the
Your hips should
be facing forwards dumb-bell but
and your torso should adding a twist
be upright with your
makes the move
core braced
more of a test of
coordination and
works your body in
several planes at
the same time.
Men’s Fitness 75
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
41 Start position
Start in a split stance
Split with the whole of your
dumb-bell front foot and the toes
of your back foot on
Romanian the floor
deadlift
Target:
hamstrings
Develop the backs
of your legs but
make sure you
use perfect form to Movement
protect your back. Hold the weight
either side of your
This move has thigh and initiate the
huge functional move from your hips,
not your waist
benefits because
Keep your back
it’s similar to flat and let the
the movements weights travel down
your shins or until you
you make when feel a good stretch in
bending down to your hamstrings
pick something up.
42
Gym ball
hamstring
curl
Target:
hamstrings
This move will
develop your
hamstrings while
improving your
stability in your hips
and lower back.
76 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
43
One-leg
gym ball
hamstring
curl
Target:
hamstrings
Doing the curl
with one leg really
gets your muscles
working hard to
control the wobble
of the ball.
A B
Start position
44
Start with your
body flat on the floor Gym ball
hip raise
and leg curl
Target:
hamstrings,
hip flexors
Starting the move
with a hip raise
works your hip
flexors before
targeting your
C Movement hamstrings.
Raise your hips until
your body is straight from
shoulders to heels
Drag the gym ball
towards your backside
with your heels
Men’s Fitness 77
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
45
Supine
gym ball
calf raise
Target: calves
This works your
hard-to-target
calves, forcing
them to stabilise
your entire body,
which will help
during bigger lifts.
46
Gym ball
dumb-bell
shoulder
press
Target: deltoids
Using dumb-
bells allows your
arms to move
in a natural arc Start position Movement
and will give you Sit on the ball with Keep your core
your feet flat on the braced throughout the
balanced muscle floor and the dumb- move and avoid arching
development. bells held at shoulder your back
height and your elbows Press the weights
The gym ball
out to the sides directly overhead but
calls on your don’t let the weights
stabilising muscles touch at the top
to keep your torso
steady throughout
the move.
78 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
47
Gym ball
dumb-bell
Arnold press
Target: deltoids
Introducing rotation
to the move hits
Movement your deltoids from
Rotate your palms several angles in
forwards as you press
Start position the weights up the same exercise.
Start with your palms End with palms
facing you and your facing forwards and
elbows out to the front reverse the movement
back to the start
48
Alternating
dumb-bell
shoulder
press
Target: deltoids
Focusing on one
shoulder at a time
makes each side
Start position work as hard as
Stand with your feet possible and gives
shoulder-width apart
with your torso upright you balanced
and your core braced Movement muscle growth.
Start with the dumb- As you lower one
bells at shoulder level dumb-bell, raise the
other and use your core
muscles to stabilise
the movement and
avoid rocking from
side to side
Men’s Fitness 79
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
49 Start position
Start with the dumb-
Rotating bells at shoulder level
squat press
Target:
whole body
Add a squat and
rotation to turn a
shoulder move
into a whole-body
exercise. Movement
Sink into a squat
and, as you rise up,
rotate your body and
press the dumb-bell
overhead, lifting your
heel as you turn
Return to the start
and repeat the move
on the other side
50
Alternating
wide
shoulder
press
Target: deltoids
Hit your deltoids
from a slightly
different angle
with this variation Start position
of the classic Start with the Movement
dumb-bells at Press the weight at a
shoulder press. shoulder level 45˚ angle to your body
You may need to use
a slightly lighter weight
than you would for a
regular shoulder press
80 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
51
Lateral raise
Target:
middle deltoid
Use a light weight
and target your
delts and upper
traps to give
Movement yourself broad-
Lift the weights looking shoulders.
out to the sides with
straight arms
Stop at shoulder
level and hold for
a moment before
lowering slowly
Start position
Stand with your feet
shoulder-width apart,
your body upright and
your core braced
52
Front raise
Target:
front deltoid
By raising the
dumb-bells in front
Movement of you, you place
Lift the dumb-bells the stress on your
to shoulder level, pause
and lower slowly to front shoulders.
the start
Start position
Hold the dumb-
bells in front of your
thighs with your palms
facing you
Men’s Fitness 81
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
53
Front/lateral
raise
Target: middle,
front deltoids
Alternate between
front and lateral Movement
raises each time Lift the weights to
the front and to the side
you lift the weight simultaneously and
to hit your front and pause at the top before
lowering under control
middle deltoids in
the same move.
Start position
Hold the dumb-
bells by the front of
each thigh
A B C D
54
Cuban press
Target: rotator cuff
Strong and stable
rotator cuffs are
vital if you want
to avoid shoulder
injuries during
heavy lifts. This
move targets that
often-neglected
muscle.
82 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Start position
55
Rest your stomach
on the ball with your Gym ball
body in a straight line lying Cuban
and your arms hanging
straight down
press
Target:
rotator cuffs
Using a ball
encourages
good posture
because your body
needs to stabilise
the wobble.
C D
Movement
Lift your arms out to
the sides, ensuring your
elbows are still bent
at 90˚ [B]
Press the weights
ahead of you [C & D]
Use a light weight
to make sure you don’t
overstress your muscles
Start position
56
Sit on the gym
ball with your arms Gym ball
by your sides dumb-bell
cleans
Target: shoulders
Doing this
explosive move
Movement with dumb-bells
Pull the dumb-bells develops your
up in front of you
powerfully, keeping shoulder stability,
your elbows high enabling you
Catch the dumb- to pile on
bells level with the
top of your chest weight when you
with your elbows perform cleans
pointing forward
with a barbell.
Men’s Fitness 83
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
57
Internal
dumb-bell
rotation
Target: rotator cuff
Do this move as
a warm-up before
heavy shoulder
exercises or at the
end of a workout
to develop your
stabilising muscles.
58
External
dumb-bell
rotation
Target: rotator cuff
Move your
shoulder in
the opposite
direction to the
internal rotation.
84 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Start position
59
Hold a dumb-bell
by each side and bend Dumb-bell
your knees, keeping swing
a neutral arch in
your back Target: front
shoulders, core
and hamstrings
Work several
Movement muscle groups
Explosively thrust at once with this
your hips forward to
straighten your legs and dynamic stability
swing the dumb-bells move that’s good
up in front of you for power sports.
Don’t raise the
weights above shoulder
level and control the
swing back to the start
A B C D
60
One-arm
dumb-bell
snatch
Target:
whole body
This whole-body
move requires
considerable
coordination and
develops power,
so it’s great for
sports such as
football and rugby
Start position Movement that require you to
Start with your knees Straighten your legs generate force in
bent and hold a dumb-bell and use the momentum to
between your legs, keeping lift the weight up in front of an upright position.
your shoulders square on you powerfully [B]
Squat down beneath
the weight to catch it with
your arm straight [C]
Stand up straight to
complete the move [D]
Men’s Fitness 85
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
61 Start position
Start with your feet
Dumb-bell shoulder-width apart
woodchop and your knees bent
so your thighs are
Target: almost parallel to
the floor
whole body Keep your back flat
This move is great and twist your torso Movement
to the side, holding As you stand up,
for sports such a dumb-bell in both turn your torso to the
as tennis that hands on the outside opposite side, lifting
require twisting of your thigh the dumb-bell up and
across your body with
power because
straight arms
it connects your Use your core
upper and lower muscles to control
the movement
body with one big
rotational lift.
62 Movement
Step forward into
Woodchop the lunge and chop
lunge the weight down and
across your body
Make sure your
Target:
front foot faces forward,
whole body your front knee is over
This move gets your foot and your back
is straight
your body moving
across three
planes, which tests
your balance and Start position
coordination, and Stand up straight
and hold a dumb-bell
makes it a great in both hands over
move for sports one shoulder
conditioning.
86 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
63
Lunge
to press
Target:
whole body
Combine two
compound moves
to challenge every
major muscle
group and improve
Movement your hip and lower
Step into a lunge with back stability.
your front knee over your
front foot and your back
knee close to the floor
As you lunge, press the
weights directly overhead
Start position
Stand with your
feet slightly apart, your
back straight and the
dumb-bells just above
shoulder height
with your palms
facing forward
A B C
64
Squat to curl
to press
Target:
whole body
Put three exercises
together to make
one fluid move
that improves
coordination and
works your entire
body without
overloading any
one joint.
Men’s Fitness 87
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Start position
Rest the instep of
your feet on the ball,
your body in a straight
line from head to feet
and your hands beneath
your shoulders
B C
Movement
Draw your knees up to
your chest [B] and return
to the start
88 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Men’s Fitness 89
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Full-body workout
F
ull-body workouts allow Designing your workouts 1 2
you to work a large Your full-body workouts need
range of muscle fibres to be balanced. So, for every
in a relatively short space of pushing motion you should
time. This prompts your body do a pulling one, and you
to release a flood of growth should spend as much time
hormones that will make on your upper body as you
your muscles get bigger do on your lower.
and stronger. If you’re new to Stick to compound
training, they’re useful because moves (ones that work
they get your muscles used to several muscle groups at
lifting weights without putting once) because these will
them under too much stress. give you maximum muscle
The downside of a full-body development for the time you 3 4
workout is that it’s hard to have available.
exhaust your muscle fibres Leave any abdominal
fully, so you may want to moves to the end of your
also do some more targeted workout because you don’t
sessions such as body-focus want them to be fatigued
or post-exhaustion workouts, when you perform big moves
which we’ll explore later. such as squats and rows.
5 6
6 Dumb-bell woodchop
Sets: 2 Reps: 10 each side Page: 86
7 Side plank
Sets: 1 Time: hold for as long as possible Page: 34
90 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
5 6
Body focus sample workout
Shoulders
1 External dumb-bell rotation
Sets: 1 Reps: 15-20 Page: 84
Men’s Fitness 91
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
92 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
5 6
Circuit training sample workout
1 Dumb-bell side lunge
Sets: 1 Reps: 10 each side Page: 73
6 Dumb-bell woodchop
Sets: 1 Reps: 10 each side Page: 86
Men’s Fitness 93
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
5 Dumb-bell T press-up
Sets: 2 Reps: 8 each side Page: 70
94 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Superset workout
S
upersets are a great development. Other options 1 Superset A 2 Superset B
time-saving option. include non-competing
Because you do two supersets, which target
exercises back to back before unrelated muscle groups such
resting, you dramatically as pairing a lower-body move
reduce your workout time. with an upper-body one, and
You can pair any two post-exhaustion supersets,
exercises to form a superset where you do a multi-joint
but the most popular option move followed by a single-
is to create antagonistic joint move targeting the
supersets, in which the two same body part.
moves work opposing body
parts. An example would be Designing your workout
to perform a gym ball dumb- For each exercise in this
bell press, which works your antagonistic superset workout,
chest, then go straight into find one that works its polar
a dumb-bell bent-over row, opposite, so if you do one
which works your back. The exercise that targets your
advantage of antagonistic quads do another that targets
supersets is that they give one your hamstrings. Biceps
body part a chance to rest exercises should be paired
while the opposing muscle with triceps moves and so on.
group is working, which After each superset, rest for
leads to balanced muscle two minutes and repeat.
