Build Muscle Without Weights

Want to build killer arms? Whether you’re a guy who wants gunnies for the honeys or a gal who wants to rid the wiggle, the path is simple: diet + key exercises.  I’ll deal with the fat loss diet at a later post; today I want to tackle arm training in two parts.

Part 1: Triceps

Since the triceps make up 2/3 or more of the upper arm mass, they’re a great place to start.  For guys and gals, the secret to super upper arms is simple: strict, compound exercises like triangle, decline, & handstand push-ups, and of course, dips.  But there’s a special tricep exercise that builds size on guys and shape on the ladies that requires a small but critical departure from traditional execution.

The Close-Grip Bench Dip

Set yourself up on a bench or set of chairs to perform the bench dip. Your legs can be bent with feet on the floor (easiest), straight with feet on the floor (intermediate), or straight with feet elevated on a chair or bench (hardest).

Now, here’s the secret: place your hands so close to each other that your thumbs come in contact.  This dramatically increases the contraction of the inner triceps, a hard place to reach in any movement.   Now begin the exercise by lowering your body into the eccentric contraction (be sure your behind is close enough to your arm support so that when your hips drop vertically they brush up against your knuckles).  Press back up.  Perform 10-20 reps with a tight squeeze at the top.

At the end of the very first set you’ll have a knot of a pump in your tri’s that shames every other exercise!  Why does it work so well?  A simple application of biomechanics.  If you can get a muscle to work in more than one plane of motion at once, you boost intensity (and you know how I love intensity).  The triceps not only straighten the bent arm at the elbow (extension), but also draw the arms in towards the torso (adduction), and this exercise utilizes both actions because the close-grip causes the elbows to flare out; when you straighten your arm, you also adduct the upper arm to lock out at the top.  BAM!  Triceps madness.

Give the Close-Grip Bench Dip a shot in your next workout.  You’’ll be glad you did.

Until next time, keep bangin’!

Congratulations for arriving at the most cutting-edge site that reveals how to build muscle without weights – no dumbbells, clunky benches, or awkward pulleys. In this blog you’ll learn the latest scientific principles that not only render weights unnecessary, but turn ordinary calisthenics into neurological neutron bombs that maximize muscle contraction and accelerate muscle fatigue – and that means powerful surges in growth hormone to burn fat and build muscles fast. It all hinges on two key principles: P.O.W.E.R. (Progressive Overload With Equilibrium Response tm) and my O.E.S. (Optimal Exercise Sequencing) System. But more on that later.

You may be interested in the best way to build muscle without weights for a variety of reasons. Maybe it’s because you can’t stand gyms and the people in them. Maybe it’s because you’ve lifted heavy weights and you not only didn’t gain much muscle, but you hurt yourself. Or maybe it’s because you know instinctively that real strength – and real muscle – comes from using the whole body all at once. Whatever your reason, you’re on the right path: I’ll show you the way to powerful chest, back, arm, leg, and abdominal muscles, fast.

As an experienced martial artist in many styles including muay Thai, wing chun kung fu, and ju-jitsu, I was no stranger to bodyweight exercises. And while I certainly noticed increased strength from performing them, I always relied on weights to build muscle. Occasionally there would come along an exercise device and I’d give it a try, only to be disappointed. I owned the Perfect Push Up for a while until I realized the twisting motion (pronation / internal rotation in biomechanics parlance) didn’t do much because it wasn’t resisted – it was a wasted movement. Why? Because unless there is sufficient resistance – and thus sufficient neural recruitment – there is very little growth. From my research I realized I needed to maximize recruitment somehow without resorting to the dumbbell if I was going to build muscle. And that’s when I learned that destabilization was the key. See, when the body is destabilized in an exercise, all muscles have to contract to stabilize the spine, the shoulder girdle, and the pelvic girdle so the limbs can generate and transmit force. And when the whole body contracts like that? It’s like a shockwave to the endocrine and neuromuscular systems signaling repair and restructure!

In future installments I’ll explain my P.O.W.E.R. exercise strategy and the OES system for making your exercise sequences extraordinary, the key foods to build muscle, as well as the very best tools to get the job done anytime, anywhere. Until then, keep training!