Can you build muscle at home, without the gym? Yes, but doing hundreds of push ups every day isn’t going to get it done. Read on to see how you can use some advanced techniques and science to your advantage.
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What Makes Muscles Grow?
Your muscles will grow when:
The right type and amount of stress is placed on them regularly.
You consume enough calories and protein to have the extra resources to build muscle.
Regardless of what methods you’re using, there are 2 things that lead to muscle growth:
Mechanical Tension – The muscle can sense the resistance it’s being forced to work against.
Metabolic Stress – The buildup of lactate in the muscle from doing higher repetitions. This is what causes the “burning” in the muscle, usually resulting in a “pump.”
The two are not completely separate. There must be enough mechanical tension to stimulate growth, meaning you must challenge the muscle.
Doing hundreds of standard push ups might feel tough, but the body will quickly adapt to the load being placed on it.
Here are 5 methods you can use to build muscle from home. I’ll throw in some specific examples and workouts too.
1. Use Explosive Movements
People are too hung up on just doing basic push ups and body weight exercises. These certainly have value, but are not optimal long term for building muscle at home.
Explosive exercises will force your body to recruit fast twitch type II muscle fibers. Your fast twitch muscle fibers are capable of far more growth than the slow twitch fibers.
Just look at a sprinter vs. a marathon runner, and think about how differently they train.
Here are some explosive exercises you can use from home:
Squat Jumps
Bounding
Explosive Push ups
Split Squat Jumps
Box Jumps (onto any platform)
These explosive movements force the body to recruit the maximum amount of muscle fibers as quickly as possible (rate of force production.) As a result, this is an excellent way to train to be more powerful and to build some quality muscle.
2. Use BFR Bands for Faster Muscle Growth
If you’ve read some of my other articles, then you already know I’m a huge fan of BFR Bands (blood flow restriction bands.) I’m a fan of them because they work.Research says so.
Specifically, BFR Bands are meant to be used with lighter loads and higher reps. In the video below, I’m doing plate curls.. but you can grab anything.. a gallon of milk, a jug of water, or anything you can hold and perform high reps with. You can use them for push ups, or any high rep body weight exercise.
How BFR Training Works
Normally, during a high rep set (15-30 reps), the slow twitch muscle fibers would be dominant in performing the movement. However, the bands restrict blood and oxygen into the muscle. As a result, the slow twitch fibers are unable to keep up, forcing the fast twitch muscle fibers to take over.
Adding in some BFR training (also known as occlusion training) into your body weight routines can make a big difference in your ability to build muscle at home.
Check them out below. These are only $28 and have lasted me well over a year so far.
3. Use Tempo Training For Bigger Gains
Tempo training means performing each rep at a specific pace. For example, on a push-up: 2 seconds up, 2 seconds down, trying not to pause at all (continuous movement).
Changing the tempo of an exercise can dramatically change how it feels. Try a set of tempo push ups with 2 seconds up and 2 seconds down with no pauses. The muscles will be burning with fatigue (metabolic stress.)
Tempo reps keep the muscle under constant tension. By slowing down the rep, you are forcing the muscle to recruit more and more muscle fibers as the muscle fatigues.
The more muscle fibers you recruit, the bigger the response. This is why bodybuilders often do slower repetitions.
4. Use Exercise Variations to Challenge the Body and Build More Muscle
If you want to build muscle from home, you have to find ways to challenge the body. Doing hundreds of push ups every day is just not going to work.
Instead, use variations that can challenge the body from different angles. For the push up alone, there are probably over a hundred variations.
There are variations of every exercise. Body Squats, push ups, sit ups, and pull ups all have several different variations that can make the movement both different and more challenging.
Start playing around with some variations and get better at them. Challenge your body!
5. Use Resistance Bands
When it comes to building muscle at home, resistance bands are a tool you definitely should have.
A 2019 Study showed that working out with resistance bands resulted in similar strength and muscle gains compared to using conventional methods (the gym).
With a set of resistance bands, you can replicate almost any gym movement. Squats, Deadlifts, curls and rows can all be performed with a set of bands.
They’re affordable and extremely versatile. A set of bands can completely change up how you work out at home. Get a few with varying resistance so you can use them for your whole body effectively.
The best approach would be to combine all 5 methods from above.
