Chest and Back Routine for Mass

This is a simple, yet very effective “Push – Pull” superset routine for adding mass on your chest and back. You will perform one pull exercise followed by one push exercise, taking 1 – 2 minutes rest between each working set.

This is going to be an intense training session that will get progressively heavy and hard, so make sure you’re well fuel up with a good pre workout meal, and prepared to smash this!

Always start with some light stretching and complete a couple of warm up sets by alternating between the first two main chest and back exercises. For example, do the first set (warm up set) for one of the muscle groups (Back – Bent-Over Barbell Rows) then switch and do the first set (warm up set) for the other muscle group (chest – Flat Bench Dumbbell Press).

After you’ve completed a few warm up sets you can get started with your first working set.

Continue through this cycle until each of the four sets of the superset is completed for both exercises. You will do your first set on back, then switch and do your first set on chest, then second set on back, take 1 or 2 minutes rest and move to second set on chest… you get the idea.

The weight parentage shown are of your one rep max (the maximum amount of weight you can lift for one repetition). So, if the maximum amount of weight you can bench press for one rep is 240lbs, then for your warm up you will press around 25% of that weight, then your next set will be around 60% of your 1RM.

All clear..? Good, let’s get started

First Superset

Back – Bent-Over Barbell Rows
Chest – Flat Bench Dumbbell Press

First Set: Warm Up at 25% for 10-14 Reps
Second Set: 60% for 8-12 Reps
Third Set: 75 – 80% for 6 – 8 Reps
Fourth Set: 75 – 80% 6 – 8 Reps

Second Superset

Back– Wide-grip Lat Pulldowns
Chest– Incline Dumbbell Chest Presses

First Set: Warm Up at 25% for 8-10 Reps
Second Set: 60% for 8-12 Reps
Third Set: 75% for 8-10 Reps
Fourth Set: 75 – 80% for 6-8 Reps

How to Perform each of the Exercises Properly

Bent-over Barbell Rows

This exercise is done with a barbell with the appropriate amount of weight attached for each set. Hold the bar with an underhand (supination) grip with both hands. Start with your back straight and the bar somewhere around your waist or upper thigh. Bend over with your knees slightly bent. You should feel it in your hamstrings. When the bar reaches knee level begin to pull it towards your midsection. Make sure to feel that muscle contract at the top of the movement.

Flat Bench Dumbbell Presses

This exercise is done with two dumbbells of the appropriate weight for each set. Lay down back first on a flat bench holding the dumbbells with your palms facing your feet. Lift the dumbbells over the center of your chest then lower them down slowly. Your feet should be flat on the floor with a small arch in your back when performing this exercise.

Wide-Grip Lat Pulldown

For this exercise you will need a pulldown machine at the appropriate weight for each set. To achieve the wide grip simply place your hands about four inches wider than your shoulders on each side. Pull the bar down and pause momentarily before slowly raising the bar back up.

Incline Dumbbell Presses

This exercise is similar to the flat bench dumbbell presses. The only difference is that you will need a bench where you can set an incline. To start you will need two dumbbells of the appropriate weight for each set. For this exercise you will also want your feet flat on the floor with your back slightly arched. Raise the dumbbells above your chest with your palms facing your feet. Then slowly lower the dumbbells down until your arms are at a 90 degree angle.

Warm Up and Stretching

Before you perform this workout routine you should give yourself a little bit of a warm up and stretch. About 10 minutes of light cardio on a treadmill, elliptical or stair stepper should be all you need to warm up. To stretch your chest you can extend your arm straight out to the side and grip a wall or machine. Twist your body forward lightly to begin stretching out your chest.

Post Workout Cardio

If you are on a cutting phase and would like to maximize your fat loss you can follow up your chest and back workout routine with a short session of cardio. This can be a slow to moderate walk on a treadmill with an incline, an elliptical with a moderate resistance setting, or a stationary bike with resistance. Your body will already be in fat burning mode from your chest and back “Push – Pull” strength training routine. You can take advantage of this elevated fat burning state by throwing in some cardio at the end to enhance fat loss.

Training to Failure for Muscle Growth

Many people believe that in order for a muscle to grow it’s absolutely necessary to take every working set to momentary muscular failure. Failure is the point at which you’re unable to complete one more rep of the concentric (positive) part of the lift.

Today, I’m answering a question that’s fallen victim to much misunderstanding and broscience… is momentary muscular failure (MMF) really necessary to achieve hypertrophy?

