Welcome to /r/bodyweightfitness! 🏸

So I’m 28M 200lbs and 5’10”. I’ve got a blue collar job as an auto tech. My weight has always been right around 200lbs. My heaviest has been 220 and my lightest has been 180 after being sick for a couple weeks. It’s been this way since high school. I wouldn’t say I’m fit but I’m definitely relatively strong from my job.

I’ve been doing the body weight workout thing on here (I think?). I downloaded the 3x8 app and have been following that for about 2 months now. During the rest periods in between sets I stretch since I’m not flexible at all. On the “rest days” I run 2-3 miles and sometimes do push ups if I’m not sore at all (typically I can do 75-100 in sets of 25-30 pretty easily).

For my diet I eat about 1 cup of cottage cheese with some fruit for breakfast. I never eat lunch. And then for dinner I make a HelloFresh meal so not usually the healthiest but not fast food or anything like that. I don’t eat too much sugar but occasionally I’ll have a cookie or some ice cream with my daughter. On the weekends I usually go out to eat for one or two meals.

Would you guys keep up this routine? Any suggestions for improvement? I honestly don’t know when to see improvement since this is the first time I’ve ever been serious about being less of a lazy bastard.

So I've tried RDLs, single leg RDLs, pretty much just picking up shit off the floor that's pretty light and aiming to hinge properly but I pretty much always load my lower back. (Yet to try nordics)

Like I can pick up and carry people 20kg lighter than me comfortably, but picking up 20kg from the floor generally leads to some back discomfort. Ive hurt my back with 10kg RDLs. It's better if it's above floor height of course, but even just lowering things down I am 100% loading my back.

I have filmed myself and there's always something off, but I mean there isn't a great deal of point in filming myself, I can feel that I'm doing it wrong, pretty much do a different thing wrong every time.

I understand a hinge at the hips, and how to bend without rounding your back, but I don't understand bending your legs at the same time. I've never done that when picking things up, I've always squatted down, lifted it onto my thighs, then stood up.

It's not like I've never lifted heavy things, I can carry pretty heavy stuff, but I just don't understand how to hinge properly. Like I've been practicing the movements for a while, still feels awkward as hell.

Dunno whether I should just practice more? Honestly it just gets annoying having a mildly sore back on the regular. I don't really hurt my back at all lifting stuff how I normally do, which is more like a squat.

To add, I've always had super inflexible hips. I wasn't able to squat fully until a year ago, and I couldn't sit on the floor or cross my legs as a child. I was pretty much in constant discomfort at school from the age of 5 because I was never really to sit properly on the floor in any position.

Hi ! I am 18 yrs male . I been going to gym for 2 to 3 months (5 to 6 times a week) . And I have seen some results . Now I want to do both calisthenics and weight lifting.

Calisthenics is to building my strength Since I am some what lean I need weight lifting to build muscles

The thing is I don't have a workplan for this hybrid training. My current workout plan is

Day 1 : legs and triceps Day 2 : chest and shoulders Day 3 : bicep and back Repeat for 3 days and rest for 1 Day

My goal is able to do handstand

Can someone give a workout plan for calisthenics . I don't want to recreate a new plan . It's better I can combine calisthenics workout in between these

Thanks

OK let me explain. I do this exercise that's kind of like a split squat where I slide one foot back while hingeing at the hip and slightly bending my knee, then come back to a standing position. My PT prescribed it to help with my knee pain. I use a sliding pad - like this https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07B87PMKD - to help the rear foot slide along the ground. However, my new gym only has rubber floors, and these slider pads don't work at all on them. So I want to find some kind of thin mat that is grippy on one side, and smooth/slippery on the other side, so that I can take it to the gym to do this exercise with.

I'm sure something like this must exist but I can't figure out what to search to find it lol. I figured someone here might have used something similar? Thanks!!

Welcome to the r/bodyweightfitness Daily Discussion! This is the place to post simple questions, anecdotes, achievements, or just about anything that's on your mind related to fitness!