Start with explosive movements, then pick some challenging exercise variations. End each session with 10 minutes of BFR training with resistance bands and/or tempo training.
Here’s 2 muscle building workout examples you can try from home:
Tip:Check out the articles below if you need to see video descriptions of these exercises and others you can use.
You can use the above workout templates to make your own home workouts up. Just plug in different exercises.
Choose an explosive type exercise to start. Then try to look for a challenging variation or two to challenge the body.
Lastly, pick a few exercises you can get relatively high reps with, strap on your BFR Bands and hammer out a 10 minute circuit.
You may have to be creative. Find a way to do pull ups, whether it’s from a beam in the garage or a doorway pull up bar. Find objects you can use for curls and other exercises.
I used to work in a prison, and inmates would fill up trash bags with water or fill pillowcases with books. Where there’s a will, there IS a way.
Conclusion
You CAN build muscle at home. You just need to do things a little differently and use methods that can actually force the body to build muscle.
If I had to put it in an ordered list, it would look like this:
Start using explosive exercises, tempo training and BFR circuits
Eat more and make sure you’re getting enough protein (0.7 grams/pound of body weight, approximately).
Stop doing the same old thing, and take your home workouts to the next level!
As always, I hope this article helped in some way to get you a little bit closer to that best version of you! Leave a comment and follow my blog for more awesome fitness articles and workouts.
Mike (Supastrong)
Bioforce Certified Conditioning Coach and personal trainer. I’ve run boot camps and served as the wellness coordinator for a fortune 500 company. Currently a Federal Agent in San Diego, CA, and an Infantryman in the Army Reserve.
Just because you’re without the gym doesn’t mean you can’t get a solid workout in. And I’m not talking Pilates. I’m talking the same exercises you use in the gym. We’re just swapping out iron for some latex rubber resistance bands. These 16 resistance band exercises can help keep you big and strong while you’re out of the gym.
Studies have shown that adding resistance band exercises to your regular weight training routine can increase your strength more than weight lifting alone. So, incorporating some of these movements now can help you add them later when you return to the gym. You’ll have a new weapon in your arsenal for strength and size.
The Big Lifts… With Resistance Bands
We’ll start with the big lifts, which of course are:
Deadlift
Bench Press
Overhead Press
Squat
I’m certainly not suggesting that you abandon these lifts in exchange for using resistance bands. But, you are activating the same muscles with both forms of resistance. You have the same range of motion and ability to use variable speed in the movement. That said, there’s no doubt these can be effective at getting you bigger and stronger.
Disclaimer: 1. Check with your doctor before performing any exercise routine. 2. This article may contain affiliate links.
Deadlift
Banded Deadlifts mimic a trap bar deadlift, with hands at your side
The Deadlift is rightfully known as the king of all lifts. It uses the entire body in unison, forcing the legs, lower back, lats and traps to work hard to pull the body into an upright position against resistance.
Remember to keep a flat back. Flex your abs and push through the floor, just like you would picking up a barbell.
While you probably could rig a resistance band to press similar to a bench press, it’s easier and just as effective to utilize a push up movement instead.
Wrapping the band behind your back, you’ll be pushing up against the resistance of the band. Control your descent and push up explosively, activating the most motor units (muscle fibers). Keep your body in a straight line. This version places more emphasis on the core than a traditional bench press.
Overhead Press
The overhead press is the best exercise to build your shoulders.
Using resistance bands, you can overhead press two ways. You can do it standing, with the band under your feet. Or you can perform it kneeling.
With either version, keep your abs tight and flex your glutes. This keeps your core tight and protects your back. Press up explosively, or do slower tempo style reps without any pauses.
Standard Press
Behind the Neck Press
Squat
If there’s a contender for the “king” of all lifts, it is definitely the squat.
Arguably the best overall muscle building exercise, the squat is one movement you definitely want to include in your training.
Place the band under your feet, in the middle of the foot. Then bend down and wrap the band around the back of your neck. Stand up, then sit back into the squat position. Keep a flat back, abs tight (as with all big lifts).
Traditional Squat
Overhead Squat
The overhead squat is a little more challenging. It’s easier with bands than with a barbell, so it could be a good way to practice the movement with some resistance.
Bent Over Rows
Rows essentially work your entire back. When you perform the row, try to hold and squeeze for a quick second, then lower the bands.
