Bodyweight exercises are some of the most functional, effective and safe exercises that you can perform. Being able to do exercises like squats and pushups can help you both with your overall fitness but also transfer into the functionality of your daily life! As we age being able to push yourself up, squat down or stand up are things that can change the quality of our lives! The ability to do these bodyweight exercises properly can translate into other aspects of your fitness life as well! If you can not squat your own body with proper form you will struggle to do it with weight!
Anyone can do bodyweight exercises since they can be modified to be either easier or harder depending on the person's abilities just by changing the position of your body making them effective for any fitness level! Not only can doing bodyweight exercises be a great way to build strength but also a great way to build stamina and get your cardio in! Burpees, jump squats, jumping jacks, mt. climbers are all great bodyweight exercises that you can add into your routine to increase your heart rate!
Bodyweight exercises increase your proprioperception, coordination, balance and flexibility! Being able to control your body and movement is an essential ability that many can not do! Having the ability to understand your movements and control them will help not only your fitness level but also decrease your risks of injury while exercising and while performing daily activities! Not to mention that the actual act of doing bodyweight workouts is much safer than free weights or machines! Almost all bodyweight exercises are closed chain meaning either your feet or hands are in a constant fixed position like touching the ground! And there are no weights to possibly drop on your toe! (That hurts!)
Last but not at all least doing bodyweight workouts are cheap and convenient! You can do them anywhere with very few props needed…..just you!
Give it a try! Add in a full bodyweight workout to your routine or simply insert a few into your next workout! You will be surprised at how it will increase the intensity of your workout!