Some people swear by training to failure and will argue that progress can’t be made without following this principal, stating that if you stop short of reaching failure then you’ve not given your muscles a clear reason to adapt and grow.

The logic sounds pretty solid… but there’s a problem with this theory.

Take a look at 5X Mr Universe Bill Pearl (pictured right) who NEVER trained to failure. Bill say’s:

“My approach to training has always been to push yourself in your workouts, but do not train to failure! The last rep should be difficult, but not impossible or unachievable. Speaking from experience, I urge you: Train hard, yes, but not to failure. Complete what you start — and that means every rep. I believe that this approach will not only ensure that you’ll stay with your training program year after year but you’ll also make the greatest progress.”

Then there are many bodybuilders, average Joes, powerlifters, and people with physically demanding jobs who are all able to develop impressive muscularity and strength without ever training to true failure.

So it’s evident all around us, very clearly, that training to failure is not a necessity for muscle growth.

Let me tell you now, exercising to the point of muscular failure is not, and never has been, a necessary requirement for muscle hypertrophy. The growth response is not induced by a single rep (i.e. the failure rep). To build muscle, the goal is to recruit as many muscle fibres as possible. You’re able to recruit all muscle fibres without ever going to failure. What’s important is muscle fibre recruitment, time under heavy tension, progressive overload and total volume with good form, not the final failure rep.

Training to complete failure on every set can actually hinder your gains. If you max yourself out on your first set, you’re going to be very fatigued going into your second set. If you continue training to failure on each set you will reduce your ability to recruit motor units effectively, resulting in less muscle fibre recruitment. You’ll find that you have to drop the weight or reduce reps as you progress through your workout. Speed slows and form breaks down as you reach failure, the final rep is really useless at contracting the muscle and stimulating growth.

You should stop one or two reps shy of failure. This allows you to train with a heavy weight and good form while leaving enough juice in the tank to see you through the rest of the exercises in your workout.

Just in case you’re a hardcore training to failure advocate and still on the fence about this. There was a recent study in 2012 by the National Strength and Conditioning Association that found the maximum muscle activation was achieved 3-5 reps short of failure. So, it’s not the last rep that counts for growth, because the growth response has reached its maximum and plateau a few repetitions before failure.

Best Muscle Building Exercises

Lest anyone ever suggest that muscle building involves little more than mindlessly lifting the heaviest weight manageable for a few sets of low repetitions using your limbs… continue reading.

Bodybuilding not only produces some of the best physiques, but recruits some of the most inquisitive minds. Today, anyone engaged in a strength training program can take advantage of thoroughly scientific investigative methods which explore exactly what the best muscle building exercises are.

Amateur and professional athletes alike may find themselves calling into doubt what they previously considered their “ideal” routine, as they discover that what is truly ideal is whatever is most appropriate for them at the present moment.

When muscle building exercises are selected, the choices made are dependent upon the physiological response induced by a particular movement. Though science has classified resistance training exercises in many ways, one of the most credible and complete classifications involves the use of EMG – Electromyography. EMG is a technique which records and evaluates the electrical activity produced within specific groups of skeletal muscles. Any movement causes electrical activity, and EMG allows researchers to determine which exercises produce the most activity. In knowing this, an objective measurement can be obtained. When scientific research is applied, any routine’s effectiveness and appeal will be increased.

In Serious Strength Training by Dr. Tudor Bompa, Professor Emeritus, York University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, results were obtained from the application of EMG to different muscle groups, and the findings published are summarized below. Exercises are listed from top to bottom, beginning with the highest levels of stimulation to the lowest, for each muscle group.

CHEST

SHOULDERS

BACK

BICEPS

TRICEPS

LEGS

The figures above show variance in the ability of different exercises to induce motor unit activation. Some exercises differ by only small amounts – others considerably more. Though some individuals may find these differences inconsequential on paper, other athletes may see that by applying these findings to their regime, their muscle building progresses more than they thought possible.

Tips to Build Bigger Traps

“Watch out! It’s a trap!” Just kidding. I am, of course, talking about the trapezius muscles, which extends along part of the neck and down the shoulder blades, whose function is to support the arms, move the shoulder blades… and make you look superhuman.

Powerful, bulging traps are eye-catchers that give a real powerful look to your physique.

There’s no denying that even on a physique lacking in other areas, a big trapezius muscle can make it stand out from the crowd. Few lifters are naturally blessed with large trap muscles, contending instead with ordinary, flat ones.

But how do you build bigger traps?

