BODYWEIGHT BODYBUILDING

By Alexander Iron
Copyright © 2018 Alexander Iron
All rights reserved
PROLOGUE
CHAPTER 1. GETTING STARTED
CHAPTER 2. EXERCISES
CHAPTER 3. WORKOUT ROUTINE
CHAPTER 4. NUTRITION
CHAPTER 5. FINAL WORDS
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
PROLOGUE
Since childhood, I've always dreamed of having fit and muscular body. At
about the age of 13, doctors diagnosed me second degree scoliosis. It would
not be so terrible except one thing: in addition to scoliosis, I had
intervertebral hernias, which caused severe back pain and interfered with
training. Despite the fact that doctors forbade me to lift more than 5-10 kg
(11-22 lbs), I still went to the gym and kept on fanatically working out. In
bench press I managed to lift 120 kg (265 lbs) for 1 rep at a bodyweight of
62 kg (137 lbs), and did squats with 100 kg (220 lbs) for several reps. These
feats were achieved without steroids and other hormonal substances. I even
did not used supplements such as creatine etc. Anyway despite the great
strength, I could not boast of impressive muscle mass and health.

Year 2010. Bench press 120 kg (265 lbs) at a bodyweight of 62 kg (137 lbs).

My best results at that time were:

Height: 175 cm (5' 9)
Weight: 62(!) kg (137 lbs)
Bench press: 120(!) kg (265 lbs) for 1 rep;
Biceps: 33-34 cm (13-13,4 in);
Squats: 100 kg (220,5 lbs) for several reps;
Thighs: 50-52 cm (19,7-20,5 in);
My body was literally screaming to me that I was making harm to it - but I
did not listen at all, because everybody around me was saying that without
«Big 3» and heavy weights, it was impossible to build really ripped and
muscular body. I wanted it badly.
One day, the pain in my back became so unbearable that I spent most of the
day lying in bed, afraid to make at least one awkward movement. The
sensations were as if hundreds of knives were stuck simultaneously in my
back, and then they were still scrolling! Adding to this the injuries of my
shoulders, elbows, unpleasant sensations in the knees that were already
earned thanks to the training with heavy weights, it was no longer about
how to become a bodybuilder, but the question was: can I normally live and
work without pain.
I could not put strain on my back any more. Actually I did not want it. As
for the machines - I never considered them seriously. So I decided: I will be
doing bodyweight training at home. I wanted to do an experiment on my
body and see, how effective bodyweight training was in comparison to
heavy weight lifting.
Since 2013, I have been doing exclusively bodyweight training at home or
outdoors, doing only the bodyweight push-ups, dips, pull-ups, jump-squats,
single-leg squats. In addition, when I say «bodyweight training», I mean
that I cannot add any extra weight to my body, because I immediately feel
unpleasant sensations in my back, even when working out with small extra
weight.

Year 2017. Result from doing jump squats

On the Internet, everyone was talking about that pull-ups and push-ups
without extra weights are a work for endurance, not for muscle growth. But
I did not listen to anyone. I kept on going my own way, doing up to 40 and
more repetitions per set, working out every day. Finally, I was able to
perform high-quality sessions for my thighs without fearing for my back.
What was the most surprising thing, is that my body began to change
rapidly, because the pain in the back ceased to be a limiting factor in my
training!
Above all I proved to myself that bodyweight training at home/outdoors is a
good alternative to the gym if your goal is healthy and muscular body.
Many of my clients followed my example and also managed to radically
change their bodies, which means that my success is not accidental.
Now I know for sure that neither injuries, nor health problems, nor lack of
money for the gym and sports nutrition cannot be excuses for not doing
anything! All in your hands, bro, go for it!

In 2017, I managed to add another 4 kg (8,8 lbs) of lean muscle mass.