3 Superset C 4 Superset D
Men’s Fitness 95
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
96 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
5 6
4 Gym ball hip raise leg curl | Sets: 3 Reps: 10-12 Page: 77
6 Wall squat
Sets: 1 Time: hold for as long as possible Page: 43
Men’s Fitness 97
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
98 Men’s Fitness
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Post-exhaustion workout
W
eight training fibres to become bigger 1 2
exercises can be and stronger than they
divided into two were before.
main categories – compound
moves and isolation moves. Designing your workout
Compound exercises use If you’re training your chest,
several muscle groups at start by doing your sets of
once, while isolation exercises a chest press, for example,
target one muscle group on its which works your chest,
own. Post-exhaustion training triceps and shoulders. You
involves pairing a compound could then move on to doing
move with an isolation one. dumb-bell flyes, which focus
The theory is that you do on your chest.
a big muscle move to get You should avoid doing 3 4
yourself pumped by moving the isolation move first
heavy weights. When you because this may fatigue
move on to the lighter weight your target muscle, which will
isolation move you completely be too tired to lift the heavy
fatigue the target muscle. This weight on the compound
is good for muscle growth move. This increases the strain
because you exhaust a high on your smaller supporting
number of muscle fibres. muscles, which may get
Your body then repairs those injured as a result.
5 6
Men’s Fitness 99
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Pyramid workout
T
o grow your muscles take a long time and could 1 2
you need to exhaust be counter-productive,
them so they repair to overtraining the muscle
be stronger than they were and sending the body into
before. The more fibres you a destructive metabolism.
exhaust, the greater your Instead, strategically insert
muscle growth. One way of pyramid sets into a workout.
maximising the number of There is more than one
fibres you stimulate is to do way of performing a pyramid
a pyramid workout. workout. You could start with
Essentially, pyramid a conventional muscle growth
workouts involve increasing rep count, such as 12, and
the weight you lift with each reduce the number of reps
set of an exercise while you do by two each set until
reducing the number of reps. you get to six reps. You can
This is good because there’s also do a reverse pyramid
no such thing as a slightly by starting with low reps and 3 4
activated muscle fibre – they ending with a high rep count.
are either engaged or not. By You can adjust your rep
taking a muscle through an counts depending on what
increasing range of weight you want to achieve. If your
while reducing the reps, you focus is on strength, start with
target each category of fibres fewer reps and go down to
in turn, completely exhausting as little as one rep for a set.
the whole muscle. You can also reduce your reps
before gradually increasing
Designing your workout them to finish with the same
Doing a whole workout of number of reps you completed
pyramid exercises would for your first set.
3 Dumb-bell curl
Sets: 2 Reps: 10 each side Page: 56
Wave-loading workout
T
here are a number of stability move before wave- 1 2
ways that you can do a loading for the strength move
wave-loading session and fully exhausting the target
but, essentially, they all involve muscle in an isolation move.
lifting a weight for a set then One option is to find your
cutting the reps but upping five repetition maximum for
the weight for the next set. an exercise then do four
From here you can either go reps. Rest for three minutes,
back to the original weight increase the weight by five per
and perform as many reps as cent then do three reps. Rest
you can or reduce the reps for three minutes, increase the
and up the weight for another weight by five per cent and
set before repeating that do two reps. Rest for three
sequence of three sets. minutes and repeat
Whatever way you decide that sequence.
to arrange a wave-loading An alternative – and the one
workout, it teaches your outlined in the sample workout
muscles to lift more weight in below – is to do a normal set
a single rep so it’s a good tool of eight reps then rest for two
to use if you’re struggling to minutes before loading extra
increase your maximum lift in weight on to your dumb-bells 3 4
a particular exercise. for a shorter set of four reps.
Another rest of two minutes is
Designing your workout followed by a final set in which
Wave-loading works well in you go back to the original
split routines because you can weight and do as many reps
activate the body part with a as possible, past eight reps.
2 Dumb-bell curl
Sets: 3 Reps: (wave loader) 8, 4, 8+ Page: 56 5 6
Unilateral workout
W
hen you lift a weight stabilising muscles because 1 2
with both sides you have to completely control
of your body, your the movement of the weight.
stronger side will work harder
in an effort to take the strain Designing your workout
off your weaker side. If you Unilateral workouts can be
continue to do lifts that work used to address muscle
both sides of your body imbalances, so do exercises
simultaneously, you may end that target muscle groups you
up with unbalanced muscles. think aren’t balanced on both
The solution is to do sides of your body. So, if you
unilateral workouts, which think one shoulder is stronger
involve working one side of than the other, do moves that
your body at a time. Doing target that body part, such as
that will force both sides of alternating shoulder presses. 3 4
your body to work equally You can combine unilateral
hard, resulting in equal muscle workouts with another workout
growth, which will make you style, such as an explosive
look better and reduce your workout where you only do
chances of getting injured. one-sided moves. The workout
Unilateral moves are also below is an example of a
good at developing your whole-body unilateral workout.
5 6
Cluster workout
I
f you find that your training of the penultimate exercise. 1 2
has hit a plateau, cluster Without resting, move on to
workouts will inject new the final exercise and do five
stimulus into your workouts. reps. Go straight back to the
There are a number of ways penultimate exercise and
of doing cluster workouts but alternate between the final
essentially they all involve two moves for five minutes,
reducing the load so you doing five reps of each without
can complete high reps resting. Make sure you chose
with little rest. The result is opposing or non-competing
that you lift a greater volume muscle groups, such as legs
of weight during your session, and shoulders, otherwise you’ll
which has a positive effect fatigue early.
on muscle growth and Other ways of doing cluster
calorie burn. workouts include doing single
reps with your three-rep
Designing your workout maximum with minimal rest 3 4
One of the simplest ways to between reps (ten seconds,
do a cluster workout is to do say) or clusters of low-rep
a normal workout until you sets of one exercise with
get to the final two exercises. your ten-rep maximum with
If you have done ten reps for minimal rest between groups
each move, stick with a weight of reps. However you choose
you would use to do ten reps to arrange your workouts, this
for the final two moves if you is an intense method so use
were continuing your standard it when you feel your progress
workout, but only do five reps has stalled.
Extra kit
introduction
Explore new workout options by
introducing three more bits of kit
A
dding a pull-up bar, and balance, and it can be
a medicine ball and a thrown and caught without
resistance band to your leaving dents in your floor or
home gym will open up new dislocations in your fingers.
areas of workout possibilities They can also be used to
without taking over your spare add resistance to bodyweight
room or using all your spare moves to make them
cash. This chapter shows sufficiently challenging
you the key moves you can to fatigue your muscles.
do with these new bits of kit Resistance bands are
and how you can use them to different to other weights
create new workouts. in your home gym because
A pull-up bar lets you the resistance increases
perform pull-ups and chin- towards the top of the move,
ups, two of the most effective which challenges your
moves for building muscle. muscles in a new way. They’re
A medicine ball lets you also cheap and easy to store,
exercise dynamically to which makes them a handy
improve your coordination home workout tool.
What it does
Resistance
bands are ideal
for home training
because of their
versatility. Think
of them as a
multi-gym without
What it does the weights – all you have to do is attach What it does
A pull-up bar will give you a great new one end to something stable, such as a In the real world the body moves at
muscle-building challenge. Performing standing foot or a door, and start pulling high speed and creates momentum
pull-ups (where your palms face away or pushing, altering the length of band to make it easier to move objects. The
from you) and chin-ups (where your to vary the resistance. faster you want to move something, the
palms face you) recruits a large number They also work your muscles in a greater the speed and strength you need.
of muscles, making them a great muscle different way from training with free This, essentially, is what we call power.
builder because they flood your body weights. When using free weights, Unfortunately, power is one of the most
with growth hormones. resistance is greatest at the start of the neglected aspects of training and few
While you’re hanging from the bar move. It then reduces as you gather people possess the muscle synergy and
you’re not in contact with the ground, momentum towards the top of the move. tone to control their body’s segments
which means you have a bigger With resistance bands, it’s the other way properly. That’s where medicine balls
potential range of motion. You can round, so they challenge your muscles in come in. They allow you to add power to
also work your hard-to -reach lower a different way, which can result in new a workout in a natural way. And if you get
abdominals, for an even development muscle growth. bored of working out at home, you can
of your six-pack. use them outdoors.
What to buy
What to buy There are two main types of resistance What to buy
The simplest bars can be adjusted band. The first comes without hand The weight of medicine ball you choose
to fit in a standard doorway. The straps, is made of latex rubber and is also should depend on what exercises you’re
downside is that you need to screw known as a stretchband. The other type is going to do. If you’re relatively new to
them into the frame to secure them sometimes called a resistance tube and working out and you’re only going to
in place. Some are designed to be fixed comes with handles at both ends, which buy one ball, opt for 3kg. If you’re more
there permanently, while others are more makes it easier to hold. experienced, go for 4kg or 5kg. Buying
temporary and involve attaching two Resistance tubes come in different more than one ball will allow you to use
rubber circles to your door frame, over levels of resistance. You can either the kit in exactly the way you want.
which you slot an adjustable bar. buy more than one and use different Leather balls look and feel nice but
If tampering with woodwork isn’t an bands, or use the same band and you can’t use them outside. Balls with
option you can get bars that mount adjust the length of the part of the handles are good for certain exercises
the doorframe without needing to be band you’re stretching. The best such as woodchops but are less good for
permanently secured. This option tends resistance bands are ones that allow throwing. Round rubber balls are nice to
to be slightly more expensive, but you to adjust the length so you can grip and easy to catch, and you won’t feel
obviously less intrusive. create tension as required. guilty about slamming them on the floor.
01
Chin-up
Start position
Target: Grasp the bar
with an underhand
biceps, lats grip, hands shoulder-
This challenging width apart
Cross your legs
multi-joint move
behind you and lower
gives your biceps to your full extension
a real test and without swinging
also helps to build
a strong back.
