Who this plan is for
This is for people with no equipment at all, including no pull-up bar. Everything here needs a floor, a wall, and something at chair height.
- People training in a small apartment or hotel room.
- Beginners not ready to join a gym.
- Anyone maintaining training while travelling.
- Lifters between gym memberships who do not want to lose ground.
Weekly schedule
Three nonconsecutive days. Bodyweight sessions can be run more often than heavy lifting because the loads are lower, but three is enough to progress.
| Day | Plan | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | Session A | Push and legs |
| Wednesday | Session B | Pull and hinge |
| Friday | Session C | Full body and single-leg |
| Other days | Rest or walking | Recover |
Warm-up
One easy round. Bodyweight work is self-limiting at the start, so a long warm-up is unnecessary.
| Exercise | Sets | Target | Rest | Coaching note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dynamic Arm Circles | 1 | 10 each direction | 15 sec | Start small, then increase the circle without shrugging. |
| Tempo Bodyweight Squat | 1 | 8 controlled reps | 20 sec | Use a comfortable depth and keep the whole foot planted. |
| Hip Hinge Dowel Drill | 1 | 8 reps | 20 sec | Practice moving through the hips before adding load. |
| Cat-Cow | 1 | 6 slow reps | 20 sec | Move gently through a comfortable spinal range. |
The three-day bodyweight routine
Every set should end with two or three good reps left. Grinding to failure on push-ups mostly builds fatigue rather than progress.
Session A - Push and legs
The pressing session, with squatting that gets hard through range and tempo.
| Exercise | Sets | Target | Rest | Coaching note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Push-Up | 4 | 8-15 reps | 90 sec | Body in one line; chest to fist height. |
| Bulgarian Split Squat | 3 | 10 each side | 90 sec | Rear foot on a chair; this is the hardest leg option without weights. |
| Pike Push-Up | 3 | 8-12 reps | 90 sec | The closest thing to overhead pressing without equipment. |
| Wall Sit | 3 | 30-60 sec | 60 sec | Thighs parallel; end the hold before the position collapses. |
| Plank | 3 | 30-45 sec | 60 sec | Hips level. |
Session B - Pull and hinge
Pulling without a bar is the hard part. Inverted rows under a sturdy table are the best available answer.
| Exercise | Sets | Target | Rest | Coaching note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inverted Row | 4 | 8-12 reps | 90 sec | Use a sturdy table edge; keep the body straight. |
| Single-Leg Glute Bridge | 3 | 12 each side | 60 sec | Pause at the top without arching the low back. |
| Nordic Hamstring Curl | 3 | 4-6 reps | 2 min | Anchor the feet under something solid; lower as slowly as you can control. |
| Superman Hold | 3 | 20-30 sec | 60 sec | Lift gently rather than cranking the low back. |
| Side Plank | 3 | 30 sec each side | 60 sec | Hips stacked. |
Session C - Full body and single-leg
Higher rep and single-leg work to round out the week.
| Exercise | Sets | Target | Rest | Coaching note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reverse Lunge | 3 | 12 each side | 90 sec | Step back and control the descent. |
| Push-Up | 3 | 10-15 reps | 90 sec | Second pressing exposure. |
| Step-Up | 3 | 12 each side | 90 sec | Use a chair or a stair; drive through the top leg. |
| Hollow Body Hold | 3 | 20-30 sec | 60 sec | Low back pressed into the floor. |
| Calf Raise | 3 | 15-20 reps | 60 sec | Full range; use a stair edge if available. |
Make the template fit your life
Know when to move up the ladder
DoThis tracks the reps you completed and moves you to the harder variation when you have earned it.
Exercise and equipment alternatives
Use the substitution in the same row, keep the same set and repetition target, and reduce the load while learning the new movement.
| Planned exercise | Alternative | Use it when |
|---|---|---|
| Push-Up | Incline Push-Up | You cannot yet do eight clean reps on the floor. |
| Inverted Row | Superman Hold | You have nothing safe to row under. |
| Nordic Hamstring Curl | Single-Leg Glute Bridge | You cannot anchor your feet. |
| Pike Push-Up | Push-Up | The overhead position is uncomfortable. |
Progression rules
Decide the ladder before you need it. This is what separates a bodyweight plan that progresses from one that plateaus at twenty push-ups.
- Push-ups: incline, then floor, then feet elevated, then one arm assisted.
- Squats: bodyweight, then split squat, then rear-foot-elevated, then one leg to a chair.
- Rows: feet on floor, then feet elevated, then one arm.
- Move up the ladder when every set hits the top of the range with clean technique, then restart at the bottom of the range in the harder variation.
- Slowing the lowering phase to three seconds is a legitimate half-step when the next variation is too big a jump.
Weekly placement and recovery
- Bodyweight training produces less soreness than heavy lifting; you can often train more frequently.
- Wrist discomfort in push-ups usually means the wrist position needs changing rather than the exercise.
- If nothing has felt hard for two weeks, you are behind on the ladder rather than short on volume.
Common programming questions
Can I build real strength with no equipment?
Yes for upper body and trunk, where harder variations exist. Lower body eventually becomes the limitation, because one-leg variations run out of difficulty before the legs run out of capacity.
How many reps is too many?
If you can exceed roughly twenty clean reps, the exercise has become endurance work. Move up the ladder instead of adding reps.
Do I need a pull-up bar?
It helps a great deal, but inverted rows under a table cover pulling well enough for this plan.
Safety and limitations
Stop if an exercise produces sharp pain, dizziness, or chest pain. Test any table or chair for stability before loading it, and build to Nordic curls gradually because they cause significant soreness at first.
This article provides general wellness education, not medical advice, diagnosis, rehabilitation, or individualized treatment.
Sources
Prepared by the DoThis Editorial Team using the cited evidence and exercise names verified against the DoThis catalog. No professional clinical review is claimed.
- Resistance Training Prescription for Muscle Function, Hypertrophy, and Physical PerformanceAmerican College of Sports Medicine / PubMed
- Progression Models in Resistance Training for Healthy AdultsAmerican College of Sports Medicine / PubMed
- Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd editionU.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Make the template fit your life
Know when to move up the ladder
DoThis tracks the reps you completed and moves you to the harder variation when you have earned it.