Why Does My Back Hurt?
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By Art Stanton A.C.E

Pulling your own weight (meant in a literal sense) is becoming increasingly difficult as technology enters our environment. Individuals caught up in the passive lifestyle of today often experience many injuries and discomforts associated with the fact that they are not capable of handling their own body weight. Many people try to counter this notion by joining health clubs and gyms around the country with some success. However, the issue of people being able to handle their own bodyweight persists.

Remember in grade school when the physical education teacher had the students performing push-ups, pull-ups, rope climbing, sit-ups, deep knee bends, sprints, and leg raises. These exercises taught us a valuable lesson. They taught us how to handle and manipulate our own bodyweight. We had much more energy and we were much less prone to injuries.

Modern technology has taught us that the more advanced the equipment the better it is. Take a walk into today?s modern fitness club and you will find people training on the latest modern equipment. Look more closely and you will find that the majority of the people training ?high tech? using a weight that is far less than their own bodyweight. For most, these ?high tech? workouts only make working out easier and no longer teach us the valuable lesson of how to handle and manipulate our own bodyweight. A man seeking average physical fitness should be able to perform at least; 8 pull-ups, 20 push-ups, 30 sit-ups, 30 deep knee bends. A female should be able to perform 4 pull-ups, 8 push-ups, 30 sit-ups, and 30 deep knee bends. A lifter in the gym may be using 100 pounds on a pull down machine and barely get 8 reps, but if they weigh 180 lbs chances are they won?t be able to do more than a few pull ups.

Working out with your own bodyweight can be as easy or difficult as you wish because the main principle is still in effect. The principle is the ability to handle your own weight during various activities. This level of fitness is very important in daily living. An average workout would consist of 20 push-ups, 30 sit-ups, 12 pull-ups, and 50 deep knee bends three days a week. This workout would take less than 10 minutes and could be performed anywhere. A more difficult program would involve up to 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, and 100 deep knee bends three days a week, and 50 pull-ups, 100 back bends, and a three mile run two other days a week. This workout would take less than an hour and the rewards in physical strength and endurance would be worth the effort.

Implementation of Yoga, Pilates and the Exercise Ball are also great alternatives for utilization of your own weight.

Using one?s own bodyweight for training can be an excellent alternative to training in a health or fitness club. Not only does this type of training provide an individual with the skill and handling of one?s own bodyweight it can also provide some insurance against common injuries.