Movement
Pull up until your
chin is over the bar and
squeeze your biceps at
the top of the move
Lower slowly to the
start without swinging
02
Negative
chin-up
Target:
biceps, lats
If you find chin-
ups too difficult,
try doing just the
lowering phase by
starting on a bench
or getting a training
partner to lift you
to the up phase of
the move.
03
Pull-up
Target: lats, traps,
rhomboids
Using an overhand
grip for this classic
strength test puts
the emphasis on
Start position Movement your back muscles.
Grip the bar just Pull up until your
wider than shoulder- chin is over the bar
width apart with an and squeeze your
overhand grip lats as you rise
Extend your arms Lower slowly to the
fully and let your start without swinging
body hang down
without swinging
Fit tip
Strengthen your grip
If your hands fail before your arms
during pull-ups, grip the bar by closing
your thumb around the bar, then
wrapping fingers over thumbs
04
Negative
pull-up
Target: lats, traps,
rhomboids
If you find pull-
ups too difficult,
try doing just the
lowering phase by
starting on a bench
Start position Movement or getting a training
Grip the bar just Lower slowly until partner to lift you
wider than shoulder- your arms are fully
width apart with an extended to the up phase of
overhand grip the move.
Start with your chin
over the bar
05
Wide-grip
pull-up
Target: lats, traps,
rhomboids
Widening your
grip makes the
move harder and
puts more of an Movement
emphasis on Pull up until your
chin is over the bar and
your lats. Start position squeeze your lats as
Grip the bar wider you do so
than shoulder-width Lower slowly to the
apart with an overhand start without swinging
grip
Extend your arms
fully and let your body
hang down without
swinging
06
Hanging
knee raise
Target: lower
abdominals
Work the often-
neglected lower
abdominals to help
carve a six-pack.
Start position Movement
Use an overhand Use your abs to
grip, cross your legs draw your knees up
behind you and hang to your chest
down without swinging Pause for a second
at the top of the move,
then lower slowly
without letting your
body swing
07
Hanging
leg raise
Target: lower
abdominals
Keeping your legs
straight as you
Start position raise them up
Grip the bar wider is tougher than
than shoulder-width
apart with an overhand the knee raise
grip, with your legs but is great for
hanging down strengthening your
lower abs.
Movement
Raise your
legs until they
are parallel to
the floor.
08
Medicine
ball knee
raise
Target: lower
abdominals
Using a medicine
ball makes knee
Start position Movement raises more
Use an overhand Use your abs to challenging,
grip and hang without draw your knees up
swinging, gripping a to your chest allowing you to
medicine ball between Pause for a second fatigue at your
your knees at the top of the move, desired rep range
then lower slowly
without letting your once you’re good
body swing at standard knee
raises.
09
Twisting
knee raise
Target: lower abs,
obliques
Bring your side abs
into play for a more
complete core
workout by twisting
as you raise your Start position Movement
knees. Use an overhand Use your abs to draw
grip, cross your legs your knees up and out
behind you and hang to the side
without swinging Pause for a second
at the top of the move,
then lower slowly
without letting your
body swing, alternating
sides with each rep
10
Climbers
chin-ups
Target: lats, traps,
rhomboids
You don’t have to
be a climber to
get the benefits of
this move, which Start position Movement
increases upper- Take an overhand Perform a wide-grip
grip with hands slightly pull-up, then pull your
body strength further than shoulder- body towards one hand
and shoulder joint width apart Return the way
you came and repeat
stabilisation.
the move on the
opposite side
11
Mixed-grip
pull-up
Target: lats,
traps, rhomboids,
biceps, core
Taking a mixed
grip makes your
Start position body control the
Grab a pull-up bar rotational force for
with a mixed grip – one
palm facing you, the a stronger core.
other facing away
from you
Extend your arms
fully and let your body
hang without swinging
Movement
Pull up until your
chin is over the bar
and squeeze your lats
as you do so
Lower slowly to the
start without swinging
Movement
12
Lunge forward,
leading with the leg Medicine
on the opposite side ball lunge
to the ball at the start
As you lunge, chop
chop
the ball down and
across your body so it Target: whole
ends up outside your body
front knee
This move is
a great test of
balance and
coordination.
Start position Holding the lunge
Stand up straight position makes
with the ball raised over
one shoulder your core work
overtime as it tries
to stabilise your
hips and torso.
13 Start position
Start with your back
Medicine flat, your core engaged
ball and your feet shoulder-
width apart
woodchop Your knees should
be in line with your feet
Target: whole with your thighs almost
body parallel to the floor
Hold a medicine ball
This move recruits in both hands on the
the whole body outside of your thigh
to lift the ball but Movement
does it all through Lift the medicine
ball up and across your
the core so that body with straight but
the muscles in not locked arms
As you lift the ball,
your midriff put in a
twist your torso to
massive effort. the opposite side and
rise on to the toes
you’re twisting away
from, using your core
muscles to control
the movement
14
Medicine
ball reverse
crunch
Target: lower
abdominals
Adding extra
weight to a reverse
crunch will allow
you to build extra
muscle.
15
Medicine
ball passing
press-up
Target: chest,
triceps, core
Using a medicine
ball increases the
push and forces
you to stabilise
your shoulder joint.
16
Medicine
ball close
grip
press-up
Target: chest,
triceps, core
Positioning both
hands on top of
the medicine ball
ramps up the
demand placed
on your core and
shoulders.
17
Medicine
ball side
throw-downs
Target: obliques Movement
The throwing Throw the ball down
hard to the side
action works Start position Catch the ball on
your side abs Hold the ball directly the bounce and repeat
above your head the move on the
plyometrically,
opposite side
developing your
fast-twitch muscles
and increasing
your power
production.
18 Start position
Lie on your back
Medicine with your head and
ball leg drop shoulders on the floor
and your arms flat on
Target: lower abs, the floor for balance
Grip a medicine ball
hips, adductors between your feet with
Increase the your legs up in the air
resistance of
a standard leg
drop by placing
a medicine ball Movement
between your feet. Lower the ball as slowly
as you can under control
Stop before your heels
touch the floor and return
to the start
Fit tip
Target your lower abs
The lower section of the abs is the part
that’s most difficult to hit. To get a
six-pack rather than just a four-pack,
do medicine ball leg drops
Start position
19
Stand with your feet
shoulder-width apart, Medicine
your knees bent slightly, ball bent-
and lean forwards from
the hips, not the waist
over row
Keeping your
back straight and Target: lats, traps,
your shoulder blades rhomboids
retracted, hold a
Work your back
medicine ball in both
hands with your with the medicine
arms hanging ball variation of the
straight down
classic big muscle-
building move.
Movement
Pull the ball up to
your sternum then lower
it back to the start
20
Medicine
ball crunch
Target:
abdominals
Using a medicine
ball to perform a
crunch makes the
move harder so
you can fatigue
your muscles
without doing
an excessively
high number
Start position Movement of repetitions.
Begin with your knees Contract your abs to
bent at 90˚ and your feet lift your shoulders off the
flat on the floor floor without straining at
Hold the medicine ball the neck
on your chest with your Keep your lower back in
head slightly off the floor contact with the floor and
curl your chest towards
your knees
Pause at the top of the
move to squeeze your
abs and lower slowly to
the start
21
Medicine
ball tornado
chop
Target: obliques
This dynamic
move targets your
side abs and will Start position Movement
get your heart rate Hold the medicine Keeping your
ball in front of you at shoulders back, twist
up for a fat-burning chest height your torso as far as you
effect. can to one side without
losing balance
Come back the way
you came and twist
to the other side to
complete one rep
22
Medicine
ball Russian
twist
Target: lower abs,
obliques
This move
challenges two
areas of your mid-
section that are
easily neglected:
the lower abs
and obliques.
Start position
23
Squat with the
ball in both hands Medicine
between your legs ball sledge-
hammer
Movement
Straighten your legs Target: whole
and move powerfully
to bring the ball above body
your head This dynamic move
Keeping your back will get muscle
flat, bring the ball down
powerfully through your firing all over your
legs, bending your body and is great
knees as you go
for stabilising your
lower back.
24
Medicine
ball
overhead
squat
Target: quads,
Start position hamstrings, glutes
Stand with your feet Use a medicine
shoulder-width apart
and hold the ball in ball to test your
both hands above Movement shoulder stability
your head Lower into a squat before moving
while keeping the ball
directly above your head on to doing the
exercise with a
barbell.
25 Movement
Step forward into a
Medicine lunge and, as you do
ball walking so, push the medicine
ball out in front of you
lunge Bring your back leg
through to stand up
Target: whole straight and pull the ball
body back into your chest
Lunge forward with
Develop your the other leg
balance and Start position
coordination while Stand holding a
medicine ball in front
working a range of your chest
of muscle groups
with this functional
move.
26
Medicine
ball wall
throw
Target: chest,
triceps
Throwing the ball
at a wall or at a
partner makes it a Start position Movement
plyometric move, Stand holding In an explosive
a medicine ball level movement, extend your
which will develop with your chest arms to throw the ball
your fast-twitch away from you
muscle fibres and
increase your
explosive force
production.
27
Hammer curl
Target: biceps
Doing a hammer
curl as opposed
to a straight
biceps curl takes
the emphasis
Start position Movement away from your
Position your feet so Moving only at the biceps brachii and
you’re standing on the elbow, pull the band up
middle part of the band to your chest poses more of a
with an equal length Pause at the top challenge to your
of band either side of and lower slowly under
forearms.
your feet control
Hold the band so
that when your hands
are by your sides there
is some tension in
the band
29 Start position
Anchor one end of
One-arm the band under one
shoulder foot and grasp the
handle with the hand
press on the same side, palm
facing away from you at
Target: shoulders shoulder height
Doing this as a
one-arm move
brings your core
into play as it
works to keep your Movement
torso stable. Press the band
above your head
until your arm is
almost straight
Pause at the top
and return slowly to
the start
30
Lat pull- Start position Movement
Loop the band over Keeping your
down the top of a door and forearms parallel
kneel down, holding throughout the move,
Target: lats, both handles with bring your hands down
biceps your arms up and to your chest, squeezing
straight, slightly in your shoulder blades
Hook the band front of your head together at the bottom
over the top of a of the move
door to build a
stronger back.
31
Seated row
Target: traps, lats,
rhomboids
Work your back
muscles with this
simple but effective
move.
32
Standing
chest press
Target: chest
Adapt this classic
move by looping
the band around
your back to
Start position Movement develop your chest.
