If you’re looking to challenge your upper body strength and boost muscle growth without any fancy equipment, you’re in the right place. We’ve compiled three bodyweight exercises designed to target your chest, triceps, shoulders, and core muscles. No dumbbells, kettlebells, or machines needed—just your body weight, some space, and the willingness to push yourself.
Bodyweight exercises are a form of calisthenics, a tried-and-true method for building functional strength and muscular endurance. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced exerciser, this workout will leave your upper body burning, while improving overall fitness.
In this post, we’ll guide you through a three-move bodyweight workout that fits into any strength program, no matter your experience level. So, if you’re ready to get started, let’s dive into the exercises.
Why Bodyweight Training is Effective for Upper Body Strength
Before we dive into the exercises, let’s talk about why bodyweight training is so effective for building upper body strength. Using just your body weight, you can challenge your muscles in ways that improve balance, mobility, and endurance.
Functional Strength: Unlike machines, which isolate muscles, bodyweight training uses natural movement patterns, helping you build real-world strength. This form of functional training strengthens muscles, bones, and joints in sync, preparing your body for daily activities and even more advanced strength training later on.
Progressive Overload: A common misconception is that you can’t make progress without weights. However, with bodyweight exercises, you can still challenge your muscles by increasing reps, reducing rest time, or adding variations to make the movements more difficult. This ensures your muscles are continually being challenged, leading to growth and strength.
Improves Core Stability: Many bodyweight movements require you to engage your core, making them excellent for overall stability and balance. This is especially true for exercises that target the upper body, like push-ups and planks, which indirectly work your abs and obliques.
Accessible Anywhere: Whether you’re at home, traveling, or outside, bodyweight exercises require no equipment and can be done anywhere. This makes them ideal for people looking to maintain or enhance their fitness without access to a gym.
The 3-Move Bodyweight Workout
This workout consists of just three exercises, but don’t let the simplicity fool you—it’s a high-intensity routine designed to torch your chest, triceps, shoulders, and core. You’ll perform four sets of the following exercises:
Every 7 minutes for 4 sets:-
- 20 Burpees
- 30 Spiderman Planks
- 40 Deficit Push-ups
You have seven minutes to complete all the reps for each exercise in one round. Rest for the remaining time and then start again. The goal is to finish the set as quickly as possible to maximize your rest period.
Let’s break down each exercise and the proper form:-
1. Burpees (20 reps)
Burpees are a full-body exercise, but they also provide a killer challenge for your chest, triceps, shoulders, and core. The explosive movement from floor to jump works your upper body as well as your cardiovascular system.
How to do a Burpee:
- Start in a standing position.
- Drop into a squat position with your hands on the floor.
- Kick your feet back into a push-up position and lower your chest to the floor.
- Push yourself up to a plank position, jump your feet back to your hands.
- Explode up into a jump with your arms overhead.
Tip: If you’re a beginner, you can step back into the push-up position instead of jumping. If you’re more advanced, aim for “chest-to-floor” burpees to increase intensity.
Why It Works:
Burpees are excellent for building explosive power and endurance while also working your chest and triceps during the push-up phase. The explosive jump engages your shoulders and upper back, making it a fantastic compound movement.
2. Spiderman Planks (30 reps)
The Spiderman plank is a variation of the traditional plank that introduces movement to further engage your obliques and core, along with your chest and shoulders.
How to do Spiderman Planks:
Begin in a forearm or high plank position (you can choose depending on your comfort level).
While maintaining a strong plank, bring your right knee towards your right elbow, mimicking a “climbing” movement.
Return to the plank position and repeat with the left leg.
Alternate sides for 30 reps (15 on each side).
Tip: Keep your hips square to the floor and avoid letting them drop. This will ensure you engage your core properly throughout the movement.
Why It Works:
Spiderman planks target your chest, shoulders, and triceps while placing extra emphasis on your obliques. The movement of drawing your knees to your elbows mimics a crunch, making this a fantastic dynamic core exercise. This variation also adds a layer of intensity to your upper body by requiring greater stability and strength in your shoulders and triceps.
3. Deficit Push-ups (40 reps)
Deficit push-ups are a great way to enhance the traditional push-up by increasing the range of motion, making the exercise more challenging and effective at targeting your chest, shoulders, and triceps.
How to do Deficit Push-ups:
- Set up two objects (push-up bars, blocks, or dumbbells) to elevate your hands, creating a “deficit.”
- Start in a push-up position with your hands on the elevated surface and your feet on the floor.
- Lower your chest down between your hands, going deeper than you would in a normal push-up.
- Push back up explosively to the starting position.
Tip: If deficit push-ups are too challenging, stick to regular push-ups until you build enough strength. You can also do these on your knees for an easier variation.
Why It Works:
By increasing the range of motion, deficit push-ups recruit more muscle fibers, particularly in the chest, shoulders, and triceps. The deeper stretch provides a greater challenge, especially during the eccentric (lowering) phase, while the explosive push-up strengthens your chest and arms.
How to Progress with Bodyweight Training
One of the biggest myths surrounding bodyweight training is that it doesn’t offer enough progression to build serious muscle. However, by tweaking variables like tempo, rep range, and rest intervals, you can make these exercises progressively harder and continue to challenge your muscles.
Here’s how you can make your bodyweight workout more challenging over time:
Increase Reps: If you find that you’re completing your set with too much time to rest, try adding more reps to each exercise. Start with an additional 5 reps per round and gradually build up.
Adjust Tempo: Slowing down the eccentric (lowering) phase of exercises like push-ups and burpees can increase time under tension, leading to greater muscle breakdown and growth. For example, try lowering yourself in a push-up for a count of 3-4 seconds before pushing back up.
Reduce Rest Time: The goal of this workout is to complete all reps within 7 minutes. If you’re breezing through it, cut the rest period down to 6 minutes, increasing the intensity and cardiovascular challenge.
Add Variations: Once you master the basic movements, switch things up by adding advanced variations like clap push-ups, one-legged burpees, or side plank Spidermans.
The Benefits of Bodyweight Workouts
While weightlifting is often viewed as the gold standard for muscle growth, bodyweight exercises come with their own unique set of advantages:
Joint Health: Using your body weight places less strain on your joints compared to heavy weights, making it a great option for individuals looking to avoid injury while still building muscle.
Core Engagement: Most bodyweight exercises require you to engage your core to maintain stability, meaning you’re strengthening your abs and lower back along with your primary muscles.
Versatility: Bodyweight exercises can be performed anywhere, whether you’re in a gym, at home, or traveling. This makes them perfect for those with limited time or access to equipment.
Build Endurance and Strength: High-repetition bodyweight workouts like this one not only build muscle but also improve cardiovascular endurance. The mix of strength and cardio helps improve overall fitness.
Final Thoughts
Bodyweight training is a powerful and effective way to build muscle, especially in your chest, shoulders, triceps, and core. With just three exercises—burpees, Spiderman planks, and deficit push-ups—you can create a challenging upper body workout that’s accessible anywhere. The key is consistency and progression: by increasing reps, adjusting tempo, and minimizing rest, you can continue to push your muscles and achieve noticeable results.
So, the next time you want to blast your upper body without any equipment, give this 28-minute workout a try. Your chest and triceps will thank you!