My results in 2017:
Height: 175 cm (5' 9)
Weight: 67-68 kg (147,7-149,9 lbs)
Biceps (cold): 39 cm (15,4 in)
Biceps (pumped): 41,5 cm (16,3 in)
Waist: 68 cm (26,8 in)
Thighs: 57 cm (22,4 in)
Calves: 39 cm (15,4 in)
CHAPTER 1. GETTING STARTED
Is it really possible to build huge muscles with only bodyweight training?
That's what I'm saying. Moreover, why is it so surprisingly for the
majority?! The essence of strength training is anaerobic work. How to
understand that you are working in anaerobic zone? It's very simple: if you
feel the pump and burning1 in your muscles during training session, be sure
that you are training for hypertrophy.
How much muscle can you gain by doing bodyweight training only,
compared to working out in the gym?
Doing exclusively bodyweight training at home/outdoors can give you a
physique like a man, who goes to the gym for many years, can bench press
265-330+ lbs for 1 rep, squat 397-441+ lbs, has a shredded 15+ inch biceps,
22+ inch thighs and six-pack abs. With such physique you may be
suspected of using steroids.
Can I gain muscles faster with heavy weights than with bodyweight
training?
Proponents of heavy-weight training have shown to get injured more often
than people, who prefer light-medium loads, and therefore are forced to
spend more time on the healing their injuries than on muscle growth.
Why most bar-athletes who perform high-reps sets are skinny?
First of all, not all the bar-athletes are skinny. It hugely depends on the
training regime. You can do pull-ups either anaerobic or aerobic style. To
work in anaerobic regime, your muscle should be in constant tension, even
if you work in full range of motion. This means, you should do pull ups
non-stop and not make pauses at the bottom part of the movement if your
goal is muscle growth. And vice versa, if your goal is aerobic endurance,
pause at the bottom for rest and you will manage to do more pull ups. That
is why, you can find some athletes doing 20-30-40 pull ups per set and
whose biceps is 12 inches. More details how to train for muscle
hypertrophy you will find in my book.
IMPORTANT: you should consult your physician, before starting
workouts.
CHAPTER 2. EXERCISES
What exercises should you do at home/outdoors?
Our whole body is formed by 3 basic movements. They are:
PUSH (any push-ups variations, dips)
Target muscles: chest, triceps, deltoids, core
PULL (any pull-ups variations, dumbbell row)
Target muscles: lats, biceps, deltoids, core
LEGS (any squats variations, including lunges and jump-squats)
Target muscles: thighs, glutes, lower back
Do only these 3 movements (while choosing any variations of exercises),
and you will eventually build a physique with perfect proportions.

My back. Result from doing ordinary bodyweight pull-ups

I do not have a pull-up bar, what should I do?

This is the only case I recommend to use weights in training. You need to
perform one-arm dumbell row. Beginners should start with dumbbell of ¼
weight of their own bodyweight. E.g. if your weight is 80 kg (176,4 lbs),
than you should work with 20 kg (44,1 lbs). This method can also help you
to learn doing pull-ups from the bar. When you manage to do dumbell rows
with weight ½ of your bodyweight for 10 reps in 5 sets, you will easily do
pull ups from the bar.
How often should you change exercises?
You should change the exercises not more than once in 2-3 months[1]. The
only reason for changing the exercise can be psychological fatigue or injury.
Ideally, it is better not to change the exercises at all. You should always
remember that the longer you perform the same exercise, the more effective
it is for hypertrophy.
What about direct arm work?
I have never done any isolated exercises for my arms, as well as my clients,
and achieved good results. Biceps grows by elbow flexion and triceps – by
elbow extension. How you will perform these movements – with barbell or
with your own weight – does not matter.

My triceps. Result from doing bodyweight push-ups, dips.

What is «proper» exercise form?

