Let's talk about bodyweight exercise
alternatives--can people really
get a good fat burning workout just using their
bodyweight and a
set of dumbbells?

The answer is yes.

They don't need fancy machines or expensive gym
memberships?

No.

There's nothing magical about machines. And to be
honest with you,
machines are only designed for the "average
sized" person. So if
you are short or tall, you are really out of
luck.

If you train at home, or on the road while
traveling for business,
you're not going to have access to fancy
equipment. You might have
to "get by" with only dumbbells and your
bodyweight.

But since you only have a short amount of time to
workout, say 3
sessions of 45 minutes per workout per week, it
is a big help if we
can pair dumbbell and bodyweight exercises
together in our
workouts.

(Hey, I've tried training a client on a
Bowflex...and we spent more
time trying to set-up the machine for different
exercises than he
did using it. Eventually we got him to get a set
of powerblocks to
avoid the hassle.)

On the other hand, there are dozens of bodyweight
exercises we can
use for bodysculpting for the lower body, abs,
and upper body that
require no set-up at all.

Some of my favorite bodyweight exercises are...

a) Spiderman Pushups

b) Any single leg exercise (from single-leg
squats, to split
squats, to the many types of step-ups I use, to
all the lunges you
can think of)

c) Total body ab exercises (I try to avoid
crunching motions -
bodyweight crunches are limited in effectiveness,
so I prefer to
use total body ab exercises like mountain
climbers)

d) Close-grip Pushups (these work a woman's arms
better than any
triceps kickback ever will)

e) Lying Single-Leg Hip Extensions for the butt

f) Chin-ups for arms (and there's even a really
cool way for men
and women to do assisted chin-ups if they are
just starting out on
this exercise, and I'm not talking about those
expensive, gigantic
assisted pull-up machines)

One of the best uses of bodyweight exercises are
in fat burning
bodyweight circuits. These circuits are a great
replacement for
regular cardio and even for intervals.

Take 3 upper body bodyweight exercises and
alternate them with 3
lower body bodyweight exercises. Rest 1 minute
and repeat 3-5 times
for a 20 minute bodyweight workout. Bodyweight
exercises are great
for all us desk jockeys, because it improves our
mobility and
reduces upper body tension.

Bodyweight training gives you fast fat loss, at
no cost, and
without the need for a 2nd garage in your house
to store all the
equipment. You can take your bodyweight workouts
outside in the
summer, on the road when you travel, and even on
holidays so that
you don't miss a workout.

So squat, lunge, push and pull your bodyweight