Commonly asked questions about training and nutrition:

• Recommended Routine is the original full-body workout program of the subreddit.
• Fitness FAQ covers all questions related to nutrition - gaining muscle, losing weight, etc.
• BWF FAQ covers many of the commonly asked questions.
• Even though the rules are relaxed in this thread, asking for medical advice is still not allowed.

DISCORD SERVER:

Our Discord server is very active and is truly the heart of the community. It is not only a social space, but it is also a great place for live discussion on training and nutrition compared to the slow pace of reddit! Come say Hi!

---

If you'd like to look at previous Discussion threads, click here.

I am currently training to partake in a school that requires long stretches of calisthenics designed to push candidates. I made it 75% of the first training before realizing my endurance was not up to par as my reps became much slower than the group and I was barely completeling reps.

I have begun speaking to a personal trainer who states that by increasing my strength I decrease the relative load of the calisthenics an therefore increase my endurance after a period of conditioning nearing the school. I was advised my members who have passed, even ones I was in the same class explaining that I should forgo strength training to focus solely on the calisthenics.

My consult is in 2 days to fully go over a training plan but I'm trying to find if the trainer is trying to push me in a wrong direction. I would love to be stronger but my main goal is passing the class. I found a clinical journal that showed HIIT training and SIT training to be beneficial but was a bit too clinical to find the relationship I was told.

So now that I’m 30 I’ve committed myself to getting in shape. Areas that are the weakest for me are my core and legs. Legs specifically are so bad because of a major car accident I was in a few years back that broke both my femurs and hip. That basically reset them to 0% strength and it took 8 months just to walk again unassisted.

Fast forward to now and I’m working out every other day and squats are part of my routine. However, I cannot actually go very low at all. Nowhere near all the way down. There’s a significant amount of metal in my hip from reconstructive surgery that prevents this.

I still FEEL this exercise in my legs but should I replace it with something more useful? Please let me know if more info is needed.

I understand from a mass perspective there is not a great bodyweight alternative - but if your aim is skills surely this is partially contradictory.

Weighted squat and deadlift form is substantially more technical than most low level bodyweight exercises. Not to say that I think they're inherently dangerous movements, but its pretty reasonable to believe that holding any heavy weight on your back, regardless of form, has higher risk of acute injury than most bodyweight exercises. I've also noticed that people suggest it's necessary to have some substantial weight on the bar to practice correct form/body tension/bracing etc. which seems somewhat risky for a beginner (obviously this isn't required).

Then the other aspect is these movements don't seem to benefit anything that I'd personally perform in real life.

When lifting heavy objects in day to day life, regardless of how much I can carry I am going to opt to share the load with someone else if I can, most of the time its a necessity based upon object shape. Most "heavy" objects are weirdly shaped, the bigger issue becomes grip strength rather than back or leg strength. Also depending on where your from workplace safety laws prevent you from lifting heavy stuff on your own anyway.

I don't think there's any activities I'd participate in where I would think to myself "damn, this would be more enjoyable/doable if I could deadlift/squat more. Most of the limiting factors seem to be my ability to take impact, how high I can jump, how fast I can run, how flexible my lower body is.

Like I get it when your goal is move to move the most amount of weight with your lower body as possible, or build substantial lower body mass. Outside of that it doesn't seem super worthwhile. Higher risk of acute injury relative to bodyweight exercises, high fatigue, highly technical.

