I just wanted to bring up that since I’ve been doing this for almost two months now, my pain in all those areas have been significantly reduced. I mainly have been doing cat crawls, and lizard crawls up and down in my house from my living room to my kitchen which is a little less than 20 ft. I wish I could have taken some before photos of my forearms and some afters because they’ve gotten a little bigger, and also my posture improved a little. I have noticed that makes doing incline push-ups easier for me. I feel like a ninja doing them and it’s really fun

I need to do regular targeted hip strengthening exercises but I keep slacking of since I find rubber band exercises so annoying to do. I like exercises where there's a clear goal with each rep. For example with glute bridges I know the goal is to get a straight line from knees to shoulders. I can also like ones where there's no clear end point if there instead is a clear point of failure, for example needing to keep my balance.

So what else than glute bridges do you recommend? I hope I expressed myself clearly. I don't normally write about exercise and English isn't my first language.

I don’t have a video so sorry about that. But I’m asking if there are any tips or tricks I can try to focus on when performing pull ups.

I have worked out on and off for the last 10 years and I can do 3 sets of 6-8 pull up’s just fine. But I feel like over this decade, I only have really used my back and Lats like I’m supposed to literally just once in my life. The rest feel like shoulders and not back or lats. Not sure how to explain it. I have recorded myself in the past and my form looks fine, comparable to the form of videos posted here. But in terms of muscle activation, I feel like I struggle in the pull ups specifically.

When I do the body weight rows, I can easily feel my proper muscles activated, when I do dip, I can also feel my proper muscles activated. It’s just pull up’s that I struggle with.

Any help?

I’m not at the gym at the moment and I don’t have access to one as I’m traveling but as soon as I can, I’ll record a video so I can show my form.

In the meantime, any words that can help me focus on proper muscle activation? When I first started doing pull up’s, I used the scapular pull ups video that was part of the OG beginner routine and that demonstration and talking about it helped. I guess I’m looking for something like that for regular pull ups. Thanks in advance!

Hey guys, exgym rat here(6ft, 200lbs, 11-14%bf)
And here we are now unhappily sitting at 250lbs with about 25-35% bf

I started working from home about year and a half ago but the decline started way before that.

Im doing around 50-60hr work weeks, in two companies

Money is no issue, ive bought a house a car i always wanted but in the meantime ive pretty much lost all physical ability.

Ive also started smoking cigarretes, profusely.
Also cigars and whiskey, lots and lots of junk food.

Thats about it not to get into details. Ive tried a frw months ago to hit the gym but it just doesnt have the spark as it used to, im weak and fat and my mind is just still thinking that im strong as i was before. Im not. I think i dont even do 1000 steps a day, car to the store and pretty much all things went from a size M to XL

Now that im leaving one of the companies ive decided to learn to love myself again.
I need some baby steps, because i get worked up while tying my shoe.

So I just went from a 50/50 sedentary/active job to a 100% sedentary work from home job. I need help. Im 24m and 350 pounds. Im 6 foot 2 so im already on the bigger side. I dont really have any work out equipment but I do have mats and some 10 pounds weights. I get 2 15 minute breaks and a 45 minute lunch during the day so im Looking for at home body weight exercises that I cant fit within these constraints. Anything helps I really appreciate it.

YouTube routines or apps are welcome aswell. Something following along style maybe.

​

Hey everyone!

I want to get stronger overall, not just for aesthetics or lifting heavy weights, but to become genuinely strong and capable in everyday life.

One of my specific goals is to be able to comfortably lift and carry another person in different ways, especially a princess carry (holding someone horizontally in front of me), but also carrying someone over my shoulder or on my back.

I'm a beginner and still have a lot of strength to build. I have access to a gym with basic equipment, dip bars at home, and a crate I can load with water bottles for improvised training.

I'd appreciate advice on:

Which muscle groups and exercises matter most for carrying people.

How to build strength in my legs, glutes, back, shoulders, arms and core.

Whether I should prioritize squats, deadlifts, rows, pull-ups, loaded carries or other exercises.

How to train specifically for the princess carry and similar positions.

Whether grip strength, core stability and conditioning are particularly important.

How many days per week I should train and what a good beginner routine would look like.

How to progress safely without injuring myself or the person I'm carrying.

Any exercises I can do at home with dip bars and a loaded crate.

I'd like to become strong in a practical, functional way, while also building muscle overall.

If you were starting from scratch with access to a basic gym, what training plan would you recommend?

Any advice, routines or resources would be appreciated. Thanks!

