6 ways to build muscle without gym or equipment

Building muscle doesn’t always require a gym membership or expensive equipment. In fact, people can strengthen their muscles and achieve great results right at home, using their body weight. If someone is looking for simple, effective exercises that can help people build muscle without any extra tools, here’s a guide to get you started.

Push-ups

Push-ups are one of the best

bodyweight exercises

to target your chest, shoulders, and triceps. They’re simple, effective, and can be done anywhere. To perform a push-up:

Start in a plank position with your hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
Lower your body until your chest nearly touches the ground.
Push your body back up to the starting position.
For beginners, you can modify this exercise by doing knee push-ups, and as you get stronger, aim for more advanced variations like diamond push-ups or incline push-ups.

Squats

Squats are fantastic for building muscle in your legs and glutes. They work your quadriceps, hamstrings, calves, and glutes. Here’s how to do a bodyweight squat:
Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your toes slightly pointing outward.
Lower your body as if you’re sitting in a chair, making sure your knees don’t go past your toes.
Keep your back straight and chest lifted as you descend.
Push through your heels to return to the standing position.

Planks

Planks are an excellent exercise for building strength in your core, including your abs, back, and shoulders. To do a basic plank:
Start in a push-up position but bend your elbows so your forearms are on the ground.
Keep your body in a straight line from head to heels.
Engage your core and hold for as long as possible without letting your hips sag.

Lunges

Lunges are great for targeting the muscles in your legs and glutes, specifically the quads, hamstrings, and glutes. Here’s how you perform a lunge:
Stand with your feet hip-width apart.
Step forward with one leg, lowering your hips until both knees are bent at 90-degree angles.
Push off your front foot and return to the starting position.
Alternate legs with each repetition.

Dips (using a chair)

If you have a sturdy chair or low bench, you can perform dips to target your triceps, chest, and shoulders. To do a dip:
Sit on the edge of a chair with your hands placed beside your hips.
Slide your bottom off the chair and lower your body by bending your elbows.
Push yourself back up until your arms are fully extended.
You can adjust the difficulty by moving your feet closer or farther from the chair or using a lower surface.

Glute bridges

The glute bridge is an exercise that helps target the glutes, hamstrings, and lower back muscles. Here’s how you can do it:
Lie flat on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor, hip-width apart.
Push through your heels and lift your hips toward the ceiling, squeezing your glutes at the top.
Lower your hips back to the ground and repeat.