Best Exercises to Build Muscle Mass at Home

Best exercises to build muscle mass at home

Last week I had a poll on my community page asking what was the best mass building exercises. Specifically what one would be next after the squat, deadlift and bench press. Which are traditionally considered the top 3. The answer was overwhelmingly one-sided.

But before we get to the answer I want to go over all the options, why I suggest them and how to best apply these lifts to home training.

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To build lean muscle mass at home often times we have to do things differently in order to fully stimulate muscle growth and one of the things we can do is train unilaterally. The squat and deadlift are considered to be the all-round best mass building exercises, both of these exercises can be done using a lot of weight more than what most of us have in our home setups.

The problem with unilateral training when doing the squat and deadlift is that it can create a lot of instability. Now we need to work on our stabilization muscles to improve our athleticism and functionality in life, but when it comes to adding muscle mass that instability takes away from our ability to move as heavy a weight as possible. The solution is the kickstand squat and deadlift.

The kickstand squat is done with one foot elevated either on a step or you could use a couple of plates this will increase the range of motion and limit the amount of assistance the back leg can provide. Which is placed slightly behind the working leg just touching the floor lightly for support.

The kickstand deadlift starts in a similar position except without the step. Then as you lower the weight down you bend your knee and move your hips back like a regular deadlift lift.

Your back leg is there just for assistance so you should be able to lift it up off the floor at any point during the lift.

The movement that got the least amount of votes on my poll was dips and I don’t think that this was because it is an inferior exercise to the others. More because I already had bench press on the list. So we had a good chest exercise, adding a second would be redundant especially when there are other muscle groups that haven’t yet been effectively hit.

For the home workout guy, dips just might be at the top of the list as they are arguably as effective as the bench press some may even argue more effective at building the chest while working the shoulders and triceps too. And virtually everyone has 2 chairs or a corner in their kitchen where the can-do chest dips.

The shoulder press got the second most votes and I have seen this one listed, top four in other lists as it hits the shoulders, traps, triceps and even a little upper chest.

I wouldn’t put this exercise in the number 4 spot, possibly five or six on a list of mass builders. A good alternate here using bodyweight is the pike push up.

I did suggest one that I think is better than the shoulder press and that is the clean and press. This exercise trains power and explosiveness that transfers well to your other lifts enabling you to lift even heavier and the press is really a push press giving you the ability to move more weight overhead. So as long as your body is healthy and you control the eccentric you will be able to move more weight.

The clean and press is a great full-body exercise that hits your entire back. An area that hasn’t been properly targeted with the previously mentioned exercises.

It is a more advanced movement so if your just starting out I wouldn’t put it on your list.

The next two exercises are bent over rows and pull-ups. Pull-ups won by an overwhelming margin. Let me make a case for bent-over rows. This should be the number 4 on a list for anyone who can’t yet do a pull-up or if you have shoulder issues that limit your ability to lift your arms up overhead. It also works the lower back in a secondary manner. Which is an area that pull-ups don’t work at all. A good bodyweight alternative is an inverted or Australian row.

Pull-ups are a more advanced movement that we can work up to by using techniques like negatives and band-assisted pull-ups. But in reality, the best way to train your back and build your lats is to do both horizontal and vertical pulling movements this will maximize both the width and thickness of your back.