Maybe a hard economy forced the fire sale of your once epic home gym. Maybe you’re making do at a poorly equipped hotel gym. Or maybe you’re on a road trip with limited space for strength equipment.

No matter the scenario, these single-dumbbell workouts will help you turn strife into strength, lean times into lean mass, and hardship into a hard body. But don’t expect charity gains. You’re going to have to work for it.

Best Single-Dumbbell Workouts

• For Muscle Gain
• For Fat Loss
• For Conditioning
• For Strength

Best Single-Dumbbell Workout for Muscle Gain

Training to put on muscle without the niceties of a fully equipped gym? Fortunately, muscle gain occurs across a wide range of repetitions and using weights ranging from light to heavy (e.g. 30% to more than 80% of maximum). (1)(2)(3)(4)

As such, a single dumbbell of moderate weight may be the most utilitarian tool for whole-body hypertrophy training. With thoughtful exercise selection and a time-saving strategy like agonist-antagonist supersets, you’ve got a no-frills recipe for growth.

For this single-dumbbell hypertrophy workout, a moderate weight works best (e.g. 15 to 50 pounds). Training to failure is not “required” for noteworthy gains. (5)(6) For best results with limited equipment, however, you will need to take these sets to a high level of effort. (4) That is, each set should approach failure. Select a number of repetitions that leaves between one and four repetitions “in the tank.”

Build Size with One Weight

This full-body workout uses paired exercises and an emphasis on single-arm or single-leg movements to get the most from minimal equipment. Begin targeting the back and chest. Like a standard row, the wide dumbbell row hits the mid-back (middle trapezius and rhomboids) but may better train the rear deltoids. (7)(8) Elevating one hand during the push-up will increase the difficulty of the exercise by achieving a greater stretch across pectoralis major (chest) in the bottom position.

Next you’ll tackle legs. During the single-leg Romanian deadlift, you can use a sturdy object, such as a chair or bench, for balance assistance and to keep the focus on your hamstrings rather than stabilizing muscles. But be disciplined. Do not push with your support hand.

You’ll end the session with some direct arm work. You’re welcome. By bracing your upper arm against your thigh during the concentration curl, you eliminate “cheating” from body sway and shoulder flexion. The long head of triceps is lengthened across the shoulder during the overhead triceps extension, making this exercise superior for muscle growth. (9)

Wide Dumbbell Row

• How to Do it: Brace your free arm on a flat bench with your feet in a stable stance. Grab the dumbbell with your working arm and pull it “up and out.” In the top position, your elbow should be nearly in line with your shoulder and away from your ribs. Keep your torso level and avoid rotating as you pull and lower the weight.
• Sets and Reps: 3 sets to muscular fatigue, per arm. Depending on the weight of your dumbbell, repetitions may range from six to 30 or more.
• Rest time: No rest between arms. No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Single-Arm Emphasis Push-Up

• How to Do it: Lie on the ground with one hand on the dumbbell and the other hand flat on the floor. Keep your spine and legs straight as you lower into a deep push-up. The chest of the elevated hand will be put into a significant stretch. Press up until the non-elevated hand is locked out. Perform an even number of repetitions with each hand elevated.

• Sets and Reps: 3 sets to muscular fatigue.
• Rest time: No rest between arms. Rest 90 seconds before repeating the previous exercise.

Single-Leg Romanian Deadlift

• How to Do it: Stand near a chair or the back of an incline bench while holding a dumbbell in one hand. Use the bench, as needed, for stability. Lift the leg of the working side slightly off the ground and softly bend the opposite knee. Bend at your hips as you “reach” the dumbbell toward your foot on the ground. Allow your working-side leg to rise into the air behind you. Keep your torso straight and don’t bend at the spine. Pull your torso back to stand upright.
• Sets and Reps: 3 sets to muscular fatigue, per leg. Depending on the weight of your dumbbell, repetitions may range from six to 30 or more.
• Rest time: No rest between legs. No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Rear Foot Elevated Split Squat

• How to Do it: Face away from a flat bench while holding a dumbbell in one hand. Place the same-side leg behind you, resting your shoelaces on the bench. Squat down with your front leg and allow your back knee to drop to the floor. Keep your shoulders pulled back and your torso upright during the movement. Drive through your front foot to stand upright.

• Sets and Reps: 3 sets to muscular fatigue, per leg. Depending on the weight of your dumbbell, repetitions may range from six to 30 or more.
• Rest time: No rest between legs. Rest 90 seconds before repeating the previous exercise.

Concentration Curl

• How to Do it: Sit on a bench with your feet wider than shoulder-width. Grab a dumbbell with a palms-up grip in one hand and rest the triceps of that arm near the same-side knee. Curl the weight toward your face. Don’t allow your legs or torso to swing the weight up. Lower the weight to full straight-arm extension.
• Sets and Reps: 3 sets to muscular fatigue, per arm. Depending on the weight of your dumbbell, repetitions may range from six to 30 or more.
• Rest time: No rest between arms. No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Single-Arm Overhead Extension

• How to Do it: Sit upright on a flat bench. Press a dumbbell overhead with one arm. Keep your torso tight and upright. Lower the weight behind your head until your hand is roughly in line with the top of your head. Keep your elbow pointed generally toward the ceiling, don’t allow it to move significantly. Only your hand should move with the weight.

• Sets and Reps: 3 sets to muscular fatigue, per leg. Depending on the weight of your dumbbell, repetitions may range from six to 30 or more.
• Rest time: No rest between arms. Rest 90 seconds before repeating the previous exercise.

Best Single-Dumbbell Workout for Fat Loss

Circuit training, a method of exercise that links multiple exercises together with minimal rest between each, is effective for improving body composition. In addition to decreasing body fat percentage and increasing muscularity, circuits may also promote modest improvements in aerobic fitness and strength. (10)(11)

Single-dumbbell exercises are ideal for circuit training because they require minimal setup. Machine-based circuit training obviously requires plenty of equipment, but it also requires monopolizing more than one’s fair of the gym. Single-dumbbell circuit training can just as easily be done in a small corner of a busy gym or a lonely motel room.

One-Dumbbell Fat-Burning Circuit

A light dumbbell works well for this whole-body resistance training circuit — 10 to 30 pounds should work for most lifters, depending on your strength and fitness level. It uses a descending repetition scheme, with each exercise performed for progressively fewer reps, to accommodate fatigue as you continue to work.

Perform the exercises in order, rest briefly, and then repeat the entire sequence for a total of three rounds.

Single-Arm Dumbbell Row

• How to Do it: Take a staggered stance with your front foot next to the dumbbell. Your working arm will be opposite your front foot — left foot forward with your right arm working, and vice versa. Brace your non-working forearm on your front thigh. Grab the dumbbell with your working arm and row toward your back hip. Maintain a neutral grip with your palm facing your leg. Lower the weight to a full stretch, nearly reaching ankle-level.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 30 per arm.
• Rest time: No rest between arms. No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Single-Arm Floor Press

• How to Do it: Lie down with the dumbbell in one hand and your elbow resting on the ground. Bend your legs with your feet flat. Press the weight above your chest to full lockout. Lower under control. Do not bounce your arm off the ground between repetitions.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 25 per arm.
• Rest time: No rest between arms. No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Goblet Squat

• How to Do it: Stand up while holding the dumbbell in the “goblet position,” supporting the dumbbell with both hands in front of your chin or neck. Keep your elbows close to your torso. Squat down as low as possible while keeping your upper body vertical. Keep your feet flat on the floor throughout each repetition.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 20
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Dumbbell Good Morning

• How to Do it: Hold the dumbbell to your upper chest using both hands. Slightly bend your knees while pushing your hips back and bending at the waist. When your upper body is nearly parallel to the ground, “pull” with your glutes and hamstrings to return upright. Keep a neutral spine during the movement. Don’t allow your back to round forward.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 15
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Single-Arm Arnold Z Press

• How to Do it: Get on the ground in a “long-sitting position” with your legs extended in front of you and your upper body straight. Hold the dumbbell in front of your working-side shoulder with your palm facing your body. As you press overhead, rotate the dumbbell so your palm faces forward in the top position. Reverse the movement as you lower the weight.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 10 per arm.
• Rest time: No rest between arms. Rest 60 seconds before repeating the first exercise.

Best Single Dumbbell Workout for Conditioning

A complex is a series of lifts performed in immediate succession with the same piece of equipment. Barbell and kettlebell complexes are extremely popular, and for good reasons. They train all major energy systems, build multi-joint strength, and fortify your grip. But the humble dumbbell does not get the notoriety it deserves for complexes.

As a unilateral (single–arm) implement, it hammers the core while its balanced center of mass may be more user-friendly than a kettlebell for certain Olympic lift-inspired exercises, such as the dumbbell snatch.

One-Dumbbell Conditioning Complex

The exercises in this conditioning complex are power- and strength-based, which would tend to tax the quick-energy phosphagen system when performed in isolation. However, as the repetitions and rounds of the complex add up, you will lean hard into the anaerobic glycolysis and aerobic systems. Meaning this single-dumbbell complex is a multi-functional conditioning workout.

Perform all repetitions with the dumbbell in your left hand, followed by all repetitions with the dumbbell in your right hand, before immediately moving on to the next exercise.

Dumbbell Snatch

• How to Do it: Start with the dumbbell in the “hang position” between your knees — your feet should be slightly wider than shoulder-width and your palm facing your body. Drive through your hips and knees toward the ceiling. Carry that momentum through the dumbbell as you “zip” the weight in front of your midline and “flick” it into the overhead position. Lockout with a straight arm. Lower the weight with control to the starting position and repeat.
• Sets and Reps: 3 to 5 x 4 per arm.
• Rest time: No rest between arms. No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Front-Loaded Reverse Lunge

• How to Do it: Hold the dumbbell at shoulder-level with your thumb near your shoulder. Step backward into a deep lunge position with your leg on the same side as the weight. Keep your torso upright and resist the weight pulling your upper body to the side. When your rear knee is close to the ground, drive through your front leg to return to a standing position. Perform all reps with one leg, then switch hands and repeat with the opposite leg.
• Sets and Reps: 3 to 5 x 4 per leg.
• Rest time: No rest between legs. No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Dumbbell Push Press

• How to Do it: Combine a mini-squat and ballistic overhead press to drive the weight overhead. Begin with the dumbbell near your shoulder and your palm facing your head. Squat down several inches before exploding upward as you press overhead to full lockout. Lower the weight under control.
• Sets and Reps: 3 to 5 x 4 per arm.
• Rest time: No rest between arms. No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Single-Arm Overhead Squat

• How to Do it: Challenge your trunk stability and shoulder complex mobility with this full-body squat. Press the weight to lockout overhead and widen your stance. Squat as low as possible without moving your locked out arm overhead. Keep your torso as upright as possible and resist any rotation or twisting.
• Sets and Reps: 3 to 5 x 4 per arm.
• Rest time: No rest between arms. Rest 90 seconds before repeating the first exercise.

Best Single Dumbbell Workout for Strength

Heavy bilateral (double-limb) movements with barbells and machines tend to be the go-to exercises for strength in traditional gyms. But if all you’ve got is a single dumbbell, you’re going to have to make it work.

An effective strategy for enhancing strength is “accentuated eccentric training.” Accentuated eccentrics apply greater loads during the negative or lowering phase of the exercise than those applied during the concentric phase. (12) Weight releasers are commonly used for accentuated eccentric training, but this specialized device only works for one repetition, as the extra weight is jettisoned at the bottom of the first repetition. More importantly, it’s not compatible with dumbbell training.

Fortunately, accentuated eccentric loading can be accomplished by performing a unilateral, or single-sided, exercise with the assistance of the other limb during the concentric (lifting) phase. In plain English, you will use your off-side arm or leg to “help” during the upward phase of the lift and lower the weight with only your working side.

Build Strength with Just One Weight

Just as training to failure is not essential for muscle hypertrophy, it is not a requirement for strength. (6) You can and will build strength with not-to-failure sets of these exercises as long as your dumbbell is moderately heavy (e.g. 30 to 70 pounds, depending on your strength).

Half-Kneeling Single-Arm Overhead Press

• How to Do it: Kneel on the ground with the weight on the same side as the down knee. Use your off-side arm to assist in lifting the dumbbell from the bottom of the movement to lockout. Lower the weight using only your working-side arm. For each repetition, use the non-working arm to help lift the weight.

• Sets and Reps: 2 to 6 x 4 to 6 per arm.
• Rest time: Rest two minutes between sets.

Skater Squat

• How to Do it: Stand on your working leg while holding the dumbbell in the front rack position, hugged to your upper chest with both hands. Squat down until your off-side knee gently contacts the floor. Dig your off-side foot into the floor to assist back to a standing position. If you are unable to perform skater squats with control, place a pillow or stack of textbooks under your off-side knee to limit the range of motion.

• Sets and Reps: 2 to 6 x 4 to 6 per leg.
• Rest time: Rest two minutes between sets.

Single-Leg Good Morning

• How to Do it: Begin standing on one leg with the dumbbell in the front rack position, hugged to your upper chest with both hands. Hinge forward at the hips with minimal knee bend. Allow your back leg to rise into the air until your torso is nearly parallel to the ground. In the bottom position, bring your off-side foot to the floor to assist your return to a standing position. Perform all reps with one leg before switching sides.

• Sets and Reps: 2 to 6 x 4 to 6 per leg.
• Rest time: Rest two minutes between sets.

How to Warm-Up for Single-Dumbbell Workouts

A typical warm-up consists of five to ten minutes of general aerobic exercise followed by several lighter sets of the exercises that will be included in the workout. Since you’ve only got one dumbbell, cardio equipment and lighter “work-up sets” are out of reach.

However, even in these desperate times, a warm-up is important to get the most out of your workout. Consider jogging or ropeless jump rope (“pogo hops”) to elevate your body temperature.

For squats, lunges, Romanian deadlifts, and good mornings, a bodyweight warm-up of three sets of 10 to 12 reps should suffice. For non-bodyweight exercises, perform non-challenging, low-repetition sets of the primary movements you will train in the workout.

One Weight is All it Takes

Performed with intent and intensity, single-dumbbell workouts can build muscle size, promote fat loss, improve conditioning, and develop strength. These workouts can be useful when you find yourself in less-than-ideal scenarios where equipment is limited or you can deliberately program a single-dumbbell workout as an exercise in minimalism. Benefits of single-dumbbell training include versatility, the potential for unilateral loading for a challenging stimulus to the core, and the ability to efficiently perform accentuated eccentric exercises. Next time you are “down to your last dumbbell,” a single-dumbbell workout might change your outlook from grim to grateful.

References

1. Lasevicius, T., et al. (2018). Effects of different intensities of resistance training with equated volume load on muscle strength and hypertrophy. European Journal of Sport Science, 18(6), 772-780.
2. Jenkins, N. D., et al. (2017). Greater neural adaptations following high-vs. low-load resistance training. Frontiers in Physiology, 8, 331.
3. Schoenfeld, B. J., et al. (2021). Loading recommendations for muscle strength, hypertrophy, and local endurance: a re-examination of the repetition continuum. Sports, 9(2), 32.
4. Pareja‐Blanco, F., et al. (2017). Effects of velocity loss during resistance training on athletic performance, strength gains and muscle adaptations. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 27(7), 724-735.
5. Vieira, A. F., et al. (2021). Effects of resistance training performed to failure or not to failure on muscle strength, hypertrophy, and power output: a systematic review with meta-analysis. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 35(4), 1165-1175.
6. Grgic, J., et al. (2021). Effects of resistance training performed to repetition failure or non-failure on muscular strength and hypertrophy: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Sport and Health Science.
7. Hedrick, A., & Herl, M. (2021). Technique of the Unilateral Dumbbell Wide Row. Strength & Conditioning Journal, 43(4), 121-123.
8. García-Jaén, M., et al. (2021). Electromyographical responses of the lumbar, dorsal and shoulder musculature during the bent-over row exercise: a comparison between standing and bench postures (a preliminary study). Journal of Physical Education and Sport, 21(4), 1871-1877.
9. Maeo, S., et al. (2022). Triceps brachii hypertrophy is substantially greater after elbow extension training performed in the overhead versus neutral arm position. European Journal of Sport Science, 1-11.
10. Ramos-Campo, D. J., et al. (2021). Effects of resistance circuit-based training on body composition, strength and cardiorespiratory fitness: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Biology, 10(5), 377.
11. Schmidt, D., Anderson, K., Graff, M., & Strutz, V. (2015). The effect of high-intensity circuit training on physical fitness. The Journal of sports medicine and physical fitness, 56(5), 534-540.
12. Wagle, J. P., et al. (2017). Accentuated eccentric loading for training and performance: A review. Sports Medicine, 47(12), 2473-2495.

Featured Image: Arsenii Palivoda / Shutterstock

The post 4 Workouts With a Single Dumbbell for Muscle, Fat Loss, and More appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

A workout split (also called a “training split” or simply a “split”) provides order to your lifting schedule over the course of a week. There are splits that train your entire body, head to toe (or traps to calves) in each session, some splits work each individual body part on its own, and then there are various combination in between.

We’ll break down the most common splits and help you to determine which is best suited for your goals.

Perfect Splits 

• Common Workout Splits
• All Roads Lead to Rome
• Linchpins of Adaptation
• How to Choose the Best Split For Your Goal
• Build Up to It

Common Workout Splits

Put simply: A workout split is jargon for how you divvy up your week’s worth of training. Just like there are a multitude of exercises to choose from, there are plenty of different training splits to set the framework of your training week. While some splits share overlapping benefits, or hindrances, each might be the right choice depending on your specific goal, individual needs, and other deciding factors.

Body Part

As the name implies, this split is characterized by focusing on a specific body part or muscle group with each workout. Although many variations on the body part split are possible, the “bro split” is most widely known — a week typically looks like:

• Monday: Chest (Monday is “international chest day, of course)
• Tuesday: Back
• Wednesday: Legs
• Thursday: Arms
• Friday: Shoulders
• Saturday: Abs (or rest)
• Sunday: Rest or Cardio

Focusing on one body part at a time allows for a variety of exercises. For example, one might hit bench press, incline bench, and cable crossovers on chest day; or barbell curls, hammer curls, and a variety of direct triceps training as an arm workout. Typically, each body part receives a single training session per week. 

This is a popular split among bodybuilders — competitive and hobbyists — as a body part split delivers more volume to the muscle, which is a requirement for hypertrophy (or muscle growth). 

Upper/Lower

This is a two-way split. All upper body lifts are performed on day one and all lower body lifts are done on day two. The upper/lower split is commonly repeated twice per week, which would allocate four days to lifting and three days of “rest” (either non-lifting activity or total rest).

For high-frequency devotees, advanced trainees, and those pushing for short periods of over-reaching, the upper/lower split can be repeated three times per week with a single rest day. The upper/lower split, therefore, allows either two or three workouts per major muscle group each week.

Trainees will perform fewer exercises per muscle group per workout compared to the body part split. Instead of doing three to four chest exercises, you may perform two. However, because you’re training your entire upper body and lower body twice (or, in extreme cases, thrice) weekly, the overall volume stays about the same.

Push/Pull/Legs

This is another common option for physique-focused lifters, as well as those prioritizing strength. On day one, the lifter hits upper body pressing movements and triceps accessory exercises — bench press, overhead press, skull crushers, etc.

Day two includes upper body pulling — deadlifts, rows, pulldowns, curls, and company. All lower body training is reserved for day three, which is essentially “leg day” for training the quadriceps, hamstrings, and calves.