Loop the band Push your hands
behind your back at away from your body,
chest height and start keeping your forearms
with some tension in parallel to the ground
the band and your fists
level with your chest
33 Start position
Stand on the band
Squat and hold it so there’s
tension in the band
Target: quads, when you’re in the
‘down’ position
glutes, hamstrings
Using a resistance
band to do squats
increases the
resistance as you
stand up, working
your muscles in a Movement
different way to a Keeping your back
straight, push up
pair of dumb-bells through your heels to
or a barbell. a standing position
then lower slowly
back to the start
35
Crunch
Target:
abdominals
The resistance
band increases
the difficulty of the
move so you can
work your abs even
harder.
Start position
36
Hold the band in
each hand with one Lunge
foot over the middle
of the band Target: glutes,
Take a step quads, hamstrings
backwards with your
other foot so that the Work your entire
thigh of the leg securing lower body with
the band is parallel to
this dynamic move
the floor – making sure
there’s tension in the that tests your
bend in this position coordination.
Movement
Drive up with your
back foot to return to
the start
Swap legs each set
37 Start position
Stand with one foot
Lateral raise slightly in front of the
other and the band
Target: deltoids beneath it
Hold one end of the
This move will
band in each hand
strengthen your with your arms
shoulders and by your sides
make them look
broader.
Movement
Raise your arms
straight out to your
sides but don’t go
beyond shoulder height
Pause at the top of
the move and lower
slowly under control
38 Start position
Stand on the band
Woodchop with your feet slightly
wider than shoulder-
Target: whole width apart and your
body knees slightly bent.
Hold the handles in
Use this dynamic both hands
movement to
build a strong core
and improve your Movement
upper-to-lower Draw the band up
and to one side in
body force transfer. a chopping motion,
rotating your torso
as you go
Pause at the top,
then return to the start
the way you came
Start position
39
Stand on the band
with your feet shoulder- Biceps curl
width apart
Start with your arms Target: biceps
down by your sides and Using a resistance
your palms facing front
with some tension in band will work
the band your muscles in
a different way to
using dumb-bells,
giving you new
muscle growth for
this classic move.
Movement
Curl your hands up
to your chest, pivoting at
your elbow, then lower
slowly to the start
40
Chest flye
Target: chest
This move takes
the focus away
from your arm
muscles and
concentrates it
on your chest.
Start position
Loop the band Movement
through a door handle With a slight bend
or other secure point in your arm, pull the
at chest height band in a horizontal arc
Hold each handle until it’s in front of your
with your hands out chest, then return slowly
to the sides at chest to the start
height, making sure
there’s some tension
in the band
Full-body workout
I
ncorporating your new bits Designing your workouts 1 2
of kit into your full-body The important thing to
workouts will increase remember when designing
your workout options. That, in full-body workouts is that they
turn, will make you less likely need to be balanced. So, for
to plateau and more likely to every pushing motion you
continue to build muscle. should do a pulling one, and
Even with a broader range you should spend as much
of kit involved, full-body time on your upper body as
workouts are still an efficient you do on your lower. Stick to
way of working out because compound moves (ones that
they allow you to work a large work several muscle groups 3 4
range of muscle fibres in a at once) because these will
relatively short space of time. give you maximum muscle
You may find it difficult to fully development.
exhaust your muscle fibres Leave any abs moves to the
during full-body workouts end of your workout because
but you can combine them you don’t want them to be
with body focus workouts (an fatigued when you perform big
example of which is opposite). moves such as pull-ups.
5 6
2 Sledgehammer
Sets: 3 Reps: 12 Page: 121
7
3 Overhead squat
Sets: 3 Reps: 12 Page: 121
4 Walking lunge
Sets: 2 Reps: 10 each side Page: 122
6 Woodchop
Sets: 2 Reps: 10 each side Page: 116
I
f you’re really serious about you may find that you need to
getting bigger and stronger, graduate to lifting something
a good barbell and bench heavier for big compound
will give you maximum muscle moves such as squats and
growth. This chapter will give deadlifts. A barbell will let you
you an arsenal of big muscle load up the weights, which
moves and show you how to in turn will have a positive
use your bench and bar – as effect on the size and strength
well as how to combine them of your muscles. Some big
with the other pieces of kit barbell lifts, such as a bench
in the book – to achieve the press, require a bench
body you want. because you need a solid
Once you get used to base upon which to perform
exercising with dumb-bells, the move.
Barbell and
bench gear guide
Get ready to start lifting heavy by using a barbell and bench
Bench
Barbell
01 Start position
Stand tall with your
Barbell curl shoulders retracted, your
elbows tucked into your
Target: biceps sides and your core
braced
Barbells allow you
Hold the barbell just
to up the load you outside your hips
lift for a biceps
curl, shocking your
muscles into new
growth.
Movement
Lift the weight
without rocking back
to use momentum,
stopping just before
your forearms reach
vertical
Lower the weight
under control and keep
your elbows tucked in
throughout the move
02
Barbell
rollout
Target: core
Engage your abs
and your lower
back to stabilise
your core. The
further you roll the
bar, the harder the
move becomes.
05
Shrug
Target: upper
traps
Doing this move
will increase your
shoulder girdle
stability, reducing
your chances of
injuring yourself
during shoulder
workouts.
06
Upright row
Target: upper
traps, shoulders
Hit both your
traps and your
shoulders with this
simple move that
develops vertical
pulling strength.
It’s also a useful
move to practise
explosively before
you move on to the
more challenging
hang clean.
07
Good
morning
Target: lower
back, hamstrings,
glutes
This move will
Start position strengthen your
Stand with your feet middle back as
shoulder-width apart,
your core braced and well as your glutes
your shoulders back. and hamstrings,
Rest the bar across the but you’ll need to
back of your shoulders,
not on your neck maintain perfect
Keep your shoulders form to avoid injury.
back, bend your knees
slightly and keep a
natural arch in your
lower back
Movement
Lean forward until
you feel a stretch in your
hamstrings, but don’t go
beyond horizontal
08
Bench press
Target: chest
This classic test
of strength will
help you build a
muscular chest.
Start position
09 Set the bench at 30-45˚, brace your core
and keep your feet flat on the floor
Incline Grip the bar with hands slightly wider than
shoulder-width apart
bench press Remove the bar from the rack and hold it
directly above your chest
Target: upper
chest, front
shoulder, triceps
Tilt the back
support of the
bench to hit your
chest from a
new angle and
work your front
shoulders and
triceps.
Movement
Lower the bar slowly
to your chest and press
up powerfully
Keep your elbows to
the sides and don’t arch
your back
10
Decline
bench press
Target: lower
chest
Change the angle
of the bench again
to make sure you
give your chest a
balanced workout.
11
Close grip
bench press
Target: triceps,
chest
By bringing your
hands closer
together on the
bench press,
you transfer the
emphasis of the
exercise to your
triceps.
12
Ballistic
bench press
Target: chest
Push the bar up
explosively, as if
you were going to
throw it, to activate
your fast-twitch
muscle fibres. Just
remember to hold
on to the bar.
13 Movement
Lower until your
Squat thighs are parallel to
the floor, keeping your
Target: quads, knees in line with your
toes and a natural arch
glutes, hamstrings
in your back
This must-do Push back up
lower-body move through your heels
will flood your
body with muscle Start position
growth hormones Stand with your feet
shoulder-width apart
and improve your and your toes turned
body’s ability to out slightly
Rest the bar on the
stabilise itself.
back of your shoulders,
rather than your neck,
and grip the bar close
to your shoulders
Keep your elbows
back and your core
braced
14 Start position
Sink down into a
Jump squat squat, holding on to the
bar securely
Target: quads,
glutes, hamstrings
Add a jump to your
squat to add a
plyometric element
to your workout.
Movement
Push up explosively
so your feet leave the
ground. Land with a
controlled movement
and sink into another
squat before exploding
up again
15
Overhead
squat
Target: quads,
glutes, hamstrings
Performing the
move with the
weight above your
head tests your
posture because
Start position Movement poor shoulder
Hold a light bar Lower into a squat, mobility will force
above your head and keeping the bar directly
keep your arms straight above your head, but the weight forward
only go as low as you as you squat.
can without causing
your back to arch
forward
Movement
16
Lower until your
thighs are parallel to Front squat
the floor, keeping your
knees in line with your Target: quads
toes and your elbows Placing the bar on
as high as you can
Push back up the front of your
powerfully through shoulders forces
your heels
your back to be
more upright and
shifts the emphasis
Start position on to your quads
Stand with your feet and away from
shoulder-width apart,
your back upright and your lower back.
your core braced
Rest the bar on the
front of your shoulders
with your elbows
pointing forwards
17 Movement
Take a big step
Lunge forward, making sure
your torso is upright,
Target: glutes, the front foot is over
your front knee and your
hamstrings,
back knee is almost
quads touching the floor
Boost your power Push off your front
foot to return to the start
and coordination
with this classic
functional lower-
body move.
Start position
Stand with your feet
slightly apart, your back
upright and your core
braced
18
Split squat
Target: quads,
glutes, hamstrings
This move is
like a lunge but
you start with
one foot forward,
which is less of a
coordination test Start position
but allows you Start in a split stance
with both feet facing
to lift heavier forwards
weights than a Rest the bar on the Movement
back of your shoulders Sink down into the
standard lunge.
and keep your elbows down part of a lunge
back to retract your then return to the start
shoulder blades
Movement
Keeping your torso 19
upright, lower until your front
thigh is almost horizontal Bulgarian
Keep your front knee in
line with your foot
split squat
Target: quads,
Start position glutes
Rest your back foot Placing your back
on the bench and plant
your front foot facing foot on the bench
forwards half a metre concentrates all the
from the bench effort on to the front
Keep your hips
square to your body, foot, giving you a
your core braced unilateral workout
and your torso
and balanced
upright
Rest the bar on muscle gain.
the back of your
shoulders and
look straight
ahead
22
Shoulder
press
Target: deltoids
This must-do move
will add strength
and size to your
shoulders.
Start position Movement
Stand with your feet Keep looking forward
shoulder-width apart, and press the bar
your core braced and overhead without tilting
your body upright your hips forward
Looking straight
ahead, grip the bar just
wider than shoulder
width apart and hold it
on your upper chest
23
Push press
Target: deltoids
Use your legs to
initiate the move,
which will allow
you to press more
weight and will
Movement improve your
Start position Push up with your dynamic pushing
Bend your knees knees and arms at the
same time power.
slightly with feet
shoulder-width apart,
your core braced and
body upright
Looking straight
ahead, grip the bar just
wider than shoulder
width apart and hold it
on your upper chest
24
Shoulder
press with
rotation
Target: deltoids,
core
Work your
shoulders and core
simultaneously
by calling on your
Start position Movement midsection to
Stand with your feet As you press the control the rotation.
shoulder-width apart, bar up, rotate your body
your core braced and to the side
your body upright Use your core
Looking straight muscle to control the
ahead, grip the bar just motion, alternating sides
wider than shoulder with each rep
width apart and hold it
on your upper chest
Start position A B C
26 Start in a
deadlift position
Clean & jerk
Target:
whole body
This Olympic
lift hits virtually
every muscle
in your body for
an explosive,
challenging
workout.