Any exercise form that do not lead to injury, is correct. If the exercise you
perform is uncomfortable or even hurts you, then you must immediately
change the form so you do not have the pain.
What should be the range of motion?
Generally I recommend using a full range of motion for any exercise,
except when partial range of motion allows you to put more tension on the
muscles. For example, if you do not fully straighten your legs at the top
point during bodyweight squats or single-leg squats, then you will sooner
feel the burning in your hips.
You can also change the range of motion depending on the presence or
absence of pain in the joints. For example, if your elbows are hurting, then I
recommend that you temporarily switch to perform exercises in a reduced
range of motion.
What should be the exercise tempo?
The choice of tempo matters if your goal is to develop some functional skill
(either strength or strength endurance). If you just want to gain muscles,
then you should choose convenient tempo. Anyway, like I said before, work
non-stop and maintain constant tension.
What should be the proportion of exercises in the weekly training plan?
If you do not have any lagging muscular groups, then the weekly volume
for push/pull/legs moves should be distributed the following way: 1/3 for
«push» moves, 1/3 - «pull» moves, 1/3 - «legs» moves. For example, if
your weekly plan consists of 90 sets, then in each movement you have to do
30 sets.
However, if you have dominant or lagging muscle groups, then the
proportion will be somewhat different. For example, most beginners have
the thigh girth 1.5 times bigger than the biceps girth. This is a serious
disproportion! To fix it, you should train your legs with less volume than
your torso (by about 2-4 times). For example, if you do 80 sets per week for
your torso (40 for «pull» moves and 40 for «push» moves), then for your
legs 10-20 sets per week will be enough.
I wish to emphasize that if you do unilateral exercises such as single-leg
squats, one arm pull-ups etc., then the set for the left and for the right leg
should be done immediately without rest and this will be considered as 1(!)
set.
What should be the order of exercises?
The exercises can be done in any order, if you do not have lagging muscle
groups. If you have lagging muscle (back muscles, for example), then you
should start each workout with any pulling moves.
How many exercises should you do per workout?
You can perform all the moves (push, pull, legs) either within every
workout (full-body workout) or on different days (split workout). Muscles
will grow the same in all cases.
Should you use harder versions of exercises over time?
Any exercise that helps you achieve lactate threshold (you feel burning[2] in
the muscles) will stimulate muscle growth. Experience shows that even
regular push-ups allow you to reach your maximum drug-free potential, if
you recover well between workouts. Therefore, it is reasonable to choose
such exercises that you can perform more then 10-12 reps straight (30
seconds under tension and more). One arm pull ups are good for strength,
but in terms of muscle growth, I really doubt, that an average person can do
full-rom one pull ups more then 10-12 reps and achieve burning in the
muscles. Plus one-arm pull-ups put much strain on the elbow joints in
comparison to the two-arm pull-ups. Those who want to be in good shape
until old age - not only when they are young - should not practice such
«tricks».
Should I do elements such as planches, front levers to enhance muscle
growth?
The answer is the same as for previous question. For optimal muscle
growth, I believe, you have to achieve burning feeling in your muscles.
With very hard loads it is impossible to do so. You will put more stress on
CNS and ligaments then on your muscles.
Are high reps routines effective for drug-free athletes?
Of course! Everything I am talking about here in this book is for drug free
athletes who are looking for healthy and muscular/low-fat percentage body.
Earlier like most of the guys I believed, that if you do not use steroids and
want to get big, you have to lift big. But practice has shown that I was
wrong and I paid for that mistake by my health.
CHAPTER 3. WORKOUT ROUTINE
How many sets should you do per exercise?
I recommend you to do 5-10 sets in a row per 1 exercise. 5 sets in a row are
for beginners and 10 sets - for advanced athletes.
Everybody used to do 2-3 sets and I recommend 5-10, why?
You need to do 5-10 sets in a row with the same reps in each set in order to
grow mitochondria[3] in your muscles. These energy cells play a huge role in
overall health but they also defend our muscles from excessive acidification
caused by H+, therefore slowing down catabolism. We need hydrogen ions
only to allow hormones penetrate into our muscle cell. On this their useful
function ends and only harm begins - the destruction of myofibrils[4] and
mitochondria. This is one of the main reasons you may catch overtraining.
Performing sets in the manner I described above helps to reduce negative
effect of H+ and increase positive – constant anabolic state.
How to adjust the load for all the sets?
For optimum acidification you should do the same reps for all the sets of the
chosen exercise and only in the last set you are allowed to do more reps.
E.g.
TRUE: Pull-ups 10 10 10 10 13
FALSE: Pull-ups 10 9 8 7 6
What should I do, if my sets look smth like this: 10 8 7 6 5?
Just take the average (10+8+7+6+5)/5=7,2
So at the next workout, perform 7 reps in 4 sets and in the last set do 7 or
more reps (as you wish).
What do I call the “INTENSITY” in my training method?
The intensity in any “pumping” workouts is usually measured by the
burning feeling in your muscle and/or the visual appearance in the mirror.
But such indicators are very subjective. The objective indicator of the
training intensity is your working pulse after the last set.
Optimal pulse (INTENSITY) after the 5th or 10th set when you feel optimum
burning in your muscle should be:
“170 minus age +-15”
E.g. if you are 20 y.o. then your pulse after the last set of the exercise should
be:

INTENSITY ZONES
MINIMUM OPTIMUM MAXIMUM
135 BPM 150 BPM 165 BPM
I recommend you to check the pulse over the carotid artery on the neck or
on the inside of your wrist for 10 seconds and then multiplied by 6.
Should I do the last 5th or 10th set to failure?
You should stop the set when you feel burning in your muscles, not failure.
Always leave few reps in the tank before reaching total failure. Please
remember:
To burning, not to failure!
What is the optimal rep range for hypertrophy?
I recommend you to do sets with TUT (time under tension) 20-90 seconds.
Of course, remember to maintain constant tension in your muscles.
Is warm-up necessary?
First sets are the warm-up sets that prepare your CNS, muscle and heart
ready for hard work. Although, if you feel that it is not enough, you can do
joint-rotations for each of your major joints before starting a workout.
How much time to rest between sets?
You should rest 2 minutes.
Can I rest more between sets?
Rest between sets is an important component of the workout intensity. Some
people like to add reps per set, by increasing the rest time between sets at
the same time. E.g. at the 1st workout an athlete did 5 sets of 10 reps with 2
minutes of rest and at the 2nd workout he did 5 sets of 12 reps with 5
minutes of rest. This is not a progress! I do recommend you to use a
stopwatch to check the rest time between sets.
How much time to rest between the exercises?
You should rest as much as you want, usually 3-5 minutes.
What about progressive overload?
Do not force yourself to progress! When your muscles grow, they will
become stronger by default. Just achieve glycogen supercompensation
before every workout and you will increase reps and sets with ease.
You can determine glycogen supercompensation by the 2 main signs:
1. Your muscles return their fullness and round look (after the good
workout in 30-60 minutes they look and feel flat);
2. On the workout you can easily achieve burning effect and train in
the right corridor of the INTENSITY (170 minus age +-15).
Why I cannot feel burning in my muscles?
There are several reasons:
1. You choose very hard versions of exercises. Burning effect is
usually achieved after 20-30 seconds under tension. This is
usually more than 10 reps, of course if you perform 1 rep per 3
seconds and rest 2 minutes between sets;
2. You do not keep strictly the 2 minute rest intervals between sets;
3. You do not maintain constant tension in your muscles. Even I do
recommend working in full range of motion, at the same time you
should avoid a rest during the working set, by working non-stop;
4. You do not consume enough complex carbs, so you train without
glycogen, which is the main energy source for anaerobic
glycolysis.
5. You train too often and sleep too little. Even if you consume
much carbs, you need to sleep enough time in order to convert
these carbs into muscle glycogen.
How should my weekly training plan look like?
Training frequency depends on how you manage to maintain the right
INTENSITY from workout to workout. Usually I recommend the following
weekly plans, but it is not a dogma and should be adjusted according to your
recovery resources (food and sleep):
Level 1. BEGINNER
Exercises Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Sets
Pull-ups 5 5 5 15
Push-ups 5 Rest 5 Rest 5 Rest Rest 15
Squats 5 5 5 15
Total sets: 45
Total time: ≈ 2
hours

Level 2. INTERMINDIATE
Exercises Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Sets
Pull-ups 10 10 10 30
Push-ups 10 Rest 10 Rest 10 Rest Rest 30
Squats 10 10 10 30
Total sets: 90
Total time: ≈ 4
hours

