Bodyweight Exercises

If you're a teenager interested in gaining muscle (or indeed, losing fat), it's a matter of whether or not it's a good idea to lift weight at a gym to gain size. Now, this applies whether you are a man who wants to bulk up or a woman who wants to add curves (yes, losing weight is the only way to do it - sorry, girl).

Traditionally, a personal trainer says that you cannot push and lose weight in the gym before you turn 18 because the growth spurt that comes with puberty means the production of human growth hormone (HGH) in your body is very high and you can easily gain muscle or curve using your weight, without the extra weight you will find at the gym.

I generally agree with this, although I think it's possible to lift weights. I think you might be able to start lifting some weights lighter than 16 - I think 15 is a bit early, really. I'll definitely wait until 16 before lifting anything, and for really heavy items like deadlifts and squats, I'll leave them up to 18.

So I suggest that teens start weight training. Just a few -

Pushups, pullups, lunges, squats, one-leg pistol squats, knee elevators, burfes, mountain climbers, boards, and more.

Note that most of these have variations - for example, for "pushups" there are dive pushups, Hindu pushups, spider-man pushpin, etc.

So how can you use weight training for muscle gain and fat loss, when you use the same training for both goals? Well, it depends on how you use this exercise. To gain muscle, you focus on good form, performing it with various movements and increasing volume (which means increasing the amount of sets you do). You can also extend the time to solve the negative parts of each rep (ie, the eccentric part of the movement). To lose fat, you reduce your rest time and do circuit work, to get the maximum fat burning potential from exercise. So, for example, you would complete 10 reps of all the exercises listed above without pausing in between, then rest 2 minutes after you did, before doing another 2 sets. It has to work with sweat suitable for fat burning!

So I hope this helps you achieve your goals and get the body you want!

Bodyweight Exercises


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