Hey everyone,

I recently decided to stop paying for a gym membership and bought a dip/pull-up station to start working out from home. I alternate between lower body and upper body workouts three times a week. Here’s what my routine looks like:

Upper Body Workout:

Level 1: 0 to 3 Pull-Ups

• Australian Pull-Ups: 4 sets of 12 reps
• Negative Pull-Ups: 5 sets of 5 reps (hold descent as long as possible)
• Scapular Pull-Ups: 3 sets of 15 reps
• Active Hang: 45 seconds or as long as possible

Level 2: 4 to 7 Pull-Ups

• Pull-Ups: 3 sets close to failure
• Banded Pull-Ups or Chair Assisted: 3 sets of 12 reps
• Australian Pull-Ups: 3 sets of 12 reps
• Scapular Pull-Ups: 3 sets of 15 reps
• Hollow Body Hold: 3 sets of 20-60 seconds

Level 3: 8+ Pull-Ups

• Weighted Pull-Ups: 4 sets of 5 reps (aim to fail on your last rep)
• Banded Pull-Ups or Chair Assisted: 3 sets of 12 reps
• Australian Pull-Ups: 3 sets of 12 reps
• Scapular Pull-Ups: 3 sets of 15 reps
• Hollow Body Hold: 3 sets of 20-60 seconds

Lower Body Workout:

SUPERSET 1

• Pistol Squats
• Single Leg Glute Raises
  • Do both exercises on the right side
  • Rest 60 seconds
  • Do both exercises on the left side
  • Rest 60 seconds again
  • Repeat 2 more times (3 sets total)
  • 6-12 reps

SUPERSET 2

• Bulgarian Split Squats
• Single Leg Calf Raises
  • Do both exercises on the right side
  • Rest 30 seconds
  • Do both exercises on the left side
  • Rest 30 seconds again
  • Repeat 2 more times (3 sets total)
  • 12-20 reps

CHALLENGE

• Jumping Squats or Normal Squats
  • Try to do as many squats as possible in 3 minutes
  • Include short breaks of about 15-25 seconds

Diet:
I make sure I get enough protein per kg of body weight and keep a steady calorie intake. My goal is to gain 5kg.

What do you think of my routine? Are there any areas for improvement?

Any tips for achieving my goal of gaining 5kg?

Hi everyone!

This is my first time posting here sorry it's so long? I (f25) found this reddit about a year ago and have made so much progress since then!

My background was cross country running, but I started lifting in college. I found this subreddit before atravleing without gym access for seven months and was convinced to buy some gymnastics rings and start the recommended routine! I've made really great progress especially in pullups (I went from being able to do none to 6 and still being able to do more sets of 5,4,3,2,1 after - thank you to those who recommend that fighter pullup program!!!)

I have never really followed a consistent program (like leg day on Monday/Wednesday and upper body Tuesday/Thursday), but I consistently run like two or three times a week and usually get between 6-12 sets of pike pushups and pullups and then 6-9 sets of rows, pushups, pistol squats, and RDLs (when I have weights) per week. I also have some physical therapy exercises I try do for my knees at least twice a week.

The problem is I started a new job on a trail crew where I do 9 hours a day of pretty tough physical labor. Hauling lumber, swinging hammers, moving huge rocks, carrying 40lb packs (which is almost 1/3 of my bodyweight), etc. I've been at it for three weeks and the amount I've been able to workout has decreased significantly. I thought I'd be more used to the work by week 3, but I'm still feeling pretty sore and I'm not sure if I can/should still be working out.

The job is seasonal and lasts 15 weeks so I was wondering if I should pause my routine completely, continue with the same volume, or reduce the difficulty/frequency of my workouts and runs. I'm kind of going by feel now because I don't want to get any overuse injuries, but I'd love any insights/advice from people who work manual labor or more physical jobs and keep up with a workout regimen!

Thanks in advance :)

Hello,

I've been working out for a while with weights, and up until recently was doing bjj, so I have some background with working out, but I'm curious about training frequency I recently rediscovered Matt fureys combat conditioning, and in it he recommends the 'royal court' (Hindu push-ups Hindu squat and back bridge) as a daily routine, I suppose my question is what did your routine generally look like when you were getting into calisthenics? Is the royal court everyday, In addition to a push pull legs split reasonable? I also have started to utilize bear crawls and want to keep developing that, so how much can I pile on without being dumb and hurting myself? In addition to the strength/endurance stuff how often would one train mobility? Apologies if this is redundant there's just so much stuff out there I get overwhelmed trying to come up with it on my own. I also have come across Caliverse and they seem to recomend a circuit style body split approach, my only issue ( as someone that admittedly knows very little) is that it seems light to me Thanks for taking a look at My question

So i'm doing Chin ups and dips for 4 months When i started i was doing 4 Chin ups and 13 dips max My weight was 83 kg 190cm i'm doing it 3x times in week. (Im 17 yr) Now after 4 months im able to do 12 Chin ups and 24 dips, but all im scared about that my Arms are not really getting bigger, for me they are so skinny, also now my weight is 88/89 and height is 192, Should i make my training more difficult ?.