The push/pull/legs split may be repeated twice per week, which would allow a single day for “rest,” or it can be performed with a rest day between each workout. Major muscle groups are trained once or twice per week in the push/pull/legs split. 

Chest & Back/Legs/Shoulders & Arms

Here’s a unique three-way split. One advantage it offers is the ability to integrate agonist-antagonist supersets, a time-efficient programming technique that alternates exercises which target muscle groups on directly opposite sides of the body (like chest and back). For example, you’d perform one set of bench presses followed by a set of rows.

This split is commonly performed once or twice per week. Therefore, each muscle group is directly trained once or twice per week. You should recognize, however, that shoulder and arm muscles tend to get “bonus” training volume because they are indirectly trained and unintentionally recruited during the chest and back workout. 

Total Body

Whole-body routines aren’t technically “splits,” because they don’t divide training by body part or movement pattern. All major muscle groups are trained each session. Whole-body training is a relatively common way to train for serious athletes and beginners alike.

Three whole-body workouts per week is standard, but some lifters get by with two or four, depending on their recovery ability. As you might expect, training the entire body doesn’t leave much time for “fluff,” redundancy, or isolation work.

Whole-body routines tend to emphasize big multi-joint exercises with minimal accessory exercises. While some trainees hit whole-body workouts four or more times per week, the typical whole-body training frequency is three times per week with 24 hours or more recovery between sessions.

All Roads Lead to Rome

If you are consistently hitting the iron and training each muscle group hard — even just once or twice per week — you are virtually guaranteed to make gains. (1)(2) (Your diet needs to be in check, too.) Although many variables play relatively smaller roles, the major drivers of adaptations to resistance training are intensity, or the amount of weight lifted, and weekly volume (the total number of sets and reps). (3)

Broadly, your workout split is a method of determining frequency. Frequency can be defined as the total number of workouts per week or, in this case, the total number of sessions each muscle group is trained per week. (2)

Working on adding muscle mass or boosting strength? Dozens of training studies indicate that per-muscle-group training frequency does not significantly affect hypertrophy and strength when intensity and volume are held constant.(2)(4)(5)(6) Meaning, if all else is equal, your split shouldn’t “theoretically” matter.

More interested in fat loss? Simply adding resistance training is likely to improve body composition. (7) This effect is robust enough to occur in the absence of dieting and across a wide range of programming variables (e.g. volume, intensity, frequency of exercise). (7) Though, dialing in your diet would only expedite and enhance your progress.

It does seem any road will get you to ancient Rome, but wouldn’t you prefer to arrive looking more like a Spartan than an Athenian? (Historical spoiler alert: Yes, you would.)

For exceptional results, simply “making gains” isn’t enough. You’re looking for the most efficient path to the best possible improvement, and you’re going to need the best possible workout split for your needs. 

Linchpins of Adaptation

Many factors certainly interact to determine the effectiveness of a program. For hypertrophy — building more muscle — volume (weekly sets x reps) appears to be the most important programming variable to maximize. (3)(8)

Training intensity (weight/load or nearness to muscular failure) is the crucial driver when strength is the priority. (9) Volume earns an honorable mention, as it is a more important determinant of strength adaptations than frequency. (4)(5)(6)

For fat loss goals, volume and intensity interact to stoke the metabolism during training and burn extra calories after training via the EPOC phenomenon. (10) Training major muscle groups regularly during periods of dieting can even accelerate improvements in body composition by promoting fat loss and muscle gain. (11)

Let’s consider how specific workout splits can help you to maximize the key variables for your goal. 

How to Choose the Best Split for Your Goal

If you want to use a body part split, push/pull/legs, or chest & back/legs/shoulders & arms split but can only get to the gym twice per week, you’re going to leave body parts neglected and potential gains unrealized.

The first question when identifying an ideal workout split should be, “How many strength training workouts per week am I able to realistically perform?” Don’t force a square peg into a round hole. Your training split will only be effective to the extent to which it gets done.

If you can only train once per week, you’re on the full-body split. End of conversation. Go train everything, enjoy your workout, rest a lot, and come back again next week. There’s simply no other effective option for these desperate times.

If you can train twice per week, whole-body routines and upper/lower splits are potential options. This is how you can make the best of a near-minimal situation.

If you can train three to four times per week, your options open up to at least one cycle of any of the common splits except the body part split. To avoid neglected areas, body part splits should be reserved for trainees who can commit at least five days per week in the gym.

Ultimately, if you can train six days per week, the world of splits is your oyster. Once you’ve explored your schedule demands, you know your potential split options. Now, it’s time to identify the linchpin programming features for your training goal — the most essential determinants of success and identify a training split that maximizes them. 

Workout Splits for Hypertrophy

As previously established, weekly volume is a key determinant of muscle growth. Although training frequency does not seem to affect outcomes when volume is equal, a split program that facilitates more volume each week may be more effective for hypertrophy. (2)(3)(8)

So, how much volume per muscle group should one shoot for? And how can they best achieve this target? Expert consensus maintains a minimum of 10 sets per muscle group in the six to 20 rep range is a viable target for hypertrophy training. (12)

Although there is potential for even more significant improvement if the additional volume is achieved, no more than 10 sets per muscle group should be programmed in a given session. (12)

From here, deciding your split is about simple arithmetic and a slight personal preference. A lifter can hit the base recommendation of 10 sets by training with a body part “bro” split. Note that 10 hard sets per body part won’t tickle — especially on leg day with (presumably) 10 sets for quads, 10 for hamstrings, 10 for calves.

Intermediate and advanced trainees can typically tolerate a body part split because they will get a whole week to recover before hitting the same muscle group again. The downside is that this split can quickly hinder volume progression if the 10 sets per day maximum warning is observed.

Whole-body split practitioners can get away with doing a moderate volume (e.g., three to four sets) of everything three days per week. This quickly becomes a long and arduous workout but can be accomplished more efficiently if agonist/antagonist or alternate peripheral superset techniques are employed.

Split training is popular among bodybuilders and likely for a good reason. A whole-body approach has been marginally less effective for hypertrophy than a volume-equated split routine. (13)

Hitting the gym four or six times per week on an upper/lower split can be very effective for hypertrophy. However, seeing too many “leg days” on the schedule can be demoralizing for a specific subset of the lifting population (i.e., the would-be skippers of leg day). And no split is effective if you’re skipping out on it. 

The push/pull/legs or chest & back/legs/shoulders & arms splits are also highly effective for hypertrophy. Mentally, each day has a target — to “pump and annihilate” a given muscle or muscle group. These splits have the added advantage of facilitating time-saving and effective agonist/antagonist superset techniques. 

Workout Splits for Strength

Compared to a volume-matched split routine, a whole-body routine at four sessions per week frequency has been shown to result in superior strength gains. (13)

Now, the differences in strength improvement between groups were small and failed to reach “statistical significance” for most measurements. But this finding is odd, considering that meta-analyses have reported “no difference” between volume-equated training when training frequency is manipulated. (4)(5)

Perhaps there are neurological or endocrine benefits to the whole-body training stimulus? We don’t know. But we do know this — strength training is largely intensity-driven.

A split that gives each workout a defined focus anecdotally allows the lifter to perform with higher intensity. So, if your intensity has been slipping toward the end of your whole-body routine, it’s time to consider a split.

A movement pattern-based split like push/pull/legs works great for some. For others, upper/lower provides each workout with enough focus to maximize each lift.

Workout Splits for Fat Loss

Whole body routines tend to focus on multi-joint exercises targeting large muscle groups. To train all major muscle groups in one session, whole-body workouts are to be longer in duration. These features may be beneficial to those with body composition or fat-loss goals.

Excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC) describes the increased metabolic activity, or calorie burn, that occurs following exercise. Higher intensity and longer duration resistance training or interval training tend to stimulate greater EPOC.

Although the practical benefits of EPOC have been questioned, some research has reported a  greater than 10% boost in resting metabolic rate at 14-hours after whole-body strength training. This equated to an extra 168 calories burned on average, which is quite relevant when added up over several days per week. (10)

The whole-body strength training EPOC workout wasn’t a walk in the park — four sets of five exercises (squat, chest press, pulldown, shoulder press, and split squat) were performed for 30 seconds each (6-7 reps) at 80% of the lifters’ one-repetition maximum with one-minute rest between each movement. The majority of fit lifters will require 48 to 72-hours of recovery after a workout of similar intensity and volume.

Combined with a high-protein, calorie-reduced diet, whole body strength training produces superior results to dieting or lifting alone. (11) Three sessions per week were enough to elicit this effect. But don’t turn your whole-body workout into a cardio session.

The use of heavy loads (e.g. heavier than 80% 1RM), at least intermittently, is also suggested during a dieting phase. As bodybuilders in “cutting phases” know well, heavy strength training can help to protect lean mass during periods of calorie deficit.

For body composition and fat loss, the whole-body approach checks all of the boxes. Ideally, hit all major muscle groups three days per week with at least 48 hours between sessions. If you’re able to train more often than three days per week, steady-state aerobic exercise or HIIT workout may be programmed on non-lifting days. 

Building Up to It

You’ve seen many recommendations for training volume and intensity in this article, but it’s prudent to gradually increase training volume and intensity instead of diving head-first into a drastically different training program.

A good rule of thumb is to limit increases in weekly set volume to 20% of previous regular volume per month. (12) For example, a lifter who previously trained with eight sets of chest exercises per week might gradually increase to 10 sets over the course of the next four weeks.

For lifters who are not accustomed to high intensity training, it’s also sensible to gradually expose your body to heavy weights over time (e.g. 2 to 4% increase per week). Deloads may be programmed as needed.

Split it or Hit it

Deciding on a training split doesn’t need to be overly complicated. It comes down to knowing your training goal, determining how often you’ll consistently show up to train, and establishing the framework for your program. Once you identify the “perfect” split for your lifestyle and training goals, you’ll be well on your way to consistent gains and progress.

References

1. Androulakis-Korakakis, P., Fisher, J. P., & Steele, J. (2020). The minimum effective training dose required to increase 1RM strength in resistance-trained men: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Sports Medicine, 50(4), 751-765.
2. Schoenfeld, B. J., Grgic, J., & Krieger, J. (2019). How many times per week should a muscle be trained to maximize muscle hypertrophy? A systematic review and meta-analysis of studies examining the effects of resistance training frequency. Journal of Sports Sciences, 37(11), 1286-1295.
3. Schoenfeld, B. J., Ogborn, D., & Krieger, J. W. (2017). Dose-response relationship between weekly resistance training volume and increases in muscle mass: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Sports Sciences, 35(11), 1073-1082.
4. Ralston, G. W., Kilgore, L., Wyatt, F. B., & Baker, J. S. (2017). The effect of weekly set volume on strength gain: a meta-analysis. Sports Medicine, 47(12), 2585-2601.
5. Grgic, J., Schoenfeld, B. J., Davies, T. B., et al. (2018). Effect of resistance training frequency on gains in muscular strength: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Sports Medicine, 48(5), 1207-1220.
6. Brigatto, F. A., de Camargo, J. B. B., Machado, Y. B., et al. (2022). Does split-body resistance training routine performed two versus three days per week induce distinct strength and morphological adaptations in resistance-trained men? A randomized longitudinal study. International Journal of Strength and Conditioning, 2(1).
7. Wewege, M. A., Desai, I., Honey, C., et al. (2021). The effect of resistance training in healthy adults on body fat percentage, fat mass and visceral fat: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Sports Medicine, 1-14.
8. Schoenfeld, B. J., Contreras, B., Krieger, J., et al. (2019). Resistance training volume enhances muscle hypertrophy but not strength in trained men. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 51(1), 94.
9. Lasevicius, T., Ugrinowitsch, C., Schoenfeld, B. J., et al. (2018). Effects of different intensities of resistance training with equated volume load on muscle strength and hypertrophy. European Journal of Sport Science, 18(6), 772-780.
10. Greer, B. K., O’Brien, J., Hornbuckle, L. M., & Panton, L. B. (2021). EPOC comparison between resistance training and high-intensity interval training in aerobically fit women. International Journal of Exercise Science, 14(2), 1027.
11. Miller, T., Mull, S., Aragon, A. A., et al. (2018). Resistance training combined with diet decreases body fat while preserving lean mass independent of resting metabolic rate: a randomized trial. International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, 28(1), 46-54.
12. Schoenfeld, B., Fisher, J., Grgic, J., et al. (2021). Resistance training recommendations to maximize muscle hypertrophy in an athletic population: Position stand of the IUSCA. International Journal of Strength and Conditioning, 1(1), 1-30.
13. Bartolomei, S., Nigro, F., Lanzoni, I. M., et al. (2021). A comparison between total body and split routine resistance training programs in trained men. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 35(6), 1520-1526.

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The first is steady-state cardio training, where a single speed or intensity is maintained for the entirety of the workout without resting, The other is interval training, which alternates periods of work with periods of rest.

One unique type of interval training may actually deliver better results in less time. (1) Specifically, we’re talking about HIIT — high intensity interval training. It’s a particular training protocol that alternates periods (or “intervals”) of high effort followed by periods of recovery for the duration of the workout.

A critical element of HIIT workouts are those first two words. High. Intensity. For best results, aim to apply something close to maximum effort in each work period, not simply something that “feels hard.”

Many generic HIIT workouts you see on the internet are “intense” because of short rest periods and insufficient recovery, rather than requiring high intensity output during the work intervals. This short rest/high volume approach can have its place in a workout routine, but it’s just interval training. It’s not going to give you the same outcome as following these truly high intensity workouts.

Perform these workouts no more than three days per week. If you can perform them on consecutive days without rest, reconsider how much “high intensity” you’re really putting into each interval.

The Best HIIT Workouts

• With One Dumbbell
• With One Kettlebell
• EMOM HIIT
• With Bodyweight, Lower Body
• With Bodyweight, Upper Body

One-Dumbbell HIIT Workout

This workout is done for time using an AMRAP approach which, in this case, stands for As Many Rounds As Possible. Start a timer immediately before performing the first rep of the first exercise. Instead of performing strict “sets,” work through the series of exercises continually until the timer ends.

The full-body workout follows a specific sequence: One lower body exercise, one upper body exercise, and finally an ab exercise. This structure lets you move non-stop while also allowing the involved muscle groups to get some rest before you have to repeat an exercise. This is how you keep the overall training intensity high throughout the entire session.

Goblet Squat

• How to Do it: Hold the dumbbell in front of your chest with both hands supporting one side of the weight. Pull your shoulders back and maintain an upright torso as you squat down by bending at both the hips and the knees. The goblet position keeps your torso relatively vertical and allows you to achieve a deeper squat position. Make sure your head and shoulders rise first as you stand up. Throughout the exercise, keep your elbows near your ribs and keep the weight near your chest.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• Sets and Reps: 12 reps
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Single-Arm Floor Press

• How to Do it: Lie on the ground holding the dumbbell in one arm. Extend that arm above your chest in a locked out position. Bend your legs and brace your feet flat on the floor. Lower the weight as if performing a dumbbell bench press. Keep your upper arm at an angle roughly halfway between your feet and shoulders. Use a controlled speed to avoid bouncing your arm off of the ground.
• Sets and Reps: 5 reps per arm, 10 total reps
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Alternating Jackknife Raise

• How to Do it: Lie on the ground with your legs extended straight and your arms by your sides. Raise one leg while reaching the opposite arm above your body until your hand and foot meet. This will require a total-body sit-up motion. Alternate sides with each repetition: left foot meeting right hand, right hand meeting left foot, etc.
• Sets and Reps: 4 reps per side, 8 total reps
• Rest time: No rest before returning to the first exercise. After three minutes of continuous work, rest for one minute. Perform a total of two “sets” of three minutes.

One-Kettlebell HIIT Workout

Many exercises can be performed interchangeably with either a dumbbell or a kettlebell. However, the kettlebell’s unique shape and offset center of mass make it the preferred choice for certain exercises. This workout uses a kettlebell, specifically, to improve muscle recruitment and increase explosive output. It should be done for time using an AMRAP approach — as many rounds as possible.

Goblet Clean

• How to Do it: This dynamic movement brings the weight from the floor to the goblet position, near chin-level, in one powerful motion. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and the kettlebell set between them. Squat down and grab the top of the kettlebell with both hands using a palms-down grip. Maintain a neutral spine as you explosively stand up while pulling the kettlebell to chest-height. As the weight passes above your hips, quickly transition both hands to the “horns” of the kettlebell (the handle stems on either side). Stabilize your body in the upright position, with the weight held just below your chin, before reversing the process to lower the weight.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• Sets and Reps: 12 reps
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Single-Arm Push Press

• How to Do it: Stand with your feet slightly wider than shoulder-width. Hold the kettlebell in one arm, with your hand near the front of your shoulder and the “ball” of the kettlebell supported along your forearm. Dip down a few inches into a short-range squat and use your body as a spring to generate force as you stand up while pressing the weight to lockout overhead. Slowly lower the weight to the starting position. Repeat all reps for one arm before switching sides.
• Sets and Reps: 5 reps per arm, 10 reps total
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Straight-Arm Sit-Up

• How to Do it: Lie on the ground with your legs bent and your feet flat. Extend your arms overhead with the backs of your hands touching the ground. Perform a full range of motion sit-up, bringing your chest to meet your knees. As you rise up, bring your arms from overhead to straight out in front of your chest. In the top position, your elbows should be near your knees. Reverse the motion to return to the starting position.
• Sets and Reps: 8 reps
• Rest time: No rest before returning to the first exercise. After three minutes of continuous work, rest for one minute. Perform a total of two “sets” of three minutes.

EMOM HIIT Workout

EMOM training is an intense, time-based protocol which typically requires performing one set of an exercise every minute on the minute. Generally, you have 60 seconds to complete a given number of repetitions. The only rest time is the remainder of that minute, because the next “set” will begin at the start of the next minute. This intense training method incentivizes you to work harder and faster so you can get more rest.

While the most common EMOM uses one-minute periods, you can adapt the method to almost any timeframe. This allows you to perform a higher volume of work with more reps per exercise and/or more exercises per workout. The goal is still to complete each work phase as quickly and efficiently as possible so that you can get enough rest to maintain your performance in the upcoming rounds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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In this HIIT workout — “E4MO4M” or “every four minutes on the four minutes” — you have four minutes to complete all of the work below. You can use different weights for each exercise to keep the reps challenging, but pre-arrange the weights before starting the workout to save time.

The goal is to finish all 102 repetitions in three to three-and-a-half minutes so you can get some rest before starting the next set. Perform three to five total circuits — a 12 to 20-minute workout.

• Single-arm dumbbell row: 15 reps per arm, 30 reps total
• Single-arm clean: 12 reps per arm, 24 reps total
• Single-arm push press: 10 reps per arm, 20 reps total
• Goblet squat: 16 reps
• Alternating reverse lunge: 6 reps per leg, 12 reps total

Bodyweight HIIT Workout

Bodyweight HIIT workouts can be surprisingly effective. By removing any external load, you reduce the likelihood of raw strength being a limiting factor and you can focus on technique and straightforward effort.

Many bodyweight exercises can be programmed with speed and intensity for a HIIT workout. Here are two ways to blast your upper and lower body.

Lower Body HIIT Workout

This is a relatively advanced workout for lifters who’ve mastered basic technique and can safely perform plyometric jumps quickly, explosively, and safely. Less-experienced lifters can choose an alternative exercise like alternating lunges.

