Bench press your own weight
Conquering a barbell of your own weight is the line that separates novice athletes from experienced athletes. You can’t imagine how many people there are in the gym who have been training for years but are unable to lift their own weight. If you don't take into account the six-foot guys with extremely poor leverage, anyone can reach their weight on the bench press.
What's stopping you? For some there is a lack of technicality, for others there is an excess of variability.
Technique problem : to be strong, you must not only be able to contract your muscles, but also use your joints correctly. Some people use a grip that would fit a fifth grader - it's so narrow. In the bench press, your elbows should be under your wrists. Have someone watch how your forearms move as you press: they should be vertical for the most part. It may take you a few workouts to learn how to bench press like this; but then you can press more.
Bench press with correct technique:
See also: all basic exercises with correct technique.
The Variety Problem : Remove all the unnecessary stuff from your workouts. The regular (standing) press translates positively to the bench press, but endless variations with different inclines, dumbbell lifts, and butterflies waste energy. There's no point doing them anyway unless you're pressing your own bodyweight. Throw it away without regret, then add it later.
If you already bench press your weight, can you take it to your chest and do a front squat? What about the jerk? You get the idea - conquer your own weight on the barbell in different movements, this lays a good strength base.
https://youtu.be/plEP4N3w-68
PUSH-UPS – 30-40 times
It is better to stick to approximately the same proportion of pull-ups in relation to push-ups.
1 to 3 or 1 to 4. There are different opinions here, but practice shows that in this case it is better to take a range, that is, for 10 pull-ups there are approximately 30-40 push-ups. The proportion has been developed over the years and shows an even balance in the development of the strength capabilities of muscle groups.
Of course, there may be individual adjustments, and they will certainly arise when you become more experienced, but this will happen later, when you have created the necessary strength base.
In the meantime, 30-40 push-ups.
You can read more about the push-up technique in Elena Bobkova’s article, which was published during one of the past “100-day workouts.”
Deadlift with two body weights
It also seems like an easy exam, but some people can’t pass it for years. Lack of technique, weak grip, lack of muscles, back injuries - many different reasons.
An interesting observation: it is useful for many to give up the deadlift for a while in order to increase their record in it. Pull-ups will strengthen your grip, swings will teach the pelvic girdle to work, squats will add meat. By the way, I have not seen a single weightlifter who would not lift a lot in the classic deadlift, and they do not practice it at all. Get stronger in other exercises and your deadlift will increase too.
Not all powerlifters will agree with this, but the great champion Hugh Cassidy used to say that only a gorilla could lift more than once a week. So what to do in other workouts? Just “plow”: push and pull sleds, squat, do farmer’s walks, gain strength. Three-four-five-six months of hard training without deadlifting will only benefit her.
SQUATS ON TWO LEGS – 80 times
1 : 4 : 8 = pull-ups : push-ups : squats.
We carefully strive for this proportion. There should be no jerks, high-speed movements, cheating, springing at the lowest point, nodding of the pelvis or other “jambs” in the technique.
The pace is below average.
Rationally performed squats, in addition to improving the health of the knee joints, help prevent blood stagnation in the pelvis. We read about the squat technique in a separate article, in which Elena Bobkova shares her Australian experience with this exercise.
Two minutes plank
Personally, I prefer the traditional plank position, but you can choose any variation. The main thing is to hold it for 120 seconds. Dr. Stu McGill said that if you can't do a couple of minutes of planking, you either have too much fat or no abs. I’ll add: either you don’t know how to tense your muscles and hold tension. This is exactly what the plank teaches, and this is exactly the skill that beginners lack: they simply cannot bring the whole body together to lift a large weight.
Plank.
There is another way, for example, a farmer's walk with a weight in one hand. This “suitcase” version is a bar in dynamics. Just don’t chase weight, try 20 kg, not all 50 at once. You need to walk gracefully, and not sway like a blade of grass in the wind.
These walks are easy to add at the end of any workout: pick up the apparatus with one hand, carry it as far as possible, and bring it back with the other. You will immediately know how strong your grip is. And tomorrow you will discover the existence of some muscles on the sides of the body.
“HORSEMAN” – 1-3 min
If you have been involved in martial arts, then it will be more clear “mabu” - for wushuists, “kiba-dachi” - for karatekas