Also my max pull up is 8 And i'm thinking about joining the spec ops that's why i want to progress my strength also im bad at running (and all endurance stuff) so if some of you can give me tips i'll appreciate that.

I started working out again (yay) and since I am too weak for pull ups, and the band I bought doesn't assist with the upper part of the movement, I decided to go with inverted rows first and work my way up from there.

But after today's work out, I feel my biceps more than I feel my back and I think my chest got bit of a stretch from that as I feel it as well even though I shouldn't as it's a back exercise...

I didn't go to failure, but I felt fatigued after a while and did many small rep sets to compensate. Still, I don't feel my lats.

So obviously struggling with good form. Any tips for me?

When I usually do pushups, I keep my body still - I DON'T move horizontally (Forwards when going down and vice versa).

However, I've seen some articles/videos saying that I should let it move, what is the correct posture?

For the record, I have seen results from my usual stuff, haven't been trying the latter for long enough to comment.

Also, I'm confirming, My hands need to be 90 deg with my elbow right(palms slightly below chest)

Third thing, When I do finger-pushups, should I let my fingers [upper knuckles] bend inwards(such that if you bend it too much your finger breaks) or outwards(How it normally bends)

Hi! I’m looking for a remote coach who is interested in helping me with weighted calisthenics. I made significant progress a few years ago with an expert personal trainer and need less help with form and more help with programming within the limits of my apartment gym, diet, accountability, and general fitness advice. I want to focus on weighted/bodyweight exercises but very open to other accessory lifts: I’m happy to purchase accessories and work with dumbbells and barbells, just can’t have low-bar back squats and burpees be core exercises.

I’m in US Eastern Time with a flexible schedule and ideally would like to work with someone about once a month, but I’m open to options. Please reply here if I missed any critical information and please message me with your background, website, rates, etc. if this sounds like a good fit. Thanks!

Hey everyone. Hope you’re all doing well.

I think I’m probably asking for something that has been discussed. But I’ve done quite a few searches…. And can’t really find it. So I want to ask the hive mind for your experience.

So……

58m 175cm 74kg. I work with a trainer 4-5 days a week when I am home. (Low cost of living location, otherwise I could never afford it!) Because of that… I am in pretty good shape/reasonably strong, reasonably well developed (for my age!!) and would like to continue in this direction. But…. I travel quite a bit and often for a few months at a time. And I have trouble visualizing and maintaining any coherent system….

I would be open to suggestions for VERY LIGHT WEIGHT….. very compact equipment, if it’s really useful. I am an ultra lightweight traveler. It is difficult for me to add anything to my travel system, but will consider based on utility.

I’m looking for a whole body system. Broken down into 20-30min(MAX) 5-6days/wk. It should systematically develop the ENTIRE body. Including small, support muscles. I am capable of sustaining a very high level of activity for a full 30 minutes….. and can move quickly from exercise to exercise if necessary.

Also…… I do cardio and then stretching/warmup separate from these exercise times.

I prefer to learn and practice the same routine for a few weeks at a time. It helps me to gauge progress and I don’t like having to think too much about what comes next etc. but if you have a good system where it’s important to change it up more often..then I’m happy to listen to the rationales and I appreciate the contribution.

I am fine with videos or just lists of exercises.

Also….. I would also be quite open to apps that develop systems for you if you have had good experience with them. Would prefer to hear from people who have experience with more than 1 app so that there is some basis for comparison.

