something. And, roughly speaking, kicking. That is, when we push something away with our feet. Or yourself from the ground.

It turns out that the systems of the body are designed in such a way as to push, pull and kick. And, no matter how you look at it, all physical labor, struggle (hunting), gathering - everything is based on these movements. That is why they are called basic. Let's look at them a little more.

Pushing movements

Hitting, throwing stones, spears and other objects - all this belongs to the "push" category. And, of course, there are directly pushes. From pushing the enemy to pushing the cart out of the mud. As the main muscles in pushing movements, the pectoral muscles, the anterior and middle bundles of the deltoid muscles (shoulders) and triceps are involved. This does not mean that others do not work. It's just that the main load falls on these muscles.

As the main exercises for the development of pushing functions, we use push-ups and presses (horizontal, vertical, oblique). For home workouts, push-ups are the king of pushing exercises. We will do them. How, I will tell further.

Pulling movements

Picking up objects, throwing the opponent (pull, lift off the ground and release), climb up (climbing, rope, trees, etc.) and crawling on the ground. Everything that brings us closer to the object or the object to us with the help of hands is the category of “pull”.

When we pull, first of all, all the muscles of the back, biceps, trapezius and back of the deltoid muscles work for us.

The main exercises for developing pulling skills are pull-ups and pull-ups (blocks, barbells, dumbbells in different planes). Pull-ups are recognized as the most useful and natural exercise in this sense. It is difficult to argue with this, but for home athletes this fact is very beneficial - the horizontal bar is more accessible than the block simulator.

Kicking movements

In fact, kicking movements are all movements with the legs. Jumps, squats, lunges, kicks. Even running and walking have a pushing character using the legs.

In kicking movements, all the muscles of the lower body, including the lower back, receive the main load. But the main load falls on the buttocks and thighs.

The undisputed leader in training the lower body are squats. Moreover, most athletes and physiologists agree that squats are the most effective exercise of all time. And there is a lot of scientific evidence for this fact. The maximum number of muscle fibers is involved in squatting (the muscles of the legs and buttocks are the largest part of all the muscles on the human body).

In addition to squats, the main exercises for training legs include various kinds. lunges, steps and jumps.

By and large, all human movements can be attributed to these three groups. Another thing is that all sorts of biceps curls or leg extensions are only a separate part of a complete movement. Or an attempt to load a particular muscle more than others.

This kind of activity is most often unnatural for a person. It is difficult to imagine a situation, for example, in which a person will move an object through the side up or lift something from the ground with his foot, bending it. In bodybuilding, such exercises are conditionally called "isolated". At the same time, many professional trainers question the benefits of such exercises for natural (without the use of "chemistry") training. The more natural the movement, and the more often it occurs in everyday life (well, let it be a caveman, and not a modern “user”), the more useful it is for a person. Moreover, natural loads make the body develop in the most harmonious way. That is, proportionally, aesthetically, without any excesses.

Therefore, we will focus on these three basic movements (for us, these are push-ups, pull-ups and squats), and not on any individual exercises for the butt, hips, arms, shoulders or stomach. Because the “base” is the fastest, most useful and effective way to make those very separate parts of the body beautiful.

Here is another important point. It's not just that basic exercises have a better effect on target muscles. They affect the entire body in a complex way. Including, the production of hormones, protein synthesis. That is, on metabolism, metabolism in general. Practically, this means that squats (pull-ups or push-ups) are much more effective for creating a flat stomach than crunches.

Moreover, basic movements are the most energy-intensive. And, therefore, it is much more effective not only for building muscle, but also for burning fat.

So, here we will focus on improving the results in the basic movements. We will push, pull and kick. And to be specific, then push-ups, pull-ups and squats.

Now you will need to choose in a certain way how you will perform these exercises.

2.3.2 Choosing pull-ups
I must say right away that I will not describe in detail the implementation of each type of exercise here. Written about it individual books. And some films have been made. Here, as they say, it is really better to see a hundred times. So the internet is here to help you. But of course, I'll set the direction.

On the website TrainAtHome.ru there is a section "About exercises". There, in detail, with video clips, progressions in pull-ups (horizontal and vertical), push-ups and squats are analyzed. Use this section to find the right exercise for you. Well, or any other resource. There is youtube.com, and it has a search bar. This is about the technical details. Now I will tell you exactly what we are looking for.

We are looking for a type of pull-up that you can perform in the 10-20 rep range. This is a very important recommendation!

The fact is that there are different versions of pull-ups - from simple to the most complex. A simple option can be done by almost anyone. The only question is how many times. The most difficult option (for example, pull-ups on one arm) will not be mastered by all advanced athletes. You need to choose for yourself pull-ups, the level of difficulty of which corresponds to your current physical form.

For example, the horizontal row of the body is the simplest type of pull-ups. Grasp the handles of the open door (or hang a towel on them), put your feet at about the level of the jamb, lean back and pull yourself towards the door.

The best option and probably the most difficult for an ordinary athlete is the classic pull-ups on the horizontal bar. If you can do them, do it! Everyone should strive to perform exactly the classic pull-ups on the horizontal bar.

If there is no horizontal bar, then you can perform horizontal pull-ups. They are also called “reverse thrust” (“inverted row”) or “Australian pull-ups”. You put a stick between two chairs, get under the stick, grab it, try to keep your body straight and pull yourself towards the stick. The legs can be kept bent on the floor (easy variation), straight on the floor (medium variation), and elevated (hard variation).

No chairs and sticks? You can pull yourself by climbing under a sturdy table. You can pull up on the top door jamb. You can tie a knot on the sheet, fasten it to the top frame of the door again and pull yourself on the sheet, resting your feet on the door. There are a lot of options for how to pull yourself if there is no horizontal bar.

Ideally, of course, have a horizontal bar at home. If he is, then do not exchange for another. Even if you can’t pull up even once, then do pull-ups with your legs resting on a chair. Or up with a chair, down under its own power. Once again I say - look on the Internet for pull-up options. 100% you will find a version that you can do in the 10-20 rep range.

Yes. If you don’t have a horizontal bar, and now you decide to buy and hang it, but you manage to do it before Monday, this is not a reason to postpone the start of training. Choose for now some version of the horizontal (“Australian”) pull-ups. And in general, the excuse “I have nowhere to do pull-ups” is not accepted. I have a wealth of experience both training in different conditions and working with people who train in different conditions. You can always find a way to do pull-ups.

But, no matter what exercise you choose, there is an important point. And it also applies to push-ups and squats. You must clearly define for yourself the control points in each exercise. This means that you need to understand very clearly when you can “count” a repetition for yourself, and when not.

For example, there are two breakpoints in pull-ups. In the bottom position, you should have completely straight arms (first point). And in the top position, the chin should be above the bar (second reference point). If you do horizontal pull-ups, then again straight arms (or touching the back of the floor - it happens) and touching the chest with a stick or countertop.

The distance between the control points is your range of motion. And it should be as long as possible. Went as low as possible, rose as high as possible. As soon as you fail to reach the checkpoint, the approach is considered completed.

So you need to choose pull-ups that are at a difficulty level that falls within the 10-20 rep range, taking into account the full range of motion and hitting the breakpoints.

2.3.3 Choosing push-ups
With push-ups, everything is very similar. You need to choose such a form of exercise to perform in the range of 10-20 repetitions.

The ideal option is classic push-ups