Shrugs? You can shrug until the cows come home (or like you’re chronically unsure about everything), but nothing much will come of it if you’re not doing it right.

Fortunately, I’ve got you covered – continue reading and discover some top tips to building intimidating traps that command respect!

Hold it right there… Try lighter weights when working your traps. Heavy is not always better. More importantly, concentrate on powerfully holding the weight for a couple of seconds when your muscles are fully contracted. If you cannot achieve a powerful contraction that can be briefly held, you are trying to lift too much weight, which damages the quality and gain potential of every repetition.

Using a lighter weight, focus on the trapezius muscle shortening and tightening as you contract and raise the shoulders. Hold the weight and squeeze the muscle before slowly lowering the shoulders to the starting position.

Get a grip. Strap it on. Maybe that last line could be changed. Regardless, if you find your grip failing you, don’t be afraid to acquire good quality lifting straps. Weight lifting straps attach to the wrists and assist in getting a good grip on the weights. There is nothing “wimpy” about using a well-made tool to get the job done. Straps help take your focus and worry away from maintaining a grip on the bar, to instead concentrating on contracting your traps.

Ronnie Coleman and Jay Cutler use lifting straps for a reason, and there’s nothing “wimpy” when you see those guys using straps.

Quality counts. I’ve discussed good form and how to perform reps correctly before. If you don’t focus and concentrate on what’s happening when you lift – how long each portion (concentric, pause and eccentric) of every repetition is; ensuring the target muscles are being worked; being aware of normal soreness versus problematic pain; applying steady intensity to each rep – you miss out on maximizing gains.

Make every rep a high quality one that counts. Use good form, with smooth, fluid movements.

Don’t lift too quickly, or jerkily. Not only will that result in poor target muscle contracting but could easily lead to tendon damage.

As a bonus, maintaining good form with trap exercises will further your ability to do it with other types of lifts, because the range of motion involved in exercising the traps is relatively small.

Twice is nice. Who ever said that the trapezius muscles should only be worked once every seven days? Someone must have, because it seems taken for granted that that’s just the way it’s done. Between shoulder and back days, work your traps, not once weekly, but twice. Not only will you target them in isolation, but work them indirectly when you train your shoulders and back.

More Tips for Tremendous Traps

• Not every set needs to be the same. Use lighter weights and more reps; then switch to heavier weights and lift fewer reps, as four or five, and as many as fourteen. Or, concentrate on the eccentric portion of the movement, resisting the weight as you bring it down. Incorporate some static holds for maximum muscle contraction.

• Locking out the joints when lifting is not normally advisable, but if done with caution, it can yield good results. By keeping the elbows locked, straight and immobile, you force your trapezius muscles to do more work; conversely, allowing the elbows to bend may cause you to inadvertently help lift the weight with the upper back.

• When performing a dumbbell shrug, lean a bit forward. Why? Because more of the trapezius is used when the body is so positioned. The benefit? Increased muscle fiber recruitment and the ability to lift heavier.

• If your grip strength is lacking, in addition to using lifting straps, you can try doing trap shrugs while standing in a position that puts your weight on your heels, preventing your body from shifting up and down. This encourages good form and greater grip strength.

• Incorporate different exercises such as shrugs with dumbbells, barbell, smith machine, cables, shoulder pad calf machine and upright rows.

The trapezius muscle may be small, but the effect of hitting it hard with good form is mighty. Don’t ignore this overlooked part of your physique; by incorporating regular, twice-weekly workouts and following the tips in this guide, you’ll have bigger traps in no time.

Big Shoulders Exercise Program

You could have amazing biceps and chest muscle development, but if your shoulders are underdeveloped you’re going to look small and weak. Large, well developed shoulders really standout and command instant respect.

The shoulders are important for that broad, strong, well balanced look and make up a big part of your overall physique. They are one of the only muscle groups that are highly visible from the front, side and rear of the body.

If your shoulders seem resistant to growth, or you’re looking for a program that will build more mass on your shoulders, fast… today’s your lucky day!

In this post I’m first going to discuss the anatomy and function of the shoulder muscle group. And provide you with the best mass building exercises and execution to develop 360 degrees of cannon-ball shoulder muscularity!

Shoulder Anatomy

The deltoid (shoulder) is built on a ball and socket joint and is a monoarticular muscle group that moves the arms in all direction.

The deltoid is a complex muscle that can be divided into three parts:

Anterior Head (front): The main function of this muscle is to lift the arm out in front of the body. It is used as a secondary muscle and gains some growth stimulation during bench pressing, other chest exercises and can be activated during some biceps movements. The front head is heavily used in all pressing exercises.