Air Squat

• How to Do it: Stand with your feet slightly wider than shoulder-width. Drop into a squat position, with your thighs roughly parallel to the floor. Keep your hands near your chest and upper body roughly vertical. Quickly return to the starting position. Keep your feet on the ground throughout the exercise.
• Sets and Reps: Perform continuous repetitions for 20 seconds, ideally reaching 18 to 22 reps.
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Jump Squat

• • How to Do it: Stand with your feet slightly wider than shoulder-width. Squat down partially, with your thighs above parallel. Let your hands drop down to your side. Bring your arms up near chest-height as you stand up explosively and jump into the air. Soften your landing by catching yourself in a squat and smoothly transition to the next repetition.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• Sets and Reps: Perform continuous repetitions for 20 seconds, ideally reaching 10 to 12 reps.
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Squat Hold

• How to Do it: Bring your hands to chest-height and lower your body into a deep squat position. Your thighs should be at least parallel to the ground, or deeper if possible. Actively push your feet into the floor and engage your glutes and core to remain stationary. Maintain an upright torso. Don’t lean forward as you fatigue. Your muscles will be on fire as they work to hold the position. Embrace the burn.
• Sets and Reps: Hold the position for 20 seconds.
• Rest time: No rest before returning to the first exercise. Complete two consecutive sets. Advanced lifters can rest one minute before performing a third set. Extremely advanced lifters should aim for three consecutive sets.

Upper Body HIIT Workout — 55’s

This workout uses the countdown method for an extremely efficient HIIT workout — lots of work, minimal rest. It is often used in a circuit of two or three exercises, to give each muscle group slight recovery for optimal performance.

To perform the countdown method: Complete 10 repetitions of the first exercise, then immediately complete 10 repetitions of the second. Immediately do nine reps of the first exercise, then nine reps of the second, followed by eight reps of the first, and eight of the second, etc. Continue all the way down to one rep of each to complete a total of 55 reps of each exercise.

Be sure to time how long it takes to do the workout. The progression goal is to complete the same workout faster each time you repeat it. This also creates a competitive environment and personal challenge to keep your intensity high.

Push-Up

• How to Do it: Support your body on your toes and hands, with your hands set slightly outside shoulder-width. While keeping a straight line from your neck to your ankles during each rep, bend your elbows to lower your entire body, and press to full lockout. To reduce shoulder joint strain, aim your elbows more towards your feet than your shoulders.
• Sets and Reps: Countdown method, 10 to one reps.
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Chin-Up

• How to Do it: Grab an overhead chin-up bar using a palms-up grip with your hands roughly shoulder-width apart. Pull your body up until your chin or neck is in-line with your hands. Lower yourself under control until your arms are almost fully extended. Don’t allow your shoulders to shrug up in the bottom (stretched) position. Maintain a tight core to prevent any leg swinging.
• Sets and Reps: Countdown method, 10 to one reps.
• Rest time: No rest before returning to the first exercise.

HIIT for Fat Loss, Conditioning, or Both?

HIIT Workouts are often used as part of a fat loss plan. Fat loss occurs when you create a calorie deficit by consistently burning more energy than you consume. Various types of exercise can contribute to increasing energy expenditure, but it’s much less than you think. Over-focusing on exercise has been shown to be less effective for fat loss than using a more well-rounded approach that combines goal-focused nutrition and training. (2)

The main benefit of fat loss workouts is the maintenance of muscle mass, so that when you do lose weight, the majority of that loss comes from body fat. In order to stimulate muscle preservation, you need to work your muscles close to failure, and HIIT workouts are an effective and efficient way to do that in a short period of time.

HIIT Workouts can also be used to improve conditioning or endurance, as well as general cardiovascular health. HIIT workouts have consistently been shown to be as effective as other cardio training methods when it comes to improving general conditioning and multiple cardiovascular health markers.(3)(4)

Time to HIIT It

HIIT training can be an extremely effective and (relatively) enjoyable part of any training plan. When paired with appropriate nutrition and combined with structured strength training and some low-to-moderate intensity aerobic (steady-state) training, you end up with a comprehensive training program and should be able to see improvements in performance and body composition. The key to HIIT training is to always remember what it stands for. You can’t avoid putting the high intensity into your high intensity interval training.

References

1. Ito S. High-intensity interval training for health benefits and care of cardiac diseases – The key to an efficient exercise protocol. World J Cardiol. 2019 Jul 26;11(7):171-188. doi: 10.4330/wjc.v11.i7.171. PMID: 31565193; PMCID: PMC6763680.
2. Johns, D. J., Hartmann-Boyce, J., Jebb, S. A., Aveyard, P., & Behavioural Weight Management Review Group (2014). Diet or exercise interventions vs combined behavioral weight management programs: a systematic review and meta-analysis of direct comparisons. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, 114(10), 1557–1568. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jand.2014.07.005
3. Bacon AP, Carter RE, Ogle EA, Joyner MJ (2013) VO2max Trainability and High Intensity Interval Training in Humans: A Meta-Analysis. PLOS ONE 8(9): e73182. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0073182
4. Batacan RB, Duncan MJ, Dalbo VJ, et alEffects of high-intensity interval training on cardiometabolic health: a systematic review and meta-analysis of intervention studiesBritish Journal of Sports Medicine 2017;51:494-503.

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When it comes to a good-looking set of abs, lower ab development is especially coveted. Exercises that involve leg movement, such as various leg lifts or the simple reverse crunch, are commonly used to target this area. Is it a valid strategy? Maybe, as you’ll soon learn.

In any case, the reverse crunch is a simple and effective exercise to build and strengthen your abs, improve spine stabilization, and become a fitter, more muscular human being. For many, it’s the first “leg raising” exercise learned, so it’s time you know how to do it properly and reap its benefits.

• How to Do the Reverse Crunch
• Reverse Crunch Mistakes to Avoid
• Benefits of the Reverse Crunch
• Muscles Worked by the Reverse Crunch
• Who Should Do the Reverse Crunch
• How to Program the Reverse Crunch
• Reverse Crunch Variations
• Reverse Crunch Alternatives
• Frequently Asked Questions

How to Do the Reverse Crunch

Even though it’s a beginner-friendly exercise, you have to ensure proper form if you want maximal efficiency while avoiding pain. The reverse crunch is slightly more complex than a traditional crunch because it involves leg movement, torso flexion, as well as spinal control. Here’s how to do it right.

Step 1 — Lie Down in Position

No need for equipment — except for a gym mat if you need some comfort. Simply lie down on the floor. Keep your upper body completely flat, squeeze your glutes, and tilt your pelvis backwards to push your lower back into the ground. This will prevent your lower back from arching at any point during the lift.

Place your arms on the floor by your side, palms down, and use them for balance. Bend your legs and set your feet flat on the ground.

Form tip: If you have trouble keeping your lower back flat, lift your shoulder blades slightly off the ground. This will help you create more tension in your abs and provide more control over your spine and hips. Having an arched back reduces your ability to contract your abs.

Step 2 — Bring Your Knees Toward Your Head

Take a breath into your belly and brace your abs. Tuck your legs towards your face until your hips and lower back lift from the ground. As your legs move, maintain a roughly 90-degree angle at your knees.

No other movement should occur in your body: keep your legs at the same angle, brace as much as you can, and drive your hands into the ground to stabilize yourself. Go slow so that you don’t risk losing posture. In the top position, your hips should be off the ground for maximum ab recruitment.

Form tip: If you want to make the exercise harder, straighten your legs as you begin the movement or after you’ve reached the top position. This creates a longer lever arm and increases the challenge on your core muscles.

Step 3 — Lower Your Legs With Control

Lower your legs slowly until your feet touch the ground and you’ve returned to the starting position. Moving at a relatively slower speed helps you feel your abs working and eliminates momentum.

To keep tension in your core, don’t allow your lower back to arch as you bring your legs down. Keep your pelvis tilted backwards and your lower back pushed into the ground throughout the entire repetition.

Form tip: If your back begins to arch as your legs move, bend your legs more. Shortening the range of motion can also help. Until you have enough total-core control, only lower your legs until you feel your back starting to arch, and then reverse the movement.

Reverse Crunch Mistakes to Avoid

Ab exercises that incorporate leg movement are prone to bad form because many people lose focus. Even though the reverse crunch is probably the simplest leg raise-type of exercise, mistakes are still frequent.

Arching Your Lower Back

This is a frequent mistake with beginners, because many new lifters lack spinal control and core strength. Arching your lower back will decrease ab involvement and shift more of the workload towards the hip flexors.

Is it a bad thing? Well, if you want better-looking abs, it won’t be as efficient. More importantly, this can cause stress on the lower back region. If you want to avoid pain and potential injuries, aim to minimize lower back arching and hip flexor involvement. (1)

Avoid it: Make sure your core is always braced and under tension. When you’re not flexing your trunk, make sure your lower back is firmly in contact with the ground. Do the exercise slowly and with control. Slightly elevate your shoulder blades from the floor to further engage your core, if needed. 

Using Momentum

It can be tempting to allow momentum to take over because it makes the exercise easier, but it will greatly diminish muscle activation. If you start swinging your legs around, you’ll end up using mostly your hip flexors in lieu of your abs, and you risk arching your lower back during the eccentric (descent).

If you’re aiming for muscle growth, this is inefficient as it will also reduce time under tension and you’ll have to perform many more repetitions, and spend more time and overall effort, just to have the same stimulus as a strict movement. (2) This can also put more strain on your hip joints and lower back, possibly resulting in pain or injuries.

Avoid it: There is a certain execution speed at which your body will lose muscle tension and optimal bracing. You should never reach that speed but, unfortunately, you only know it once you reach it. If you’re not sure, simply use a slow tempo — two to three seconds on the concentric (lifting) and two to three seconds for the eccentric (lowering).

Benefits of the Reverse Crunch

The simplest exercises are often the most efficient, and the reverse crunch is no exception. Learn how this lift can improve your fitness and provide benefits that other ab exercises lack.

Abdominal Muscle Growth

They say that “abs are made in the kitchen,” but they are actually made in the gym. A balanced diet and a healthy body fat will only reveal them, but if you want to display an impressive set of abs, you have to train them like any other muscle.

A properly executed reverse crunch will offer significant time under tension and provide a different stimulus than what your abs are used to if you’ve only been doing standard crunches or sit-ups. Incorporating the movement for variety will also help build more muscle. (3)

Core Strength

This exercise will improve ab strength and boost your core and bracing abilities. The reverse crunch teaches you how to transfer energy from your your core to other limbs (your legs, specifically). You also learn how to brace properly for maximum efficiency and strength.

The general principle is similar to squatting, where your core helps you transfer the energy from your legs through your core and into the barbell. The reverse crunch can help you get better at compound exercises which require core stability, making you a stronger and more complete lifter.

Spinal Control

The hard part of the exercise is actually to exert proper ab tension while bracing enough to prevent your lower back from arching. Maintaining this strong position will teach you how to stabilize your spine and efficiently brace your core. Improved spinal stability and control can reduce your risk of lower back pain and injuries, and improve your total-body strength. (4)(5)

Muscles Worked by the Reverse Crunch

The reverse crunch is a trunk flexion exercise, which means that it will mainly target the rectus abdominis, but most of the core will actually contribute. Ab exercises which incorporate leg movement are said to emphasize lower-ab development. Let’s see if that’s true and what muscles it trains.

Rectus Abdominis

This is the famous “six pack.” It’s the most visible ab muscle and goes from the pelvis to the sternum. The main function of the rectus abdominis is to flex the trunk by bringing the ribs and the pelvis closer together.

Now, here’s the tricky part: It is often claimed that you can “target” the upper or lower sections of the muscle. Typically, ab exercises which bring the ribs closer to the pelvis are considered “upper ab exercises.” Movements which bring the pelvis closer to the ribs, like the reverse crunch, are thought to be “lower ab exercises.”

However, the rectus abdominis is still one single muscle (with multiple tendons running across it) so it is always fully contracted. Is it really possible to emphasize the lower separate from the upper? Let’s look at the research.

One study didn’t find a significant difference between exercises in terms of upper or lower ab recruitment. (6) But the exercises were performed with the lifters’ hands under their lower back, which might have caused less lower abs involvement by increasing the back arch.

Comparatively, some studies have found a difference in activation. (7) If the hips are flexed towards the ribs while the upper body remains stationary, the lower abs have been shown to do more work.

So it seems that recruiting the lower abs is highly related to exercise selection. You cannot “isolate” the upper or the lower abs — the rectus abdominis will always work as a whole — but some movements can stress either section slightly more. Properly performed exercises that contract the abdominals by rotating your pelvis closer to your (stationary) ribcage may emphasize the lower abs more than the upper. (8)

Obliques

The internal and external obliques are the “side abs” going from your hip bones up towards your ribs. They are significantly recruited when twisting from the waist or bending sideways.

The obliques are also slightly involved in flexing the trunk, and they work heavily to prevent the body from bending or twisting. They are recruited, particularly in the top portion of the reverse crunch, to stabilize your lower body as it raises slightly into the air.

Hip Flexors

The hip flexors are a series of muscles responsible for bringing the leg up towards the body. These relatively small but powerful muscles are involved in the reverse crunch because of the leg movement. They are particularly activated as your legs are lowered to the ground and raised from it.

If you fail to lift your pelvis towards your torso in the top part of each repetition, the hip flexors (and not the abdominals) will be the primary muscles worked during the reverse crunch.

Who Should Do the Reverse Crunch

Ab exercises can be useful to virtually anyone, so you should likely include some direct ab exercises in your training. Here’s when the reverse crunch, specifically, is most beneficial.

People Who Want to Look Good

If you want to sport an aesthetic physique, then you need to do some direct ab work. One psychology study even revealed that well-developed abdominals are the most desirable body part for men, and in the top three for women. (9)

If you want your upper body to be pleasing to the eye, then including reverse crunches as part of your training will go a long way, especially when paired with a specific fat loss diet and an overall well-muscled physique.

Strength Athletes

Many strength lifts such as squats, deadlifts, or presses require a strong core to support moving the heaviest weights possible. The reverse crunch can help by developing the muscles responsible for increasing intra-abdominal pressure, improving spinal control and stability, and increasing bracing abilities. A stronger core is shown to help make you stronger as a whole. (10)

Sports Athletes

In the same fashion, core strength will help you develop more speed and power if you’re a general sports athlete. (11) We rarely think of it, but running, jumping, and throwing all require core strength and total-body coordination. Moreover, the reverse crunch strengthens the hip flexors, which will are heavily involved in running, jumping, and agility.

People with Back Issues

If you’ve experienced back pain, or want to prevent it, strengthening your abs is just as important as strengthening your lower back. The body needs balance in order to perform optimally. Unfortunately, modern life often leads to muscular imbalances, poor posture, and a lack of general physical condition. The reverse crunch can help you combat these potential lower back issues by improving core strength. (12)

How to Program the Reverse Crunch

As a basic bodyweight exercise, the reverse crunch is quite straightforward to program. You can also add some resistance to spice things up a bit. Adopt these repetition schemes if you want maximal benefit, instead of doing countless low-effort reps.

Unweighted, Moderate to High Reps

This is a common range for ab exercises. Three to four sets of 10 to 20 repetitions with 30 to 60 seconds of rest will do the trick, provided you use perfect form. If you can bang out an ultra-high number of reps, it’s an indicator that you’re using improper form or you’re a beast that needs to add some resistance.

Weighted, Moderate Reps

You can either secure a small weight plate on your ankles and shins or hold a dumbbell or medicine ball between your feet. A load that’s difficult for three to four sets of six to 12 repetitions will provide an increased challenge to build strength or stimulate new growth. It’s essential to keep your form the same or it will defeat the purpose of the exercise.

Reverse Crunch Variations

Perhaps you’ve had enough of lying on the ground or you want to stimulate your abs and hip flexors in a new fashion. Here are some kickass variations that will share the same benefits as the reverse crunch and focus on your lower abs.

Hanging Leg Raise

Hang from a pull-up bar, hanging knee raise station, or Roman chair. To really recruit your abs and not focus on your hip flexors, be sure to curl your pelvis up toward your chest at the top of the movement.

This is an efficient movement because it can easily be scaled down, by bending the legs, or scaled up by aiming to touch your feet to the bar over your head. Moreover, the hanging version will also “decompress” your spine, providing comfortable relief after an intense pulling workout or leg day.

V-Up

This is a relatively advanced bodyweight exercise, but if you’ve mastered the reverse crunch, this can be a progression instead of adding resistance. The v-up is one of the most powerful movements to improve core bracing because it requires a high level of abdominal tension combined with leg and arm movement.

The exercise will teach you to transfer energy efficiently between your limbs, as well as provide a serious workout for the abs, hip flexors, and even the serratus — a key muscle for shoulder stability and performance.

Lying Leg Raise

This is the reverse crunch’s almost-identical twin brother. It appears similar, but subtle differences offer unique benefits. The lying leg raise only involves leg movement without raising the pelvis or hips, so it will focus more on recruiting the hip flexors.

However, as long as you prevent any lower back arching, your abs will get a serious workout as well. The overall technique is less complicated, making it is relatively simpler than the reverse crunch.

Reverse Crunch Alternatives

What if you want to train your abs while emphasizing the upper part? Don’t worry, you’re covered with these alternatives.

Crunch

The direct opposite of the reverse crunch. The good ol’ crunch is often butchered because the range of motion is so short, but when done correctly, it can be a fantastic ab exercise.

Because it only involves upper trunk flexion, this exercise will torch your upper abs. The basic crunch is possibly one of the most simple and effective ways to train the abs.

Cable Crunch

This exercise is favored for its simplicity and for how convenient it is to add potentially heavy resistance. The cable crunch is the bread and butter for any lifter who wants to build a powerful core.

The cable crunch is one of the best ways to develop stronger, bigger abs through progressive overload. A properly done cable crunch will result in superior upper abs recruitment with little to no hip flexor involvement.

Sit-up

The sit-up is the quintessential ab exercise found in many professional and athletic physical fitness tests. It’s highly efficient for building, and assessing, total core strength and development.

Like all crunch variations, you can easily add external resistance with a weight plate or weighted vest, but many lifters find the properly performed sit-up to be relatively challenging due to the long range of motion.

FAQs

Should I do the reverse crunch at the start or at the end of a workout?

Both can be valid tactics. Training abs at the end of a workout is the traditional way to go, and for good reason. By finishing with ab work, your core won’t be as fatigued during the session when you want to be fresh for heavier exercises, like squats.

But if you’re someone that loathes training abs, doing them first will ensure that you don’t skip them because you’re “too tired” after an exhausting workout. You probably won’t be as strong during the first few  sessions, but you’ll likely adapt and benefit in the long-run.

Will the reverse crunch shred my abs?

Unfortunately, no. This exercise will strengthen your abs and stimulate muscle growth, so they can look better, but you have to be able to see them first. The only thing that will reveal your abs is to achieve a low enough body fat percentage.

For that, you need to check your energy expenditure and be in a caloric deficit long enough so that you melt your belly and reveal your six-pack. You can consume less calories, and/or burn more calories through physical activities or cardio.

Reverse Engineer Your Way to a Great Set of Abs

Incorporating the reverse crunch in your training regimen doesn’t just deliver a better looking six-pack. It’s an overlooked way to build a stronger and healthier core. It’s time to stop avoiding ab work, get on the floor, and get those knees up.

