No gym, no dumbbells, no pull-up bar. This bodyweight workout plan for home trains your whole body 3 times a week with your own weight and a sturdy table. Every exercise has an easier and a harder version, and you will see how to keep progressing when you cannot add a plate.
What bodyweight training can do
Bodyweight training builds real strength and muscle, especially in the upper body. Push-ups, dips and rows scale a long way. It works very well for your first year of training, and it stays useful for life as a way to train anywhere.
Where it runs short
Heavy leg work is the gap. Your legs soon get strong enough to handle your body weight, so squats and lunges turn into endurance work long before your upper body runs out of room. This plan answers that with single-leg exercises, pauses and slower lowering. That keeps your legs working without a bar.
How the week looks
| Day | Focus |
|---|---|
| Monday | Workout A |
| Tuesday | Rest or a walk |
| Wednesday | Workout B |
| Thursday | Rest or a walk |
| Friday | Workout A |
| Saturday | Rest or a walk |
| Sunday | Rest |
Alternate A and B, so the next week starts with B.
The workouts
Workout A
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Push-up | 4 | 8-15 |
| Bodyweight squat | 4 | 15-20 |
| Inverted row under a table | 4 | 8-12 |
| Reverse lunge | 3 | 10-12 each leg |
| Plank | 3 | 30-60 sec |
Workout B
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Pike push-up | 4 | 6-12 |
| Bulgarian split squat | 3 | 10-15 each leg |
| Inverted row, feet elevated | 4 | 8-12 |
| Single-leg hip thrust | 3 | 12-15 each leg |
| Hollow hold | 3 | 20-40 sec |
Rest 60 to 90 seconds between sets. Stop every set a couple of reps short of failure, and no earlier. With light loads, effort is what makes the set count.
Easier and harder versions
| Movement | Easier | Harder |
|---|---|---|
| Push-up | hands on a table or wall | feet elevated, then one arm assisted |
| Inverted row | feet under you, body upright | feet elevated, pause at the top |
| Squat | hold a doorframe for balance | slow three-second lowering, then a pause |
| Split squat | both feet on the floor | rear foot on a chair, then a pause |
| Pike push-up | hands on a chair | feet elevated on a chair |
How to progress without weight
You cannot add a plate, so use the other levers, in order:
- More reps: inside the range, on every set.
- More sets: up to about 5 per exercise.
- Slower lowering: 3 seconds down, which makes the same rep harder.
- A pause: 1 to 2 seconds at the hardest point.
- A harder version: pick one from the table above and drop back to the bottom of the rep range.
That last step is your version of adding a plate, and most home plans forget to mention it. When 15 push-ups feel comfortable, do not chase 30. Put your feet up on a chair and go back to 8.
Run this plan in Trackist
Equipment is one of the questions Trackist asks before it writes the plan. Tell it you have no equipment, and you get a plan made of exercises you can do at home.
A bodyweight set logs reps, with last session’s number underneath, so the slow progress is on the screen instead of in your memory. Timed exercises like the plank and the hollow hold log seconds. Trackist marks records for both: the most reps and the longest hold. The line above each exercise suggests the next step in the same units: one more rep on a bodyweight exercise, 5 more seconds on a timed one.
When an exercise gets easy, swap it for a harder version from the library, for today or for the rest of the plan. If something starts to hurt, Trackist swaps it for an exercise that trains the same muscle without the movement that bothered you. More on training without a gym is on the Trackist blog.
FAQ
Questions, answered.
Can you build muscle with bodyweight exercises only?
Yes, especially in the upper body, as long as you take sets close to failure and the exercises get harder over time. Legs are the limit. Once 20 reps with your body weight is easy, single-leg versions, pauses and slower lowering keep them working.
How many days a week should I train with bodyweight?
Three is a good default, and 4 works if the sessions are short. The loads are lighter than heavy barbell work, so you recover faster between sessions and can train more often.
What do I do when push-ups get easy?
Make the push-up harder instead of doing more reps. Put your feet up, slow the lowering to 3 seconds, add a pause at the bottom, or work towards one-arm push-ups with the other hand on a step. Then start again at the bottom of the rep range.
Can Trackist write a no-equipment plan?
Yes. Answer the equipment question with what you have at home, and Trackist builds the plan only from exercises that fit, including bodyweight and timed ones. It logs both reps and seconds, and compares each against last time.
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Let Trackist write your plan
Answer 14 questions and Trackist writes a plan around your gym and your week. Log every set, and the next session shows the weight to lift. On the App Store now. Android is coming.