D E F Movement
Pull the bar explosively to
your chest, keeping your elbows
high and rising up onto your
toes to gain power [B]
Bend your knees to duck
under the bar at its highest
point, flipping the bar on to your
fingers and catching it on top
of your chest [C]
Stand up straight to steady
yourself [D] then drop into a
lunge, simultaneously pressing
the bar overhead [E]
Stand up straight to complete
the move [F]
A B C D
28
Snatch
Target: whole
body
The other Olympic
lift develops total-
body strength and
power production.
It requires high
levels of technique
and concentration
so pay attention to
your form.
Start position Movement
Start in a deadlift position Pull the bar explosively
to your chest, keeping your
elbows high and rising
up onto your toes to gain
power [B]
Fit tip Duck beneath the bar to
catch it with straight arms,
Stand tall keeping your back in its
natural arch [C]
Before doing any big lift, imagine
Stand up straight [D]
reaching towards the ceiling with before resetting the bar
the top of your head to correct your and repeating the move
posture and lift your shoulders
Start position
Start with your
core braced, you
back straight and
grip the bar in front
of your thighs
Full-body workout
F
ull-body workouts allow Designing your workout 1 2
you to work a large The most important thing
number of muscle fibres in a full-body routine is
in one session. They should balance. You need an equal
involve multi-joint moves that number of pushing and
hit several muscle groups at pulling movements, and you
once and flood the body with should spend roughly the
growth hormones. They’re also same amount of time on your
a good option if you’re new upper and lower body. Using
to training because they get compound exercises (multi-
your muscles used to weight joint moves that work several
training without putting them muscle groups at once) will
under too much stress. give you the best training effect.
The downside of a full- Leave abs exercises to the 3 4
body workout is that it’s hard end of your workout because
to fully exhaust your muscle you don’t want to exhaust your
fibres when using this method, core muscles before they’re
so you may want to also do called on to stabilise your
some more muscle-specific spine in more demanding
sessions (which are explained moves such as the squat or
in this section). the pull-up.
5 6
7 Dumb-bell woodchop
Sets: 2 Reps: 10 each side Page: 86
5 6
Body focus sample workout
Upper back and lats
1 Lat pull-down | Sets: 2 Reps: 10 Page: 124
5 6
Superset workout
A
superset workout will ensure balanced muscle 1 Superset A
let you work a huge development.
number of muscles in Other forms include non-
relatively short period of time competing supersets, which
because you do two exercises target unrelated muscle
back to back before resting. groups, such as pairing a
Any two exercises can be lower-body move with an
paired together to form a upper-body one, and post-
superset but the most exhaustion supersets, in
popular option, and the which you do a multi-joint
one we’ve selected for the move followed by a single-
workout on this page, is to joint move targeting the same 2 Superset B
create antagonistic supersets, body part.
in which the two moves work
opposing body parts. An Designing your workout
example would be to perform For each exercise, find one
an incline bench press, which that works its polar opposite,
works your upper chest, then so if you do one exercise
go straight into a bent-over that targets your quads do
row, which works your back. another that targets your
The advantage of antagonistic hamstrings. Biceps exercises
supersets is that they give should be paired with triceps
one body part a chance moves and so on. After each
to rest while the opposing superset, rest for two minutes
muscle group is working to and repeat.
3 Superset C
2 Superset B 4 Superset D
Front squat | Stiff-legged deadlift
Sets: 3 Reps: 10-12 Pages: 147, 150
3 Superset C
Barbell curl | Gym ball lying triceps extension
Sets: 3 Reps: 10-12 Pages: 140, 59
4 Superset D
Dumb-bell crunch | Gym ball back extension
Sets: 3 Reps: 10-12 Pages: 61, 66
5 6
Post-exhaustion workout
A
s we saw in the dumb- you move on to the lighter 1 2
bell and gym ball weight isolation move to
section, weight training completely fatigue the
exercises can be divided target muscle.
into two main categories: For example, if you’re
compound moves and training your back, you
isolation moves. Compound could do a bent-over row, for
exercises use several muscle example, which recruits your
groups at once while isolation lats, traps and rhomboids. You
exercises target one muscle could then do a bent-over
group on its own. Post- reverse dumb-bell flye, which
exhaustion training involves works your upper back.
pairing a compound move You must avoid doing the
with an isolation one. isolation move first because 3 4
this may fatigue your target
Designing your workout muscle. Then when you come
In post-exhaustion workouts, to lift the heavy weight of a
the compound move always compound move your smaller
comes first. The theory is stabilising muscles will be
that you do a big muscle under increased strain, which
move to get yourself pumped can increase your chances
by moving heavy weights, then of injury.
5 6
Pyramid workout
E
ssentially, pyramid other hand, will give you all the 1 2
workouts involve benefits of this method.
increasing the weight There is more than one
you lift with each set of an way to perform a pyramid
exercise while reducing the workout. One way, outlined
number of reps. This is good below, is to start with a
because there’s no such thing conventional muscle growth
as a slightly activated muscle rep count, such as ten, and
fibre – it’s either engaged reduce the number of reps
completely or not at all. By you do by two each set
taking a muscle through an until you get to four reps.
increasing range of weight You can also include a
while reducing the reps, you reverse pyramid by starting
target each category of fibres with low reps and ending
in turn, completely exhausting with a high rep count.
the whole muscle. You can adjust your rep
counts depending on what
Designing your workout you want to achieve. If your
Doing a whole workout of focus is on strength, start with 3 4
pyramid exercises would fewer reps and go down to
take a long time and could as little as one rep for a set.
be counter-productive, You can also gradually reduce
overtraining the muscle your reps before gradually
and sending the body into increasing them, so you finish
a destructive metabolism. with the same number of
Strategically inserting pyramid reps you completed for your
sets into a workout, on the first set.
5 6
Drop set sample workout
Legs and shoulders
1 Med ball overhead squat | Sets: 3 Reps: 10 Page: 121
3 Squat | Sets: 3 (final set drop set) Reps: 10-12 Page: 146
Wave-loading workout
T
here are a number of move before wave loading for 1 2
ways that you can do a the strength move and fully
wave-loading session exhausting the target muscle
but, essentially, they all involve in an isolation move.
lifting a weight for a set then One option for wave-loading
cutting the reps but upping moves is to find your five-rep
the weight for the next set. maximum for an exercise, then
From here you can either go do four reps. Rest for three
back to the original weight minutes, increase the weight
and perform as many reps as by five per cent then do three
you can or reduce the reps reps. Rest for three minutes,
and up the weight for another increase the weight by five
set before repeating that per cent and do two reps.
sequence of three sets. Rest for three minutes and
Whatever way you decide repeat the process.
to arrange your wave-loading An alternative, and the
workout, the method teaches one outlined in the sample 3 4
your muscles to lift more workout on this page, is to do
weight in a single rep so it’s a normal set of eight reps then
a good tool to use if you’re rest for two minutes before
struggling to increase your loading extra weight onto your
maximum lift for an exercise. dumb-bells for a shorter set of
four reps. Another rest of two
Designing your workout minutes is followed by a final
Wave-loading workouts set in which you go back to
work well in split routines the original weight and crank
because you can activate out as many reps as possible,
the body part with a stability taking you past eight reps.
5 6
Wave-loading sample workout
1 Good morning | Sets: 3 Reps: 10-12 Page: 143
Cluster workout
C
luster workouts are a Without resting, move on to 1 2
good way of injecting the final exercise and do five
new stimulus into your reps. Go straight back to the
workouts. There are a number penultimate exercise and
of ways of doing cluster alternate between the final
workouts but essentially they two moves for five minutes,
all involve reducing the load doing five reps of each without
so you can cut your rest times. resting. Make sure you chose
The result is that you lift a opposing or non-competing
greater volume of weight in a muscle groups such as legs
session, which has a positive and back, otherwise you’ll
effect on muscle growth and fatigue early.
calorie burn. Other ways of doing cluster
workouts include doing single
Designing your workout reps with your three-rep
One of the simplest ways to maximum with minimal rest
do a cluster workout is to do between reps (ten seconds, 3 4
a normal workout until you say) or clusters of low-rep
get to the final two exercises. sets of one exercise with
If you have done ten reps for your ten-rep maximum using
each move, stick with a weight minimal rest between groups
that you’d use to do ten reps of reps. However you choose
for the final two moves if you to arrange your workouts, this
were continuing your standard is an intense method so use
workout but only do five reps it when you feel your progress
of the penultimate exercise. has stalled.
5a 5b
Cluster sample workout
1 Side lunge | Sets: 2 Reps: 10 each side Page: 73
4 Dumb-bell woodchop
Sets: 2 Reps: 10 each side Page: 86
Kettlebell
introduction
Use the traditional Russian strongman
tool to build muscle and boost strength
T
he last few years has a kettlebell, the ball is in front of
seen a resurgence in the your forearm, so it’s an extra link
use of kettlebells, those in the chain. That makes them
cannonball-shaped weights more difficult to control, but it also
with handles that were popular means your muscles work harder
with Russian strongmen. They’re to complete the exercises.
an excellent addition to your Another benefit is that they
home gym but many people build intramuscular teamwork
are intimidated by their unusual because you’re forced to use
shape. It’s easy to imagine higher levels of coordination
getting a move wrong and than you would when slinging
smashing the weight into either dumb-bells or a barbell around.
your head or a family heirloom. With a barbell snatch, you have
If you follow the guides in to coordinate your lower and
this chapter, however, you’ll be upper body, but in a very vertical
surprised how easy it is to way. With a kettlebell you’re
master basic moves such as moving around it to try to change
the swing. Once you build your the angle of pull. It’s as if you’re
confidence you can attempt wrestling with the kettlebell to
satisfying whole-body moves such get it where you want it.
as the snatch and Turkish get-up. The speed at which you
perform exercises is also
Mysterious movement different. A lot of barbell and
One thing you will notice is that dumb-bell exercises are done
kettlebells move in a very different at a very sedate pace. But if you
way to dumb-bells. In short, they move the weight quickly, which
have a tendency to do their own you do with a kettlebell, you fire
thing. Dumb-bells have linear up lots of fast-twitch muscle
movements and the weight sits fibres and that will help you to
in the centre of your hand. With get bigger and stronger.