References

1. Avrahami, D., & Potvin, J. R. (2014). The clinical and biomechanical effects of fascial-muscular lengthening therapy on tight hip flexor patients with and without low back pain. The Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association, 58(4), 444–455.
2. Burd NA, Andrews RJ, West DW, Little JP, Cochran AJ, Hector AJ, Cashaback JG, Gibala MJ, Potvin JR, Baker SK, Phillips SM. Muscle time under tension during resistance exercise stimulates differential muscle protein sub-fractional synthetic responses in men. J Physiol. 2012 Jan 15;590(2):351-62. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.2011.221200. Epub 2011 Nov 21. PMID: 22106173; PMCID: PMC3285070.
3. Baz-Valle E, Schoenfeld BJ, Torres-Unda J, Santos-Concejero J, Balsalobre-Fernández C. The effects of exercise variation in muscle thickness, maximal strength and motivation in resistance trained men. PLoS One. 2019 Dec 27;14(12):e0226989. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0226989. PMID: 31881066; PMCID: PMC6934277.
4. Huxel Bliven KC, Anderson BE. Core stability training for injury prevention. Sports Health. 2013 Nov;5(6):514-22. doi: 10.1177/1941738113481200. PMID: 24427426; PMCID: PMC3806175.
5. Stokes IA, Gardner-Morse MG, Henry SM. Abdominal muscle activation increases lumbar spinal stability: analysis of contributions of different muscle groups. Clin Biomech (Bristol, Avon). 2011 Oct;26(8):797-803. doi: 10.1016/j.clinbiomech.2011.04.006. Epub 2011 May 14. PMID: 21571410; PMCID: PMC3157598.
6. Lehman GJ, McGill SM. Quantification of the differences in electromyographic activity magnitude between the upper and lower portions of the rectus abdominis muscle during selected trunk exercises. Phys Ther. 2001 May;81(5):1096-101. PMID: 11319934.
7. Sarti MA, Monfort M, Fuster MA, Villaplana LA. Muscle activity in upper and lower rectus abdominus during abdominal exercises. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 1996 Dec;77(12):1293-7. doi: 10.1016/s0003-9993(96)90195-1. PMID: 8976314.
8. Duncan M. (2009). Muscle activity of the upper and lower rectus abdominis during exercises performed on and off a Swiss ball. Journal of bodywork and movement therapies, 13(4), 364–367. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbmt.2008.11.008
9. Durkee PK, Polo P, Muñoz-Reyes JA, et al. Men’s Bodily Attractiveness: Muscles as Fitness Indicators. Evolutionary Psychology. April 2019. doi:10.1177/1474704919852918 
10. Kocahan T, Akınoğlu B. Determination of the relationship between core endurance and isokinetic muscle strength of elite athletes. J Exerc Rehabil. 2018 Jun 30;14(3):413-418. doi: 10.12965/jer.1836148.074. PMID: 30018927; PMCID: PMC6028208.
11. Shinkle J, Nesser TW, Demchak TJ, McMannus DM. Effect of core strength on the measure of power in the extremities. J Strength Cond Res. 2012 Feb;26(2):373-80. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0b013e31822600e5. PMID: 22228111.
12. Kumar T, Kumar S, Nezamuddin M, Sharma VP. Efficacy of core muscle strengthening exercise in chronic low back pain patients. J Back Musculoskelet Rehabil. 2015;28(4):699-707. doi: 10.3233/BMR-140572. PMID: 25467999.

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The barbell is used for lever-based resistance — one end pivots on the floor or in a purpose-built sleeve as the lifter moves the loaded end through space. Make no mistake, this is not flashy “training for the ‘Gram” or some gross misuse of equipment.

The landmine provides opportunities for exercises with characteristics distinct from traditional free-weight training. The best part? Landmines offer versatility to train the entire body along with multiple components of fitness. Here, you’ll find the best landmine workouts for building serious upper and lower-body muscle, along with elite-level conditioning. 

Best Landmine Workouts

• For Upper Body Muscle
• For Lower Body Muscle 
• For Conditioning

Benefits of Landmine Training

Landmine training (literally) leverages a simple piece of equipment for a wide range of exercises. Traditional barbell training is already versatile, so why use your barbell as a landmine?

Landmines provide a more predictable bar path than a barbell moving freely through space. In motor learning — the scientific field that studies movement and skill acquisition — this predictable bar path represents a “constraint.” That is, the landmine is constrained to move along an arced path.

This constraint helps a lifter to master the form of technical multi-joint lifts, such as the presses, rows, and cleans used in the workouts below. It also promotes more consistent movement performance. Constant movements, when performed under load, stimulate the target muscles exceptionally effectively. The result is a fast-learning curve and predictable gains in strength and size.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The arced bar path also alters exercise form compared to barbell training. Landmine presses keep the shoulder out of end-range flexion, an area of common restriction. Landmine rows encourage ideal shoulder blade movement “down and back.” Landmine squats virtually ensure we sit back into our hips with an upright trunk position, which demands textbook form.

Landmine exercises also appear to stress our joints differently than traditional free weight lifts. (1) Altogether, the landmine may be helpful if you have banged up knees or shoulders. Set your landmine and get ready for a different angle on barbell training. 

Best Landmine Workout for Upper Body Muscle

The upper body landmine workout below is like a multi-course meal — a feast for your muscles. The meat and potatoes are compound exercises followed by isolation movements. 

Compound exercises, or those involving multiple joints, are efficient because they train many muscle groups simultaneously. They’re also very effective for building strength because they allow you to move heavier loads than exercises training a single joint in isolation.

Upper body compound exercises are broadly categorized as either “pushes” or “pulls.” Pushing exercises involve driving a resistance away from the body and training the chest, shoulders, and triceps. Pulling exercises involve drawing a resistance toward the body. These exercises train the back and biceps.

The compound exercises in this workout are structured as a series of push/pull supersets for efficiency. The final two movements are isolation exercises like a satisfying dessert after the main course. They train the glamour muscles that stretch our sleeves and broaden our frame.

Upper Body Training, One Arm at a Time

Due to the lever-based resistance of the landmine, your typical free weight loads and percentages will not be appropriate. It would be best to determine appropriate working weights that result in “hard” sets within the recommended repetition range.

To determine working weight for each exercise, perform two or more progressively heavier “work up” sets. Once you land on a weight that challenges you within the set rep range, stick with that load for your working sets. 

Half-Kneeling Landmine Press

• How to Do it: Assume a “half-kneeling” position with the working-side knee down. Hold the bar above your shoulder, brace your torso, and drive the bar up and forward along the natural arc of the landmine. Lower to the starting position.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 6-10 per arm.
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Meadows Row

• How to Do it: Stand perpendicular to the landmine. Hold the bar sleeve with an overhand grip and brace your non-working arm on your thigh. Lift the bar by driving your elbow out as you squeeze your shoulder blade toward your spine. Lower to full extension until you feel an intense stretch behind your shoulder. Be sure to load the bar with small diameter plates (five, 10, or 25-pound) to allow an extended range of motion.

• Sets and Reps: 3 x 8-12 per arm.
• Rest time: Rest two to three minutes before repeating the previous exercise.

Standing Landmine Press

• How to Do it: Face the landmine with a staggered stance, keeping your working side leg behind you. Press the bar forward and up until your elbow reaches full extension. Lower with control.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 8-12 per arm.
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Landmine Row

• How to Do it: Stand parallel to the barbell. Hinge forward at the hips and grip the barbell just before the sleeve. Pull your shoulder and arm back to row the weight toward the outside of your hip. Lower with control.

• Sets and Reps: 3 x 8-12 per arm.
• Rest time: Rest two to three minutes before repeating the previous exercise.

Landmine Lateral Raise

• How to Do it: Stand with the end of the barbell just in front of your working side hip, quarter turned toward the landmine. Lift by pushing the bar forward and out until your wrist is higher than shoulder. Lower with control.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 12-16 per arm
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Landmine Concentration Curl

• How to Do it: Drop into a wide-stance quarter squat and brace your upper arm against your inner thigh. Grab the end of the bar sleeve. Without moving your upper arm, curl the landmine barbell. Notice how the bar path forces you to keep your palm turned up and out as you curl. This enhances biceps stimulus. (2)(3) Lower with control. 

• Sets and Reps: 3 x 8-12 per arm.
• Rest time:Rest 90 seconds to two minutes before repeating the previous exercise.

Best Landmine Workout for Lower Body Muscle

Wheels, lower extremities, jets, getaway sticks — whatever you call them, most people want strong, muscular legs.

Like the upper body, the basic compound movements of the lower body can be categorized as push and pull or, more commonly, squats and deadlifts, respectively. Squats and squat-derivatives train the glutes, quadriceps, and calf muscles. Deadlifts and deadlift-derivatives train the hamstrings and also hit the glutes.

Leg-Building Landmine Workout

This workout combines heavy, double-legged exercises with single-leg lifts to promote athleticism, and it finishes with a loaded mobility exercise for the commonly-neglected inner thigh muscles.

The landmine provides a small amount of balance assistance, which may allow single-leg variations of squats and deadlifts to be loaded heavier than free-weight single-leg versions.

To ensure adequate recovery, the lower body landmine exercises are structured as straight sets. Take two to three-minute rests to ensure intensity is maintained for maximum strength gains. (4)

Landmine Squat

• How to Do it: Cradle the end of the barbell atop your sternum with your arms pulled in toward your ribs. To account for the arced path of the bar, place your feet farther from the plates so that your body is inclined forward in the top position. Squat down as far as your mobility allows, and return to standing. 

• Sets and Reps: 3 x 6-10
• Rest time: Rest two to three minutes between sets.

Modified Single-Leg Landmine Romanian Deadlift

• How to Do it: Unlike the standard single-leg landmine Romanian deadlift, which is performed facing the landmine, (5) the modified version provides more stability, which lets you lift more weight. Stand perpendicular to the landmine. Hold the sleeve palm-down with your inside hand. Hinge forward at your hips and allow your inside leg to travel behind you, while that foot rises into the air. Keep a slight bend in your standing knee and descend until you feel a strong sense of tension in your hamstring. Return to standing and repeat.

• Sets and Reps: 3 x 6-10 per leg.
• Rest time: Rest 2 to 3 minutes between sets.

Landmine Hack Squat

• How to Do it: Ensure you landmine base is secure and will not slide. Face away from the landmine and rest the sleeve on your upper trapezius, just inside the point of the shoulder. Position your feet well in front of your body. Keep your feet flat as you descend into a deep squat, reaching your hamstrings to your calves if possible. Drive up and back to the starting position. On your next set, rack the landmine on your opposite shoulder.

• Sets and Reps: 2 x 12-16
• Rest time: Rest two to three minutes between sets.

Landmine Cossack Squat

• How to Do it: Face the landmine with a wide stance and hold the landmine in front of your sternum. Sit down and back, sinking into your right hip while allowing your left foot to pivot onto the heel. Push through your right leg to return to center. Perform all repetitions to the right, then repeat to the left.

• Sets and Reps: 2 x 8-10 per side.
• Rest time: Rest two to three minutes between sets.

Landmine Workout for Conditioning

Barbell complexes are commonly used for metabolic conditioning. Complexes are sequences of lifts performed in continuous succession. The lifter finishes all reps of one lift before moving on to the next, using the same piece of equipment and the same weight for all movements.

Complexes can be designed to tax every energy system — the phosphagen system provides quick bursts of power. The glycolytic system becomes prominent as the complex drags on for more than the first few reps. Finally, if you string multiple complexes together in a fashion popularized by many notorious CrossFit workouts, the aerobic system helps you recover.

Every Two-Minute On the Two-Minute Landmine Complex

The landmine is a wonderful tool for complexes. The workout below uses repeated landmine complexes to promote metabolic conditioning. For simplicity, a time-based rest strategy provides most athletes an approximate 1:1 work to rest ratio. Every two minutes, you will start a new complex and complete it as quickly as you can.

• How to Do it: Place a moderate amount of weight on the landmine. First perform the Landmine Hang Clean & Jerk — Stand perpendicular to the bar and hold the sleeve in the hang position (palm down with your hand near your hip). Extend your hips, knees, and ankles as you shrug and pull the bar along its natural arc. As the bar is in motion, pivot to face the landmine and receive the bar with your other hand. Perform a split jerk by dropping down and immediately driving back up with your legs as you extend your elbow and switch your footing. Control the bar back to the hang position with both hands.The next movement is the classic standing Landmine Rotation — Hold the bar with both arms outstretched above you. Lower the bar to the left, allowing your hips to rotate and your feet to pivot. Rotate the landmine back up and across to the right, again allowing your feet and hips to move smoothly.The third and final exercise in this complex is a Landmine Push Press — This exercise begins similar to a shallow landmine squat with a ballistic concentric (“up”) phase. Transfer the energy from your leg drive into both arms as you press the bar up and forward. Repeat the process for for each repetition.

• Sets and Reps: One “set” of the complex consists of 3 reps of each movement — 3 per side landmine hang clean & jerk, 3 rotations in each direction, and 3 push presses. Perform one set every two minutes for a total of 12 to 16 minutes.
• Rest time: Perform one full set and rest the remainder of the two minute block. This rest strategy is a variation on the much more popular EMOM (Every Minute on the Minute), but “E2MO2M” doesn’t have the same ring.

How to Warm-Up for Landmine Workouts

Before you detonate these workouts, perform a high-quality warm-up to ensure your body is primed for performance. Options for effective warm-ups are innumerable, but for those who can’t spare the bandwidth to conjure one up, here’s a simple plan.

Start with five or six minutes of low intensity aerobic exercise (jump rope, bike, or cardio method of choice), then grab a light resistance band and move through the following sequence:

Landmine Workout Warm-Up

• Deep Squat with Trunk Rotations: Drop down into a deep squat. Keep your chest up and reach toward the ground with both arms between your legs. Use one arm to “pry” your same-side thigh outward as you reach up with the other arm. As you reach, keep your eyes on your overhead palm by rotating and extending your trunk. Repeat with the other hand. Perform 8 rotations in each direction, alternating sides each repetition.

• Backstep Lunge to Hip Flexor Stretch: Take a large step backwards and lower your knee to the ground. Squeeze your rear-leg glute muscles to feel a stretch in the front of the hip or thigh. If you are unable to achieve a stretch, attempt to tuck your pelvis under your body by bringing your belt buckle toward your chin. Hold the position momentarily. Return to standing and repeat with the opposite leg. Perform 8 reps per leg.
• Plank to Pike: Assume a tall plank or “top of the push-up position” supporting your body on your palms and forefeet. Move into a pike position by pushing forward with your hands and driving your hips back and up, Keep your spine, arms, and legs straight. Return to the plank position. Perform 8 reps. 
• Dynamic Hug: Wrap a light resistance band around your back just below your shoulder blades. Stand with arms outreached straight ahead at shoulder-height. Reach forward in a “hugging” motion. Imagine you are wrapping your arms around a gigantic tree to maximize the space between your arms as you reach your hands together. Reverse the movement, allowing your shoulder blades to move toward your spine as you open your arms. Perform 8 repetitions.
• Band Pull-Apart: Hold the resistance band straight ahead with your arms in front of your shoulders. Stretch the band by pulling your arms apart without bending your elbows. Initiate the movement by squeezing your shoulder blades toward your spine. When your hands are sideways in-line with your shoulders, return to the starting position. Perform 8 repetitions. 

An Angled Approach to New Gains

The landmine is a fun and versatile tool for training all major muscle groups. Landmine lifts promote a balanced physique while hammering the core, and may actually result in superior gains in on-field or on-court athleticism. (6) Bookmark these landmine workouts and blast your next high-quality training session.

References

1. Collins, K. S., Klawitter, L. A., Waldera, R. W., Mahoney, S. J., & Christensen, B. K. (2021). Differences in muscle activity and kinetics between the goblet squat and landmine squat in men and women. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 35(10), 2661-2668.
2. Murray, W. M., Delp, S. L., Buchanan, T. S. (1995). Variation of muscle moment arms with elbow and forearm position. Journal of Biomechanics, 28(5), 513-525.
3. Kleiber, T., Kunz, L., & Disselhorst-Klug, C. (2015). Muscular coordination of biceps brachii and brachioradialis in elbow flexion with respect to hand position. Frontiers in Physiology, 6, 215.
4. Schoenfeld, B. J., Pope, Z. K., Benik, F. M., et al. (2016). Longer interset rest periods enhance muscle strength and hypertrophy in resistance-trained men. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 30(7), 1805-1812.
5. Weaver, A. N., & Kerksick, C. M. (2017). Implementing landmine single-leg Romanian deadlift into an athlete’s training program. Strength & Conditioning Journal, 39(1), 85-90.
6. Zweifel, M. (2017). Importance of horizontally loaded movements to sports performance. Strength and Conditioning Journal, 39(1), 21-26.

Featured Image: Merrick Lincoln, DPT, CSCS / YouTube

The post The Best Landmine Workouts for More Muscle and Better Conditioning appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Sleds are commonly used for sprint training (1), and can help build a muscular physique, stimulate strength, and help ramp up one’s conditioning, bolster fat loss, and help recovery. Rein in your gear — a sled, a long and sturdy strap or rope, and some weight plates — and get ready to work.

Best Sled Workouts

• For Muscle
• For Strength
• For Conditioning and Fat Loss
• For Recovery

Best Sled Workout for Muscle

Build Muscle Without Barbells

If you want to build a big and balanced physique, here’s a sled workout that hits all major muscle groups with emphasis on the arms and legs. If you’re already performing gym-based hypertrophy work three or more times per week, add this sled workout once per week. If you train in the gym fewer than three times per week, add this sled workout twice per week on non-sequential days.

Remember, volume is key for hypertrophy. Use a weight for each exercise that allows 8 to 12 good repetitions. If you go much lighter, your workout duration drags on and can turn into a quasi-cardio session. If you go much heavier, you will not achieve optimal volume. Once you can perform two or more full reps past your repetition target on the final set, it’s time to increase the weight by five to 10%.

 

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Each rep should be performed with intent to maximally “flex” the target muscles. This can improve the mind-muscle connection and help to trigger growth. (6) Also, for efficiency and effectiveness, this workout is structured as a series of supersets.

Sled Pull-Through

• How to Do it: Face away from the sled holding the rope or straps in front of your thighs. Hinge forward at the hips, reach back between your legs, and step into tension. Drive your hips forward and stand tall by contracting your glutes and hamstrings.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 8-12
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Backward Sled Drag

• How to Do it: Face the sled while holding the rope or straps at arm’s length. Lean away from the sled and take small steps backward, intentionally flexing the quad with each step and extending each leg to complete lockout.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 8-12 per leg.
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Sled Push

• How to Do it: Load the sled moderately heavy — approximately 85% of your back squat one-rep max (1RM) (sled weight plus weight plates total) is a good place to start, although the ground surface and sled design will affect the amount of ultimate amount of weight you will need to use to hit the rep target. (7) Grasp the vertical or high handles on the sled with your elbows bent, crouch down in a lunge stance. Drive through your front leg to move the sled. Step through with your other leg and repeat.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 8-12 per side
• Rest time: Rest two to three minutes before repeating the first exercise.

Sled Hand-Over-Hand Row

• How to Do it: Attach a rope or strap to the sled and load it moderately-heavy — 100% of your barbell bent-over row is a ballpark estimate. Plant your legs wider than shoulder-width in a semi-squat position and grab the rope tug-of-war style. Pull the sled toward you. Focus on pulling primarily with your outstretched arm by drawing your elbow and shoulder blade back. Rotate your torso and reach with your opposite arm to reset for the next repetition.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 8-12 per side
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Sled Chest Press

• How to Do it: Remove the rope and adjust sled weight as needed. Dig into a stable, staggered stance with your hands on the upright posts. Push the sled as if performing an incline bench press. Keep your hands on the sled and take one step forward to stretch your chest and shoulders for each rep.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 8-12
• Rest time: Rest two to three minutes before repeating the previous exercise.