Level 3. ADVANCED
Exercises Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Sets
Pull-ups 10 10 10 10 60
Push-ups 10 10 Rest 10 10 Rest Rest 60
Squats 10 10 10 10 60
Total sets: 120
Total time: ≈ 5-6
hours
IMPORTANT: I wish to emphasize, that you should increase training
frequency ONLY(!) if you manage to achieve glycogen
supercompensation, otherwise skip your training session, just eat and
sleep.
Can I do exercises in different time, one in the morning, one in the
evening etc.?
Yes, of course. The most important thing is that you do 5-10 sets in a row
for each exercise. E.g. you can do 5-10 sets for pull-ups in the morning, 5-
10 sets push-ups - in the middle of the day and 5-10 sets for jump-squats –
in the evening. You can spread all the exercises along the day and even
along the week as you wish.
How much time does it take to reach the ADVANCED level?
If you are an absolute novice, then it usually takes up 2-3 years, depending
on the age, health, genetics and resources for recover (food and sleep) to
reach such a level. For most people, who have a full-time job and not related
to fitness industry, 100-120 sets per week is their weekly max.
What about active recovery? (walking, ball sports etc.)?
Outside of training you can do absolutely any physical activity you want.
Just make sure that you achieve glycogen supercompensation. When you
feel you wake up with flat and sore muscles in the morning, then your
glycogen stores are empty and you should reduce the volume of these
activities.
What about special exercises for calves/abs/middle deltoids?
For calves the single best exercise, among running, is jumping rope on two
legs or on one leg. 5 sets a day with 2 minutes rest will be enough. Pulse
after the 5th set should be 170 minus age +-15.
Abs are primarily made in the kitchen. If your bodyweight fat percentage is
higher than 10-12%, you will not see your abs. As for the core muscles, pull
ups and push-ups will be enough if you are not going to fight in MMA.
CHAPTER 4. NUTRITION
Part 1. General rules
Now I would like to offer you 5 simple but effective nutrition rules that do
not require counting calories and macros:
1. The principle of variety.
Your meal plan for week should consist of at least 10, but rather 20
products, which should include:
- Animal products (meat, fish, poultry, cottage cheese etc.);
- Cereals and bread;
- Raw fruit and vegetables (every meal).
2. Principle of appetite.
This principle means that within 10-20 food items for a week, you can
eat whatever you want.
3. Principle of minimizing fats.
Choose low fat products most of the time. That will help you stay lean
all year round. Nevertheless I recommend 1-2 times per week to eat
fish that is rich in polyunsaturated omega-3 fats.
4. Principle of vitaminization of the diet.
In addition to raw vegetables and fruits, I recommend you to take
multi-vitamins twice a year (in autumn and late winter).
5. Principle of weighing.
Every morning you need to weigh yourself in the same clothes, after
the toilet, on an empty stomach. Then you need to calculate the
average weight for the week by this formula:
(Weight1+Weight2+…Weight7)/7
Monitoring weekly average weight will help you to eliminate such
factor as daily water fluctuations in the body, so you get the real data.
Part 2. Frequently asked questions
How much animal products should I consume per day?
I recommend you to eat minimum 5-7 grams of animal products per 1 kg
(2,2 lb) of BW. E.g. if your weight is 70 kg (154 lb), then you should
consume more 350-500 grams of animal products. Plus on every 100 grams
of animal products you should eat the same quantity of raw fruit/vegetables.
Do not specifically force yourself to eat more protein products. You hunger
for protein will increase itself, after you start regularly working out.
How to weigh animal products?
You should weigh animal products in raw. If you weigh cooked
meat/fish/poultry, then proceed from the calculation that 100 g of the
finished product is approximately equal to 200 g of raw product.
How many meals per day should you eat?
The number of meals per day can vary. For most people, 2-4 meals a day
will be optimal.
How much water should I drink?
I recommend you to drink 1-2 cups of plain water immediately after waking
up and at least 1 glass after each (!) workout. The rest of the time, drink as
much water as you want.
Is it okay to drink water while eating?
Yes, it`s ok.
What is the best time to consume carbs?
I recommend you to eat carbs before bed or a nap. Glycogen synthesis
occurs best when you feel totally relaxed (stress and hormone cortisol
prevents glycogen synthesis). You have done everything right, if you wake
up in the morning fresh with full and round muscles.
Will carbs make you fat?
Fats are the main energy source for low intensity aerobic activities, such as