T
he main thing you 16kg kettlebell
need to look at when
choosing a kettlebell is
where it sits on your arm. That If you’re a man with some
is dictated by the length of weight training experience,
the handle. Cheap kettlebells start with a 16kg kettlebell,
tend to have smaller handles, which is heavy enough to test
which means the ball sits you but light enough for high-
on the bones at the back of rep cardio work. This is one
the wrist, where there’s no pood – the standard Russian
cushioning. That encourages unit of kettlebell measurement.
you to drop the wrist back,
so the ball lands lower down,
which exposes your tendons
and ligaments to injury
and reduces the amount of
Adjustable kettlebell
pressure you can put through
the kettlebell. If you’re flush with cash
but pushed for space, an
adjustable kettlebell will allow
you to lift different weights
without cluttering your home.
It’s also handy because you
may be able to lift more
weight for easier exercises
such as a two-arm swing
than you are for trickier
moves such as a windmill.
Competition kettlebell
Competition-grade kettlebells
are designed with the same
dimensions, so there’s no
difference in size between
a 32kg and 16kg model,
meaning you don’t have to
get used to lifting a slightly
differently shaped object. This
is handy if you’re planning to
work up in weight.
Kettlebell | Exercises
A B C
01 Start with your Swing the kettlebell Use the
feet shoulder-width back between your legs momentum of
apart, holding the Extend your legs and the leg drive,
Two-arm kettlebell in both push your hips forwards rather than
swing hands with your arms as you rise up an arm pull,
straight and just forward to move the
This is the most of your shoulders kettlebell up
Lift the kettlebell in an arc until
basic move and
off the floor it’s just above
should be the your head
foundation of all Move back
the way you
kettlebell workouts. came and
repeat the move,
without letting
the kettlebell
touch the floor
A B C
02 Start with your feet Swing the kettlebell
shoulder-width apart, back between your legs
holding the kettlebell in Extend your legs and
One-arm one hand with your arm push your hips forwards
swing straight and just forward as you rise up
of your shoulders
Once you’ve Lift the kettlebell off
the floor
mastered the
two-arm swing
try this move,
Use the
which requires momentum of
more strength the leg drive,
rather than
and core control to
an arm pull,
move the kettlebell. to move the
kettlebell up
in an arc until
it’s just above
your head
Move back
the way you
came and
repeat the
move, without
letting the
kettlebell
touch the floor
Exercises | Kettlebell
A B C
Start with your Swing the kettlebell Use the 03
feet shoulder-width back between your legs momentum of the
apart, holding the Extend your legs and leg drive, rather than
kettlebell in both hands push your hips forwards an arm pull, to swing
American
with your arms straight as you rise up the kettlebell until swing
and just forward of it is directly over
your shoulders your head. Control When swinging the
Lift the kettlebell the deceleration
weight above your
off the floor and make sure the
kettlebell doesn’t head, the control
move beyond the of the deceleration
vertical or flip on
to your forearms
– and the effect on
Move back the way your back muscles
you came and repeat – becomes more
the move, without
letting the kettlebell important if you
touch the floor want to avoid
sending the weight
beyond vertical.
A B C
Start performing When the Go straight into the 04
a one-arm swing kettlebell is next swing, alternating
at its highest hands on each rep
point, switch it
Swing
from one hand swap
to the other
Switching hands
on each rep will
force you to be
in perfect control
of the kettlebell.
Make sure you do
it somewhere that
won’t matter if you
drop the kettlebell.
Kettlebell | Exercises
A B
05
Halo
Rotating the
Hold the kettlebell
kettlebell around with both hands by
your head will give the horns
you strong and
stable shoulders.
A B
06
Clean and press the Keeping your arm
Windmill kettlebell into the start straight in the air,
position (see p179) unlock your knees
This classic and lean your torso
forwards and to the
kettlebell move side so your other hand
tests the strength travels down your leg
Make sure you keep
of your stabiliser
looking at the kettlebell
muscles, in throughout the move
particular your
lower back, core
and shoulders.
Exercises | Kettlebell
A B
07
Take your left hand
Around
off the kettlebell and body pass
swing it to your right
in as wide an arc as Controlling the
possible, until it’s
behind your back
weight outside
Pass the kettlebell the line of your
into your left hand body requires
Swing the kettlebell
around to your left, a high level of
bringing it as high as core control.
possible as it comes It also works
back to the front
Change hands and your shoulders.
repeat the movement
Change the direction
of the kettlebell by
squatting and passing
the kettlebell through
your legs from the front
to your other hand,
then standing up and
Stand with your feet continuing the move
shoulder-width apart,
gripping the horns of the
kettlebell in both hands
A B
Swing the kettlebell 08
around your body
Switch hands
As it comes around
to the front, bend your and continue to Figure
knees and guide the swing the kettlebell of eight
kettlebell between around your body
your legs As you swing it This move requires
around to the front,
bend your knees and high levels of
guide the kettlebell coordination and
between your legs and control if you want
into your other hand
to avoid smashing
the kettlebell into
your legs.
Kettlebell | Exercises
A C
09 Start with the
kettlebell on the
floor, then swing it
Clean backwards slightly to
generate momentum
This is the simplest
and most efficient
way of getting the
kettlebell from the
floor to the rack
position where you
finish the move.
B
As the kettlebell
swings forwards and
past waist height,
pull it towards you
while bending your
elbow and rotating
your wrist slightly
Exercises | Kettlebell
A B
Start with the As the kettlebell 10
kettlebell on the swings forwards and
floor, then swing it past waist height,
backwards slightly to pull it towards you
Clean
generate momentum while bending your and press
elbow and rotating
your wrist slightly This is a classic
kettlebell move.
If you’re struggling
to press it
overhead, you
can use a push
press, which
involves bending
your knees slightly
before explosively
straightening
them to aid
the movement.
C D
Drop your elbow Press the weight
and control the directly overhead
kettlebell so it nestles
rather than flips on
to your forearm
Kettlebell | Exercises
A B
11 Start with your feet Extend your legs
shoulder-width apart, and push your hips
forwards as you rise,
One-arm holding the kettlebell in
one hand with your arm using momentum
swing snatch straight and just forward to lift the kettlebell
of your shoulders As the kettlebell
This is a technical Lift the kettlebell off reaches shoulder height,
the floor, then swing it pull it back towards
lift, so make sure
back between your legs the body slightly so
you have mastered the handle is just
more basic moves below the weight
such as the swing
and the clean
before including
it in your workouts.
C D
Punch forwards to Press the weight
cradle the kettlebell overhead, still using the
gently on your forearm momentum gained from
the leg and hip drive
The kettlebell should
be directly above the
shoulder at the end
of the move, so make
sure your arm isn’t
completely vertical
Exercises | Kettlebell
A B
Lie on the floor with
one arm out to your
Bend your knee on
the kettlebell side and
12
side for balance and plant your foot near
the other vertical and your backside Turkish
holding the kettlebell get-up
Moving from lying
to standing with
the weight above
your head requires
high levels of
coordination.
C D
As you plant Extend your
your foot, rise on to supporting arm fully
the elbow of your
supporting arm
E F G
Move on to the knee Take your hand Stand up, keeping
of the leg that was flat off the floor and the kettlebell above
on the floor move your torso to your head
an upright position
Kettlebell | Exercises
A B
13
Front
squat
Performing a squat
while holding the
kettlebell in the
rack position will
work your core as
well as your legs.
Start in the
rack position
A B
14 Bend your knees
until your thighs are
Goblet at least parallel to the
squat floor, keeping your back
upright and your knees
in line with your toes
This squat
encourages
good technique
by forcing you
to keep your
weight on your
heels so you don’t
topple forwards.
Exercises | Kettlebell
A B
Keeping your raised
15
leg straight, bend your
standing knee until Pistol
your thigh is at least squat
parallel to the floor,
keeping your back
upright and your knee
This is a real test
in line with your toes of leg strength,
balance and
flexibility. Make
sure your legs are
warmed up before
you attempt it.
A B
16
Swing
to squat
Bend your knees Combining two
and sink into a squat
As you rise up,
moves gets your
push the kettlebell heart pumping
forwards and go and helps to
straight into the
next swing torch calories.
Start performing
a two-arm swing
(see p174)
As the kettlebell
reaches shoulder
height, control
the deceleration
and flip it so it is
upside down
Kettlebell | Exercises
A B
17 Keeping your back
straight, bend at the
hips rather than the
One-leg waist to send the
Romanian kettlebell down the
deadlift front of your leg
A B
18 Stand with your
feet shoulder-width
One-arm apart, holding the
kettlebell in one
high pull hand with your
arm straight
This is a fairly easy Sink into a squat
move to master, so the kettlebell is
between your feet,
so you can do it just in front of the
explosively with ankles and slightly
little risk of injury. towards the side
you’ll be working
Drive through
your heels to
straighten your legs
and initiate movement
of the kettlebell
Push your hips
forwards, allowing
momentum from
the leg drive to bring
the kettlebell up to
your shoulder
Exercises | Kettlebell
A B
Start performing 19
a one-arm swing
(see p174)
Swing
to row
This is similar to a
As the kettlebell
rises above your waist, clean but doesn’t
pull your elbow back involve catching
Control the it on your forearm,
deceleration of the
weight, then push which means it is
it forwards into the a less intimidating
next swing
move to attempt.
A B
Sit on the floor with
your knees bent at 90˚
Twist the kettlebell
from side to side while 20
and your back at a 45˚ looking straight ahead
angle to the floor, to make sure you keep Russian
holding the kettlebell
in front of you
your back straight twist
Most kettlebell
moves tax your
core and abs, but
this one specifically
works that area,
particularly your
side abs.
Kettlebell | Workouts
Cardio workout
U
sing a kettlebell is swings are two great all- 1
a great way to get a body moves, the snatch and
cardio training effect the clean and press. Both
while weight training. The of these involve moving the
main reasons for this are the kettlebell from the floor to
big range of movement and above your head, which calls
the multiple muscle groups on every major muscle group
involved in key moves. in your body to work together.
This workout is built
around the swing move. How to do this workout
There are three different Complete all the exercises
types of swing because it’s in order for the designated
the easiest move with a big period of time. After the last
range of motion to master. move, rest for between 90
That means you can do it seconds and two minutes
safely, even when you begin before starting again. Aim to
to get tired. Between the complete up to six rounds.
Workouts | Kettlebell
2 3
4 5
Kettlebell | Workouts
Strength workout
T
o build muscle and The rest of the workout 1
strength you need to alternates between upper
perform compound and lower body moves, to
exercises – ones that target allow you to maintain a high
multiple muscle groups work rate without fatiguing
simultaneously. This workout one part of your body.
hits every part of your body,
starting with the Turkish get- How to do this workout
up, one of the most effective Complete the moves in
kettlebell moves. It involves order for the designated
high levels of coordination number of reps. After the last
and stability, as you go move, rest for between 90
from lying to standing while seconds and two minutes
holding the weight above before starting again. Aim to
your head. complete up to six rounds.