This kind of whole body system just HAS to be out there. But I haven’t really found it. Mostly just piles of videos etc that don’t form a good, rational whole body system.

Have you?

Thanks everyone!

Hi my name is Blake and I’m 21. Working a strenuous labor job but also wanting to exercise. Meaning I can’t afford to get injured. So I started doing the recommended routine a few months ago and was doing majority of it weighted 3x a week. This being the pull-ups, inverted rows, dips. I quickly realized that I needed to fix some mistakes and focus on my form a lot more. That being said I had also struggled with motivation and consistency to do my “workouts”. Currently I am only doing weighted dips and weighted inverted rows and have increased it up to 25 lbs but knowing pull-ups are hard I’m stuck mostly at 3x7 decent form pull-ups and when I get to 3x8 I’ll add weight. My one question is I’m noticing it’s harder to be disciplined to do the routine in general once every exercise becomes weighted, but also the recovery period seems to lengthen. With this in mind I question if I should keep the sets and rep ranges the same for RR but instead do it 2x a week instead of 3x?

Also just to add at this point in time I have been done 5 days of RR after returning a week ago and exercising M, W, F, M, W

TLDR: Finding as I add weight to majority of the exercises, sessions get way more fatiguing and 3x a week seems not doable. And if I were to do the RR 2x a week with a weighted calisthenics focus what would the schedule be like? For example Monday, Thursday? My ultimate goal is consistency.

I was reading that 5-rep sets of pull-ups isn’t enough reps for hypertrophy, that I’ll only have strength gains. I’d been doing 5 sets of 8 reps unweighted, but with a 2-3 second negative. I find that I have better mind-muscle connection if I control the speed of each rep.

My question is — I just added 10 lbs of weight and now am getting 5 sets of 5 reps, with the same negative. Will I see any gains in size at this rep range with the 2-3 second negative? Or should I stop focusing on the negative and just go for reps? I’m mostly interested in gaining size.

ETA - I’m resting 4 minutes between sets.

Hey, I'm planning to travel this summer and I want to have gymnastics rings with me. This includes wooden rings, the textile straps and metal adjusters on the straps. I will be flying with Wizz Air, Ryanair and Easy Jet mostly, trough Italy, Spain, Portuga, Serbia and Macedonia. I want to bring them in my under seat carriage aka backpack on the plane (i dont plan on having checked in baggage.).
Has anyone had experiences with this? Have you had any problems? Please share.

PS: I know there are past posts on the same topic but they are pre covid and maybe even earlier and I don't think they're applicable because the rules for air traffic are changing all the time.

Hello all. I am a weighted calisthenics enjoyer who's had a really bad run in with golfers elbow this year. All pulling variations cause pain, even rings with a band.

I ran into Mark Rippetoes Golfers Elbow solution, which involves doing a boatload of bodyweight chins, high sets, low reps. For context, I can do one arm chins, a two finger one arm pullup, 100lb weighted pullups for reps etc. The protocol hurt, but was easy to follow. I did it for ten weeks, and the pain went away, until I added ten pounds and tried to do a regular pullups for some reps. Pain was still there and now it's back. I haven't lost any strength which is good, but I need this elbow thing to go away before I lose my mind.

Does anyone here have experience with bad golfers elbow, what worked? What didn't? Any videos or protocols feel free to share. I'd really appreciate it.

Edit: damn! This community is legit! So thanks for all the advice folks, I've decided I'm going to look into seeing a physio (I don't have health insurance so I need to research first), and begin the long road to recovery. I'll try to reply to everyone who's helped.

I'm 17 years old and about 5'6 height and I weigh at 55kg. I'm trying strengthen my biceps and also forearms and I have been watching tutorials but it on youtube but I'm willing to hear your genuine advices. I'm also trying to obtain the 'v shape' body physique and wide shoulders so I have a better posture. And I have also eaten more than usual recently and I have gained bout 1 kg in two weeks.