Sit back slightly until you feel like you’re activating your hamstrings. This establishes a strong athletic position so you can lean forward without putting too much stress on your lower back.
When you perform the row, try to turn your hands in so your palms are facing up (like a reverse grip row). This will allow more activation of the back muscles and the biceps.
Shoulders – Banded Front, Lateral and Rear Delt Raises
Along with the overhead press, you can also use resistance bands to target the shoulders with front and lateral raises. Both are great options to build strength and size in the shoulders.
Lateral Raises
Lateral raises primarily work the lateral deltoid, along with the traps. They are great for building wider, broader shoulders.
Front Raises
Front raises focus on the anterior deltoids. The anterior delts are responsible for raising the arm forward. This part of the shoulder usually takes a beating with all the pressing movements people do, but isolating it can help strengthen and build the muscle.
Rear Delt Flyes
Most people overwork the front (anterior) delts with all the pressing they do in the gym. This can result in imbalances in the shoulder, and can lead to injury.
Strengthening to rear delts is essential for shoulder health, and for getting stronger. They also make your back look good when you build them up. Hold a one second squeeze on each rep.
These can be an excellent movement to incorporate into a warm up for your pressing days in the gym, or as a finisher to any upper body workout.
Chest Flyes
Chest flyes get a good “squeeze” of the pectoral muscles. They are a great way to isolate the chest. Using bands, we can perform a low chest fly. As in previous exercises, hold the top position for a one second squeeze on every rep.
Good Mornings
Banded good mornings are a really amazing way to hit the low back and hamstrings. These are an excellent option as a warm up for squatting or deadlifting, or for getting some lower impact volume in for the back and hamstrings. Do these for 15-20 reps and you won’t be disappointed!
Keep a flat back with a slight bend in the knees and lean forward until you feel a good stretch in the hamstrings before returning to the upright position.
Arms
You can definitely build your arms up with resistance bands. They allow you to get a really good squeeze of the muscle, and you can really perform a good amount of volume (reps) without the same stress you’d incur using weights.
Hitting these for high reps will give you a huge pump, and you know that’s never a bad thing.
Curls
You can perform these as regular curls, turning your hand in at the top, or as hammer curls with a neutral grip. Both are great and I recommend mixing it up.
Triceps Extensions
These are performed as overhead extensions. If you have something to hand the resistance band from, you can also do regular extensions similar to the cable pulldowns at the gym. Both are great.
Try to keep your elbows high (pointed at the ceiling), and try not to swing your arms.
Split Squat
The split squat does a great job of isolating the quad muscles. Try to perform these in a rhythm, with no pause at the top or bottom, for 15-20 reps per leg.
Shrugs
Last but not least, shrugs. Traps are one muscle that all strong people seem to have.
While I prefer to hit the traps with high pulls, farmer carries and deadlifts, the shrug is always a good option to build them up, and we can still get it done without weights.
Hold the top of the shrug for a one second squeeze, and don’t rest at the bottom. Keep the muscle under constant tension.
Some tips on using resistance bands
If you’re going to use resistance bands to work out, there are a few things you can do to make your workouts more effective.
Try to focus on each rep and get a good squeeze.
Shoot for higher rep ranges (15-30). You can build up a lot of volume this way and stimulate some muscle growth.
Shoot for short rest periods (30sec – 1min).
Perform the workouts in a circuit. Choose 3-5 exercises and follow the above rep and rest period guidelines.
If it feels too easy, use a heavier band. If it feels hard, use a lighter one. Seems obvious, but worth mentioning. Lose the ego.
Conclusion
A lot of people view resistance bands as inferior, but most of those people have never worked out with them. You can build muscle and strength with bands. Research has proven that, and incorporating them along with traditional resistance training can improve your gains.
Try some of these exercises out. Make the most of your time away from the gym.
I hope you liked this article. Leave a comment, or shoot me an email and I’ll respond as soon as I can. Thanks for reading, and as always, I hope this helped you in some way to get a little bit closer to that best version of you!
Mike (Supastrong)
Bioforce Certified Conditioning Coach and personal trainer. I’ve run boot camps and served as the wellness coordinator for a fortune 500 company. Currently a Federal Agent in San Diego, CA, and an Infantryman in the Army Reserve.
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