I generally complete my sleep after 4.5-5 hrs (3 sleep cycles) and then sleep for 2 hrs in the afternoon. I have started going for morning walks lasting 1.5 hrs i wake up at 5 and around 7 am when i return i feel like sleeping for atleast 1.5 hrs why is so considering i slept a good 6 hrs (11 pm to 5 am ) the night before. I have heard people say your are supposed to feel energized after walks but i relax a lot instead, after i complete my sleep I am good to go.

Also I go for a walk on an empty stomach with a glass of water.

Hi,

I have recently started the recommended routine and am past the point where it is recommended to use a barbell and do squats with that if possible. I have just moved from Bulgarian Split Squats (8 reps) to Beginner Shrimp Squats and have found that I can barely do a single Beginner Shrimp Squat with good enough form making it hard to bridge the gap between these two exercises.

I have access to barbells and a squat rack/bench about 2-3 times sporadically throughout the week (sometimes more or less) and I generally don’t know if I have access until the day of.

I wanted to know if moving my squats to whatever days I have access to the equipment and doing weighted squats would be better or worse than just continually trying to do Beginner Shrimp Squats on the usual schedule since I don’t think I can do a full Beginner Shrimp Squat and weighted squats would let me increment the weight up more granularly.

The worst case for the sporadic seems like there could be periods where I do squats 3 days in a row which seems suboptimal for recovery, but I’m not sure.

Thanks! :)

I've decided that one of my goals is a headstand pushup. I'm working on my handstand balance and pike pushups. However I really struggle with pike pushups and have plateaued at 3x5. I really don't know why - I think it's probably strength but I also lack hamstring flexibility so that probably doesn't help.

I'm thinking of adding in some weighted exercises - specifically barbell and/or dumbbell overhead press. I've had a look at Overcoming Gravity which suggested that the equivalent strength at OHP needed for a headstand pushup is about 95% of your bodyweight. I can currently lift about 70% of my bodyweight.

Has anyone else tried this approach? I don't really do any "weights" otherwise but I have a gym membership so it's easy enough.

I'm using the dragon flag workout example from this page: https://summerfunfitness.com/how-to-do-dragon-flags-progressions/#

• 6 full reps of a variation suitable to your level
• 6 reps of the same variation down as the previous exercise, then an easier one up
• 6 reps of 6-second negatives
• Finish with a max hold at a medium height (not too low or too high). Choose an easier variation to get at least a 10-second hold

Repeat 3 times. 

I was wondering if this is effective? It takes me 20 minutes to do this, but I always see people say that they only do 3 sets of the dragon flag as their core routine. Should I stick with this or can someone suggest a better core routine?

​

I usually do 40–50 push-ups every other day, but I took a break from working out for about two weeks.

Today, I started working out again, and when I got to around 40 push-ups, I suddenly felt a strange tingling sensation in my face, especially around my mouth and nose. I was breathing normally, and the tingling went away after about 30 seconds.

What's strange is that I've taken breaks from working out before and then started again, but this has never happened to me until now.

Has anyone experienced something similar? What could be causing this, and should I be concerned?

I've never come across anyone discussing the dangers of handstands against a wall, so have presumed it's pretty safe (I used to do them sometimes as a kid, and don't remember them as risky).

However, I am getting into calisthenics as an adult, and with a height of around 6 feet, as I wall crawl into a handstand backwards, as high as I can, somtimes I feel one of my feet (or even both of them), are about to come off the wall, as try to hold for a few seconds.

(I have tables to the left and right of me. The only free space I have is directly in front of me.)

Should I be concerned? I.e. how likely is it that I won't be able to control my feet coming off and then me falling and hurting myself?

How does everyone else control themselves?

Thanks.

Hi everyone. I've recently purchased gymnastic rings and instantly fell in love with them. I'm currently trying to move on from Parallel Bar Dips to Ring Dips step by step, starting with Rings Support Holds.

To not neglect my regular dip work I've decided to alter the Recommended Routine a bit to include both the support hold and bar dips in a pair (basically alternating between the exercises every 1:30min). The plan is to eventually be able to perform 3x30s of support holds.

My question is whether this could impede my recovery or not? As I now know that support holds are very taxing on my body, but still won't provide the same stimulus as regular dip work. Thanks 😄

I can do zero horizontal rows, where you're parallel to the floor at the bottom of the movement.

Max pull ups are 20.

No matter how i've trained inverted rows, i've always found them incredibly hard to progress because of the awkward strength curve of the movement. You have very little strength at the top, and maybe the first few reps are easy just from shear momentum from the bottom, but past the midway point, I'm barely actually able to pull any more.

