Functional training is incredibly convenient, primarily because it can be done anywhere. Introducing a great functional fitness workout. It includes four upper-body workouts that will get your muscles burning and keep you in a great mood.
This workout is so simple that it requires no equipment. All you need is the edge of the sofa for support. So you can no longer avoid working out—no excuses!
Try this workout in the comfort of your own home!
When to train the upper body separately
The need to divide body training into two parts occurs after approximately 1.5-2 months of training in the gym.
When beginners start training, their standard program involves pumping all muscle groups in one workout.
This way the whole body receives the necessary and approximately equal load 2 or 3 times a week. Moreover, this applies to both exercises aimed at increasing muscle mass and those aimed at losing weight.
To progress further, the volume of training and the depth of stress on the muscles increases. This is a natural process as your level of training increases.
New exercises and approaches are added, working weights increase. All this extends the training time, which is, firstly, inconvenient, and secondly, ineffective
In addition, the body needs more time to recover.
If you don’t change anything, a decrease in the effectiveness of strength training will inevitably occur.
To successfully solve this problem and continue to progress in muscle development, they move to a new stage, where in one workout they pump not the whole body, but only part of the muscle groups. This division in bodybuilding is called a split.
There are many variations of this training method. But the simplest and most easily applied is splitting the body into two parts - the top and bottom of the body.
In one workout, exercises are performed on the upper body, and in the second, on the lower body. Then they alternate with each other.
As a result, each muscle group receives a load every 3-4 days. This improves the quality of recovery, which has a positive effect on muscle growth.
In addition, the duration of one workout is reduced, and the intensity reaches a new, higher level.
Upper body exercises with barbell
- Flat Bench Press: For maximum stimulation of the pectoral muscles, lie down on a bench with a slight arch in your lower back; chest raised high; shoulders pulled back and down.
- Bent-over barbell row: Keep your torso bent at approximately 75° and pull the barbell toward your lower abdomen to better stimulate your latissimus dorsi.
- Seated Overhead Press (Military Press): Use a bench with back support and keep your torso upright throughout the set (tilting the bench too much will work your upper chest). Place the barbell just below your chin before pressing it upward.
- Vertical barbell row (pulling) with a shoulder-width grip: Raise the barbell until your shoulders are parallel to the floor. At the top of the range of motion of the exercise, the elbows should be higher than the hands to better stimulate the shoulders.
- Incline Bench Press: Use the same torso position mentioned above for the horizontal bench press. Lower the barbell to your upper chest, just below your chin.
- Vertical row of a barbell (broach) with a narrow one: grab the bar with a grip in which your hands are at a distance of about 20 centimeters from each other. Raise the barbell to about chin height to engage your middle and upper trapezius muscles along with your front deltoids.
- Partial Rack Deadlift: For full back development, vary the range of motion of the deadlift from just above the knee to mid-calf. It's best to stick to one range of motion per workout.
Read also: 3 intensive programs for weight loss.
Recommendations for exercise intensity
Upper body training involves performing a variety of exercises on a large number of muscle groups.
Recommendations for intensity of training vary depending on your goals.
Upper body training for muscle growth involves 3-4 exercises for large muscle groups, such as the chest and back, and 2-3 for small shoulders, arms and abs.
The number of working approaches in one exercise is 3-4. At the same time, in basic movements, 6-10 repetitions are used in each, and in isolating movements - 10-15.
The weights used for the base are heavy and moderate, for isolation - moderate and light.
Rest between sets for 1 to 3 minutes. Depending on the type of movement.
When training on relief, add 1-2 more exercises to the standard number of exercises. The number of working approaches is 3-5.
Due to the reduced calorie intake during drying, the weight of the weights also decreases. Therefore, the number of repetitions increases slightly. In the base this is 10-12 times per approach, in isolation - 15-20.
Rest pauses between approaches are reduced to 30-60 seconds. Supersets are often used.
Principle of training
First of all, you need to start from the goal of your training. To gain muscle mass, it will be important to work using muscle separation for the best workout over two days, and for weight loss you can use one workout. Training days should be divided based on two options.
First option:
- The first day - pectoral muscles, anterior and middle deltoid muscles, triceps, abs.
- The second day - back muscles, rear and middle deltas, biceps, abdominal muscles.
Second option
- The first day – back and chest muscles.
- Day two: deltoid and arm muscles.
Training all groups on one day is a good option for beginner athletes and those whose goal is to lose excess weight.
The training process should consist primarily of a set of basic exercises.
What is fullbadi training and its features
If you translate the name from English literally, you get the idea that such training is aimed at developing the muscles of the whole body in one session.
The peculiarity of a training program that involves a load on the whole body is that the exercises in most of the complex will be multi-joint. And we know that basic – multi-joint – exercises train several large muscle groups at the same time and involve more than one joint in the work.
The point of training is to load as many muscle fibers as possible at one time, using complex, energy-intensive exercise techniques. In addition, 1-2 exercises are performed per muscle group, preventing untrained muscles from overworking, as when using a split scheme.
Such training is suitable for beginners , allowing them to adapt the muscular-ligamentous apparatus to more complex loads, prevent injuries, and make the most of their energy potential. The full body can also be used by professionals and experienced athletes who are recovering from rest or injury, since such a training program does not involve working with heavy weights, does not overload one muscle group with several exercises, and allows the body to smoothly integrate into the training process.
What are the benefits of sports for men?