Sled Hammer Curl

• How to Do it: Attach the rope and adjust sled weight as needed. Stand facing away from the sled with your arms at your sides and a neutral-grip on the ends of the rope. Keeping your upper arm stationary, pull the sled forward by curling the ropes toward the front of your shoulders. Take one step forward to reset with your arms by your sides for each rep.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 8-12
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Sled Triceps Kickback

• How to Do it: Stand facing the sled and hinge forward at the hips while keeping a neutral spine. Hold the ends of the ropes with your hands near the front of your shoulders. Lock your upper arms along your ribcage. Pull the sled toward you by straightening your arms. Step back to regain tension on the muscles and repeat for reps.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 8-12
• Rest time: Rest two to three minutes before repeating the previous exercise.

Sled Workout for Strength

Developing maximum strength is predicated on moving heavy loads. The sled allows you to transfer kinetic energy between your lower body and upper body. This helps build total-body strength with functional, athletic carryover.

Strength-Building Sled Plan

During this workout, you’ll use leg drive to overcome inertia and friction, which will allow for supramaximal upper body pushing and pulling. Then, finish off the lower body with a heavy sled drag.

 

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Load your sled heavy for each exercise. Performing straight sets with long rests will help maintain intensity for superior strength gains. (8)(9)

Sled Hinge and Row

• How to Do it: Start facing the sled. Hinge forward at hips with a neutral spine. Hold the rope or straps with arms outstretched overhead and reaching towards the sled. Step back until you feel the muscles under tension. Row the sled toward your body as you extend your hips and stand upright. Think “reach then row” and “long then tall.”
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 5-8
• Rest time: Rest three minutes between sets.

Sled Push Press

• How to Do it: Grasp the highest handles on your sled and lean into them with your hips and knees bent. Angle your body so your chest is at a 45-degree angle toward the floor. Your arms should be bent with your hands near your shoulders. Powerfully drive the sled forward with your legs and finish the movement by pressing with your arms. Step forward to reset and repeat.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 5-8
• Rest time: Rest three minutes between sets.

Heavy Sled Drag

• How to Do it: If you have a sled harness, now’s the time to use it. If not, face away from the sled and hold the rope or straps firmly over each shoulder. Aggressively lean away from the sled as you walk forward by driving through your hip, knee, and ankle one leg at a time.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 5-8 per leg
• Rest time: Rest three minutes between sets.

Sled Workout for Conditioning and Fat Loss

Although the sled can be used effectively for building muscle and strength, sleds were originally used for conditioning-type workouts for total time or distance before being adapted to other programming and goals.

It remains a highly effective tool for cardio training that can be adapted to lifters of all capabilities and experience levels.

Sprint Interval Training

Sprint interval training (SIT) is a bucked-up type of high intensity interval training. SIT workouts are 30-second max efforts with two to four-minute rest periods. This may be the best way to improve the amount of oxygen the body can take up and use (VO2 max). (10)

In addition to the energy flux that occurs during and after training, SIT can be a wonderful protocol for long-term fat-loss. Boosting VO2 max helps you to become a fat-burning machine because the ability to utilize oxygen is fundamental to aerobic metabolism, which uses fat as the primary substrate.

Intervals should hit a target heart rate of more than 90-95% of maximum, but it isn’t easy to sprint all-out while looking at a heart rate monitor. So, go by feel and shoot for the maximum intensity that you can sustain for the 30-second interval. A healthy and robust cardiovascular system is a prerequisite for this intense style of training, so be sure you’ve received medical clearance if there’s any concern.

Sled Push

• How to Do it: Load the sled moderately — a total weight 60-80% of your bodyweight works well for most. Grab the high handles on the sled and sprint straight ahead as hard as you can for 30 seconds. Recover with your hands on your thighs or on the sled.
• Sets and Reps: Begin with 6 x 30-second all-out intervals per workout. Gradually work up to 10 intervals total. (11)
• Rest time: Rest two to four minutes between each interval.

Sled Workout for Recovery

To be clear, there is no such thing as a “recovery workout” — at least not in isolation. Workouts are a form of physical stress. Physical stress cannot fill the role of rest, nutrition, and sleep. However, swapping a taxing workout with a less taxing one can promote relative recovery. Your recovery status will be better than it theoretically would’ve been had you hammered through the hard workout.

Other workout strategies to promote relative recovery involve programming exercises that stress different systems (e.g. aerobic rather than phosphocreatine), train different capacities (e.g. high-rep muscular endurance instead of low-rep strength), or target different muscles (e.g. small muscle groups rather than big muscle groups).

Better Recovery with Smarter Training

This workout accomplishes all the above for most lifters: It’s a different type of stress using different rep ranges targeting different body parts. As a bonus, sled exercises involve minimal eccentric muscle contraction, which is the type of contraction associated with increased micro-damage and delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS). (12)

This means sled training is likely less disruptive to your muscles. So, when you are beat-up or feel it might take a megadose of caffeine to get you through your planned workout, switch it out in favor of this sled workout.

Zombie Sled Walk

• How to Do it: Attach your rope or tow strap to an empty sled or a sled with minimal weight on it. Face away from the sled, hold the ends of the rope with your arms locked out in front of you, and walk. By holding the rope or straps high, the zombie sled walk trains your serratus anterior and hits quads harder. (13) As a bonus, it will get you some aerobic cardio, too.
• Sets and Reps: Three sets, performing each set until your grip begins to fail or you reach 300 total steps, whichever comes first.
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Lateral Sled Walk

• How to Do it: Stand sideways to the sled and hold the rope at a comfortable height. Drag the sled by sidestepping in a crossover pattern. Your trail leg progresses by stepping in front of the lead leg, then recover the lead leg by uncrossing your legs.
• Sets and Reps: Three sets, performing each set until your grip begins to fail or you reach 150 steps, whichever comes first. Be sure to complete one set with each side facing forward before moving on.
• Rest time: No rest before returning to the previous exercise.

Sled Pec Flye

• How to Do it: Face away from the sled and hold one end of the rope or strap in each hand with your arms outstretched to the sides at shoulder-height. Maintain a slight bend in your elbows and pull your hands together in front of your chest. Step forward, reset the starting position, and repeat.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 15
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Sled Reverse Flye

• How to Do it: Face the sled holding one end of the rope or strap in each hand with your arms outstretched in front of you at chest-height. Maintain a slight bend in your elbows, pull your hands apart until they reach they are in line with your shoulders. Step backwards, reset the starting position, and repeat.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 15
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the next exercise.

Sled Face Pull

• How to Do it: Face the sled while holding the ends of the rope with a palms-down grip and arms straight and level with your eye-line. Draw the sled toward you by pulling with your shoulders and bending your elbows, so your hands end up near your head. Step back and repeat.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 15
• Rest time: Rest one to two minutes before returning to the first exercise.

How to Warm-Up for Sled Workouts

Although hauling your sled and weight plates out of storage may be a decent way to increase body temperature, a specific warm-up for sled workouts ensures you are ready to perform at your highest level.

The sled-specific warm-up intentionally takes your joints through movements and positions representative of the various sled exercises included in the four sled workouts above. For example, despite the similarities between sled pushes and squats, pushing a sled is much more ankle-dominant than traditional squats, so  spend some time preparing your ankles and calves.

 

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The hips, knees, shoulders, elbows, wrists, and trunk will all get some attention in this warm-up, which is designed to prepare your body for your best sled workout.

Sled-Specific Warm-Up

• Supported Squat with Trunk Rotations: Grab the handles of your sled for support as you drop into a deep, “ATG” (ass-to-grass) squat. Release the handle with one hand and reach up and out. As you reach, keep your eyes on your palm by rotating and extending your trunk. Return your hand to the upright and repeat with the other hand. Perform two sets of eight rotations in each direction.
• Deficit Push-Up: Place two weight plates on the ground slightly wider than shoulder-width. Assume the push-up positioning with one hand on each plate. Keep your trunk and hips braced in a straight line, slowly lower your chest between the plates. Push back to the starting position. Perform two sets of 10 reps.
• Resistance Band Three-Way Row: Put some weight plates on your sled to keep it in place and loop a light-to-moderate resistance band around your sled. Sit with your legs outstretched and your feet braced on the sled. Perform a low row by pulling your shoulder blades together and drawing your elbows to the sides of your ribcage. Next, perform one mid-height row by pulling your shoulder blades together and drawing your elbows back at mid-chest-height. Finally, perform a high row by pulling your blades together and pulling the band toward your neck. Going through three positions counts as a single repetition. Perform two sets of 10 reps.
• Standing Dynamic Calf Stretch: Stand facing the weighted sled with a staggered stance. Place your hands on the sled’s highest handles. Keep your back foot flat on the ground and lean into the sled without moving it. Move your shin forward to stretch the calf of your rear leg. Pause for one to two seconds in the stretched position, release tension, and repeat for reps. Perform two sets of 10 repetitions per leg.
• Pogo Jump: Stand upright and perform crisp, ankle-driven jumps in place. Use the landing to propel you into the next repetition. Imagine jumping rope without the rope. Perform two sets of 20 reps.
• Broad Jump: Sit back into your hips and knees to create a countermovement for your jump. As you take off and jump forward, throw your arms up and out in front of you. Absorb the landing with a squat. Step back to the starting position and repeat. Perform two sets of five reps.

Push Yourself to Results

The sled is a versatile and fun training tool that can build slabs of new muscle, accelerate your strength gains, support brutally effective sprint sessions, or promote recovery when you’re feeling run down. Stay consistent and soon you’ll become a regular Sled Zeppelin when you find a whole lotta love for these pushing, pulling, and dragging exercises. Just remember, sled training imposes unique demands unlike other weight training movements, so don’t skip the sled-specific warm-up before attempting any of the workouts.

References

1. Williams, J., Baghurst, T., Cahill, M. J. (2021). Current perceptions of strength and conditioning coaches use of sled tow training. International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching, 16(3), 601-607.
2. Schoenfeld, B. J., Contreras, B., Krieger, J., et al. (2019). Resistance training volume enhances muscle hypertrophy but not strength in trained men. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 51(1), 94-103.
3. Wackerhage, H., Schoenfeld, B. J., Hamilton, D. L., et al. (2019). Stimuli and sensors that initiate skeletal muscle hypertrophy following resistance exercise. Journal of Applied Physiology, 126: 30-43.
4. Schoenfeld, B. J., Ogborn, D. I., Vigotsky, A. D., et al. (2017). Hypertrophic effects of concentric vs. eccentric muscle actions: a systematic review and meta-analysis. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 31(9), 2599-2608.
5. Carvalho L., Junior, R.M., Barreira, J., et al. (2022) Muscle hypertrophy and strength gains after resistance training with different volume-matched loads: a systematic review and meta-analysis. AppliedPhysiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism, 47, 357-368.
6. Schoenfeld, B. J., Vigotsky, A., Contreras, B., et al. (2018). Differential effects of attentional focus strategies during long-term resistance training. European Journal of Sport Science, 18(5), 705-712.
7. Winwood, P. W., Cronin, J. B., Posthumus, L.R., et al. (2015). Strongman vs. traditional resistance training effects on muscular function and performance. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 29(2), 429-439.
8. Schoenfeld, B. J., Pope, Z. K., Benik, F. M., et al. (2016). Longer interset rest periods enhance muscle strength and hypertrophy in resistance-trained men. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 30(7), 1805-1812.
9. Keogh, J. W., Newlands, C., Blewett, S., et al. (2010). A kinematic analysis of a strongman-type event: The heavy sprint-style sled pull. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 24(11), 3088-3097.
10. Buchheit, M., & Laursen, P. B. (2013). High-intensity interval training, solutions to the programming puzzle: Part 1: Cardiopulmonary emphasis. Sports Medicine, 43(5), 313-338.
11. Buchheit, M., & Laursen, P. B. (2013). High-intensity interval training, Solutions to the programming puzzle: Part II: Anaerobic energy, neuromuscular load and practical applications. Sports Medicine, 43(10), 927-954.
12. Hody, S., Croisier, J. L., Bury, T., Rogister, B., & Leprince, P. (2019). Eccentric muscle contractions: risks and benefits. Frontiers in Physiology, 536.
13. Lawrence, M., Hartigan, E., & Tu, C. (2013). Lower limb moments differ when towing a weighted sled with different attachment points. Sports Biomechanics, 12(2), 186-194.

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The post The Best Sled Workouts for Muscle, Strength, Fat Loss, and Recovery appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Here’s how to set up an effective and efficient plan to burn fat without burning yourself out.

How to Burn Fat

• How the Body Burns Fat
• Train to Burn Fat
• Eat to Burn Fat
• Recover to Burn Fat
• Sample Fat Loss Training Program

How the Body Burns Fat

One of the most important details to keep in mind when working to burn fat is a central theme that will determine the right and wrong plan. To drastically change and improve your physique, your focus needs to be on “fat loss”, not “weight loss”.

While the difference may seem like mere semantics, it’s the type of detail that influences your approach to nutrition, your workout routine, your rate of progress, and other factors that dictate results.

Weight loss is simply changing the number on the scale. Bodyweight most commonly and most quickly decreases from basic fluid loss (anyone who’s gotten sweaty on a hot day or had a run-in with bad seafood has experienced the effect). This type of change is only temporary and often self-correcting, with the body re-gaining any “lost” weight as soon as fluids are replaced.

“Weight loss” also doesn’t distinguish fat loss from muscle loss. Catabolism, or burning muscle tissue, will decrease strength, performance, and energy, and it also changes your physique to appear less muscular. Weight loss with a high degree of muscle loss creates a soft and un-toned appearance.

Fat loss, specifically, is when your body burns adipose tissue — body fat. This is the type of loss that can remain indefinitely unless the fat itself is regained (which it won’t be, unless it was lost with an unsustainable plan and you crank the calories back up).

Fat loss can only occur when your caloric intake is less than your caloric output. (1) Regardless of the diet details, if you’re taking in too many calories, your body cannot lose fat. However, because the goal is to burn fat, certain steps need to be taken to preserve lean muscle tissue. That comes from balancing just enough calories being eaten (diet) with just enough calories being burned (exercise).

Understanding Your Metabolism

Your metabolism is the way your body processes, burns, or stores calories. An improved metabolism makes fat loss that much more likely. One surefire way to boost your metabolism is to focus on building and preserving lean muscle mass.

Muscle is one key factor in setting your body’s resting metabolic rate (RMR), or the amount of calories your body burns without you even trying to burn calories. People who talk about having “a slow metabolism” or “a super-fast metabolism” sometimes have actual genetic factors at work, but their lean muscle tissue is also a significant influence on their resting metabolic rate.

A coordinated plan with a specific approach to nutrition and training has been shown to be optimally effective for preserving lean muscle while burning fat, improving RMR. (2)

Insulin Sensitivity and Insulin Resistance

Many people think insulin is synonymous with blood sugar levels or managing diabetes. That’s only one part of the insulin story. It’s an incredibly influential hormone that your body uses in a variety of processes.

Insulin is released in response to eating carbohydrates (like sugar) and it can determine if those calories are used for fuel or put into storage as body fat. Insulin also plays an important role shuttling amino acids into cells to build new muscle. (3)

Because insulin plays so many critical roles, the body’s response to insulin is also critical. The body can either be “insulin sensitive”, which encourages insulin to choose calorie burning and muscle building, or the body can be “insulin resistant”, which encourages insulin to prioritize calorie storage (fat gain).

Several factors can determine the body’s level of resistance or sensitivity, including some genetic components. However, a combination of diet and exercise has been shown to reduce insulin resistance and lead to improved body composition. (4)(5)

How to Train for Fat Loss

When you think of training for fat loss, you probably think of countless hours on the treadmill daily or light weight, high-repetition exercises to “carve detail” into muscles. You can skip right over those two extremes, but you will have to do some cardio in addition to some weight training to get the best results.

Resistance Training for More Muscle and Less Fat

Your training and nutrition need to be aligned properly for optimal results. That means, when your goal is burning fat, you can’t reduce calories while also following a lifting program designed to squat 600 pounds. Your nutrition will be insufficient to allow recovery and the training sessions will be, essentially, wasted.

With that said, weight training combined with a fat loss diet has been shown to improve results compared to dieting alone. However, weight training combined with cardiovascular training and a fat loss diet has been shown to be even more effective. (6)(7)

To accommodate cardio training and overall recovery, a weight training workout should be performed three or four days per week. This requires either training the whole body in each workout, alternating upper body and lower body workouts each day, or following a push/pull/legs split (training the pushing muscles of the chest, shoulders, and triceps in one session; the pulling muscles of the back and biceps in the next; and all of the leg muscles in another workout).

Prioritizing two to four sets of six to 12 reps for most exercises will allow sufficient training stimulus without excessive overall stress, and will help to preserve muscle mass during a calorie-restricted fat loss plan.

Cardio Training is Essential

Aerobic training like walking, running, or biking is typically associated with fat loss training. The popular thinking is, if you want to burn fat, you have to do some kind of cardio. And that’s fundamentally correct.

An abundance of research has shown multiple benefits to using cardiovascular exercise (in a variety of intensities) as part of a fat loss plan, ranging from straightforward calorie burning during the workout to reduced hunger after training — a welcomed side effect when calories are reduced. (8)

Cardio training, when combined with weight training, has also been shown to produce greater health benefits than either method on its own. (9)

Training (weights and cardio together) for a total of four to seven hours per week has been shown to provide significant fat loss and health benefits. (10) The exact number being dependent on a few factors, most notably the training intensity. High-intensity training cannot be performed for the same duration as lower intensity training, but the net effect is comparable.

Performing cardio exercise for 20 to 60 minutes, three or four days per week, is an effective approach when combined with weight training. Sessions can be either low to moderate intensity, like walking or biking, for longer durations or higher intensity workouts, like sprints, for shorter durations.

For overall recovery and optimal performance in each workout, either alternate days of only weight training with only cardio, or perform a cardio session immediately after lifting weights (to avoid negatively affecting the weight training stimulus).

Performing cardio on an empty stomach first thing in the morning is one popular, though mildly controversial, approach. Some lifters believe exercising without a prior meal may lead to muscle loss, but this has shown to be inaccurate and not a significant concern. (11)

The effects of fasted cardio are comparable to non-fasted cardio, so perform whichever fits best into your individual weekly schedule. (12)(13)

How to Eat for Fat Loss

The phrase “eating for fat loss” could just as easily be “not eating for fat loss”, but rather than focus on the restrictive part of a nutrition plan designed to burn fat, let’s focus on what you can have.

Calories: Not Too Many, Not Too Few

The quintessential aspect of a fat loss diet is reduced calories. People switch to “diet food” like zero-calorie beverages, plenty of vegetables, and none of the decadent desserts that might’ve become too familiar.

While some degree of calorie restriction is unavoidable, cutting too many can be counterproductive. For sustainable, efficient fat loss, reducing your intake by 500 to 700 calories per day has been repeatedly shown to be an ideal target. (14)(15)

Dieting with a larger deficit is a short-term, relatively short-sighted approach which may initially seem like a great idea as pounds are shed rapidly before the body quickly rebels, progress grinds to a halt, and weight begins to return despite a drastic calorie deficit and consistent training routine. (16)(17)

The previously recommended training guidelines should be compatible with a 500 to 700 calorie deficit. If excessive fatigue or poor recovery become limiting factors, adjust the training routine to reduce volume (removing exercises or sets) before adjusting calorie intake.