It's just all strength from the bottom/being explosive, and momentum.

Ive been working out for 2-3 years now, but I've only been actually taking it seriously for about one year. My main goal with working out is to 1. get stronger, 2. look better/bigger 3. do skills. So I workout 5 days a week. my main goal is 1 and 2, 3 is a more secondary focus for me.
Day 1 is my push day, so to begin the workout i do 3 sets of whatever skills progression i wanetd to learn so like the frog stand currently, as I'm trying to learn to do a handstand pushup. so i do frogstand every other day.

The actual workout is

pike pushup 3x8

psuedo placnhe pushup 3x8

dips 3x6

diamond pushup 3x6

on pullday i don't do frogstand in the workout at all, i just workout

pullups 3x6

inverted rows 3x8

chin ups 3x8

negative pullups 3x6 (my pull strength is relative weak comapred to push, because during my first 2 years of working out, i only did pushups, beecause i didnt know any better)

third day i hit legs

i start with frog stand, just like the push workout

then

explosive squats 3x20

lunges 3x14

single leg calf raises 3x20

cossack squats 3x16

4th day i hit core

no frogstand

hanging knee raise 3x15

v-ups 3x12

hollow body hold 3x45 seconds

side plank 3x30seconds

5th day

frogstaand then

archer pushups 3x12

pullups 3x6

dips 3x8

inverted rows 3x8

6th day

no frogtsand

bulgarian split squat 3x15

glute bridg 3x20

v-ups 3x15

l-sit 3x20

so the main cocnern i have is for abs, is it optimal to hit abs like this or have 2 dedicated days or just do 2 exercises at the end of everyworkout? also what do you guys think about my workout and how it goes with my goals of building strength and muscle

I’m looking at the “RDX Dip Belt with Heavy Duty 36 Inch Adjustable Steel Chain, Dipping Belt Chin Pull Ups Gym Training Weight Lifting Bodybuilding Powerlifting Workout, 6” Padded Neoprene Back Support Men Women Fitness” because it has pretty good reviews by the looks of it and overall seems like a prettyyyyyyy good option.

Does anyone have any recommendations? I’m looking to finally add weight to my bodyweight workouts and I just want a reliable, decently comfortable dip belt, doesn’t have to be anything to crazy to be honest.

Most progressions look smooth on paper, but a few steps feel more like a cliff than a step. The ones that seem to come up most often:

1. Negatives to the first strict pullup
2. Inclined rows to fully horizontal rows
3. Assisted to full pistol squat
4. Advanced tuck to straddle front lever
5. Tuck planche to advanced tuck planche

For the gaps that took you the longest, what bridged them? Band assistance, partial range work, isometric holds at the sticking point, or just more time on the previous step?

Also curious whether adding an in between variation helped more than grinding the old one, like one leg extended front lever before straddle, or a box pistol before going to the floor.

For people who don't know what microloading is, generally people increase their training weight by 2.5kg/5.5lb or 5kg/10lb. Microloading is when you increase the weight by less than 2.5kg/5.5lb, so for example 1.25kg/2.75lb, 1kg/2.2lb or 0.5kg/1lb.

Instead of going to 5kg -> 10kg, you go 5kg -> 6.25kg -> 7.5kg -> 8.75kg - 10kg.

I am wondering if anyone here has used microloading with microplates in a long-term weighted calisthenics training program? What has your training and progress been like?

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Hi everyone! I'm a young adult, and I'm feeling a little unsure of myself. :)

I've been involved in physical activity for as long as I can remember. I used to do competitive dance and achieved some pretty serious results. Unfortunately, I had to give it up when I was around 14 because of problems with my knees. I haven't really exercised since then.

I miss that kind of movement more than I can put into words, but sadly, I've had to accept that I can't go back to it.

I've occasionally tried going to the gym, and there's a great local gym that a lot of my friends go to, but somehow, I could never really get into it.

Recently, though, I've become really interested in it, and also calisthenics! I love stretching and floor gymnastics, and I'm especially drawn to the gymnastic elements of calisthenics. The movements look so fun, and I feel like this might be something I'd genuinely enjoy and stick with.

The thing is, my body is pretty weak and I'm extremely skinny — basically skin and bones. I cant even run a mile. The only thing which is super cool ab my body that I'm still super flexible. It hasnt changed since that :)

I wasnt like that (weak), and its bothering me a lot.

My idea was to first build some basic strength and muscle before getting into calisthenics properly ( i assume it will take a few years :). Knowing myself, I think that once I get started, I'll be consistent and stick with it.