Every man must play sports. This is important for the body to function properly. It has been proven that regular exercise normalizes blood pressure within a few months. An additional benefit is a reduced risk of stroke.
You need to understand that when the amount of muscle mass decreases, bone strength also decreases. This increases the likelihood of injury. Some of them can cause complete immobilization.
Only sport can prevent various injuries. 16 weeks of regular exercise increases bone density by 4%.
With regular physical activity, the possibility of weight gain is excluded. It is important to understand that if an athlete does not eat properly, he will not be able to lose weight, but gaining weight with regular training is also impossible.
Training is especially important for men over 30 years of age. It is sport that helps maintain flexibility, which actively disappears with age. Additionally, properly selected training makes it possible to increase strength. With age, without sports this becomes impossible. When playing sports, all the food eaten goes into energy, not fat deposits. This benefit is important for both men and women. The positive effect is due to the acceleration of metabolic processes.
We must also not forget that sport increases the amount of endorphins. These are the hormones that are responsible for a good mood. When playing sports, you get a feeling of rejuvenation. In addition, there is a sense of purpose, energy and a desire to move forward and achieve new goals.
How to accustom yourself to fitness at home?
To prevent training at home from getting boring, come up with small rules or rituals for yourself:
- For example, you can exercise while watching your favorite show, listening to a podcast or audiobook.
- Exercise during commercial breaks on your favorite TV shows.
- Set reminders on your phone or leave notes around the house to remind you to exercise or exercise.
- Share your results and plans with your loved ones and friends, this will help you not to give up when laziness takes over.
- Set goals that will keep you motivated, such as running a small race or fitting into your favorite dress by a certain date.
- Create a class schedule.
- Buy new leggings or sneakers if this method can lead you to action.
- Make your daily routine look like a workout by swapping household items, peeling vegetables, doing the “chair against the wall” exercise, or find another way to organically fit exercise into your daily routine.
- Cardio training at home can be replaced by going up and down the stairs.
They say that habits are formed in 21 days. It's time to check!
The benefits of upper body training for girls
You should never forget that muscles are not only an attribute of an athletic physique, but also the engine of our skeleton, the protector of internal organs. The main thing is that the health of the entire musculoskeletal system (MS) directly depends on the condition of the muscles. If some muscles are in hypertonicity, while others are hypotonic, this leads, for example, to curvature of the spine in one of the sections or several at once, to diseases of the spine and other joints.
Also, organs and systems suffer from insufficient blood supply due to instability of the musculoskeletal system; there is not enough nutrition for the cells of the head, including the brain. This all affects both the internal state of the body and the external one. Therefore, for those who want to look healthy, young and vigorous, the following complex is ideal.
Full body training programs for men and women
This fullbadi program is designed for training in the gym, although it can be adapted to suit home conditions, as it uses free weights.
Fullbody training program for men: 3 times a week
This full body workout for men can be performed both in the gym and at home, since the program requires free weights. Perform 3 sets of 12-15 repetitions. Rest between exercises is 30-60 seconds.
Day 1
- Squats
- Scissor lunges
- Barbell row to the waist
- Dumbbell Incline Press
- Barbell row to the chin
- French press
- Crunches with rotation
Day 2
- Thrusters
- Side lunges
- Bar row to chest
- Bench press
- Reverse push-ups or parallel bars
- Barbell Curl
- Leg raises lying down or on parallel bars
Day 3
- Pull-ups
- Sumo chin row with kettlebell
- Farmer's gait
- Lying dumbbell fly
- Seated French press with dumbbell
- Raising the torso on the floor or an inclined bench
Full body training program for girls 3 days a week
Girls can perform the workout in the range of 15-20 repetitions. Weight should be moderate. The number of approaches or circles is 3, that is, you can perform exercises in a row without approaches, repeating in a circle, or rest between approaches of one exercise for 30-60 seconds.
Day 1
- Squats with dumbbells
- Lunges alternately
- Pull-down of the upper block behind the head
- Dumbbell Bench Press
- Swing dumbbells to the sides
- fold
Day 2
- Sumo row with dumbbells to the chin
- Gluteal bridge
- Horizontal block pull to the belt
- Butterfly fly
- Standing Dumbbell Press
- Crunches with rotation
Day 2
- Plie squats
- Hyperextension
- Pull-ups in a machine or with TRX
- Reverse push-ups
- One-arm extension with a dumbbell from behind the head
- Leg Raise
Important Notes:
- Sets and reps. At the beginning of the program, it is recommended to use small amounts of work.
- Work until failure. It is not recommended to overuse repetitions to failure. All approaches must be performed in such a way that there is always one repetition “in reserve”. This means that it should be difficult for you to perform the working set, but not so difficult that you cannot complete it completely.
- Choice of exercises. The order and number of basic, multi-joint exercises cannot be changed, nor can they be replaced with other exercises. At the same time, isolation exercises can be modified according to the user's wishes. It is important to remember that the program shows optimal results in its original form.
- Abdominal muscles. Work on these muscles can be added as desired at the end of workouts or on rest days.
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Top-bottom split
The principle of such training is to divide the load on the muscles of the body, into the upper and lower parts of the body and alternating them throughout the week. Sharing the load is necessary so that the muscles have time to recover. Recovery is the key to muscle strengthening and growth. Without it, an athlete can gradually reach a state of overtraining, which is fraught with moral and physical fatigue and injury. During the recovery period of muscle tissue, its growth or hypertrophy occurs. If you constantly put stress on the same muscle group, you will not achieve proper growth, but you will develop health problems.