Workouts | Kettlebell
2 3
5 6
Home gym
machines guide
If you have the space and funds, home gym
machines can help to improve your fitness
Cardio machines If you decide to buy a piece cardio training if you want to
Doing cardio workouts will of cardio equipment you’ll be become aerobically fitter.
improve an important aspect confronted by a bewildering
of your fitness. It is possible array of options, ranging from Multigyms
to get a cardio effect from bargain products to ones that The quality of home multigyms
weight training, as we’ve seen cost the same as a small has improved enormously in
in the sample circuit workouts car. What you go for depends recent years. The best ones
in each kit chapter. But if you on your budget and your now mimic the movements
really want to improve your exercise goals but, whatever you make when using
cardio ability, and enter races, your funds and aspirations, freeweights, which allows
you could benefit from buying this section will give you the you to push yourself without
a cardio machine. knowledge needed to make getting trapped under a
The main types of cardio the right choice. We’ve also heavy barbell. They’re also
machine are treadmills, given you three different types increasingly space efficient.
stationary bikes and rowing of cardio session to try for The cheaper options will
machines. You can of course each type of kit. lock you into fixed planes of
run and cycle outside, and If you do get a cardio motion, so it’s the machine,
both of those activities are machine, avoid doing the rather than your muscles, that
fantastic at improving your same session over and over controls a large part of the
cardio fitness, but a machine again. You’ll soon get bored movement. More sophisticated
is a convenient weather- and stop improving. In the (and, therefore, expensive)
immune option. And unless same way that you need machines may either have
you live near a lake and have to keep challenging your cables, where movement
access to boats, an indoor muscles if you want to get patterns aren’t fixed, or the
rower is also probably going bigger and stronger, you need option to switch between fixed
to be more convenient. to make sure you vary your path and freeweights.
What is cardio?
Cardio fitness essentially refers to your body’s ability to generate energy through the
circulation of blood and oxygen. You can improve your cardio fitness by doing aerobic
exercise, which is any activity that you can sustain for more than a few minutes that
requires your heart and lungs to work harder in order to meet your body’s demand for
oxygen. Running, cycling and rowing will all increase your cardio fitness, helping you
to exercise for longer and burn more calories, as
well as improving your heart
and lung function.
Rowing workouts
Do these sessions to get fit and stay motivated
Stroke intervals 500s Rowing pyramids
Row at an easy pace for a few minutes to warm Do 500m to warm up, then reset the counter. Warm up for five minutes then row for two
up, reset the counter then find a stroke rate Accelerate into the next 500m and note the minutes at a pace of 26 strokes per minute.
that puts you at a slightly harder pace for five time that you achieve. Then recover for 500m. Increase the stroke rate every two minutes until
minutes. Then explode into action, increasing Accelerate for another 500m and try to beat you get to 32 strokes per minute before working
your stroke rate by five to ten strokes per minute your previous time. Continue this pattern for 20 back down to 26 per minute. Then do five hard
and hold this rate for 60 seconds. Drop back minutes, trying to make each interval faster than rows followed by five easy rows. Repeat but
down to the previous stroke rate for five minutes the last. increase the rows by five each time until you
and increase it by five to ten again for another get to 25 before working back down to five.
60 seconds. Repeat once more to complete Warm down by rowing at an easy pace for
your workout. five minutes.
Console
As a minimum, this should give you
readings for time and distance – though
some rowers calculate distance in
different ways. More advanced rowers
allow you to tailor your programme, but
as long as you can do timed intervals
you should be fine.
Transmission
Look for chains or straps, which
give a positive feel to the oar action
without any stretching or give as you
accelerate. Rope transmission tends to
give a jerkier feel.
Braking system
Electronic rowers use magnetic
braking and are quiet, but tend to lack
the feel of top-quality air and water
rowers. Air rowers can offer a very high
standard of movement and accuracy of
feedback, but can be a little noisy. Water
rowers create the closest feel to actually
rowing on water and make a satisfying
swishing noise.
Oar
Check if the oar feels comfortable in
your hands. Some rowers, such as the
Concept 2, have a grip in the middle
that allow you to row one-handed.
It’s also worth checking whether you
can turn to the sides while rowing
without messing with the transmission
too much. Seat
Obviously the seat needs to feel
comfortable while you’re rowing – it
doesn’t need a back support, but you
shouldn’t slip off it, either. Try a few
vigorous strokes on the machine to see
Footplate adjustability
how it feels.
Check that your feet can be securely
and comfortably accommodated in the
footplates. A quick-release option is
helpful, especially if you’re going to be
rowing as part of a circuit, but it’s by no
means essential.
Construction
Look for an all-metal rower – steel is
expensive and heavy, while aluminium
is cheaper and lighter but not as sturdy. Seat runner
When you put your weight on the seat, Move the seat to one end of the rail
there should be no flexing in any part and tilt the rower up slightly. A good
of the frame. runner and rail will allow the seat to roll
freely to the other end.
Treadmill training
Plodding is boring so try these challenging 20-minute workouts
Pack of cards Negative split Hill running
Take a pack of cards with you to the treadmill. Do a five-minute progressive warm-up. Then Jog for five minutes, then run up a ‘hill’ at level
Jog and then do a progressive, five-minute reset the timer and do seven minutes at level 6-7 (again, using the ‘Pack of cards’ effort scale)
warm-up. Stop and turn over a card, then run 6-7 (using the ‘Pack of cards’ effort scale). After for one minute by setting the treadmill incline to
for one minute at the effort level of the card – seven minutes raise the speed so that you’re eight per cent, then reset the incline and jog for
one is walking pace and nine is the top speed running at level 7-8. Try to hold that pace for a minute. Go back to an eight per cent incline
you can sustain for 60 seconds. another eight minutes. Running faster in the and sprint at level 8-9, so you cover the same
If you get a ten or a picture card, sprint for as second half of a race is a tactic known as a distance in 30-40 seconds before removing the
long as possible up to 30 seconds. Do this negative split, and this session will maximise the incline. Keep alternating this pattern for a total
for 20 minutes. training effect and teach you good race strategy. of 12 hill reps. Jog for a couple of minutes to
warm down.
Deck
This is usually made of wood.
Lower-budget treadmills typically use
particle board decks, while high-end
treadmills typically use medium-density
fibreboard (MDF) board decks. MDF is
better because it can sustain much
greater forces before cracking. Listen for
a deck that doesn’t make much noise
against the belt.
Frame
There are generally two types: aluminium
and steel. Steel is preferable because it adds
weight to the treadmill, making it sturdier. The
Belt good thing about aluminium is that it won’t rust,
This key component should be wide although you can get a steel frame coated to
enough and comfortable to run on. If you prevent corrosion. A frame can be either bolted
can barely stand with your feet shoulder- or welded connected to the treadmill base, the
width apart, look for something wider. If welded version being more sturdy. Avoid plastic
you’re going to be doing a lot of running, frames at all costs.
think about investing in an orthopaedic
belt to reduce stress on your joints.
Bike workouts
Try these stationary bike sessions to inject life into your riding
Speedy spinning Test lactic acid resistance More resistance,
Do a five-minute warm-up. Cycle at level 6-7 Warm up for five minutes at level 4-5 (using the same cadence
(where 1 is walking pace and 9 in the top ‘Speedy spinning’ effort scale). Now accelerate Cycle at an easy pace for five minutes, then
speed you could sustain for one minute) for two until you’re working at level 8 so that you can increase the resistance of your pedals without
minutes and then explode into motion, pedalling feel your legs start to burn with lactic acid but reducing your cadence. Continue cycling with
as fast as you possibly can. Lean forward on you’re not forced to slow down. Hold this pace that level of resistance before going back to
the handlebars and let your legs fly for 20-30 for five minutes and then drop back to level 4-5 the easier resistance level for two minutes.
seconds. Make a note of the top RPM that you for two minutes. Accelerate back up to level 8 for Repeat that four times and warm down with
reach. Rest for 30 seconds and then go back five minutes, then select a low resistance and five minutes easy cycling.
to pedalling at level 6-7 for one minute before spin your pedals for three minutes to flush the
repeating the effort. Do this ten times in total. lactic acid out of your muscles.
Maximum workload
This represents how much
resistance the bike will give when
pedalled flat out. Most bikes will
provide in excess of 250 watts.
Experienced cyclists or the very fit
will need in excess of 400 watts.
Console
Look for a bike
that can offer variety
and motivation by
simulating various
hill courses, allowing
you to create your
own or by controlling Saddle
your heart rate. Have a sit – and ideally an
extended pedal – on the bike to see
how comfy the saddle is. Racers
will let you swap in your normal
bike’s saddle.
Frame
This should be Adjustability
built mainly from The more adjustable the bike,
metal. Check that the more comfortable it’ll be during
the welds are tidy, longer sessions. All bikes have saddle
the overall finish is height adjustment; check whether the
good without sharp or saddle or handlebars can be moved
rough edges and that backwards and forwards too.
the moving parts are
adequately shielded.
A solidly constructed
exercise bike should Seating
be stable and not flex Recumbent exercise bikes put
or wobble, even when you in a more horizontal position, are
you’re standing up on easier to mount and dismount and
the pedals. have a more supportive seat. The
downside is that they take up more
room and are generally more costly
for the same standard of bike.
Flywheel
Generally speaking,
the heavier the
flywheel, the smoother
the pedalling action Power supply
will be. Is the bike self-powered or does
it need mains electricity? Generally
speaking, bikes with their own
generators are more pricy, but you
won’t need to keep them near a
wall socket or drape extension
cords across the floor.
Braking system
Most exercise bikes use electronic braking, which –
although not cheap – is generally smooth in use and allows
manufacturers to offer programmes such as hill and heart Pedals
rate control. Mechanical braking is simple, cheap and offers Ideally, the pedalling action
potentially very high resistance levels, but it needs a heavy should be smooth with the same
flywheel to give a good pedalling feel and requires regular level of resistance throughout the
maintenance. Air braking gives you more resistance as you 360˚ of pedal revolution, even at
pedal faster, a nice cooling breeze and is a robust system of high resistance levels and out of
generating resistance. However, it doesn’t allow you to alter the saddle. Avoid models with an
resistance without changing your pedalling speed. uneven or jerky pedalling feel. Life Fitness
C9i Upright, £1,495
Men’s Fitness
Men’ 197
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Frame
Look for natural lines – curves are
better than angles. If you’re especially
short, tall or wide, have a go at a few
exercises to make sure the gym’s
dimensions fit you.
