Ok, in part one of 6 Ways to Build Muscle Without Weights, I wrote about extreme pushups and sprinting through sand to build your calves. In part two, I'm going to be mentioning another couple of ways to build muscle outside the gym. Two more methods that I learned the hard way during my time in the military. So I can vouch for their effectiveness.
There was one old Sergeant that got around during my time. As well as being known as a professional soldier, this guy was also known as "muscles". He was the only guy I ever saw who probably didn't have to iron his shirt. He simply filled it out so well! One day he joined us for a PT session (physical training) and the instructor asked him to show us his favourite exercise.
It was at this point we realised why we had brought along our packs. We thought we were getting the chance to go for a leisurely stroll (pack march ;) ), but this day, we had something else in store for us.
In the usual military fashion, we were given about 10 seconds to put on our packs and form up, a couple of paces apart. "Muscles" then began to show us what he had intended to do all day. With a grunt, he squatted down with his pack still on his back and performed a single rep.
If you have ever performed barbell squats before, you will know they take an extreme amount of effort. So these "pack squats" are essentially the same thing. If you load a pack up with some weight (rocks, books, whatever) and perform the technique correctly, you will add some serious muscle to your legs in no time.
It's important to be able to perform the squat correctly, so if you are unsure, please make sure you find the correct way to do it, so you don't end up injuring yourself and swearing at me.
The second exercise I'm going to mention here is also an absolute ripper for building your entire legs. It might not be the most fun to actually do, but if you can work up the courage to do it, you'll be glad you did.
So lets return to that training session with "muscles". After performing some squats, most of us were pretty exhausted. But being the military, it wasn't over yet. We were then told to lighten our packs a little and get ready to march. Looks like we were getting that leisurely stroll after all.
So off we went. Legs still a bit wobbly, but that didn't matter. At least, it didn't matter until we got to the foot of the mountain our academy was positioned on. Ironically, the Mountain was named Mt. Pleasant (Seriously).
You see, we had been ordered to march up the hill that was Mt Pleasant. While it wasn't quite as high as Everest, after squats and carrying a large and heavy pack, we were pretty exhausted.
So what you need to do for this is find a backpack and a hill. A hill isn't necessary, but it certainly helps. Once you've loaded up the backpack with a comfortable weight for you (Hey, you're not in the military) set off on your "leisurely stroll". The pace at which you go will be dependant on your current level of fitness, so you're going to need to use your head on this one.
Alright, I hope you make use of these two great leg builders. It's gonna take some guts, but if you can make that first step and give it a go, you'll see just how effective they really are. In part three of 6 Ways to Build Muscle Without Weights, I'm going to go into the exercises favoured by a commando. They are definitely not for the faint of heart.
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