Body weight all I need for my goals? page

[apocalypto]

Hi all,

This is my 37th day of living a paleo/primal lifestyle and it friggin' rocks. While I'm still working on trimming belly fat (more on that in a second), my energy level is spectacular. That alone justifies this entire endeavor for me. But I am curious how long it takes for a person like me to fully become a fat-burning beast.

I am and always have been a scrawny little Filipino dude, a 'skinny fat' ectomorph no doubt. It wasn't until college (and afterwards) however that I started to develop a substantial pudginess in my gut thanks to my diet of (at least) 3 cups of white rice a day (damn you, Filipino food). Since I've cut grains out completely, I've lost about 5 lbs. and have become, uh, less pudgy (see attached picture). But, after watching Mel Gibson's Apocalypto recently, I want the sort of physique that the protagonist has in case any bloodthirsty Mayans decide to chase after me. Per the Primal Blueprint Fitness plan, I've been doing the full set of body weight exercises that Mark recommends twice a week and slowly implementing interval sprint sessions. Will sticking to these body weight exercises and weekly sprints be enough to finally melt the rest of the belly fat? Since I have no access to free weights (except for 15 lbs. dumbbells), I'm planning to stick to the body weight exercises; I wonder however if this will lead to little or no success at shredding the rest of the fat away. My own research suggests that I will need to pursue lifting but my financial resources are limited.

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[EvRevFit]

Weights aren't the end-all, be-all. Bodyweight can be more than sufficient for anyone, you just need to know how to make things hard enough to stay challenging. There are a few books that are popular here: Your Body is Your Gym, Convict Conditioning, and Building the Gymnastic Body are all great resources. One of my other favorites is Ross Enamait's book, Never Gymless. Oh, and Brooks Kubik's book, Dinosaur Bodyweight. Once you learn how to progressively challenge yourself, bodyweight training is no joke, and more than sufficient to reach your goals.

[jfreaksho]

Go to Gymnastic Bodies | Worldwide Fitness Community and see what bodyweight training can do for people. It is more than sufficient, but it also takes some skills, and more time.

Iron is usually faster for building strength and muscle, has more obvious progression (+5 pounds every week, etc) and requires less skill.

[a-ray]

Bodyweight is a great way to start out. Once you reach a peak in BW workouts, then you can start adding in the weights.

I'll also recommend looking into the SimpleFit program. After only 5 weeks of SF, I can clearly tell a difference in my strength and fitness.

[MissJecka]

Definitely give bodyweight a try. Check out You Are Your Own Gym - this guy is incredible and trains military folks using just body weight exercises. Also, check out Mark's Primal Blueprint Fitness e-book; I use it and it's 100% body weight exercises (except for the super-duper crazy top-level version of each movement, which involves a weighted vest). I already see results in my endurance/reps and tone in just a few sessions of this.

[tcb]

I made great progress for about a year on BW only. After stalling out for a couple of months, I felt I had to get under some iron to continue making gains. My thoughts were right. I've packed on a good deal of muscle since incorporating squats, deads and presses. I still do some body weight stuff along with the weights.

[Mr. Anthony]

I recommend both bodyweight exercises and using weights. I do quite a bit of both, and when I lift heavy, I lift very heavy. Build up to things with bodyweight, then start incorporating more weights as you get comfortable and are using good form.

For background, I'm a former gymnast (still coach), and you can get plenty ripped with proper bodyweight exercises, but at some point you'll be having to do a pretty crazy amount of them, or be using VERY challenging exercises. It's a myth that gymnasts don't lift weights--they just don't lift them the same way your stereotypical meathead at the gym does. Even my 12 year-old team girls use weights.

[loganchristopher]

I would also recommend the supplementation for bodyweight exercises. Weight training comes first, then bodyweight.

[Tom B-D]

Whatever the workout choice, I'd say losing the last of the belly fat is going to have more to do with diet than exercise. There's no way I could be convinced to go to a gym to lose those last few pounds, but reading all these threads about how people are tinkering with ketosis, carb levels, fasting, calorie counting (or not), it's clear that needs to be a major focus if you want to get to that "ripped" stage. Personally, I've still got a little of the belly fat still, but am just not worried...I look and feel better than ever and figure it will probably come off eventually...or not, if my body is happy at this healthy place, and that's fine. Anyway, good luck!