walking, jogging etc. For anaerobic activities muscles primarily use carbs.
And now just imagine, that you consume much fats, perform no aerobic
activities and at the same time consume little carbs and have no energy for
high-intensity anaerobic workouts. In such situation, you will eventually
gain fat and lose muscles, although your bodyweight may stay the same.
Nevertheless you should always remember, that if you consume too much
carbs (especially simple carbs), more than can be converted into glucose or
glycogen, you will get acne.
Will you lose fat on this diet?
If you reduce fat in your diet and eat enough carbs and protein for
performing intensity workouts, then I will say “YES”. Naturally muscles
grow at the speed of 4-5 kilograms (8,8-11 lbs) per year (although, some
beginners may add up to 12 kg (27 lbs) in the first year). If you manage to
gain 10 kg (22 lbs) of lean muscle mass for 1 year and at the same time lose
10 kg (22 lbs) of fat, then your waist will reduce by 10 cm (3,9 in)[5]! You
will look drastically different! Such approach is very comfortable, without
unnecessary suffering and deprivation. Although I can admit the fact that
some people are created for suffering and the very fact of fighting is more
important to them than the result. Well, to each his own.
Should I eat less calories to lose fat faster?
Forget this glamour fitness bullshit, man! In Russia there is a joke about
skinny and weak people: “probable he ate too little porridge”. And that`s
true. If you want to gain muscle and lose fat, train more, eat more and sleep
more. Otherwise you will just slowdown your metabolism, lose muscle and
gain fat.
What about supplements (protein powders, creatine, bcaa etc.)?
Nutritious food is your single best supplement. Eat raw fruits and
vegetables regularly, train hard, but smart, sleep good[6] and you do not need
any supplements at all (except maybe multivitamins 2 times a year).
CHAPTER 5. FINAL WORDS
In this book I gave you the most effective methods how to change your
body in the shortest and healthiest way possible with bodyweight training
only. The only thing you need now is just to follow the advices from this
book without adding anything from yourself. Be ready, that most people
around you will say, that you are screwing around and that without extra
weight it is impossible to build shredded and muscular body. I faced the
same obstacles in the beginning of my way. But as soon, as you get the first
results in bodybuilding, you will become mentally stronger and learn not to
listen to the naysayers. Always remember, that you are not alone, bro!
Some of my clients:
Once a week my clients call me on SkypeTM to show
how they train or they just send me videos with their
technique, so I can give them the right advice in the
right time. I provide my clients individualized
training and nutrition plans, so they reach their goals
in the fastest and healthiest way possible.
Age is just the figure in your passport. Be in good
shape at any age. Health is best wealth!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Alexander Iron is the Russian certified fitness coach, nutritionist, expert in
calisthenics and author of dozens of articles for different Russian
magazines. Based on more than 13 years of training experience and
consultations over 100 people - men and women of age 15-50, he developed
his own unique methods how to get in good shape and improve health with
bodyweight training only. Participant of numerous exhibitions related to
sports, science and health.

If you have any questions, please contact me:

ironxander@gmail.com
skype: ironxander
[1]
In the first 2-3 months the strength in any new exercise primarily increases due to neural
adaptations than muscle growth. But after this period, the only way to increase strength is to grow
muscles.

[2]
Burning effect in muscles is caused by the H+ (Hydrogen ions) that come from lactic acid (ion
lactate and H+). H+ makes your muscles pumped during workout. Optimal concentration of H+
(Hydrogen ion) is one of the 4 factors that activates protein synthesis (Panin L.E., 1983). The other 3
factors are:
- Stock of amino acids in the cell;
- Increase of the concentration of anabolic hormones in the blood; (Holloszy et al., 1971;
Schants, 1986)
- Increase of the concentration of free creatine in working muscles. (Walker, 1979)
[3]
Mitochondria are the power generators of the cell. Mitochondria determine the level of the local
muscle endurance.
[4]
Myofibrils are contractile proteins in our muscles. Any significant muscle hypertrophy is related to
myofibrils.

[5]
Practice shows, that to lose 1 cm in the waist, you have to burn at least 1 kg of bodyfat.

[6]
The mark of a good sleep: you wake up without an alarm clock in good mood and you have dreams
(not nightmares).