Protein Intake is Key

For burning fat, as with building muscle, protein may be the most crucial macronutrient. It’s not only essential for muscle preservation, but it’s also been shown to improve satiety (curb hunger) and increase thermogenesis (calorie-burning).

As a critical and versatile nutrient, protein intake should always be kept relatively high, anywhere from 30% to 60% of total daily calories. (18) A similar, if simplified, approach to calculate total daily intake is to aim for approximately one gram per pound of bodyweight. That continues to be a reliable, multi-purpose guideline regardless of the goal.

Ideal food sources will be predominantly animal-based proteins (beef, poultry, fish, dairy, eggs, etc.), although vegetarian alternatives have been shown to be comparable when other macronutrients and total calories are accounted for.

One potential issue to be aware of is the inherent fat content of animal proteins and the fat or carbohydrate content of vegetarian proteins. To reduce overall calories, either opt for lower fat/lower carb protein sources or be sure to incorporate the food’s entire calorie into your daily plan.

Don’t Be Confused By Carbs

Many lifters believe that cutting carbs — an energy source for your body — is the single most effective way to reduce body fat. While they can certainly deliver results, low-carb diets have been repeatedly shown to be as effective, not necessarily more effective, compared to other plans (like a low-fat diet, for example). (19)

One benefit of a fat loss plan which includes sufficient carbs is generally higher energy levels which can be channeled into harder workouts, which can translate to more calories burned per session and a greater overall training stimulus.

On the flip side, one big benefit of a lower carb diet is the simplicity. Carbs are relatively easy to spot in a kitchen or on a menu — grains, bread, rice, potatoes, sugar-coated anything. This makes it much more simple to adhere to, compared to protein and fat combinations which may be less obvious — butter in a sauce, oil in a salad dressing, fat in a piece of steak, etc.

“Low carbs” is typically considered anywhere from 5% to 30% of daily calories from carb sources, or up to one-half (0.5) gram per pound of bodyweight per day.

Optimal carb sources, regardless of total daily carb intake, are ideally relatively fiber-dense and relatively low sugar to increase overall satiety without excessive calories. High sugar, low fiber foods are often unsatisfying and considered “empty calories.” Whole grains, legumes, potatoes, rice, fruit, and vegetables are preferred options.

Fats Don’t Make You Fat

If going low-carb is simple because they’re easy to find, going low-fat is simple because they’re so calorie-dense. In a comparable serving, fats deliver more than twice as many calories as carbohydrates, making them an extremely efficient way to reduce total daily calories. (There are four calories in a gram of carbs and protein and nine calories in a gram of fat.)

Reducing fat intake delivers more “bang for the buck” in terms of affecting total daily calories, making it an appealing choice for dieters looking to focus on a single dietary change.

An added benefit of a lower fat approach is improved cardiovascular health and comparable fat loss relative to a higher dietary fat intake. (20)

Maintaining fat intake to 20% to 35% total daily calories or roughly one-third (0.3) gram per pound of bodyweight per day is sufficient to encourage optimal hormonal and cardiovascular health while allowing fat loss. (21)

Food sources should include both animal fats (naturally occurring in protein sources) and minimally processed plant sources including avocado, olive oil, or coconut oil.

Everyone Wants a Cheat Meal

Some people become eager for a cheat meal or cheat day before completing their first full week on a fat loss plan. This type of lax dietary adherence might not seem like a good omen for significant results but, when used strategically, cheat meals may actually be beneficial.

During a calorie restricted diet, several hormones in the body try to adapt to the new physiological environment. One of the hormones, leptin, is responsible for controlling hunger. The longer or more intense the dieting, the less leptin your body produces.

By sporadically and deliberately spiking calorie intake above normal (no longer in a deficit), leptin level may be temporarily boosted, which may help adherence to the fat loss plan. (22)

If that sounds too good to be true, it’s because it might be. Research has also shown that cheat meals may actually lessen adherence to the initial diet plan and encourage poor nutritional behaviors. (23)

So, if hearing the phrase “cheat meal” gets you more riled up than Roger Rabbit hearing “shave and a haircut,” you’re probably not going to handle it well. You should stick with your well-designed plan and save the strategic cheating for another time. Focus on making the foods that responsibly fit into your daily macros taste better. You don’t have to eat bland food, you just need to eat lower-calorie foods.

How Many Meals Per Day?

One popular technique to burn fat is to increase meal frequency, eating multiple smaller-sized meals throughout the day rather than fewer, relatively larger meals.

Because insulin can be spiked during a meal and dropped low between meals, the intention is to maintain stable insulin levels throughout the day by minimizing the highs, lows, and duration between spikes. Increased calorie-burning and satiety are also expected due to eating more often.

Research has shown that, while there may be some potential benefits to having a meal roughly every two to three hours, there is no conclusive, significant benefit. (24) Eating anywhere from one to six times per day has been shown to deliver comparable results. Choose an approach that suits your schedule and overall nutrition plan.

How to Recover for Fat Loss

Recovery is as important for burning fat as it is for building muscle, especially since your body is operating with reduced fuel sources. Here’s how to make sure you’re avoiding burnout and maximizing results.

Plan Your Rest Days

Considering the weekly training time split between weights and cardio, you’re likely performing some type of exercise nearly every day. While the activity is different each session, cumulative fatigue can become too much to recover from without a day or two off unless the training program is extremely well-planned.

One effective approach, especially when alternating weight training days with cardio-only days, is to deliberately incorporate lower intensity cardio exercise into your cardio exercise programming. This serves as a type of “active recovery” and encourages results without significantly tapping into recovery resources. (25)

Less Sleep, More Fat

Getting enough sleep is important under ideal conditions. When training intensely with restricted calories, getting enough quality sleep becomes even more important.

Research has shown that impaired sleep can reduce metabolism, increase cravings, affect hormone levels, and impact cognitive ability. (26) Aim to get as close as possible to the time-tested eight hours per night.

Sample Fat Loss Training Program

There are countless ways to design a training plan to burn fat. As long as the general guidelines for weight training, cardio, volume (sets and reps), duration, and recovery are followed, it’s hard to go wrong. Here’s one way to set up a week in the gym. The plan in the kitchen is all up to you.

Sunday

Low-intensity cardio exercise (walk or bike), 60 minutes.

Monday

• Front Squat: 4 x 6-8
• Barbell Row: 4 x 8-10
• Incline Bench Press: 4 x 10-12
• Triceps Pressdown: 3 x 10-12
• Barbell Curl: 3 x 10-12

Tuesday

High-intensity cardio exercise (run or bike), 20 minutes.

Wednesday

• Pull-Up: 4 x 6-8
• Dip: 4 x 8-10
• Romanian Deadlift: 4 x 10-12
• Lateral Raise: 3 x 10-12

Thursday

High-intensity cardio exercise (run or bike), 20 minutes.

Friday

• Dumbbell Shoulder Press: 4 x 6-8
• Single-Arm Dumbbell Row: 3 x 8-10
• Reverse Lunge: 3 x 8-10
• Hanging Knee Raise: 4 x 10-12

Saturday

Low-intensity cardio exercise (walk or bike), 60 minutes.

Tracking Progress

A plan to burn fat is only successful when you know, without a doubt, that you’re actually burning fat. For the most comprehensive data, use a variety of methods.

A once-per-week weigh-in is an excellent starting point. Even though you don’t want to focus specifically on “weight loss,” fat loss is a specific form of weight loss. If the scale isn’t dropping one to two pounds per week (an ideal and sustainable rate of progress), your daily calories are likely too high. (27) Be sure to weigh-in under identical conditions each week. Something as simple as slight dehydration, a large recent meal, or a change of clothing can skew the results.

Weekly progress pictures can be more objective than simply looking in the mirror, especially when comparing a timeline of progress with several weeks worth of selfies. Again, repeat the same conditions (same outfit, same lighting, same pose) to maintain consistency and make progress easier to monitor.

The last objective measure is, literally, tape measurements. Tracking points may include your neck, upper arm, torso or mid-chest, navel, hips, upper thighs, and calves. It’s not uncommon for certain areas to lose fat at different rates. Like photos, collecting several weeks of data and comparing them in hindsight can help to showcase results.

Body fat percentages, while seemingly useful, are too inaccurate, complicated, or inconvenient to repeat on a regular basis. If your bodyweight is slowly decreasing, and your pictures/measurements are steadily improving, and your performance in the gym is improving or holding relatively steady, your body composition is on the right track.

Fat Loss Wrap-Up

Whether it’s a ramp-up to summer, an upcoming vacation, or if it’s just finally time to crackdown and make a serious push to burn fat, you’re armed with all the info to get results. The good news is that there are plenty of different paths all leading to the same goal. The only thing left is to choose a plan and put in the work.

References

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2. Stiegler, P., & Cunliffe, A. (2006). The role of diet and exercise for the maintenance of fat-free mass and resting metabolic rate during weight loss. Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.), 36(3), 239–262. https://doi.org/10.2165/00007256-200636030-00005
3. Fujita, S., Rasmussen, B. B., Cadenas, J. G., Grady, J. J., & Volpi, E. (2006). Effect of insulin on human skeletal muscle protein synthesis is modulated by insulin-induced changes in muscle blood flow and amino acid availability. American journal of physiology. Endocrinology and metabolism, 291(4), E745–E754. https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpendo.00271.2005
4. Torjesen, P. A., Birkeland, K. I., Anderssen, S. A., Hjermann, I., Holme, I., & Urdal, P. (1997). Lifestyle changes may reverse development of the insulin resistance syndrome. The Oslo Diet and Exercise Study: a randomized trial. Diabetes care, 20(1), 26–31. https://doi.org/10.2337/diacare.20.1.26
5. Ross, R., Janssen, I., Dawson, J., Kungl, A. M., Kuk, J. L., Wong, S. L., Nguyen-Duy, T. B., Lee, S., Kilpatrick, K., & Hudson, R. (2004). Exercise-induced reduction in obesity and insulin resistance in women: a randomized controlled trial. Obesity research, 12(5), 789–798. https://doi.org/10.1038/oby.2004.95
6. Miller, T., Mull, S., Aragon, A. A., Krieger, J., & Schoenfeld, B. J. (2018). Resistance Training Combined With Diet Decreases Body Fat While Preserving Lean Mass Independent of Resting Metabolic Rate: A Randomized Trial. International journal of sport nutrition and exercise metabolism, 28(1), 46–54. https://doi.org/10.1123/ijsnem.2017-0221
7. Ho, S. S., Dhaliwal, S. S., Hills, A. P., & Pal, S. (2012). The effect of 12 weeks of aerobic, resistance or combination exercise training on cardiovascular risk factors in the overweight and obese in a randomized trial. BMC public health, 12, 704. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-12-704
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12. Aird TP, Davies RW, Carson BP. Effects of fasted vs fed-state exercise on performance and post-exercise metabolism: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2018 May;28(5):1476-1493. doi: 10.1111/sms.13054. Epub 2018 Feb 23. PMID: 29315892.
13. Schoenfeld, B. J., Aragon, A. A., Wilborn, C. D., Krieger, J. W., & Sonmez, G. T. (2014). Body composition changes associated with fasted versus non-fasted aerobic exercise. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 11(1), 54. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12970-014-0054-7
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17. Rosenbaum M, Leibel RL. Adaptive thermogenesis in humans. Int J Obes (Lond). 2010;34 Suppl 1(0 1):S47-S55. doi:10.1038/ijo.2010.184
18. Hansen, T. T., Astrup, A., & Sjödin, A. (2021). Are Dietary Proteins the Key to Successful Body Weight Management? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Studies Assessing Body Weight Outcomes after Interventions with Increased Dietary Protein. Nutrients, 13(9), 3193. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13093193
19. Chawla, Shreya et al. “The Effect of Low-Fat and Low-Carbohydrate Diets on Weight Loss and Lipid Levels: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.” Nutrients vol. 12,12 3774. 9 Dec. 2020, doi:10.3390/nu12123774
20. Lu, M., Wan, Y., Yang, B., Huggins, C. E., & Li, D. (2018). Effects of low-fat compared with high-fat diet on cardiometabolic indicators in people with overweight and obesity without overt metabolic disturbance: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. The British journal of nutrition, 119(1), 96–108. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007114517002902
21. Zello G. A. (2006). Dietary Reference Intakes for the macronutrients and energy: considerations for physical activity. Applied physiology, nutrition, and metabolism = Physiologie appliquee, nutrition et metabolisme, 31(1), 74–79. https://doi.org/10.1139/h05-022
22. Kolaczynski JW, Ohannesian JP, Considine RV, Marco CC, Caro JF. Response of leptin to short-term and prolonged overfeeding in humans. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 1996 Nov;81(11):4162-5. doi: 10.1210/jcem.81.11.8923877. PMID: 8923877.
23. Murray SB, Pila E, Mond JM, Mitchison D, Blashill AJ, Sabiston CM, Griffiths S. Cheat meals: A benign or ominous variant of binge eating behavior? Appetite. 2018 Nov 1;130:274-278. doi: 10.1016/j.appet.2018.08.026. Epub 2018 Aug 23. PMID: 30144490.
24. Schoenfeld BJ, Aragon AA, Krieger JW. Effects of meal frequency on weight loss and body composition: a meta-analysis. Nutr Rev. 2015 Feb;73(2):69-82. doi: 10.1093/nutrit/nuu017. PMID: 26024494.
25. Ortiz, R. O., Jr, Sinclair Elder, A. J., Elder, C. L., & Dawes, J. J. (2019). A Systematic Review on the Effectiveness of Active Recovery Interventions on Athletic Performance of Professional-, Collegiate-, and Competitive-Level Adult Athletes. Journal of strength and conditioning research, 33(8), 2275–2287. https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0000000000002589
26. Capers PL, Fobian AD, Kaiser KA, Borah R, Allison DB. A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials of the impact of sleep duration on adiposity and components of energy balance. Obes Rev. 2015;16(9):771-782. doi:10.1111/obr.12296
27. Garthe I, Raastad T, Refsnes PE, Koivisto A, Sundgot-Borgen J. Effect of two different weight-loss rates on body composition and strength and power-related performance in elite athletes. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2011 Apr;21(2):97-104. doi: 10.1123/ijsnem.21.2.97. PMID: 21558571.

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The sit-up remains a time-tested fitness evaluation and is an extremely simple and effective way to develop core strength. It’s also developed a debatable reputation for being “bad for your back”. Let’s learn how to perform it, safely and correctly for better abs, more strength, and less pain.

• How to Do the Sit-Up
• Sit-Up Mistakes to Avoid
• Benefits of the Sit-Up
• Muscles Worked by the Sit-Up
• Who Should Do the Sit-Up
• How to Program the Sit-Up
• Sit-Up Variations
• Sit-Up Alternatives
• Frequently Asked Questions

How to Do the Sit-Up

All you need to perform the sit-up is your body and a chunk of floor space. As simple as the exercise may appear, there are a few technique tips to make sure you’re getting results most efficiently.

Step 1 — Lie Down

Begin lying on the floor facing up. Your feet should be flat on the ground with your knees bent. Move your feet slightly forward, away from your glutes, and set them hip-width apart. Having your feet too close to your body, or too close together, reduces leverage and makes it difficult to achieve a full range of motion.

Some lifters choose to have the feet held down in place, either by a partner or an immovable object. This should be avoided because it can decrease abdominal focus, recruit alternative muscles (like the hip flexors), and may encourage poor technique.

As opposed to the classic “hands clasped together behind your head” position, keep your fingertips on either side of your head gently touching your ears or temples. This prevents you from pulling on your head and straining your neck. The back of your head and shoulders should be touching the ground before the first rep begins.

Form Tip: To make the exercise less challenging, begin the set with your torso sitting up, not lying on the ground. This helps to work the “stretch-shortening cycle”, which improves a muscle’s strength immediately following a stretched position. (1) Be sure to lower yourself under control without “bouncing” your body off the floor.

Step 2 — Sit Up

Keep your fingertips in contact with your ears and your feet in contact with the ground. Bring your torso towards your knees by contracting your abdominal muscles. Your head and neck should remain neutral, not pointed up or down, as you move. You should feel muscular tension throughout your entire upper body, particularly in your abs.

To maximally activate your ab muscles, your upper body should curl and “crunch” as you rise up, rather than keeping a straight line from your shoulders to your hips. In the top position, your upper body should be close to your knees and thighs.

Form Tip: If you feel lower back strain during a set, move your feet slightly farther from your body and slightly wider apart. Be sure to start the movement by flexing your torso and “crunching” your abs. Keeping your torso straight de-emphasizes ab muscle recruitment and shifts the muscular stress to the hip flexors, which can worsen back pain.

Step 3 — Lower to the Ground

Begin the descent by reversing direction and “un-curling” your upper body while lowering yourself to the ground. Resist the urge to rebound immediately off the floor, which increases injury risk and decreases muscle involvement. Quickly reset before transitioning smoothly into the next repetition.

Form Tip: In the bottom position, take a deep breath into your belly, not your chest (also known as diaphragmatic breathing). Beginning a rep with this deep breath and steadily releasing it while sitting up can help to increase muscular stress and power output.

Sit-Up Mistakes to Avoid

Many lifters underestimate seemingly simple bodyweight exercises like the sit-up and, as a result, end up performing them incorrectly which lessens any potential results and reduces the overall effectiveness. Here are the most common training mistakes to avoid.

Pulling Your Head Forward

Your torso should be moving up and down during each rep. Your chin shouldn’t be. One big reason for avoiding the popular hands-behind-your-head position is that, deliberately or accidentally, it can encourage you to pull your head with your hands as if you were lifting your entire body with your skull as a handle.

Not only does this not actually help anything, but it can put significant strain on the small muscles of your cervical spine and overall neck. If you feel any increasing strain on your neck during a rep, you’re likely pulling with your hands instead of flexing your abdominals.

Avoid It: Don’t put your hands in a position to help in the first place. Keep your fingertips touching, or nearly touching, your ears so they’re not in a position to pull on anything. Alternatively, you could cross your arms in front of your chest or clasp your hands in front of your chin. Both options remove the urge and ability to pull your body up.

Using Momentum, Not Muscle

Many lifters consider the sit-up to be ideal for performing high-rep sets, which it can be. However, some fall into the trap of using any method necessary to complete extra repetitions. The “easiest” way is to begin using momentum, not muscular force, to get moving.

By swinging the arms as if throwing an imaginary beach ball, kicking the legs, or incorporating hip movement by raising and lowering the glutes off the floor, it’s possible to “swing” the torso up to the finished position. This not only reduces muscle activation in the abs but also increases strain on the joints of the hips and lower back.

Avoid it: Very simply, don’t exchange technique for extra reps. Maintain a controlled crunch of the torso going upwards. Keep your glutes touching the floor throughout the entire set. Keep your fingers touching near your ears.

Benefits of the Sit-Up

For years, sit-ups were the quintessential “workout exercise.” Gotta get in shape? Start with sit-ups. Gotta get stronger? Do your sit-ups. Wanna lose weight? Sit-ups will burn that fat fight off.

Some of these were on the right track, others were a bit misguided. Here’s what the exercise really offers.

Core Strength

The sit-up is an extremely effective exercise for building total core strength. The abdominal muscles are worked through a significant range of motion while the lower back, glutes, and even the hamstrings are recruited as stabilizing muscles.

