Bodyweight workouts (meaning workouts done without machines or weights) offer many advantages over other forms of exercise that most people are not aware off. To the ignorant, bodyweight exercises like push-ups etc are old fashioned. Why do exercises like this when the local gym has equipment that can be used? Surely these modern machines must provide a more advanced workout and be more efficient? The surprising truth of the matter is, however, they don’t. Here’s why.
Whether you are weight lifting in a gym or using a machine, you are typically isolating the muscles in order to perform the exercise. This is unnatural, as the human body has evolved with all of the muscles working together all of the time. When you train them separately, you run the risk of having one muscle group becoming proportionally stronger than another group. When they are forced to work together in the real world, you run the risk of injury. This is why a bodybuilder’s body typically breaks down so easily when under real stress.
Natural bodyweight workouts can also build strength, endurance, and flexibility all at the same time. When you train with weights, the maximum number of reps you might do is 15. With bodyweight exercises, you may do anywhere from 50 to 500. Doing these kind of reps not only build strength, but incredible flexibility and lung power as well. There’s no need to go on the stair master after you’ve done a set of 200 hindu squats, that’s for sure.
As they constantly utilize your entire body, bodyweight workouts are fantastic for losing weight. With each full body movement, you will be constantly working every muscle, which puts you in an elevated fat burning state. Fat will melt off your body like butter under a blowtorch. It is impossible to lose weight like this if you are performing an isolation exercise like a biceps curl.
Another overlooked advantage of bodyweight exercises is that they are extremely safe. If you go and Google “running injuries” or “weight lifting injuries” your screen will be filled with results. Why is this? Because our bodies evolved only exercising with our own bodyweight, not with weights. When you lift weights, the motions can be quite awkward, even for those who know what they are doing. This is why injuries are so common. We didn’t evolve performing bench presses.
In my mind, however, the biggest advantage of these kinds of natural workouts is that they work with our true nature. Meaning, bodyweight exercises tend to accentuate a man’s masculinity and a women’s femininity. Here’s what I mean by this. Men and women are different, and tend to have different goals when working out. Men usually want to get bigger and stronger. Women, on the other hand, although they may want to get stronger, they don’t necessarily want to get bigger.
Bodyweight exercises work with this ying and yang. Men can get big and strong, but women will typically wind up with more of a fit and sexy look. Exercising with your own bodyweight makes men more manly, and women more womanly. Isn’t this what people really want when they workout?
In the end, people should really consider adding some bodyweight exercises to their workout routines. There are some real advantages to this form of exercise, and really no downsides. If you like lifting weights, you don’t have to give it up entirely. However, with time, you may want too (I have at least).
