Okay, so I've been physically active for a while now, I've been running for year and a half averaging doing about 3 sessions a week, and beyond that cardio I also since a while do bodyweight / dumbell excersizes, nothing impressive but still it works. Also, since a couple of months I'm taking JKD classes, hence why I joined this forum. Even though functional strenght is more of a priority, I kinda like to look fit too because... I dunno, superficial reasons of self-confidence I guess So my arms and legs look pretty good for me, but my torso is kinda..meh.. The pecs are kinda there but could be better.. but my gut / abdominal muscles really could use some thightning.. it's kinda weird how most of my body looks a bit toned but my gut still hangs out And here is the question: I want to excersize these areas, but fact is I only have a pair of adjustable dumbells that go to about 2,5KG (about 5 pounds) each, which is ok for some things but kinda light for heavier lifting. Push-ups don't seem to do much for me on the chest area, or maybe my form is just bad, I don't know. For abs, I only really know about sit-ups? But lately I've been hearing they don't realy do much for the right muscles. So obvious answer would probably to joind a gym or buy equipment and go for bench pressing and whatnot, but money is really tight and I cant justify the expenses of a gym membership or equipment. I might save up for a decent adjustable dumbell set with some weight, but that's just about it. Is it possible to get a decent chest & tighter stomach with just body weight & dumbell excercises, or is heavier fitness equipment really the only decent way? If so, what kind of excercise sets would you recommend? TL;DR version: I'm looking for a way to excersize my chest & stomach muscles, but I only have acces to body-weight excercises & light dumbells right now, no money for gym or different equipment.. is this workable?
[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjc6kHjBHq0"]ABS and CORE Workout - Effective Exercises & Routine - YouTube[/ame] [ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-uAcL2W-3w&list=PL4jy8ucbzhyfa2tYjq5E2KyL71b_ftB1X"]CHEST & TRICEPS WORKOUT / PUSH WORKOUT - Routine & Exercises/Variations - YouTube[/ame]
planks for abs, dips for the boobies. also don't forget to not neglect your back, so chin-ups, rows and such are impoortant as well
this ^^ op: this is probably the most important thing. you can work out all day, but if your diet stinks, then no one will ever know. if you want to lose fat, you need to be in a caloric deficit. or put another way: you can't out-train a bad diet.
hey thanks First movie is pretty good, some of those exercises look a bit too advanced but I'm def going to give it a shot But concerning the second vid, I really have no acces to proper weights & a bench at the moment, which is pretty much the focus there. But who knows, maybe in the future I may have. Believe me, if anything I don't need to lose fat Quite the contrary actually, I had some trouble gaining / keeping weight for a while, but I'm gaining decent muscle mass at the moment. I don't really have much in the way of belly fat, it's just that the muscles there are really underdeveloped in relation to the rest and it just kinda...sags. Oh, and I'm keeping in mind my protein intake, which is ok atm.
A great starting point for core strength are deadbugs (if done properly with the lower back pressed into the floor): https://www.t-nation.com/training/core-training-for-smart-folks
Whats your weight/height/ bf ratio then? If you have issues maintaining weight, that could still be a diet issue. Although, everyone naturally have abs, they don't really pop out until 15% fat. Hence why I generally have an outline of my abs. Bodyweight Exercises for abs: Lie down Leg Raises Various crunches Hanging Leg Raises Planks (as above)
ahh, deadbugs, whats in a name? going to try a couple sets of those today hmm, who are you, asking me my measurements and didnt even take me out to dinner and a movie yet Latest measurements from this morning, I'm 178 centimeters and weight is 69 kilograms.. I don't know what that is in eagle-land units, but that is a BMI of 21.81. Bodyfat, I actually never got that measured.. tried the 'navy method' and calculated it out at 16%, I think one or two points lower is more accurate but what are you going to do with an inacurate method? But to get back at difficulty keeping weight, that was me rattling on about two years ago in a time period where I was just about underweight, and struggling to gain weight and keep it. Since a year or so, I'm pretty stable weightwise, just gaining a bit slowly since I've been gaining muscle.
well, I guess I should stop talking out of my backside and instead listen to people because I've done the math. Apparently, my regular meals were waaay to low on (quality) calories, resulting in a pretty huge caloric deficit. I guess "easy-going don't fuss too much about it" has it's place sometimes, but right now I'm going to count & plan for a while.. Oh, and I've been trying out the exercises posted in the thread, still figureing out a routine, but I'm working on that So thanks for your suggestions guys!
