Workouts

How to perform: Loop a towel around a door handle or sturdy pole. Hold both ends, lean back with straight arms. Your feet are against the door base for anchor. Curl your body up toward the door by bending your elbows — just like a barbell curl. Lower slowly back to start.

The more you lean back, the heavier the resistance. This directly mimics the EZ-bar curl stimulus. Keep your elbows fixed in position — only forearms move. Slow 3-second lowering phase for maximum bicep work.

How to perform: Fill a backpack with books or water bottles to add weight. Hold the backpack by the top handle or hook it over your wrists. Stand upright, upper arms pinned to sides. Curl the bag up toward your shoulders. Squeeze at the top. Lower with control over 3 seconds.

This is your weighted curl at home. Load the bag progressively — add more weight as it gets easy. If no backpack, use a shopping bag filled with bottles in each hand for alternating curls.

How to perform: Start in a downward dog position — hips high, forming an inverted V. Hands slightly wider than shoulder-width. Bend your elbows and lower the top of your head toward the floor between your hands. Press back up to full arm extension.

This is the bodyweight overhead press. The more vertical your torso, the more shoulder-dominant it becomes. For more difficulty, elevate your feet on a chair to increase the angle and load.

How to perform: Hold a water bottle or light filled bag in each hand at your sides. With a slight elbow bend, raise both arms out to the sides until they reach shoulder height — forming a T shape. Hold for 1 second at the top. Lower slowly.

This targets the medial (side) deltoid — the muscle that gives your shoulders width. Lead with your elbows, not your hands. Don't shrug your shoulders up as you raise. Even light bottles will burn after 15 reps.

How to perform: Face the wall, place hands about 10cm from the base. Walk your feet up the wall until your body is as vertical as possible. Hold the position with arms locked, core tight and glutes squeezed. Come down carefully.

This loads your shoulders with your entire bodyweight — far more than any lateral raise. It also builds shoulder stability. Not ready? Start with a pike hold on the floor and work up to this progressively.

How to perform: Feet on elevated surface (chair/bed), hands on floor. Body forms a downward incline. Perform push-ups — the incline targets upper chest exactly like an incline bench press.

Hands at or slightly wider than shoulder-width. Don't let hips sag. Higher feet = more upper chest activation.

How to perform: Hands slightly wider than shoulder-width, body straight head to heels. Lower chest to just above floor, elbows at 45° from torso. Drive back up explosively. Squeeze chest at top.

Think about pulling hands toward each other (without moving them) — this maximally activates the pecs.

How to perform: Hands extra-wide — about 1.5× shoulder width. Lower chest between hands. Hits inner and outer pec fibers through a wider range of motion.

Expect fewer reps — the wide stance increases the stretch. Focus on the deep chest stretch at the bottom of every rep.

How to perform: Place your feet on a chair or bed, then get into the pike (inverted V) position with your hands on the floor. From this elevated angle, lower your head toward the floor and press back up. The elevation increases the loading angle significantly compared to Tuesday's floor pike push-up.

Session B is harder than Session A — the elevation puts more weight through your shoulders. This is your heavy press day. Aim for fewer, stronger reps rather than rushing through.

How to perform: Hold a water bottle in each hand at your thighs. With a slight elbow bend, raise both arms forward and up to shoulder height. Hold 1 second at the top. Lower slowly over 3 seconds.

Targets the front (anterior) deltoid. Don't swing your torso — all movement from the shoulder joint. Even small bottles will fatigue the front delt quickly. This directly replaces the EZ-bar front raise.

How to perform: Get into handstand position against the wall (facing away from wall, kick up carefully). Lower your head a few inches toward the floor by bending elbows slightly — you don't need full range yet. Press back up. If not ready, hold the handstand position for max time instead.

This is the advanced progression of the pike push-up. Even a partial rep loads your shoulders with your entire bodyweight. Work toward this movement progressively — it builds serious shoulder strength and mass over time.

How to perform: Standard push-up position but with hands directly under your shoulders and elbows tucked tight against your ribs throughout the movement. Lower your chest between your hands. Press back up by driving through your triceps — not flaring the elbows out.

This is the bodyweight overhead tricep extension equivalent. Elbows staying glued to your sides is everything — the moment they flare, it becomes a chest exercise. This variation is harder than it looks.

How to perform: Same as Monday's chair dips but with a deliberate 4-second lowering phase. Lower yourself slowly over 4 full seconds. Pause 1 second at the bottom. Drive back up explosively. That's one rep.

The slow negative is the key difference from Monday — it's a completely different stimulus on the tricep. You'll need fewer reps to get the same burn. This mirrors the eccentric technique used in the EZ-bar skull crusher session.

How to perform: Diamond hand position under sternum. Perform as many clean reps as possible on each set. When you can no longer maintain form, the set is done. Rest 60 seconds between sets.

Going to failure is the finisher — this is what the drop set was doing in the EZ-bar version. Your triceps will be exhausted from the dips and elbows-in push-ups already. Track your max rep count every Wednesday and try to beat it weekly.

How to perform: Lie on back, hands behind head, legs raised. Bring right elbow to left knee while extending right leg. Switch sides in a cycling motion. Slow and deliberate.

Rotate the torso — don't just move the elbow. Keep lower back pressed into floor. The single best ab exercise by EMG measurement.

How to perform: Lie on back, legs up, knees at 90°. Press lower back into floor. Use lower abs to curl hips and knees toward chest, lifting tailbone off the floor. Lower with control.

Movement is small — curl the pelvis, don't swing legs. Hits lower rectus abdominis which regular crunches miss.

