“For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.” - Philippians 4:13 NLT

3 Ways Bodyweight Workouts Can

Revolutionize Your Life

When we think of strength training, it often conjures images of the gym with dumbbells and squat racks. But, let's take a moment to appreciate the incredible strength that lies within our very own bodies—no added weights necessary!

Here are 3 top reasons why bodyweight exercises can revolutionize your life:

1️⃣ Functional Fitness:
Bodyweight movements are not just about exercise; they are about translating strength into everyday, real-life activities. Whether it's getting up and down off the floor, hiking with friends, or playing with your kids in the backyard, God designed your body to thrive through diverse movements. So, ideally, your movement practice challenges your range of motion and embraces multi-joint exercises that mimic the way life unfolds, which, as you know, happens in ALL surprising and unpredictable ways. 😁

2️⃣ More Muscle, Less Risk:
Growing muscle through bodyweight exercises is simply putting muscles under tension. Essentially this tension results in micro-tissue damage that encourages the tissue to adapt and grow stronger. And as you continue to encourage this adaptation and growth, you will need to continue to challenge the tissue more and more.

For example, if you are in the beginning stages of building strength, 2 sets of 10 squats might be enough to fatigue your tissues and find that sweet spot of challenge. Three weeks later, you might find those 2 sets of 10 are much easier, this is because your body is telling you it’s time to up your game!

This is when you change things up, create more resistance or variability. Going back to the squat example, you might lift the heel of one foot as you squat, add pulses at any point in the movement, or put one foot on top of a step or block to continue to challenge your tissues in different ways.

You can also speed things up or slow things waaaayyy down (my favorite!) or add more repetitions. Remember from our discussion on functional fitness above, life happens in a variety of ways and we want our bodies to be prepared to navigate all those ways well, with confidence and ease!

3️⃣ Flexibility and Stability:
God’s miraculous design of your body naturally craves stability and safety. When stability and safety comes into question, your nervous system does all it can to find it, often that means reducing your range of motion, leaving you feeling grippy or “tight.” What helps the nervous system feel more stable (read safe) you ask? STRENGTH!

Moving your tissues and building strength in all areas helps the body be able to support itself in the way God designed. Oh, and here’s the kicker, with this new-found sense of safety, strength gains will naturally lead to greater mobility and flexibility! 🙌

Researcher James Whitehead from University of North Dakota stated in a published study in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research "full-range resistance training regimens can improve flexibility as well as, or perhaps better than, typical static stretching regimens."

This is why Olympic weightlifters that work in their full range of motion (compared to bodybuilders who tend to work in shorter ranges) are only second to gymnasts as being the most flexible athletes...crazy, right?

In conclusion, bodyweight exercises hold the power to revolutionize your life. This is why we have carefully curated a balanced mix of flowing, stretching and strengthening practices on With-God Wellness to help you find your perfect balance to nourish your body.

So, embrace your body's potential, and let it lead you to newfound strength and resilience on your journey!

Looking for some free Christ-centered bodyweight workouts to try for yourself? Check out our Take-10 movement snippets on Youtube!

Keep growing strong in the Lord!

Jen Allbritton
E-RYT 500
B.S. in Kinesiology
Co-Founder of With-God Wellness