An Old School Approach To Working Out

Get Great Results With an Old School Approach to Fitness

We have all been there. We are contemplating joining the newest gym and take a tour of the fitness facility as we gleefully stare at the newest and shiniest gym equipment out on the market. 

Do you need new machines to get new muscle growth? Heck no! 

In reality, to get a really great strength training workout, you just need the basics. You can pound away with a bunch of rusty free weights and dumbbells, a grimy bench, and an old squat rack and become just as jacked as if you were using the newest high-priced gym equipment. 

In fact, you don’t even need any equipment for quite a few strength training movements.

Rocky Balboa knew the old-school approach was what worked for him best. Now you don’t have to take it as far as having a hundred neighborhood kids chasing you up a boatload of concrete steps, but there are other ways to go about it. 

 

Pushups

It doesn’t get more old school than pushups. Pushups are perhaps the absolute best compound strength training movement you can do in your workouts. Compound movements train several muscle groups at one time, and pushups will train your chest, back, core, triceps, lats, and even some legs. Plus, you can go to absolute failure as you can make them more difficult by placing your feet high up on a chair or bench. 

Dumbbells and a Bench

There are literally hundreds of exercises you can do with just a pair of dumbbells and a bench. While machines will make moving weight much easier since cables are usually involved, it takes brute strength to train with dumbbells, and it tends to provide better results. All of your stabilizer muscles will be firing away on all cylinders as you curl and push the dumbbells set after set. 

Every muscle group can be trained through countless strength training exercises by only using dumbbells. 

Barbell and Free Weights

But why stop with just dumbbells? Weight plates can be had for relatively cheap prices if you are looking in the right direction. Plus, a good weight lifting bar can hold more weight than you will be able to move. Just like with the dumbbells, you can do hundreds of muscle-building exercises such as squats, military presses, bench press, rows, curls, and more. 

Need a Bit of Cardio But Hate Running?

For many of us, our idea of cardio is to lift weights faster. But all jokes aside, there are plenty of times that our heart rates get into the cardio zone just from weight lifting alone. However, if you want to take it a step further, hang an old heavy bag up and channel your inner boxer. By setting a timer for a minute or two, you can get your heart rate up plenty high by pounding away at that heavy bag with your jabs, hooks, and straight punches. 

Just remember, you don’t need fancy equipment to get strong. You just need a foundation of dedication and willpower.