And if there's any tips on increasing height at 17 I'm all ears. My dad's height is bout 5'10 and my mom's is 5'3 if anyone's wondering bout my height potential based on genetics.

This is all motivated by an upcoming tug of war contest at school as I've never been chosen to be one of the athletes. Luckily, my friend is willing to put me on the team if I "bulked up" within a span of a month.

Wish me luck for the contest!!!

So I've been doing calisthenics for quite a while. I've mastered 20 clean pull ups in one set.

I thought my tucked front lever was clean until I filmed it and my girl told me that my hips are not aligned to my shoulders, but higher than my shoulders.

You can see my form in the video. I did my best in the video but it felt very awkward.

https://youtu.be/3xV7STbrsNg?si=Fu2qINchhD1HHWb7

Do you guys think this is a hips flexibility problem or weak scapula retraction?

I'd like to add that I'm extremely stiff, I can barely reach out to my tibias with my hands when standing straight.

What do you guys recommend? thanks in advance.

I won't beat around the bush with a long introduction. I'm a 6'0 155 pound, 36 year old gamer on whom it suddenly clicked...I'm scronny and need to gain some weight and muscle, without getting fat. I have always had a pretty high metabolism and gaining weight doesn't come easy, but I also don't eat super well and fluctuate from not eating enough (having lazy insufficient breakfasts like a cliff bar) to overeating at dinner and snacking. I am skinny fat...thin but soft (chest, lovehandles).

I've been doing a lot of research on the internet. A lot of what I've read has led me to believe that I need a new diet of "low fat bulking foods" like oatmeal, chicken, avocados, brown rice etc combined with protein shakes and exercise.

Here are my questions:

1. For exercises, I am thinking of doing a lot of body weight stuff, such as pull ups, chin ups, push ups, and other HIIT or calisthenics (i.e., mountain climbers, burpees, reverse lunges etc). Would this sort of workout regiment help me gain muscle mass combined with proper diet?
2. If yes to above, how often do I need to work out? Every other day? 3 times a week? 5 times a week? As much as possible. I honestly don't have a clue and need some honest guidance from those with experience. How important is cardio in this process?
3. How do I determine how much I need to eat? What I've read is I should be consuming about 2500. So does that mean I should be aiming for 3000 a day?
4. When is the time to take my protein shake? Should I only take it after I workout or even on rest days?
5. Can I still enjoy some of my favorite meals from time to time (nachos, some pizza) or do I need to go all in on the low fat bulking diet 3-4 meals a day, 7 days a week?

I am determined to turn myself around physically and it is not easy to reach out for help. I really appreciate the guidance whoever here can give me.

THANK YOU! I plan to go off the grid this summer from many people and hopefully turn myself around by the Fall. Focus on my health and do a lot of deep personal self-improvement. YOU ARE HELPING ME SO MUCH SO THANK YOU IN ADVANCE! :)

Welcome to the r/bodyweightfitness Daily Discussion! This is the place to post simple questions, anecdotes, achievements, or just about anything that's on your mind related to fitness!

Commonly asked questions about training and nutrition:

• Recommended Routine is the original full-body workout program of the subreddit.
• Fitness FAQ covers all questions related to nutrition - gaining muscle, losing weight, etc.
• BWF FAQ covers many of the commonly asked questions.
• Even though the rules are relaxed in this thread, asking for medical advice is still not allowed.

DISCORD SERVER:

Our Discord server is very active and is truly the heart of the community. It is not only a social space, but it is also a great place for live discussion on training and nutrition compared to the slow pace of reddit! Come say Hi!

---

If you'd like to look at previous Discussion threads, click here.

I am 150 lbs BW, and my 1RM on pullups is 75 lbs. I can hold onto one leg FL for 15+ seconds.

Should I start a strength or hypertrophy phase and what would you recommend for my FL workouts and the frequency of them?

I'm around 16% bodyfat, and I'm 15 years old at 5 feet 8 inches tall.