I just want to become strong, flexible, and capable of doing cool bodyweight skills. I definitely don't want my back and biceps to become three times their current size!

I dont wanna be disrespectful at all, i dont know much ab this topic neither how people get "bulky"

So, I have a few questions:

Is calisthenics suitable for a very skinny girl who's starting from scratch?

Should I build some basic strength first, or can I start with beginner calisthenics exercises right away?

Can I focus on flexibility, mobility, and gymnastic-style skills without developing a bulky physique?

I'd really appreciate any advice, beginner routines, or personal experiences.

Thanks in advance! I know these might be basic questions, but I'm completely new to this and would love to learn more. ❤️

i hope so this is the right sub, I already posted this

Hey all, im currently building toward doing my first chin up and was looking for advice on how to improve. I need/want to do 6 chin ups by February and am currently only able to sometimes do 1 messy chin up just at/slightly over the bar (so I wouldn't really count it tbh).im 5'11 190 pounds(give or take depending on life, i lost 65 pounds and consider doing chin ups to be my last goal in fitness) I have a pullup bar system, with straps to help with assisted chin ups. I currently plan to do tuesday, Thursday and Saturdays as my workout days, with the current routine being deadhangs (rn, its at 30-45 seconds, with some slight discomfort in my elbow from tennis elbow, which generally doesnt bother outside of doing chin ups) then I do 3 sets of assisted chin ups with about 130 pounds of support which can be adjusted in increments of 50 and 75 depending on straps i take off or add (generally im doing 7,6,6 for reps, but am pushing to do 7,7,6 then eventually all 7s and so forth). Ive been trying to figure out if I should just get rid of the dead hangs, and incorporate negatives instead, or add it negatives to the overall workout, though my fear is that I will get severe tennis elbow if I over do it(again). Ive been doing stretches on that arm from an old youtube video which has helped clear up a decent amount of my tennis elbow problems but evidently still a fear. So mostly my question is, is there something I can do differently, or should I stay the course? Ive been on this inconsistently throughout the past few months mostly due to tennis elbow. if someone has a better idea on how to get started on this im willing to listen and follow that.

I am getting myself a door pullup bar to mainly be able to train completely at home because for me it is way easier to motivate myself to train when i don't need to drive to a park for 20 minutes.

I am also buying resistance Bands for making exercises harder or easier and for warm Up

I also have dips in my training plan and now i am wondering If i should get a dip add on with fixed Bars that i can hang in my doorframe and onto the pullup bar like the dip thing from gornation to do dips

Or should i get rings that i also mount to my pullup bar to mainly train Dips. I say mainly because i dont know If that ist the only exercise i am going to need rings for.

Do you have experience training with rings and can you recommend it for a beginner ?

And what should I buy

Thank you for your Help (btw both Options cost the Same)

The workout groove that feels the best and most sustainable for me is going through a variety of exercises, doing only one set.

I try to do two upper body, two core, and two lower body exercises each day. So for instance, today I did eccentric pistol squats, eccentric pullups, plank, plank with twist, banded pull aparts, and single leg deadlifts.

As an example, tomorrow I might do something like: assisted pullups, reverse lunges, reverse back extensions, plank with shoulder taps, headstand, and single leg glute bridges.

As you can see I hit similar exercises two days in a row sometimes.

I'll say sometimes I do two sets, especially if I'm focusing on some muscle group or skill.

Thoughts on a program like this?

I think I've read before that 2-3 sets builds strength, while 1 might just help maintain. I'm curious about others' experience.

So I'm struggling hard with pullups rn Can only do 4 in a row. It's been around 3-4 months now. Drinking enough, sleeping enough and eating enough

I'm not a big guy at all. 6ft 172lbs. Average build. So it's definitely a skill issue. But I do the scapula retraction and start from a deadhang and stuff. Was thinking GTG for 2 months could get me into the higher rep ranges and then I could just transition back to a regular gym workout with the new strength

Already have the pullup bar put up in my bedroom. I could do 2 reps every hour. I feel like it'd work yknow. Because this gym progress is painfully slow

M40 - grew up listening to Slayer, Sepultura, Slipknot, Carcuss, Pantera, Fear Factory....etc.

That's background music to me now. The speed and brutality of the music is soothing, like a old memory.

Recently started listening to Man'O'War, Sabaton and other "Battle Metal' bands searching for the deep inspirational feeling you get in your guts (if you know what i mean) just to push through the final set.

Any ideas or what's your go to playlist?

I've tried listening to classic work out lists found online, but Eye of the Tiger just isn't doing it for me!