30 Days Without Weights
Matthew Potak
Weight training over long periods of time can burn out athletes from all different sports. Whether
he or she is a world class MMA fighter or your average Joe who wants to stay in shape, athletes
can get bored with not only their current regimen but with lifting weights period. Most will just
take some time off from the gym and come back ready to hit it hard again. However, others will
take longer periods of time off and become lazy. They lose a good portion of their strength and
size and lose sight of their overall goals.
The best thing that athletes can do when this type of situation happens is to change up the entire
training regimen to make it more exciting. Just to let everyone know, I love weight training, but
sometimes I get tired and banged up. Instead of taking a few weeks off and doing nothing, I have
other options.
Back to the basics
When I started to grow tired and bored of weight lifting, I thought back to when I wrestled in
high school. I remembered that my coaches were big believers in body weight training. I had old
school coaches who would make us do countless push-ups, sit-ups, pull-ups, and squat thrusts. I
should note that I wrestled in 2002, not the 1980s. We had many different types of weight
training equipment at my school, but our coaches insisted that all we needed was “running shoes
and a pull-up bar.” I remember getting great results training with these types of body weight
routines. My conditioning and strength levels went through the roof. My body fat percentage also
went down. So I thought, “if it worked for me, it can work for anyone.”
You always see “in shape” military personnel who have never lifted weights in their life. Most of
them are in great shape and live off of pull-ups, push-ups, and running. In the old days, boxers
never touched weights, and look at the shape that they were in.
Motions
While coaching wrestling this past season, we had many strong wrestlers on the team. Many of
them lifted all year long, and as the season approached, they got bigger and stronger through the
off-season. As the season started, most of them were burned out on lifting weights. We had a
two-day a week in-season program, but the wrestlers just didn’t seem to progress on it. Most of
the guys were just going through the motions, and I felt that going in the weight room was
becoming a waste of time. I preferred to just do more technique drilling. That’s when I decided
to bring back the old days of body weight training. I wanted to see what kind of shape these kids
could get into.
The program
I came up with this program to change things up for my athletes. I immediately had them and
myself performing the workouts. The results speak for themselves. As a team, we increased our
strength and endurance levels by performing this program for one month.
Here is the program:
Day 1: Body weight strength day
(Do 2–3 sessions per week.)
Station #1 (perform in a circuit mode)
• Push-ups, 20 reps
• Crunches 40 reps
• Wide grip push-ups, 20 reps
• Crunches, 40 reps
• Knuckle push-ups, 20 reps
• Crunches, 40 reps
• Diamond push-ups, 20 reps
• Crunches, 40 reps
Note: Eventually, you should add more reps after a few sessions. For example, do 25 push-ups,
45 crunches, and then a few sessions later, do 30 push-ups and 45 crunches. You can also change
the exercises. Just keep it upper body specific.
Station # 2 (circuit mode)
• Split squat jumps, 30 seconds timed
• Mountain climbers, 30 seconds timed
Repeat three more times for a total of four sets.
Note: Eventually, after a few sessions, you should add more seconds per set. For example, go for
35 seconds instead of 30 seconds. You can also change the exercises. Just keep it lower body
specific.
Station # 3 (circuit mode)
• Pull-ups, 20 seconds timed (if you can’t keep pulling, just hold the bar but always strive
for another rep)
• Leg lifts, 20 seconds timed (holding the bar, lift legs up)
Repeat three more times for a total of four sets.
Note: After a few sessions, add more seconds per set.
Station # 4 (circuit mode as fast as possible)
• 25 push-ups
• 50 body weight squats
• 5–10 pull-ups
• 25 sit-ups
Start with 1–2 sets. As your fitness level goes up, do more sets. Try to work your way up to 6–8
sets.
Day 2: Body weight endurance day
(Do two sessions a week.)
• Run at a fair pace. After every 100–300 meters (you decide), drop and perform 10
burpees. Keep doing this until you get 100 burpees. If your fitness level isn’t at that point
yet, do five burpees and keep doing this until you get to 50 burpees.
Closing
This is a program designed for athletes and non-athletes. Remember, you can change the
exercises and make it more suitable for you. Make sure that you add more reps, sets, and time as
you progress. After completing this routine, you will see that body weight training can help you
with all of your goals. If you’re bored with your current program, give body weight training a
chance to see if it’s for you.
