10 Of The Best Exercises To Do In Your Home Gym…

In Part One I shared with you ‘How to Build a Kick Ass Home Gym With Only 6 Pieces of Equipment‘ if you missed it make-sure to go and check it out first – Read Part One Here.

So now you’ve built your gym, here’s 10 of the best exercises to do:

1) Barbell Squats

1. Rest an olympic bar on the top of your shoulder blades
2. Place feet shoulder width apart
3. Slowly lower your butt to the floor (90 degrees)
4. Pause for 1 second at the bottom
5. Squeeze you legs hard and push up until you return to the starting position
6. Repeat this for 10-15 reps and 3 sets

2) Military Barbell Press

1. Pick up a barbell with a grip slightly wider than shoulder width
2. Keep your core muscles tight
3. Press the barbell straight up until your arms lock out
4. Slowly lower the bar back down into the start position
5. Repeat this for 10-15 reps and 3 sets

3) Bench Press

1. Lay down on a flat gym bench
2. Keep you back flat and feet pressed firmly into the floor
3. Grip the barbell outside of shoulder width
4. Slowly lower the bar down until it touches your chest
5. Pause for 1 second at the bottom before contracting your chest and pressing the barbell back up into the starting position
6. Repeat this for 6-10 reps and 3 sets

4) Dumbbell Sumo Squat

1. Grab an adjustable dumbbell
2. Place your feet outside of shoulder width and point your toes outwards
3. Slowly squat down to 90 degrees
4. Pause at the bottom for 2 seconds and then return back to the start position
5. Repeat this for 15-20 reps and 3 sets

5) Dumbbell Row

1. Grab a pair of adjustable dumbbells, bend your knees and lean over at the waist (approximately 45 degrees)
2. Starting in a stretched position, contract the weights up to your waist using your mid back muscles
3. Hold at the top for 1 second before slowly lowering the weights back down
4. Repeat this for 10-15 reps and 3 sets

6) Medicine Ball Twist 

1. Grab a medicine ball and sit on the floor
2. Lean back slightly so your abs tense up
3. Twist side-to-side whilst holding the ball
4. Go slow and use the abs to initiate the twisting movement (not your arms)
5. Repeat this for 30-50 reps and for 3 sets

7) Hamstring curl on fitness ball

1. Lay down on the floor, and place the bottom half of your legs on a fitness ball
2. Lift your bum so it’s raised 2-4 inches of the ground
3. Start to curl the ball towards your bum until your legs go to 90 degrees
4. Pause in the flexed position for 1 second before slowly returning back to the start position
5. Repeat this for 20-25 reps and complete 3 sets

8) fitness ball crunch

1. Lay down on a fitness ball with your back straight
2. Contract your abs and crunch forward 3-5 inches
3. Pause in the top position for 3 seconds before returning back to the start
4. Repeat this for 10-15 reps and complete 3 sets

9) Push Up

1. Place your hands just outside of shoulder width
2. Slowly lower yourself to the floor until your approximately 3-5 inches from the ground
3. Pause at the bottom for 1 second before pushing yourself back up (you can also do these on your knees if you can’t manage full push ups)
4. Repeat this for 10-15 reps and complete 3 sets

10) Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press

1. Using an upright bench grab a pair of adjustable dumbbells
2. Start with your arms bent at 90 degrees
3. Slowly press the weights straight up until your arms are just short of locking out
4. Slowly lower the weights back down to the starting position
5. Repeat this for 10-15 reps and complete 3 sets