Barbell Circuits for Fat Burning and Muscle Building

Posted by Girlwithnoname in Craig Ballantyne on Sep 12th, 2009 | 2 responses

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Barbell Circuits are a great way to change up your routines and increase the intensity in your workouts. Here’s an article written by Craig Ballantyne about it. One of the things I’m trying to figure out for myself though, is how he says if “you’re weak or female you can use an EZ bar or…. a BROOMSTICK??” … I take exception that because I’m female I might be ‘weak’… and c’mon, a broomstick? We’re talking about weight lifting routines here, aren’t we? How much do you think a broomstick weighs? Less than one lb I’ll bet. For the record, any move he’s mentioned here can also be done with lighter weight dumbbells if you are finding the standard barbells to be too heavy for you, just starting out. Don’t use a broomstick… what possible good are you doing lifting only a few ounces? Plus, he also has put two non-barbell exercises in this particular circuit. How does one do lunges holding a barbell? Answer: they don’t … unless they have some kick ass balance ability going on (which we hope you do but if you don’t that’s something you’ll need to work up to). So if you’re using dumbbells, you can still add weight to your lunges by holding the dumbbells at your sides (if you’re finding using just your bodyweight to be too easy). As for Mountain Climbers… well those aren’t a barbell exercise either (and just putting it on the ground in front of you doesn’t automatically make it a barbell exercise either), and off the top of my head I can’t figure out how to incorporate dumbbells into that one. So, bodyweight only it is… you can use the barbell as the place to put your hands if you want but either way its the same exercise with the same weight (your body weight). Take a look around for other barbell circuits too. There’s lots out there that use the barbell for ALL the exercises and not just some, which in my mind would truly make it a “Barbell Circuit”. This is a great jumping off point though. Give it a read.

While you’re here, take a look at the Flab Labs Turbulence Training case study.

Also, while you’re at it, take a look at Craig’s new article:

5 Fat Loss Myths: Why Long, Slow Boring Cardio is not the Best Fat Loss Program to Increase Your Metabolism and Burn Belly Fat…

Big 5 Barbell Workout Circuit

You’re about to discover the Big 5 Barbell circuit workout that will help you burn fat and build muscle at the same time. This is great for fat loss, but it’s also really good for conditioning yourself for Mixed Martial Arts training. So, we will do a Barbell Complex – where you do a bunch of exercises back-to-back-to-back, with each exercise being done for 15 repetitions.

The type of exercises used in the Big 5 circuit include a squat, a pushing movement, a pulling movement, a single leg exercise, and a total body abdominal exercise. For each of these circuits, you will complete all of the exercises without any rest in between, and then rest one minute and repeat for a total of 3 times through the circuit.

Start out with a barbell, however, if you are a bit weaker or are a female, then use a 25 pound EZ curl bar. If you find that that is still too difficult, then use a broomstick or just your bodyweight. In contrast, if you are super-fit, then you can go up to 55-65 pounds.

The first exercise to do is the squat. For 15 repetitions push your hips back, squat down to parallel, keeping your back flat, and then up.

Next, move on to 15 push presses, making sure to really drive up on the way up.

After the push press exercise, you’ll move on to 15 standing barbell rows. For proper form, bend over slightly, keep your back flat, and bring your shoulder blades together.

Once you have completed all the repetitions for the rows, you’ll then go into 15 forward lunges per side, alternating sides. For this exercise you want to step out and drop your hips straight down, driving back up. Make sure to stop that forward movement once you’ve planted the lead foot.

To finish off the barbell circuit, you’ll do mountain climbers. So, holding onto the barbell that is placed on the ground, bring your knee up to your chest, alternating sides for 15 times a side. At this point you will rest for one minute and then repeat the Big 5 Barbell Complex Circuit two more times.