Ab Muscle Development

Training the abs is, unsurprisingly, a really effective way to build abs that look great. While a variety of ab exercises like crunch variations and twists can also be effective, the standard sit-up remains among a popular and effective choice for activating the ab muscles.

Muscles Worked by the Sit-Up

The sit-up may be one of the most well-known ab exercises. Its straightforward performance, long history, and wide-spread popularity have helped to cement it as one of the few exercises many lifters and non-lifters are familiar with. Here’s a deeper look at the muscles involved.

Rectus Abdominis

This is the main ab muscle running down the front of the torso which makes up the “six-pack” and it’s the primary muscle people are referring to when they talk about the abs.

It’s responsible for flexing the torso in a curling motion to bring your sternum (mid-chest) closer to your hips. This is why keeping your torso straight as you rise up decreases the abs’ ability to contract.

The rectus abdominis is sometimes referred to separately as the “upper abs” above the belly button near the lower chest and “lower abs” below the belly button near the belt-line. While it is one single muscle, research shows that two separate sections can be activated to varying degrees by certain exercises. (2)

Ab exercises with torso movement, like the sit-up, typically emphasize the upper abs while ab exercises with leg movement, like the hanging knee raise, emphasize the lower abs.

Hip Flexors

The hip flexors are a collection of several small muscles found near the top of each thigh connecting to the pelvis and lumbar spine (lower back). They serve to bring the upper leg closer to the chest, in a movement similar to bending at the waist.

The hip flexors are recruited during sit-ups, more so when the torso is kept straight or when the feet are weighted down and held in place during the movement. (3)

Because the hip flexors connect to the lumbar spine, they are heavily associated with contributing to, or relieving, back pain depending on the muscles’ strength, flexibility, and mobility. (4)

Who Should Do the Sit-Up

The sit-up remains a fundamental movement for building core strength and abdominal muscle. It can be incorporated into almost any type of training plan.

Training for Strength

Core strength and endurance have been shown to help improve strength and athletic performance. (5)(6) For this reason, sit-ups can play a key role in any training program designed to build total-body strength or power.

Training for Muscle

All muscles of the body can be stimulated for muscle growth, including the abdominals. The sit-ups are a simple and effective exercise for targeting the abs.

Some lifters mistakenly believe direct ab training may create a “blocky” or bulky-looking waistline, but this isn’t a valid concern because that appearance has more to do with excess body fat than muscle growth.

Similarly, some lifters avoid any direct ab exercise, believing that ab definition is simply the byproduct of a general fat loss plan combined with basic compound exercises. But getting good-looking abs requires some direct work, not just reduced calories, running, and squatting more.

Training for Performance

The sit-up is a popular fitness assessment with some law enforcement and military organizations, often tested for maximum reps in a set timeframe. For this reason, training the sit-up would be considered “sport-specific,” since the most direct way to improve performance is to practice the exercise itself.

How to Program the Sit-Up

The sit-up can be programmed in a number of different ways to accommodate the specific training goal. As with many bodyweight exercises, adding external load such as a weighted vest, weight plate, or dumbbell can increase resistance and allow more programming options.

Unweighted, Moderate to High Rep

Performing the sit-up with your own bodyweight for two to three sets of 10 to 20 reps with 30 seconds rest between sets can be a quick and effective addition to any training program. This approach could even be incorporated into a general warm-up, rather than a workout, for experienced lifters.

Light Weight, Moderate Rep

Add external resistance and perform three to four sets of six to 12 reps with one minute between sets. This would be an intense workout to build core strength. Exercise technique with and without weight should be identical. Adding weight should not compromise form.

For Time

As one part of a physical fitness test, typically in law enforcement or military organizations, sit-ups are required to be performed for maximum reps in one to two minutes. The key with this training approach is to maintain proper technique for the duration and not allow form to get sloppy in order to rush through low-quality reps.

Sit-Up Variations

Because the sit-up is a relatively straightforward exercise (literally and figuratively), simple adjustments to the basic movement can recruit or emphasize different muscles for a more diverse stimulus.

Twisting Sit-Up

Sometimes called knee-to-elbow sit-ups, incorporating a twisting motion recruits the oblique muscles running along either side of the rectus abdominis.

Rather than ending with your chest directly in front of your thighs and knees, end each repetition with your chest pointed toward one knee. Alternating sides on each rep is common, but reps may be performed all to one side followed by the same reps to the opposite side.

Janda Sit-Up

Created and popularized by physiotherapist Dr. Vladimir Janda, the Janda sit-up activates the hamstrings to deactivate the hip flexors. The result is a significantly increased abdominal contraction.

This works by a neurological and physical mechanism technically known as “reciprocal inhibition.” Essentially, it’s a phenomenon which prevents muscles on one side of the body from contracting if the muscles directly opposing it are already intensely contracting.

Straight-Leg Sit-Up

The straight-leg sit-up, like it sounds, is performed with your legs straight and heels on the ground instead of with your legs bent and feet flat on the ground.

This adjustment increases the overall range of motion and significantly increases recruitment of the hip flexors. The straight-leg sit-up is very similar to the Pilates exercise known as a “roll-up.”

Two-Arm Overhead Sit-Up

Keeping both arms raised perpendicular to the ground, rather than close to the body, alters leverage and significantly increases the difficulty. This variation is performed by keeping both arms straight and pointed towards the ceiling throughout the rep.

As an even more advanced variation, you can hold a light dumbbell in each hand or one weight plate with both hands. This will also increase shoulder recruitment, specifically in the smaller stabilizer muscles of the shoulder and upper back.

Sit-Up Alternatives

Some lifters are unable to perform sit-ups, typically because of pre-existing back problems or general difficulty achieving a full range of more. These are some of the most effective options.

Crunch

The crunch may have been the one exercise to bump the sit-up from its prominent spot as the go-to ab exercise. It’s been shown to be one of the most effective ways to specifically target the abs. (7)

The crunch does have a significantly shorter range of motion compared to the sit-up, but that’s one reason why it’s an effective ab exercise. The movement is deliberately restricted to avoid involvement of other muscle groups.

Hanging Knee Raise

Using either a pull-up bar or specialized knee raise station (sometimes called a captain’s chair or Roman chair), the hanging knee raise emphasizes the lower abs. Be sure to curl the entire hip region upwards, rather than only moving the legs, to recruit more ab muscles.

The hanging position also helps to “decompress” the spine by allowing a stretch and relieving tension. This exercise can be made more challenging by using straight legs or eventually progressing to the “toes to bar” position with a full range of motion.

V-Up

The v-up, sometimes called a jackknife sit-up, is a high-intensity total-body core exercise involving the ab muscles while incorporating the arms and legs together. By raising your legs while reaching upwards with your arms, significant stress is placed on the lower abs as well as the upper abs.

This is one of the most challenging bodyweight ab exercise alternatives because it requires high levels of strength, coordination, and mobility.

FAQs

Will doing sit-ups specifically burn belly fat?

Fat, regardless of where it’s stored on the body, is most efficiently burned with a specialized nutrition plan (including a calorie deficit) coordinated with an intense training program. Performing sit-ups and other ab exercises does not lead to any drastic “spot reduction” by significantly increasing abdominal fat loss. (8)

Several decades of research have investigated this persistent idea, as well as countless hopeful lifters over the same time period, and the results have been inconclusive at-best. Any results showing spot reduction to work have been measured in millimeters, not inches.

Time and effort are much better spent on a comprehensive fat loss plan rather than over-relying on spot reducing the abs.

Why does my back hurt during and after a set?

Lower back pain is the most common reason for avoiding sit-ups. This may be due to the hip flexors involvement during the exercise, which stresses the lumbar spine, or the pain may be due to the flexion (crunching) motion aggravating lower back strain. (9)

Modifying sit-up technique by widening the foot stance and shortening the range of motion may help. If pain persists, removing sit-ups from the workout program and incorporating an alternative may be the most effective solution.

References

1. Seiberl W, Hahn D, Power GA, Fletcher JR, Siebert T. Editorial: The Stretch-Shortening Cycle of Active Muscle and Muscle-Tendon Complex: What, Why and How It Increases Muscle Performance?. Front Physiol. 2021;12:693141. Published 2021 May 20. doi:10.3389/fphys.2021.693141
2. Duncan M. (2009). Muscle activity of the upper and lower rectus abdominis during exercises performed on and off a Swiss ball. Journal of bodywork and movement therapies, 13(4), 364–367. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbmt.2008.11.008
3. Burden, A. M., & Redmond, C. G. (2013). Abdominal and hip flexor muscle activity during 2 minutes of sit-ups and curl-ups. Journal of strength and conditioning research, 27(8), 2119–2128. https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0b013e318278f0ac
4. Avrahami D, Potvin JR. The clinical and biomechanical effects of fascial-muscular lengthening therapy on tight hip flexor patients with and without low back pain. J Can Chiropr Assoc. 2014 Dec;58(4):444-55. PMID: 25550670; PMCID: PMC4262809.
5. Kocahan T, Akınoğlu B. Determination of the relationship between core endurance and isokinetic muscle strength of elite athletes. J Exerc Rehabil. 2018;14(3):413-418. Published 2018 Jun 30. doi:10.12965/jer.1836148.074
6. Shinkle, J., Nesser, T. W., Demchak, T. J., & McMannus, D. M. (2012). Effect of core strength on the measure of power in the extremities. Journal of strength and conditioning research, 26(2), 373–380. https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0b013e31822600e5
7. Escamilla RF, Lewis C, Pecson A, Imamura R, Andrews JR. Muscle Activation Among Supine, Prone, and Side Position Exercises With and Without a Swiss Ball. Sports Health. 2016;8(4):372-379. doi:10.1177/1941738116653931
8. Paoli A, Casolo A, Saoncella M, et al. Effect of an Endurance and Strength Mixed Circuit Training on Regional Fat Thickness: The Quest for the “Spot Reduction”. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021;18(7):3845. Published 2021 Apr 6. doi:10.3390/ijerph18073845
9. Sutanto, D., Ho, R., Poon, E., Yang, Y., & Wong, S. (2022). Effects of Different Trunk Training Methods for Chronic Low Back Pain: A Meta-Analysis. International journal of environmental research and public health, 19(5), 2863. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19052863

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You could also perform a combination of ground-based bodyweight-only exercises, running, and chin ups for hours upon hours until you literally exhaust your energy supplies. But who has the time for that? Not many, and it’s not recommended unless you’re a psychotic fanatic and financially able to devote valuable time to it.

This discussion is centered upon the simple calorie in versus calories out reality, pragmatic exercise selection, and sensible eating.

Articles for Nutrition and Fat Loss

Regarding sensible eating, there is already a plethora of great information that can help you shore up your diet. It takes discipline, but you can do it if you truly want to make changes. Take a look at these fine articles:

• Carbohydrates: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
• The Story of the Endomorph: How to Work With What You Have
• Death By Food Pyramid: When Science Is Not What It Seems

Come With a Realistic Game Plan

Assuming you can shore up your food intake, here are some realistic exercise options using traditional modes and regimens. They are all based on a manageable time of thirty minutes per session – a length you can surely find time for if you’re serious about making changes. If you’re not serious, then quit reading this.

“[U]nderstand that the higher effort required per unit of time, the greater the calories burned. This has huge implications for either your weight gain or weight loss goals.”

On that note, why you are reading this?

• Are you seeking an exercise activity that will counter your poor calorie intake?
• Are you seeking an activity to kick start your magazine-popular exercise program that has not been working?
• Are you interested in what you need to do if you finally cross the line and engage in a sensible exercise program combined with reasonable food intake?
• Are you seeking effective options to augment your currently result-producing regimen to take it to the next level?

Before moving forward, know these facts:

• In general, consuming more calories than you expend will result in additional body fat storage, all other factors being equal. If you exercise and burn X number of calories, but then consume greater than X calories plus your daily basal metabolic calorie need, then you’ll most likely store more body fat. Stop it.
• If you follow a high-carbohydrate diet, but consume fewer calories in terms of protein and fat, your body might be compromised when it comes to optimal muscle mass development. You may be able to exercise longer, but your ability to grow shapely and calorie-dependent muscle may be limited.
• If you follow a high protein and fat diet, and eschew low carb intake, it may limit your energy tank and lessen your immediate ability. You may not possess enough energy to fuel short-term maximum muscle fiber-recruiting efforts. This can in turn limit optimal muscle fiber stimulation and potential forthcoming growth stimulation. Read: you may minimize muscle bulk gains.
• Growing and possessing an optimal muscle mass percentage (male and female) may allow you to avoid excessive body fat storage, provided your total calorie intake does not exceed your total calorie expenditure. However, your high-intensity exercise efforts may decline due to a lack of immediate glycogen (carbs) stores relative to your sport or energy demands. Bottom line: you’ll run out of high-intensity training fuel earlier.

Who wins here? The low-carb/high fat and protein intake group or the higher carb/normal intake of protein and fat group? There is no simple answer due to a variety of dependent variables. But whatever option you select, your existing scale weight and body composition assessment do offer marking points for further experimentation.

If you don’t know this by now, know it. Exercise, in general, does not burn a huge amount of stored body fat during the activity. Likewise, engaging in maximal calorie-burning activities does not tap into stored (fat) calories during training session, but may post-training – provided it’s combined with a lower calorie intake. It is not huge, but it contributes.

Calories Burned During Common Workouts

Knowing you will either gain or lose scale weight depending on your energy expenditure (exercise) and total calorie intake (food consumption), understand what follows. These are some realistic calorie-burning options that could help you provided you heed the aforementioned.

In rank order, what follows are effective (or ineffective) calorie-burning activities based on 30 minutes of activity for a thirty-year-old 190 pound/86 kilogram male and thirty-year-old 125 pound/57 kilogram female. The goal would be total estimated calorie burning independent of specific muscle-building workouts (hint, hint).

“Engaging in maximal calorie-burning activities does not tap into stored (fat) calories during training session, but may post-training – provided it’s combined with a lower calorie intake.“

Here are the activities, listed from greater to lesser average calorie usage:

Interval training on a Versa Climber @ 1:00 hard/:30 easy

• Male = 617 calories
• Female = 389 calories
• Note: If you have used the VersaClimber, you know it’s a love/hate relationship. It’s similar to having a sack full of twenty-dollar bills being used as kindling for cooking a delicious T-bone steak over a fire. Yeah! Ugh.

Stationary cycle – all-out effort

• Male = 451 calories
• Female = 285 calories

Resistance circuit strength training @ :45 of work and:20 rest

• Male = 371 calories
• Female = 234 calories

Bodyweight exercise circuit

• Male = 370 calories
• Female = 229 calories
• Note: This is as many rounds possible in thirty minutes of 10 reps each of push ups, pull ups (or max), air squats, and jumping jacks, with minimal rest between exercises and rounds.

Running at 12:00 per mile pace

• Male = 365 calories
• Female = 222 calories

Boot camp class – various exercises and funky dance moves

• Male = 357 calories
• Female = 220 calories

Treadmill walking @5.0 miles per hour

• Male = 308 calories
• Female = 211 calories

Traditional strength training

• Male = 217 calories
• Female = 137 calories
• Note: Done with a 3:00 rest between sets, but all-out on each set performed

Pilates

• Male = 158 calories
• Female = 100 calories

Yoga

• Male = 113 calories
• Female = 71 calories

Learn What Works for You

Much information and potential confusion exits out there, so read and know the facts above. If you engage in more (45 minutes) or less (20 minutes) exercise, then adjust accordingly. But understand that the higher effort required per unit of time, the greater the calories burned. This has huge implications for either your weight gain or weight loss goals.

“You could also perform a combination of ground-based bodyweight-only exercises … for hours upon hours until you literally exhaust your energy supplies. But who has the time for that?“

To burn maximal calories to promote body fat reduction, train hard and create a calorie-consumption deficit. To grow muscle tissue and concomitantly use that new tissue to burn more calories, use demanding resistance training and couple it with a relative calorie-intake balance.

Educate yourself on the type of calories and how they are metabolized. This would include not only protein, fat, and carbs, but also the type of each, such as:

• Low- versus high-glycemic carbs
• Saturated, poly-unsaturated, unsaturated fats, and trans-fats
• Lean versus fatty proteins

Use this information judiciously and responsively to assist you in your training goals.

Check out these related articles:

• Simple Options for Daily Calorie Burning
• Why Steady State Cardio for Fat Loss Is a Bad Decision
• The Fat Loss “Secret” – You’re Just Not Working Hard Enough
• What’s New On Breaking Muscle UK Today

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Photo 2 courtesy of CrossFit Empirical.

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We hear the word “hormones” get thrown around constantly and it seems that everyone agrees–not only are hormones important but having balanced hormones is crucial for overall health.

Before we talk about disease processes and the repercussions of hormone imbalance, I would like to discuss the basics. What exactly is a “hormone”? Hormones are signaling molecules. They are the words our body uses to communicate within itself. Hormones are secreted by different glands in the body.

For the most part, once a hormone is secreted by a gland, it travels by the circulatory system. Once at its destination, the hormone binds to a cell receptor and triggers a pathway cascade that will regulate a certain function. These functions include digestion, hunger, fertility, metabolism, sleep, stress, growth, perception, mood, and many other processes.

The gland system responsible for hormone production is known as the endocrine system. The endocrine system is made of multiple feedback loops that regulate bodily functions. Most of them function based on a principle known as negative feedback.

There is a stimulus–a hormone gets produced–higher concentrations of this hormone notify the “origin” that there is too much being produced and the production is stopped. Let’s take a look at a key player, the thyroid hormone.

The Thyroid

The thyroid axis is responsible for metabolism. It involves the communication between the hypothalamus (a link of the nervous system to the pituitary gland), the pituitary gland, and the thyroid gland. The thyroid gland gets a lot of attention from the weight loss community.

You might have heard people attributing their weight gain to a “slow metabolism” or a “sluggish thyroid.” This is because one of the primary functions of the thyroid gland is to maintain your basal metabolic rate (BMR)—the bare minimum calorie requirement for you to stay alive. These calories are required for organ function, generating body heat, growth, development, etc.

Trainer Antonella Kahler from Toronto, Canada

So then, what is a hypo/hyperthyroid? A “hypo” or “hyper” thyroid refers to the thyroid’s abilities to release appropriate hormones to upregulate or downregulate metabolism. So it would seem logical that a “hypothyroid” would crash our metabolism and make weight loss impossible while a “hyperthyroid” would keep us effortlessly slim

This is not the case. In fact, the role of thyroid hormones in diet-induced weight loss is largely unknown. For example, certain irregular thyroid hormone profiles are found in obese populations, however, these seem to be an effect of obesity and not the cause.¹

Symptoms of a “sluggish” thyroid include fatigue, feeling cold, trouble concentrating, hair loss, weight gain, and water retention. If you experience any of these symptoms, get a proper diagnosis from a qualified endocrinologist.

Never self-diagnose or self-treat. The relationship between the thyroid gland, BMR, and overall body weight is extremely complex and still not completely understood. Having a slightly slower or faster metabolism does not really impact weight because it also affects appetite.

People with a slower metabolism generally want to eat slightly less, while those with a faster metabolism have more ravenous appetites. So, with all other things being equal, it does not seem that BMR fluctuations are to blame for weight gain or weight loss in a healthy individual.

