Benefits of using body weight

Can using your own body weight be as good conditioning as using dead weights?

I'm not talking easy squats, but rather multiple sets of burpees, one-arm pushups, pike chin-ups, one-leg standups, handstand pushups, planges (think plank with your feet off the floor), ect. 

(and if anyone else has body-weight resistance ideas, please post them too!)

Hand-stand push-ups are awesome!! I used to love doing them as part of my shoulder routine. They are really difficult.

There are two different ways to do them. The first is doing a hand-stand against a wall. This is the way that I did them and the most I was ever able to do is 25. The second and most difficult way is doing a hand-stand in the middle of the room, having to keep your balance as well as having the strength to do the push-ups. I am always amazed when I see somebody do them without being up against a wall. It takes a lot of balance and skill to do it without the wall.

Here are the two different versions :

Against a Wall : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJc8WvNQlCM

Wall Free : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvNVbJnARAY

You could do Body Is a Barbell by Cosgrove, using your body weight.

hand-stand pushups are the best, aren't they? I usually do them with a partner holding my feet, in the middle of the room, so it's harder than the wall, but I can still do them without falling over. 

Also some other exercises:

-Captain Hooks: hang from a bar and bring your feet up, so both your hands and feet are on the bar (and you're hanging) bring your butt up towards the sky and lower (these are extremely hard, if you find it easy, you're not doing it right)

-Press Handstands: stand in a straddle with your hands down and pull your butt and legs up to make a handstand.

-Stalter: Same as the Press Handstand, but start in a straddle sitting down

-One leg wall sits: just hold it 'til it hurts

Any others?

I've pretty much been doing body weight exercises since, well, since I started doing half crunches for fun on my super uncomfortable super firm mattress. That was about three years ago and when I was much fatter/heavier.

And here are my overall thoughts.

I would say for building and then maintaining overall fitness, using only your body weight will do it. But it also depends on the exercises. You can always make it harder, but only up to a point. Let's say push-ups (body weight only):

-2 hands, knees to floor
-2 hands, toes to floor
-2 hands, elevated body
-2 hands, handstand, wall for balance
-2 hands, handstand, no wall
-1 hand, knees to floor
-1 hand, toes to floor
-1 hand, elevated body
-1 hand, handstand, wall for balance
-1 hand, handstand, no wall

Ok, now what? Well, the only thing to do to make it harder is to add some weights. But only if it can be safely done. So in the end, you'll have to add weights eventually. I guess you can add more muscle body weight too.

Where am I on the above example? I'm at 2 hands, toes to floor, but with 50 lbs on my back. It's the highest for me, too dangerous to add more.

When I did my first push up session, I think I just tried to do 20 reps, my triceps were swollen/hard/tight/sore. Then after a long time push ups with just my body weight became too easy. So I started adding weights 3 lbs, 5 lbs, 10 lbs... Now I can do 20 reps with the 50 lbs and no major soreness/swollen/what not afterwards.

I've tried handstand push ups, but I find it quite uncomfortable with all the blood rushed to my head. In the past when I wasn't as fit as I am now, I've actually popped some small veins around my eyes (skin on the face). I don't think I'd have that problem now but it's still something that concerns me.

Anyways, currently, pretty much all of the "body weight" exercises that I do, I do it with some added weight. Except for pull ups and chin ups which I've just started for a while only. I think i can make some of my exercises harder without weights, but just haven't changed my routine just yet. I'm actually trying to recover all that is left of my fitness from a lazy winter.

Original Post by tryatri:

Can using your own body weight be as good conditioning as using dead weights?

Absolutely! For a really great workout start with any Single-Leg Exercise such as the pistol (single-leg squat to the floor) which is the most advanced 1-leg exercise... But you can also do assisted single-leg squats with a band, or onto a bench, or even with a Stability Ball between your back and the wall.

If you aren't ready for single-leg squats, you can use Bulgarian
Split Squats, Reverse Lunges, regular split squats, or lying 1-leg
hip bridges if you are a beginner.

Next I recommend doing Decline Push-ups....these are harder than normal pushups, thanks to your elevated feet. And in this position, you can still use a close-grip to fatigue
your triceps, a "piked-hip position" to build your shoulders, or
even the Spiderman leg motion to work on your abs.

And..one of my favorites are bodyweight Inverted Rows...I choose these over chinups and pullups because bodyweight rows let your chest rest, while your back is strengthened. It's the perfect compliment to a pushup.

Do 8-12 repetitions per exercise. Don't rest between exercises. Go through the circuit up to 3 times, resting 1 minute after each
circuit.

For a once-per-month challenge, do each exercise to failure in your final round through the circuit.