Medial Head (side): This muscle is responsible for abducting the arm out to the side and away from the midline of the torso. This muscle is involved in overhead press exercises but requires direct isolation such as side lateral raises with dumbbells or cables to maximize growth. Side lateral raises are essential if you want broad mass development of the shoulders, and in my opinion are the best isolation exercises for the shoulders and should be a priority in your workout.

Posterior Head (back): This part of the shoulder pulls the arm backward and away from the body. The posterior head is heavily utilized during some back (pulling) exercise such as pull ups or rows, but is often under developed because most people find it difficult to isolate this muscle correctly when training shoulders – A problem I will be addressing in the exercise program below.

Shoulder Building Training Program

Shoulders are arguably my strongest body part, which I owe to the exercise routine that I’ve been following for years and set out below. I only ever make slight changes to this every couple of months such as changing from dumbbell press to military barbell press, switching from dumbbells to cables (to change the strength curve and line of tension), changing up rep ranges or changing up the odd exercise. But I’ve pretty much stuck to this program and it’s served me well. Now it’s your turn!

Make sure to warm up properly before starting these exercises with some mild stretching followed by a few light sets, to get some blood into the muscle and the joint warmed up.

Exercise 1: Dumbbell Press (4 sets / 2 heavy sets at 6 – 8 reps, 2 sets at 8 – 10 reps)

If you’re serious about building massive strong shoulders then the dumbbell press should be a staple in your training. There are a lot of variations of this exercise… Arnold, Cuban, and incline presses for example. But we’re going with the tried and true classic seated dumbbell press here.

This exercise moves the arms through a very natural range of motion, placing stimulating tension on the anterior and medial heads and puts the anterior bundle in its best position for work. The contraction at the top of the movement is much better because it allows for the arms to freely move closer together as they straighten, compared to a barbell where your hands are locked in one position.

How to Perform:

• Sit on a bench with back support at its highest setting
• Pick the dumbbells up and let them rest in an upright position on the top of your thighs
• Raise the dumbbells to shoulder height (starting position) one at a time, using your thighs to help propel them up
• Make sure your palms are facing forward

Arching your back when pressing shifts emphasis to a different plane of movement and therefore taking some of the tension off the target muscle (shoulders) and directing it to the upper pectorals.

To keep the tension on the muscle and maintain good form your back should be firmly placed against the pad and maintain a slightly “retracted” position of your shoulders to eliminate your shoulders from sloughing forward.

Maintain an erect spine and stop any back arching. Contracting your abs can help maintain this firm position.

To insure optimum shoulder muscle recruitment make sure that your forearm is perpendicular (90 degrees) to the floor through EVERY rep of the exercise.

Your hands should be in direct line with your elbow. They should never move your hands inside or outside of that line.

Lifting Tempo: 2-1-3-0

Your lifting tempo should be 1-2 seconds on the way up (concentric) in an exploding motion, 1 second pause at the top, 3 seconds to lower the weight (Eccentric – very important to maintain a slow and controlled contraction on this part), 0 second pause at the bottom.

Exercise 2: Side Lateral raises x 3 (3 sets / 8 – 10  reps)

This is my favourite shoulder exercise and the best to give the shoulders that rounded look from the front. It’s the only exercise that offers great isolation of the medial head, while minimizing the recruitment of the anterior and posterior heads.

Side lateral raises can be done using either dumbbells, cable pulley or machine. All are very effective but the cable provides the greatest tension throughout the entire range of motion because of the direction of resistance. However, I recommend switching between dumbbells and cables weekly for some variety.

There’s no need to bring your hand above shoulder height when doing side lateral raises. Don’t try lifting the arms as high as possible, stop when the arm is parallel with the floor. The medial head is in a fully shortened position at shoulder level. Going any higher will recruit the trapezius muscles.

Maintain good form during this exercise, don’t swing the weight, jerk or twist your body. Keep your body in a static position concentrating on just contracting the medial head and lifting the arm out to the side.

Keep the weight fairly light so that you reach failure around the 12 rep mark and so that you are able to maintain good form. Remember, explode up and slow on the way down maintaining constant tensions on the muscle through every rep.

Exercise 3: Reverse Fly’s x 3 (3 sets / 8 – 10 reps)

Perform this exercise using a rear deltoid machine if your gym has one, or a chest fly machine with handles on a reverse setting.