Even in a medically “slow hypothyroid” person, the decrease in metabolism is not very dramatic. Medically underactive thyroids can only cause slight weight alterations, most of which are due to excess salt and water. In severe cases of hypothyroid, one would only see a general increase of 10lbs of body weight, which tends to be resolved with appropriate medication. Any weight gain in excess of that amount is extremely unlikely to be solely due to the thyroid.²

A Healthy Thyroid

Just because we have a “healthy” thyroid does not mean that we can’t directly affect it and alter its function. The fastest way to “crash” your thyroid is through excessive dieting.

When we diet, the body undergoes a multitude of processes known as metabolic adaptations.

This is a natural survival mechanism. If your body senses that you are in a prolonged calorie deficit, it will begin to tweak its energy expenditure patterns. You will slowly go into a quasi-hypothyroid state. You might remember from some of your longer diets feeling cold and sluggish. These are symptoms similar to traditional hypothyroid.

The difference is that in a healthy individual, this process is completely reversible. Your metabolism did not suffer damage and “starvation mode” is a myth. Starvation studies prove that if the calorie intake is low enough, regardless of the state of the thyroid, an individual will still lose weight.³

Starvation mode is a myth. However, the metabolism is capable of adapting to a lower calorie intake. This means if there is rebound weight gain; it tends to be more excessive than if the individual never dieted.⁴ This is partially the reason why yo-yo diets seem to overshoot the individual above their original weight.

Nevertheless, the metabolism is capable of adapting back to its original state. This is where reverse dieting, recovery diets, and dieting breaks become a crucial part of lifelong success.⁵

The easiest way to prevent metabolic adaptation is to have a smaller calorie increase. There really is never any logical reason to push hard for fast weight loss. We might have a trip or a special event in mind, but if we are pushing for rapid weight loss we need to remember the side effects.

When dropping calories, we need to aim for the minimum decrease possible while still seeing an effect. It should at maximum be a 20% reduction of maintenance calories. You must take diet breaks to give your metabolism a chance to recover. You have to take scheduled diet breaks. A 1-2 day “re-feed” is not enough–that little boost in metabolism is short lived.

Re-feed days and calorie cycling are more for a mental benefit than to have a protective effect over metabolism. They help clients keep adherent. In order to have a good “recovery period” it is recommended that every 8-12 weeks of a calorie deficit, you take a 2-4 week diet break.

During this time, you are bringing your calories up to maintenance. Don’t forget that your maintenance at this stage will not be the same as when you started, primarily because of your change in body weight. Your maintenance calories are (on average) your body weight in lbs x15.

You can either jump to your new predicted maintenance immediately or boost your calories slowly (by weekly increasing by 150-200 calories for your daily calories). Once you are at maintenance, you will begin your 2-week break.

How Many Maintenance Calories Do I Need?

If you eating your predicted maintenance calories but are steadily gaining weight, your maintenance is below your predicted value. If this occurs, it is likely that you experienced a degree of metabolic adaptation that needs an intervention—a reverse diet. To heal your metabolism, you must first find your new maintenance calories (unfortunately purely by trial and error).

Once this is accomplished, you are to very slowly increase your calorie intake by increasing your carbs and fats. Most people start at a 50-100cal/week increase. This type of slow, gradual adjustment allows your metabolism to repair itself and bring you back to your original maintenance. It is possible to achieve the same effect with a faster adjustment, however, the faster you “reverse,” the higher the likelihood that there will be more fat gain in the process.

The speed at which you need to reverse diet completely depends on your individual goals. If you are a stage-lean competitor who is in need of boosting their body fat, a faster reverse diet is more optimal. However, if you are an individual struggling to lose weight consistently and would not like to put on additional body fat, slower might be better.⁶

Is Keto Bad for My Thyroid?

In a ketogenic diet, you must drop your carbohydrate low enough (usually sub 25g), so that the body starts to use fat, rather than carbohydrate, as its primary energy source. As the liver breaks down fats for energy production, it releases ketones–hence the term “ketogenic diet.”

The ketogenic diet is excellent at controlling hunger and cravings, but does it damage the thyroid? Some studies say yes if you eat a lot of omega 6 fats. What are some examples of omega-6? These include canola oil, grapeseed oil, corn oil, soybean oil, walnut oil, and multiple other sources. It does seem that omega 6s have an impact on the thyroid.⁷

Other keto studies show an effect on the thyroid, but they also had the participants go on extremely low-calorie diets As we have discussed, reducing calories affects the thyroid. Studies also found that after a period of “refeeding”, the thyroid levels stabilized.⁹

Therefore, the research on whether keto specifically affects the thyroid gland is inconclusive. If you are succeeding on a ketogenic diet, proceed with caution. If you are a diagnosed hypothyroid individual, you may want to choose an alternate diet method or discuss this further with your endocrinologist.

Takeaway for a Healthy Thyroid

1. Have a diet that includes chicken, shellfish, Brazil nuts, iodized salt, and eggs. These foods contain iodine, zinc, and selenium—nutrients necessary for a healthy thyroid.
2. Cook your sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, and spinach. These foods contain goitrogens (compounds that interfere with iodine uptake). Cooking deactivates them.¹⁰
3. Take diet breaks. Give your metabolism a chance to recover by taking a diet break for 2-4 weeks every 12-week diet cycle.
4. Be careful with keto. Pay close attention to your body when doing a ketogenic diet.

References:

1. Reinihr, T. (2010). Obesity and Thyroid Function. Mol Cell Endocrinol. 2010 Mar 25;316(2):165-71. doi: 10.1016/j.mce.2009.06.005. Epub 2009 Jun 18

2. American Thyroid Association. (2018). Thyroid and Weight.

3. Leah M. Kalm and Richard D. Semba, “They Starved So That Others Be Better Fed: Remembering Ancel Keys and the Minnesota Experiment,” Journal of Nutrition, Vol. 135, June 2005, 1347–1352.

4. Maclean, P.S., et al., Biology’s response to dieting: the impetus for weight regain. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol, 2011. 301(3): p. R581-600.

5. Knuth, N.D., et al., Metabolic adaptation following massive weight loss is related to the degree of energy imbalance and changes in circulating leptin. Obesity (Silver Spring), 2014. 22(12): p. 2563-9.

6. Trexler, E.T., A.E. Smith-Ryan, and L.E. Norton, Metabolic adaptation to weight loss: implications for the athlete. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 2014. 11(1): p.7.

7. Reed, EB and Traver, H. The influence of diet on the lipogenic response to thyroxine in rat liver. Life Sci. 1975 Dec 15;17(12):1785-97.

8. Spaulding SW, Chopra IJ, Sherwin RS, Lyall SS. Effect of caloric restriction and dietary composition of serum T3 and reverse T3 in man. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 1976 Jan;42(1):197-200.

9. Bisschop PH, Sauerwein HP, Endert E, Romijn JA. Isocaloric carbohydrate deprivation induces protein catabolism despite a low T3-syndrome in healthy men. Clin Endocrinol (Oxf). 2001 Jan;54(1):75-80.

10. Rao PS1, Lakshmy R.Role of goitrogens in iodine deficiency disorders & brain development. Indian J Med Res. 1995 Nov;102:223-6.

The post Training Your Thyroid appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

That is understandable amidst the sea of opinions and cultural pressures. It’s so hard to know what weight to aim for and still maintain a healthy body image. We get so focused on the number on a scale that we can lose sight of what really matters at the end of the day—being healthy and able to lead a full life.

One of the most common questions I am asked when I sit down with a client to establish a plan is, “What should I weigh?”

That is understandable amidst the sea of opinions and cultural pressures. It’s so hard to know what weight to aim for and still maintain a healthy body image. We get so focused on the number on a scale that we can lose sight of what really matters at the end of the day—being healthy and able to lead a full life.

That number we so often dread on the scale is only a part of the bigger picture. An ideal and healthy weight is very individual and needs to be treated as such.

The Body Mass Index

One of the most simple (but by no means best) ways of looking at ideal weight is BMI, which is based solely on height and weight. As a formula it looks like this:

You can take the result of this formula and place it into one of four categories: Underweight (BMI <18.5), Normal (18.5-25), Overweight (25-30), and Obese (> 30). You can also use a graph like the one below:

BMI is incredibly simple and easy for the individual to calculate in the comfort and ease of their home, which is why it is so popular. Being simple and well-adopted, however, does not make it the best or most useful way to look at the concept of ideal weight.

The Problem with BMI

While it gives you a rough idea of how you fare and what you should aim for, there is one area where BMI falls terribly short: it fails to take body composition into account.

What this means is that you can have very muscular people (think football players) that, although they have a completely healthy composition, end up in the “overweight” category. You may also find people who have a “normal” BMI, but their composition is less muscular than is healthy, and that alone can lead to cardiovascular health problems.

There are a lot of different sizes and shapes of bodies out there; fitting into a statistical model doesn’t always work. Don’t get me wrong, BMI is a good model to use in a lot of cases, but if you are looking to set specific goals that are unique to you and your body, there is a better method available.

Determine Fat by Measuring It

I’ve hinted at it already. When looking at an “ideal weight” for someone, what we’re really talking about is body composition. It is easy to talk about only weight, as it typically moves in step with composition, but sometimes it doesn’t.

Such is the case with the skinny-fat person, who may look totally skinny but are a little softer on the edges instead of being lean and muscular underneath the clothes. Their weight is good, but their body fat is actually a little high. You have to take composition into account, especially in endurance athletes where catabolic hormones can get out of control at times and cause more fat storage.

So we turn our eyes away from the scale and over to body composition as the starting point. That means, for most people, having a skin-fold analysis done, or using a bioelectrical impedance (BEI) device to measure their composition (less accurate, more finicky). For those with the means and the access, there are several other methods available that are more accurate, but we’ll skip over that for now.

The goal of using composition as a guide lies in finding out two things: lean mass and percentage of body fat.

As an example, let’s say we weigh a typical male, and he comes in at 200lb and we calculate his body composition and his body fat percentage comes in at 30%. That means our two numbers are as follows:

1. His lean mass is 140lb. This would be considered all non-fat tissue in the body (muscles, organs, etc.).
2. His body fat accounts for 60lb of that weight.

Unless he loses some muscle, this guy just isn’t going to get under 140lb because that would be literally zero percent body fat. In fact, he will probably add a couple pounds of lean muscle along the path depending on how he handles his weight loss approach. That being said, we have the most important part of our calculation figured out: lean mass. This is the absolute starting point and the basis for making ideal weight so much more user-friendly to the individual.

Your total lean mass is the real starting point for finding your ideal weight. [Photo courtesy of: J Perez Imagery]

Finding Your Ideal Weight: The Formula

You can find your ideal weight by figuring out your lean mass, then decide on a body fat percentage or range of percentages that you’d like to be at within the above guidelines. Once you have your range in mind, it is as simple as using the following formula to kick out a goal weight:

Lean body mass (lbs) x (1 + target body fat percentage, as a decimal) = ideal weight

In the case of our 200lb guy, let’s say he wants to be between 12-17% body fat (BF). His situation would look like this:

140 lbs X 1.12 = 156.8 lbs or 140 lbs X 1.17 = 163.8 lbs

So, following the formula, his target “ideal” weight would be 156.8-163.8 pounds.

But how do you decide what percentage(s) to use for this formula? This is where it gets fun. At this point, the idea of an ideal weight often takes different paths depending on your unique perspective. The everyday person just trying to get healthy and look better will have a very different set of goals, at least initially, than someone more athletic looking to push the envelope on performance. Ultimately, it is personal preference.

What Composition Should I Aim to Achieve?

The first step in establishing your unique target weight or weight range is to honestly ask yourself several questions:

1. What is most important to me? Health? Performance? Eating what I want when I want?
2. How do I want to look and feel?
3. Do I like my current amount of muscle mass? Do I have too much or too little for my specific goals? Worded another way: Am I strong enough? Do I have extra muscle mass that doesn’t help with my goals?
4. Do I want to put in the effort and be super disciplined to hit really low body composition numbers?

Once you have spent some time with those questions and have some idea of what is valuable to you, you can use several resources to start drafting your specific ideal weight formula. One great, straightforward resource is ACE’s body composition guidelines.

[Chart courtesy of ACE]

The information ACE provides is simple and straightforward. It also pulls out the category of “essential fat” which is the bare minimum needed to maintain health—a great thing to keep in mind. There are very few people who should be aiming for that level of leanness. For most people looking to be healthy and feel good, the “fitness” category is a great place to aim.

One thing the ACE chart does not account for, though, is the changes in our bodies as we age. Our acceptable body fat ranges tend to increase slightly with age. Why is this, you ask? There are three types of fat on the human body. While the subcutaneous (under the skin; what we measure with skin folds) may remain the same, the visceral (around the organs; unmeasured), and intramuscular fats (in between muscle, like a marbled steak; unmeasured) tend to increase as we age, altering the overall body density and adding to the percentage body fat.

To take aging into account, I’d recommend using one of two resources. Keep in mind that in the first, it is still a statistical model, just like BMI, so some older, athletic individuals, might not fit the assumptions as their body density may be underestimated.

The first resource I’d recommend is from the American College of Sports Medicine’s Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription (8th Ed.). This resource breaks the numbers down into percentiles as well as ranges (very lean, excellent, good, fair, poor, very poor). You can see that represented in the charts below.

[Chart obtained from the American College of Sports Medicine]

The final resource worth mentioning is something much more intuitive: photo charts. These are selections of body images that are correlated to specific body compositions. You can use these to get a much better idea of what your body will look like at various levels of body fat. BuiltLean.com has excellent photo charts available for both men and women as well as detailed explanations. I highly recommend checking it out if you are a more visual person.

A Note for the Athletes

With different sports and levels of competition come different demands and body types that excel. This is why you see competitive runners and cyclists that are so stinkin’ skinny. Gravity punishes any extra weight that they carry. A football player, on the other hand, requires more mass to survive the regular beating placed on the body. Different bodies for different needs. This is a whole topic in and of itself.

Putting It All Together

You have all the pieces of the puzzle. You found your ideal weight or weight range. Now what? You have to work on getting there! It would be nice to think that we just lose fat when we lose weight, or that we just gain muscle when we add bulk. But the reality is that both lean and fat mass are changing together, making the whole process more complicated. That’s why measuring regularly is so important.

Measuring on a regular basis (both weight on the scale and percentage body fat) ensures you are meeting both your fat and lean mass goals. You don’t want to be in that situation where you want to lose weight from fat while keeping your lean muscle and find out you are losing both.

It is also hard to be in the position where you are trying to lose weight, but are adding muscle mass simultaneously, resulting in a scale that reads higher than expected despite looking and feeling better. That can really play with your head. That’s why we measure. Objective data is good, and what gets measured tends to get managed, which leads to better and quicker results.

All this being said, ideal weight is kind of up to you, and will depend on your personal goals. There is no magic number or perfect body type. You need to pick the healthy route, what is best for you, and go after it full bore. Don’t let popular opinion tell you what is best for you.

More on body composition and diet: How the Western Diet Triggers Weight Gain

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So why do we sell ourselves short? I preach about the importance of putting healthy foods into our bodies and the benefits of exercise, but do you really know and understand what causes those benefits inside of us?

Everyone is always looking for quick fixes. No one wants to put in the work that creates lasting changes—which is what you really want in the long run. Right?

So why do we sell ourselves short? I preach about the importance of putting healthy foods into our bodies and the benefits of exercise, but do you really know and understand what causes those benefits inside of us?

I am going to target this article a bit more towards the ladies because they are the majority of my audience and some struggle to truly understand what regular weight training and eating healthy can do for you.

The Importance of Your Metabolism

Metabolism is what we want to boost when trying to lose weight because it is the control center for everything chemical that happens in our bodies. Think of our hormones, the way we feel, how much energy we have, and where we hold onto most of our weight. The higher our metabolism is, the more calories we burn. But when we destroy it when we go on crash diets or we yo-yo diet (bouncing around from diet to diet) we do our bodies more harm than good.

Fortunately, there are a couple ways that work to get your metabolism back in sync.

Metabolism Booster #1: Nutrition

Food and our metabolism are connected through what is called the thermic effect of food (TEF), defined as the amount of energy required for the body to use and store food. Protein has the highest TEF, followed by carbohydrates, followed by fats. This makes having protein with every meal key to helping boost your metabolism.

When it comes to choosing your proteins, think of your lean sources of protein: chicken, lean beef, turkey, fish, and eggs. Eating more protein also helps you to feel more full because it takes the longest to digest, hence boosting your metabolism through digestion and absorption. Protein is what builds the foundation of our bodies. If you want a strong structure, protein will help you.

What happens if we don’t eat enough? Well, our bodies aren’t too happy. When we aren’t giving our bodies enough food to eat, everything I talked about above goes right out the door. Our bodies go into more of a survival mode and will store the food as fat instead of burning it for energy.

If you are someone who exercises consistently (specifically weight training), there is pretty much no reason you shouldn’t be fueling your body properly. Ladies, I am calling you out because working with you for over a decade on nutrition, I have really had to get creative in helping you to understand the importance of fueling for weight and fat loss.

Here is an example of what a one-day meal plan might look like for a client. Keep in mind this is a pretty basic meal plan to help get the point across.

Meal #1: Breakfast

Meal #2: Snack

Meal #3 Lunch

Meal #4: (pre-workout snack)

Meal #5: Post Workout

Meal #6 Dinner (Post-workout)

Each of these meals should have at least 25-40g of protein.

Metabolism Booster #2: Weightlifting

As a female weightlifter, I can assure you that lifting weights won’t make you blow up into the female version of The Hulk. Aside from my love of talking nutrition, my next favorite thing to discuss is muscle.

It is commonly known that muscle burns more calories than fat does. If you aren’t convinced that adding muscle to your frame is for you, remember that a pound of muscle burns an average of 3-10 times more calories than a pound of fat.

Aside from the positive effects, weightlifting has on the metabolism, it also has many other positive benefits such as helping to make your bones stronger. Ladies, we are more likely to have osteoporosis than men. Please help yourself by picking up something heavy and putting it back down on a regular basis.

I add a variety of weight lifting into my group fitness class, Warrior Body, here in Morgantown, WV. One of the questions I am often asked about my class is if it is more cardio or weightlifting based. The truth is that it is a good mix of both, but my members will tell you that we do a lot of weightlifting. Some examples include:

• Barbell work: rows, overhead pressing, deadlifts, squats
• Kettlebell work: deadlifts, presses, swings, rows, squats
• Dynamic strength movements: tire slams, tire flips

Why is this type of training so successful? It’s because this type of training adds load to your muscles and this loading is what creates more muscle mass. The more muscle mass you have, the quicker your metabolism will become—which equals more calories burned!

An example of a circuit in my Warrior Body class might look like this:

• 1: Kettlebell deadlift x 10-15 reps
• 2: Two kettlebell bent over row x 10-15 reps
• 3: Prowler push x 30-60 feet

I typically have this type of workout in a timed circuit, but for this example, you can see that the first two exercises are strength training based and the last exercise is conditioning based. This is just a simple example of what a circuit might look like, but it has all the components of a metabolically effective workout.

The Takeaway for Ladies

So ladies, if you could take anything away from this article, it is this: rip away your old beliefs that food makes us fat and that lifting weights is for The Hulk. Instead, work on adding more protein to your nutrition plan and add more weights to a weekly fitness routine.

This video, above, shows the variety of ways that I implement weight training into my workouts. Think outside of the box and make it fun! If you are anywhere near Morgantown, West Virginia, come on by and join in with our Warrior Body classes, and if you’re not, sign up to join us for our online fitness challenges.

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