My FL workouts are 3 times a week and here's what it looks like -

3 sets of max half lay/straddle Holds

3 sets of banded full FL holds for 10-20 seconds

2 sets of FL eccentric

2 sets of tuck FL Rows

2 Sets of tuck FL raise

3 sets of weighted chinups

Maybe it's something with my workout, but I don't know what to do now as I feel like I have come to a crossroads. What would you do if you were me?

Thanks in advance.

Greetings, it is hard to self-motivate without a greater goal in mind. Martial art tourneys did that for me in the past, but with bwf alone, not so much.

The problem is the higher goal. I have none. I want to do bwf because I hate overdeveloped/asymmetric muscles when using weights. However, that's not enough fuel for me.

I'd figure finding a friend or group of bwf euthuistast would help, but in NYC, particularly in the upper east side, is tough to find. Especially since I want to work out mostly at 6:00 am.

So, what would you suggest, a greater goal (if so, what?) or a gym friend? Thank you.

I was recently told that I have strong abs that during my workouts may take over my "deep abs" which I believe is transverse abdominals. I am still able to do workouts with perfect form but if that means I am working the wrong abs then it might be imperfect.

For example, I was doing hollow body holds and I was bread loafing so my abs were popping even though my lower back was flush to the ground. I was told abs were popping out too much.

Long story short, what are some good exercises for transverse abdominals and why should we care about them if abs and obliques are good?

Additionally, I am into combat sports so if I need to take a punch do I need to care about transverse vs regular abs?

I did look at youtube but there's so much crap on there idk what is good and what is bad.

I've been doing cali for 8 months now and ive realised that no matter what workout or how intensely I train(like to the point that I'm about to fucking pass out on the floor) i never EVER feel my chest. My triceps get tired way faster than my chest(it is a smaller muscle so it is normal I think) and I've realised that there's no progress from like 4 months ago, like ZERO progress, I look back at older pictures and I can see progress in my arms but ZERO in my chest. I really wanna feel a chest muscle cramps again. Only time I felt them was at the beginning of when I started working out.

HELP ME!

^(I looked through historical posts on this sub about asymmetry and they mostly talked about arm and neck asymmetry. I have a question about leg asymmetry, and how to correct it to limit the risk of overuse injury in running.)

My goal is to increase my running mileage safely. I did a gait analysis recently and found that during my running I have asymmetry in my ankles and in my thighs, and that I have some uneven ranges of motion in my legs.

The gym owner who reviewed my results told me, confidently, that the only way to correct the asymmetries in leg strength is to lift heavy weights at the gym... under the guidance of a personal trainer. Otherwise I'd risk tendon injury while running (e.g. overuse injury). Sounds like a good sales pitch for his gym, eh?

Does that sound correct? I see lots of posts on runners magazines about body weight exercises for muscle imbalances. Are those sufficient to fix muscle imbalances and reduce the risk of running injury?

Who would I go to for a second opinion? (e.g. a physical therapist? A sports medicine doctor? other?)

I saw this post in passing and can't find it now, about an idea that basically just doing sets of military burpees you're getting a pretty good overall workout that your average person would find sufficient.

I'm really intrigued by the idea of a simple rotation that only needs some floorspace and actually hits everything I need for physical maintenance, but I'm deeply suspicious of anything that feels that simple. I'm crunched for time like any parent is, and rarely even sit down except at work. At home I find myself getting interrupted a lot, even during my herniated-disc maintenance exercises that I absolutely cannot forget to do, and it always causes me to forget to finish my routine. I feel bad about it but I'd rather do something to address the issue.

I can't just block off the time and space either--I've got a tiny apartment, no free space, and I'm physically required to intervene to keep these people alive. One of the upsides of bodyweight exercises is that I don't need to go anywhere to do them, so as long as I have the energy to clear a bit of bedroom floor I should be able to get at least some movement in each day.

If this idea doesn't actually work well, is there a similar one that does? The RR and the Minimal Routine are both pretty simple as-is, they're just falling victim to space crunch and "Hey Dad..." style issues.