Before you start, grip the handles and place your shoulders in a protracted position. Protract your shoulders by moving them forward slightly while keeping your torso completely still. You may find it difficult to maintain this position at first but it’s essential to properly isolate the posterior deltoid.

Set the seat so that your hands are in line with your chin. When bringing your arms back keep a slight bend in your elbows and keep them up. Squeeze the muscle for one seconds when you move your arms all the way back.

Exercise 4: Front raises x 2 (2 sets / 10 reps)

This exercise is optional, because the anterior head (front of the shoulder) is heavily involved in pressing movements most people find that this muscle is fairly well developed. However, if you find that the front of your shoulders need some work to equal the development of the other heads then do a couple of front raises to finish off your shoulder training.

This exercise can be done using different equipment such as straight bar, kettlebells, EZ bar, dumbbells, large plate, cables etc.

The best way to do this exercise is on a machine cable with handle using a pronated grip (palms facing down) or by using a rope attachment and a neutral grip (thumbs facing up).

These exercises are all you really need for well-rounded shoulder strength and muscle development.

Now go get those cannon balls!

Build Muscle or Lose Fat First?

So you want to build muscle. That’s great! Increased lean muscle mass provides a host of benefits, including a healthy metabolism, greater strength and the confidence instilled by looking and feeling strong. But what about body fat, that pesky barrier to attaining a ripped physique?

In an ideal world, you could have one – muscle – without the other – fat. Unfortunately, it’s not always that simple. To gain muscle requires increasing caloric intake, and if those calories end up being converted to fat – well, a frustrating setback may ensue. But fear not: you’re about to learn the right way to pack on muscle, without the flab.

Let’s start by defining a couple of terms. Bulking refers to eating and training with the goal of building muscle. Cutting refers to eating and training with the goal of losing fat while maintaining lean muscle mass.

The best result when bulking means gaining lean mass and minimizing incidental fat gain. Conversely, the best result when cutting means losing body fat and retaining as much hard-earned muscle as possible. Unfortunately, many fall into the repetitive cycle of getting nowhere fast, achieving exactly the opposite of what they desire.

So – should you bulk first? After all, gaining muscle matters, right? But – what if you don’t cut first? Then you’ll have that dastardly fat hanging on to you! Or should you bulk and cut at the same time?

It depends. There are a number of obvious factors – what you eat and how you train – that will help determine your outcome, but here is the one of foremost importance: What’s your current body fat percentage?

The higher it is, the greater the likelihood someone will store the extra calories consumed during a bulking phase as more fat, through a process called “caloric partitioning”. That’s right: the greater your adiposity, the harder the process of bulking for optimal results becomes, and the longer remedial cutting efforts – “tidying up” – have to last.

Doesn’t sound like much fun, does it?

That’s why – despite the higher metabolic, and therefore, calorie-burning potential of muscle – the way adiposity determines caloric partitioning means that consuming a surplus of calories to bulk up when already overweight is to walk an almost certain path to failure.

Ideally, you’ll want to start bulking when you are lean, or at least, leaner than not. Now, “lean”, in this case, does not require (though it’s certainly allowable) that you have a super-low, single-digit body fat percentage or abs you could grate a potato on.

Men, before embarking on a bulking phase should generally have 10 to 13 percent body fat, or a bit less; women should generally have between 19 and 23 percent body fat, or a bit less. If levels of body fat are somewhat higher, decent results can still be obtained, but likely not of the same caliber as would be the case for a leaner person.

“Yeah, but just how fat (or not) am I”?

The truth is that most of us don’t actually know our real body fat percentage. One can certainly invest in calipers, body fat scales and calculators – but I suggest keeping things simple: Get naked; take a good look at yourself in the mirror; and ask yourself if building muscle or losing fat makes more sense right now. Be objective. Are you reasonably lean and ready to bulk up?

Or are you carrying some extra weight that screams, “Don’t eat more! Lose weight first!”?

Answer a): “I’m reasonably (or very) lean.”

Unless your current goal is to become even leaner, it’s the right time to begin bulking, with the goal of putting on muscle mass. If you foresee the need or desire to become extra-shredded in the future, it’s not a bad idea bulk up first, and follow up with a careful cutting phase, to define your increased muscularity.

Answer b): “I’m carrying too much extra fat.”