Weights
You need weights light enough to let
you start out on any exercise, with enough
resistance to challenge you as you get
stronger. Anything less than 90kg is unlikely
to be enough if you’re going to be doing
heavy squats. Also look out for clearly-
marked weight stacks – some multigyms
still make you guess what you’re lifting.
Cables
Obviously these should be strong
enough that they won’t break when
you lift heavy weights, but they should
also have a quiet and smooth motion
rather than a dragging, noisy one. Buy
models with covered cables as it’ll
prolong the life of your multigym.
Tubing Stations
Look for heavy-gauge steel tubing Think about what exercises you’re going
that won’t flex too much. Physically to be doing and make sure the gym you’re
shake any multigym you’re thinking looking at can accommodate them. There’s
about buying – if it wobbles too easily, no point in getting a beautiful machine if
it’s no good for you. you’re trying to improve your squats and
it’s got no option to do them.
Men’s Fitness
Fitnes 199
COMPLETE HOME WORKOUT
Introduction | Nutrition
T
he food you eat has a huge meal plan that you can use to make plenty of calories to power your
impact on the results you see sure you’re taking on board the right workouts and build new muscle.
from your workouts. Your body kind of foods. We’ve also included But, not surprisingly, eating lots
needs fuel for you to exercise effectively a comprehensive guide to sports of calories doesn’t mean living on
and the nutritional materials to repair supplements, giving you the knowledge ice-creams, kebabs and puddings.
your muscles so they get bigger. you need to decide whether or not You’ve got to take your calories from
That’s why your workouts will be you want to use them to the right sources and in the right way.
wasted unless they’re backed up complement your training. Fortunately, following a few simple
by proper nutrition. The good news is that eating well rules will help you adopt a healthy
This section will explain the doesn’t involve going on fad diets muscle-building diet. Turn the page
fundamentals of eating for more or cutting out large food groups. to find out how to eat your way to a
muscle. It also contains a sample In fact, you’ll need to consume stronger, more muscular physique.
Nutrition | Rules
The rules of
eating for muscle
Building muscle is as much about what you do in the
kitchen as in the gym. Here’s how to get it right
Go natural meat, fish and eggs – will Department of Health person loses around one
If people weren’t eating it 1,000 make you feel fuller for longer recommends eating five litre of fluid for every hour of
years ago, avoid it now. That so you’re less tempted by portions of fruit and veg a day, exercise, and that can have
means basing meals on fresh high-sugar snacks, provide but some research suggests a detrimental effect on your
meat, fish and vegetables, the nutrients needed to repair we should be eating up to health and performance. Aim
and cooking your meals damaged muscles and nine and of as many different to drink at least eight glasses
from scratch rather relying provide a host of essential colours as possible. This of water every day, but more if
on packets and takeaways. vitamins and minerals. ensures you get plenty of you’re exercising or if it’s hot.
Processed foods such as Each meal should also cancer-fighting antioxidants, A good indicator of how
cakes, pies and ready meals contain vegetables in a gut-satisfying fibre and much water you need is to
tend to be high in calories, full variety of colours. For the vitamins and minerals weigh yourself before and
of salt and additives and low carbs, stick to brown rice you need to stay fit after exercise: for every 1kg
in essential nutrients, so while and sweet potatoes. and healthy. lost, drink 1.5 litres of water to
they’re poor at providing replenish fluids. You should
sustained energy, they are Get plenty Don’t cut out fat also get in the habit of sipping
very good at making you gain of variety Many people try to cut water throughout the day.
weight. Many also contain Your body requires out fat when trying to If you feel thirsty, you are
trans fats, which your body many vitamins and lose weight, but this probably already dehydrated.
can’t digest properly, leading minerals to stay healthy, isn’t the best course
to high cholesterol and and if you eat a limited of action. We need fats Cut out the booze
clogged arteries. diet you risk poor health, to help better absorb If you are trying to add
let alone lacking the certain vitamins, for muscle, lose fat or simply get
Base meals on protein energy to train or fight example, and some fats fitter then alcohol is not your
This is really important off illness can also help us feel friend. Yes, there is evidence
whether you want to add That’s why you need fuller for longer. that consuming a little alcohol,
muscle or burn fat. Basing to eat as wide a range of The best sources of fats such as red wine, on a regular
each meal on a high-quality foods as possible, especially are olive oil, avocados and basis does offer some health
source of protein – think fruit and vegetables. The nuts, but remember fats are benefits, but necking pint after
still very high in calories, so pint will compromise your
don’t go overboard. fitness goals.
Not only are alcoholic
How many meals? Drink a lot of water drinks high in calories – which
Aim for six small meals a day. Small, regular meals are the best We can survive several weeks will get stored as fat – once
way to keep your body energised and provide a regular intake without food but only a few you’ve had a few you’ll also
of protein to help you build muscles and burn fat. Eating little days without water. Your body be more tempted by that
and often keeps your metabolism – the speed at which you can’t store water like it does takeaway on the way home
burn energy – revved up, so you’ll burn more of the energy food, so you need a constant and less likely to stick to your
you consume plus some that has been stored as body fat, supply to replenish the fluid gym session the following
you lose through sweating morning. If you want to get in
compared with eating a big breakfast, lunch and dinner.
and toilet stops. The average shape, give the booze a miss.
Rules | Nutrition
Muscle meals
This plan contains the kind of foods you should be eating
every day to fuel your muscle-building workouts
Nutrition | Tips
5 Spice up
your diet
Spices such as
turmeric, ginger and
garlic have powerful
anti-inflammatory
properties that can help
to soothe your muscles
after a hard session in
the gym. Eating spicy
4 Always have foods can also fire your
breakfast metabolism for up to
Skipping breakfast may three hours, increasing
seem like a good way the rate at which your
of losing the fat that’s body burns calories
1 Treat yourself hiding your muscles but to help you shed fat.
Once you’ve got the hang of eating nutritionally it isn’t – studies have
balanced meals and exercising regularly, you can introduce found that people who ate
some treats occasionally. Just make sure your regular meals breakfast were less likely
6 Get your
are healthy and then plan your ‘cheat meals’ so you can to be overweight than five a day
eat whatever you like and enjoy it. By allowing yourself the those who skipped it. A Your body needs to be well
occasional pizza or bowl of ice cream, you’ll satisfy your breakfast based around stocked with vitamins and
cravings and have something to look forward to. complex carbs and protein minerals to keep energy levels
helps cut cravings for up and boost your immune
sweet or starchy foods, system. Fruits and vegetables
2 Plan healthy as well as boosting the are also extremely filling
snacks metabolism. Good breakfast thanks to their high volume
Avoid the temptation to foods include wholegrain of water. This allows you to fill
indulge in convenient,
3 Eat after cereals, porridge, eggs on up with fewer calories and get
calorie-packed snacks exercise wholemeal toast and fruit. enough fat-absorbing fibre.
such as crisps and Weight training seriously
chocolate by bringing depletes your body’s energy
healthy alternatives supplies, so you’ll need to get Have a
with you to your some fast-acting carbs inside
7 protein
workplace. Nuts, you, along with quality protein snack at bedtime
seeds, berries and raw to fuel and repair muscles. Have some cottage
vegetables with a Your body is also most cheese or a low-fat
low-fat hummus or responsive to food straight yogurt before you hit
guacamole dip will all after training so eat a snack the hay. They are full of
help to keep you feeling such as a banana and peanut slow-acting protein,
full, without having to butter sandwich or a bagel which will help
make any trips to the with cream cheese and sliced regenerate your muscles
office vending machine. tomato within 30 minutes of while you sleep.
finishing your session.
Nutrition | Supplements
Supplements explained
Do you or don’t you need nutritional supplements? We help you decide
T
he subject of sports amino acids at the best time
supplements can be for muscle replenishment. It
confusing. For a start, is possible to get all this from
there’s a bewildering array food – a chicken and rice
of powders, pills and drinks salad, for example – but in
that all claim to do different today’s society where time
things. Some products help is short, it is sometimes
you gain weight, some help easier and more
you lose weight, while others convenient to neck
help you to perform better a protein shake.
at sport. And to make things
more difficult, they all seem Are they safe?
to contain ingredients you’ve Yes, when used
never heard of. So how do you properly. Before you
know what’s right for you? And take any supplement
should you even be taking it is a good idea
them at all? to research the
Before you decide whether product and stick to a
you want to use sports reputable manufacturer
supplements, it’s important to – they are usually full of
realise that supplements aren’t knowledge and willing
magic potions. You can’t just to give you lots of advice.
glug protein shakes, sit on You should also make
your sofa and expect to pack sure you follow the dosage
on muscle. In order for any on the label. Too much
supplement to be effective, creatine, for example, can
you need to choose one that be toxic to the kidneys and
suits your workout goal and liver, while too much protein
use it in appropriate quantities will simply turn to lard.
alongside a structured and
progressive training regime. What kind of supplements
should I take?
What’s the point Although there are a lot
of supplements? of supplements to choose
Sports supplements should from, most fall into one of the
simply be seen as safety nets following categories: muscle
to ensure that the body is builders, fat burners and
receiving the nutrients it needs energy providers. Then you
to perform at its best and have the various vitamin,
achieve the look you want. mineral and antioxidant
If you are trying to increase supplements that can
muscle mass you know you be valuable to people in
need to pack away a lot of serious training. The main
calories and get the right categories of supplement are
combination of carbs and outlined on the next page.
Nutrition | Supplements
Energy providers
Usually in the form of drinks, bars and gels, these are good if
you want to get that little extra edge when training or if you are
looking to train a bit longer than usual. These are pure carbs,
which can delay fatigue and improve endurance.
Amino acids
These will help the body release human growth hormone,
which helps prevent the breakdown of muscle tissue during
exercise and improve recovery.
Antioxidants
Antioxidants help your body’s natural defence against illness
by eliminating free radicals, which destroy cells and create
oxidative damage. Free radicals are created by intense exercise
such as weight training.
Casein
This protein takes seven to eight hours to digest, so it’s best
taken half an hour before you go to bed. Like whey protein,
it helps to repair and build muscle, but it is absorbed more
thoroughly so is highly effective.
Rehydrators
These are usually isotonic sports drinks that will give your body
the right blend of sugars and salts during exercise. The blend
of water, fast-acting carbohydrates and electrolytes will help
replenish fluids more efficiently than water alone.
HOME
NEW!
UPDATED
AND
EXPANDED
WORKOUTS
Build muscle
and lose fat fast
193 exercises
shown in detail
Home gym
buyer’s guide
magazine
£9.99