How to perform: Sit on floor, knees bent, lean back ~45°. Clasp hands. Rotate torso left then right — each side is one rep. Lift feet off floor for more challenge.

Rotation comes from the waist, not just the arms. Squeeze obliques at each endpoint. Can be weighted by holding a water bottle.

How to perform: Lie on back, press lower back into floor. Raise shoulder blades and legs off floor, arms overhead. Body forms a hollow banana shape. Hold with full core tension.

Advanced isometric — builds deep core stabilisers crunches can't reach. Too hard? Tuck knees to chest instead of extending legs.

How to perform: Loop a towel around a door handle. Hold both ends, lean back to create resistance. Curl your body up by bending elbows. At the top, take 4 full seconds to lower back to the start position. That slow lowering is the entire point of this session.

This mirrors the EZ-bar slow negative curl from Thursday's original split. The 4-second eccentric is where the real muscle damage and growth stimulus happens. Lean back further to increase resistance as you get stronger.

How to perform: Hang from a pull-up bar or secure doorframe bar with an underhand (supinated) grip, hands shoulder-width. Pull your chin above the bar by driving your elbows down and back. Lower with control. The underhand grip puts your biceps in the strongest position.

Chin-ups are the single most effective bicep exercise that exists — they load the bicep with your full bodyweight. Can't do one yet? Jump to the top position and lower yourself as slowly as possible (negative chin-ups). Work up from there.

How to perform: Load your backpack heavier than Tuesday. Hold by the top handle or hook over your wrists. Upper arms pinned to sides. Curl up, squeeze hard at the top, lower over 3 seconds.

By Thursday your biceps have had 2 days rest since Tuesday. Load the bag heavier and push for progressive overload — this is how you grow without a gym.

How to perform: Set up as a standard table row but place your feet on a chair instead of the floor. This makes your body more horizontal and dramatically increases the load through your back. Pull your chest up to the table edge with maximum intensity. Lower with control over 3 seconds.

This is your heavy strength day for back — exactly what the 5×5 deadlift was doing in the EZ-bar split. Feet elevated table rows are genuinely hard. Squeeze your shoulder blades together at the top of every rep like you're trying to crack a walnut between them.

How to perform: Lie face down, arms overhead. Lift chest, arms and legs simultaneously. At the top, hold for 3 full seconds before lowering. That pause eliminates momentum and forces pure back muscle contraction.

The 3-second pause is what separates this from Monday's supermans — it mirrors the pause row technique. You will feel this more deeply in your erectors and mid-back than the regular version. Control is everything here.

How to perform: Perform 15 reverse snow angel reps. Without resting, hold your arms and chest off the floor in the top position for as long as possible — until you physically can't hold it. That combo is one set. Rest 90 seconds, repeat.

This drop set technique mirrors the EZ-bar drop set from Thursday's original split — extra volume on the same movement. The isometric hold at the end is where your mid-back and rhomboids get fully cooked. Track how long you can hold it and beat it every week.

How to perform: Stand about 2 feet in front of a chair. Rest your back foot on the chair behind you. Lower your back knee toward the floor, bending your front knee to roughly 90°. Your front shin should stay roughly vertical. Drive through your front heel to return to standing. Complete all reps on one leg before switching.

The Bulgarian split squat loads each leg individually with your full bodyweight — this means more muscle activation per leg than a regular squat with the same weight. Research consistently ranks it as one of the best quad and glute builders that exists. It also trains balance and hip flexor flexibility simultaneously.

Torso upright: Don't lean forward excessively. Front knee: Track over your toes — don't let it cave inward. Depth: Back knee should skim the floor. Tempo: 3 seconds down, explosive up. Feel it almost entirely in your front leg's quad and glute.

Add a backpack with books to progressively overload this movement. Even 5–10kg on your back makes this significantly harder. Track reps weekly and add weight or reps consistently.

How to perform: Stand on one leg with a slight knee bend. Hinge at the hip — push your hips back and let your torso lean forward while your free leg extends straight behind you for balance. Lower until you feel a strong hamstring stretch. Drive your hip forward to return to standing. Keep your back flat throughout. Squeeze the glute of the standing leg at the top.

The single-leg RDL is the bodyweight version of the Romanian Deadlift. It's a pure hip hinge that hammers your hamstrings and glutes through a full range of motion. The single-leg nature also trains balance and hip stability — areas that no barbell exercise can fully address.

Hips square: Keep your hips level — don't let the free hip rotate open. Flat back: No rounding at any point. Soft knee: Keep a slight bend in the standing leg — never lock it straight. Balance: Focus on a fixed point on the floor ahead of you to help with stability.

Hold a backpack, water bottles or any household weight in each hand as you get stronger. Even holding your arms out in front adds load to the hinge. The unloaded version is genuinely challenging until your balance and hamstring flexibility develop.

How to perform: Feet shoulder-width. Lower into a squat until thighs are parallel. Explode upward, leaving the ground. Land softly with bent knees and immediately sink into the next squat. No pause at the top.

Jump squats replace the calf raise finisher here — they burn out the quads and calves simultaneously while also training explosive power. Land ball-to-heel to absorb impact. Last set — go to failure.

How to perform: Stand with feet hip-width. Rise onto balls of feet as high as possible. Hold 1–2 seconds at the top. Lower slowly over 3 seconds. For greater range, stand with toes on a step and let heels drop below step level before rising.

Calves need high volume to grow. 4×25 with a slow lowering phase is the formula. Do these single-leg (one foot at a time) if you want to double the difficulty with zero equipment.