If that’s where you’re at, refrain from bulking in an attempt to offset your body fat with muscle. The best thing to do is start cutting until your adiposity decreases sufficiently and you can objectively state that you are at least reasonably lean. When you reach this point, your caloric intake can be increased to the surplus-level. Bear in mind, strength training should not be stopped until you are ready to bulk. Continuing to lift will assist the process of fat-burning and help retain the muscle and strength you already possess.

Finally, go about it – whichever phase you decide is best to begin with – wisely. Eat according to your needs. When your initial goal has been reached, switch to the other phase (ie, you started out lean, bulked, built a significant amount of muscle, and following that, switched to a cutting phase to further emphasize your lean mass – or vice versa.)

As you’ve now learned, frustration can be avoided by simply understanding which actions should first be undertaken.

Build Muscle With Bodyweight Exercises

Building muscle and strength at home using just body weight exercises is possible, but limited. For ultimate size and strength gains, lifting weights is superior. That doesn’t mean body weight training should be ignored, because it’s still an effective way to build muscle and makes a great addition to any training routine.

Body weight training is great for variety, adding a few of these exercises into your routine for variety is a good idea. It’s also very handy to have some knowledge of good body weight exercises for times when you’re on the road or can’t make the gym.

Examples of Good Bodyweight Exercises to Build Muscle

1: Chin Ups – This exercise will build the lat muscles and biceps effectively. To target the biceps more, use an underhand grip with palms facing you.

Chin ups can be quite difficult if you’re a beginner or you’re very over weight, you’ll probably find most body weight exercises hard work when just starting out. For beginners, I recommend you start using a chin up bar with machine pad that offers weighted assistance to help build up strength before you go all out and try to pull the full weight of your body.

As you get stronger, reduce the level of weighted assistance and move onto manual pull ups using just the weight of your whole body. If you want to do this exercise at home you can use a chin up bar on a door frame. Beginners can place a chair under the bar and use their legs to help take some of the weight off.

How to preform:

Before you perform this exercise, I want you to know that you don’t need to get your chin above the bar. The name ‘chin ups’ does not mean you have to dislocate your neck to get your chin past the bar, just complete the exercise by lifting your body as high as possible.

Grip the bar with both hands, palms facing you around shoulder width apart. Pull you body up toward the bar and lower back down.

Don’t pull yourself up to fast, this is likely to cause swinging and your form will suffer. Slowly pull for 2 seconds up and then 2 seconds down. Perform the movement in a controlled manner, making sure to keep tension when lowering your body.

2: Jump Squats – Weighted squats is the king of leg exercises amongst bodybuilders. No body weight exercise can work legs as hard as squats with a heavy weighted bar on your back.

The best bodyweight exercises you can do for you legs are ‘jump squats’. They work your quads and are an explosive power move. They also provide you with a short HIIT exercise and gets your heart rate up. This exercise will really get the blood flowing and can help you build muscle.

How to perform:

Stand with legs shoulder width apart with you hands just behind your head. (Don’t clasp hands together)

Keep you back straight, push your bum out and squat down until your thighs are 90 degrees from the floor.

Jump up in an explosive motion, landing on your heals and moving down to the squatted position again. Repeat the exercise.

3: Handstand Push ups – If there is a spot in your home to do a handstand push up, then you should definitely be taking advantage of the opportunity to include this in your at-home body weight workout routine.

This is more of an advanced exercise. I don’t recommend this for beginners because you need to have strong shoulders to do this exercise correctly and to gain full benefit from it.

If you cannot do a full range repetition successfully then you should just practice holding a handstand against the wall for periods of 60 seconds. Make sure to have someone watch over or assist you with this your first time.

Move onto partially lowering your head towards the floor and back up. You will eventually progress into doing full range of motion handstand push ups.

4. Push-ups – Everyone knows what push ups are, we’ve all done them. There are many different types of push ups you can do that utilize different muscles and areas of the chest/pectorals. You will mainly be firing the chest and triceps muscles when you are doing push ups with some shoulder recruitment.

Doing push ups is not as risky or challenging as a free weigh bench press, but still a great chest exercise you can do anywhere.

Steep incline push ups are a great way to increase the resistance and progress. Variations of push ups include planche push ups, one arm push ups, diamond push ups, and military push ups. I could not cover all the variations in great detail and how to perform them in this post. Simply copy and paste any of the push up exercises I’ve just named into Google or YouTube and you’ll find plenty of good demonstrations of each.

5. Triceps Dips – Rest your palms on a chair behind you and lower your butt towards the ground to imitate a triceps dip. To increase the resistance, put your feet on something level with you out in front. You can also put weight in your lap to increase the resistance.