The Pros! What are the 5 key points to increase the effectiveness of your body weight training?

The greatest appeal of bodyweight training is that you can train your muscles anytime, anywhere. On the other hand, however, it is also true that it is more difficult in some areas than machine training, as it is more difficult to adjust the load and there are parts of the body that are difficult to train without ingenuity. How can we improve the effectiveness of our body weight training, which may seem easy but is not a simple task? We interviewed Mr. Taizan Matsuura, the representative of Waffle Gym and a personal trainer, to find out.

Supervision

Taizan Matsuura

In 2016, he began working as a trainer as a member of Beyond Gym’s start-up staff. Served as store manager of the Horie store in Osaka, Japan; in 2017, he reached the pinnacle in the Mr. Japan contest, after which he went independent. In October 2022, he founded Waffle Gym in Tachikawa, Tokyo. He is always ready to propose muscle training menus that meet the needs of customers.

Tips for improving the effectiveness of body weight training (1) “Don’t set a specific number of times!

The term “all out” is a muscle training term meaning “to give up all your energy” or “to use your muscles to the utmost limit. It is important in all aspects of strength training to push yourself to the point where you “can’t do one more workout no matter how hard you try. According to Mr. Taizan, if you want to go all out with bodyweight training, it is better to be conscious of “pushing yourself to the limit,” rather than setting a set number of repetitions, such as three sets of 10 repetitions. For example, for push-ups, he says, start with the correct form, with legs extended, and when you can’t do one push-up, kneel down to your limit. When you reach the limit even with knees, you can push your muscles to the limit by repeating only the lowering part of the body.

Trainer: Mr.　Taizan Matsuura

I also recommend setting a time and training as hard as you can. The secret to muscle hypertrophy is to use proper form and push yourself to the limit.

Tips for increasing the effectiveness of body weight training (2) “Basically, use “slow movements” with no recoil.”

If you are conscious of “making the muscles work hard,” you should basically train with no recoil. This is because if you use recoil, the load will decrease and the effect of muscle training will decrease accordingly. To prevent recoil, we want to be aware of slow movements. This allows you to be more aware of the muscles you are training. It’s especially important to be aware of the slow and careful lowering motion,” he says. You will notice immediately that you are working the muscles,” says Taizan. In addition, because of the high risk of injury when training with recoil, people who are not accustomed to muscle training should be especially careful about the speed of movement.

Trainer: Mr. Taizan Matsuura

Training that dares to use recoil is called the “cheating method,” but this is a more advanced method for those who have entered a phase where they cannot go up with correct form. If you can no longer perform the movement, you can use the recoil to push the muscles thoroughly, but considering the risk of injury, this is only for those who are familiar with the technique. If you are a beginner, I think you can increase the effectiveness of your weight training just by carefully performing the lowering movement anyway.

Points to increase the effectiveness of body weight training (3) “”Keep intervals as short as possible” is the golden rule!”

In the case of bench press, a typical weight training exercise, an interval of 3~5 minutes is often recommended. On the other hand, in low-intensity bodyweight training, it is recommended that intervals be limited to 30 seconds~1 minute. What is important in strength training is “how much tension is placed on the muscles. If the intervals are too long, the muscles will be rested and you will not be able to push them to their limits,” says Taizan. Resting between workouts is important, but be aware that in bodyweight training, taking a longer rest does not significantly change the number of reps you can do, and it will also decrease efficiency.

Trainer: Mr. Taizan Matsuura

Strictly speaking, it is recommended to move intervals back and forth depending on what kind of training menu you are using. For squats, for example, which use a variety of muscles, if the rest is too short, you will run out of acid and will not be able to complete the next set, so an interval of about 1 minute is recommended. On the other hand, abdominal training, which requires fewer muscles to be mobilized, should be shorter, about 30 seconds. Varying rest periods according to the type of training will increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the training.

Points to enhance the effectiveness of body weight training (4) “The theory of muscle training is to concentrate on the ‘big muscles’.”

Although not limited to body weight training, if you want to increase the effectiveness of muscle training, it is best to concentrate on training large muscles. The main reason is that “even when you train large muscles, you can also train small muscles. Also, if you start training small muscles first, you will spend a lot of energy and concentration, and you will become fatigued before you can train the large muscles,” says Taizan. Incidentally, it is said that stimulation of large muscles stimulates the secretion of growth hormones, which leads to an efficient body makeover. It is best to concentrate on training large muscles such as the legs, chest, and back to increase the effectiveness of body weight training.

Trainer: Mr. Taizan Matsuura

Large muscles such as the legs, chest, and back are also areas that are more likely to produce results the more you train them. If you train hard, you can see the changes in your body even in about two weeks. And when you see results, you can maintain high motivation. Continuation is the key to muscle training, so in that sense, we recommend that you start with large muscles.

The fifth point to increase the effectiveness of body weight training: “Aim for a training frequency of “at least 3 times a week.”

The level of load in body weight training is lower than in weight training. Although intense muscle soreness occurs when you first start, you will gradually get used to it and the damage will become less severe, so it is a good idea to train at least three times a week. Mr. Taizan says, “If you train with body weight more than three times a week, it is a good idea to rotate the training by dividing the parts of the body. It is recommended to separate the legs, chest, back, and so on,” he advises. However, even with bodyweight training, increasing the frequency of training will put strain on joints such as knees, elbows, shoulders, and hips, so be careful not to injure yourself due to overuse.

It is better to increase the frequency as much as possible, but if you do not continue, it will be useless. Therefore, it is wise to gradually increase the frequency within a reasonable range. It is a good idea to start with one workout per week at first, then gradually increase to two or three workouts per week to make training a habit.