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I'm a 36 year old male. I've been working out consistently for the past 14 weeks, going to the gym 4 days/week to workout different muscle groups. I've made a lot of gains, however, I'm about to embark on an extended trip and will be away from the gym, but I do not want to lose my gains.

I'm looking for recommendations on home workouts that I can perform to keep growing my muscles, especially my quads.

For the first 6 weeks of my trip, I will not have access to any weights. After those 6 weeks, I will have access to:

  • 25KG x2 Dumbbells
  • 25lb Kettlebell
  • a pullup bar
  • a resistance band

I'm open to buying additional equipment if I don't have to rely on a gym going forward.

  1. Is it possible to keep growing muscles from home workouts?
  2. If yes, is my equipment sufficient?
  3. Is there a preferred workout program to follow? e.g. P90X
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    Can you add some more information about what limitations there may be on equipment at home? eg. if you need to be able to tuck things away behind a sofa then that's a different scenario than if you have a dedicated workout area. The short answer is that yes, it's possible to maintain and to progress at home; I've made good progress since largely working out from home since covid began but I've got the equipment to support 200kg deadlift and 140kg bench press and squat (though the ceiling is too low to do a standing overhead press) and so my program isn't wildly different from when at the gym.
    – Dan Roberts
    Nov 8, 2022 at 14:57
  • For the first 6 weeks, I have access to a large livingroom and a yoga mat but nothing else. After that, I have more space but only the equipment listed above. Based on your comment, I imagine I need to invest in a barbell and some plates? Perhaps a bench as well?
    – cobih
    Nov 8, 2022 at 15:26
  • I would recommend a barbell and some plates and a bench wpi;d be great. There is SO much that you can do with the combination of that equipment along with what you already listed that you have access to. Deadlifts, bent over rows, bench press, close grip bench, overhead press (barbell or DB), one arm rows (DB), dumbbell pullovers, bicep curls, skull crushers, even without a rack you can do variations on the squat that require less weight (front squat, narrow stance squat), kettlebell swings, kettlebell clean & press.. you will be able to cover all bases! Then what program is a whole thing!
    – Dan Roberts
    Nov 8, 2022 at 15:32
  • That makes complete sense. I'll keep my eye out on acquiring those equipment you mentioned, I believe that will help my progress without going back to a gym. Thanks a million
    – cobih
    Nov 8, 2022 at 15:54

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Yes, it's possible to keep growing muscles with home workouts. But you also have to consider the effect of the environment. Is the home atmosphere enough to keep you motivated? Are you going to like the new exercises? For some people, the gym is more than just the equipment.

That being said, I think it's always good to have a no-equipment workout plan ready. I think if you can bring some resistance bands on your trip, you'll have a much better chance of keeping your gains. Or you could improvise with whatever is available, like using a backpack for resistance. Here is a list of exercises you can do.

  • Shoulders - Pike Push Up
  • Shoulders - Lateral Raises with a resistance band
  • Chest - Clap Push Ups
  • Triceps - Close Grip or Archer Push Ups
  • Biceps - Curls with a resistance band
  • Lats - Bent Over Row with a resistance band
  • Core - Crunches
  • Quads - Single Leg Wall Sit
  • Quads - Step Downs or Single Leg Squat
  • Glutes and Quads - Split Squat
  • Glutes and Hamstrings - RDL with a resistance band
  • Calves - Single leg calf raises

With bodyweight exercises, since we don't have extra weight to load on the muscles, you have to add speed/explosiveness and/or isometric holds to keep recruiting different muscle fibers. So if you want to get the most out of these exercises, you'll have to be willing to experiment with different tempos to figure out what works best for you.

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