What is Calisthenics?

What is Calisthenics?

What images come to mind when you hear the term “calisthenics”?

Is it black and white footage of Jack LaLanne teaching calisthenics on TV? Montages for military training? Maybe it conjures up images of Olympic gymnasts doing their thing at bar events.

Calisthenics training is certainly a factor in all of these, but these images are a little old-fashioned, even outdated. What you may not realize is that calisthenics is extremely common these days. The modern fitness world is full of them, and there's a good chance you're already doing this in your health and fitness routine.

In this article, we'll explore calisthenics—from its basic ideas to its advanced applications—so you can incorporate it into your health journey.

Calisthenics definition

Calisthenics is a category of bodyweight exercises. If you've ever done a push-up, you've studied calisthenics before.

This can be a bit confusing since many people use “calisthenics” and “bodyweight exercises” interchangeably, but they are certainly not the same thing.

“Bodyweight exercise” is an umbrella term for any exercise routine or discipline that you can perform using your body weight as resistance.

“Calisthenics” is one of these disciplines. Others includezygostatics,yogaand parkour. Gymnastics also falls under this category, but it is one that actually includes some moves that you can also find in calisthenics, like triceps dips on parallel bars. We understand that the overlap is a bit confusing. So remember: all calisthenic exercises are bodyweight exercises, but not allBodyweight exercisesPerform calisthenics.

Calisthenics movement actually comes from ancient Greeceand was used by the armies of Alexander the Great for training. The word itself actually comes from the Greek words “Kalos” and “Sthenos,” which translate to “beautiful” and “strength,” respectively, since calisthenics is all about training strength and physique.

Why should I try calisthenics exercise?

You should try calisthenics as it offers many benefits such as:

Body awareness

Working with your body weight is a surefire way to learn everything about how your body works. When we put weight on our muscles in the gym, it's sometimes easy to lose track of what exactly is going on beneath the skin. Gaining strength with calisthenics workouts requires knowing exactly how your body moves and what it takes to have great form.

familiarity

The exercises associated with calisthenics are classic. If you went to public school in the US, you'll probably recognize them from old fitness tests. There's a good chance you don't need to learn anything new to start doing calisthenics.

Accessibility

Calisthenics is available to anyone who can exercise. If you can use your arms, you can do a push-up. If you can use your legs, you can squat. Children can do it. Older people can do it. Anyone in between can do it.

Cost

Calisthenics can definitely be improved with equipment like pull-up bars, but for the most part it can be done outdoors for free.

It's fun!

Plain and simple, calisthenics is a good time. Sometimes it feels more like games than practice, which makes it easy to get lost (in the best way).

Who is calisthenics good for?

Calisthenics is good for everyone – from beginners to Olympic athletes. It makes us more spatially aware and provides the muscle strength we need to support our bodies in the gym and our daily lives and the movements therein.

The only downside to calisthenics is that it has limitations, especially in the lower body. Once you've achieved a certain level of strength training, it takes a lot of squats and lunges to build muscle. This brings us to our next point:

You don't do thatstraightHave to do calisthenics. You can incorporate it into other workout routines.If you already visit our fitness studiosThere's a good chance you're already doing this.

What are some examples of calisthenic exercises?

Basic calisthenic exercisesinclude:

• Liegestütze
• Sit-ups
• Trizeps-Dips
• Bretter
• Ausfallschritte
• Jumping Jacks

We're sure you recognize these why we love calisthenics: it can be a potential stepping stone into the fitness world.

Once you delve deeper into the discipline, you'll see more advanced exercises like:

• Muscle-Ups bringen Sie von einer hängenden Position an einer Stange zu einer Oberseite der Stange, wobei Ihre Arme gerade sind, die Oberschenkel die Stange berühren und die Füße nach unten zeigen.
• Flagge, eine statische Position, in der Sie zwei Punkte einer vertikalen Stange halten, wobei Ihr Körper parallel zum Boden ist. Ja, das ist so unglaublich, wie es sich anhört.
• Pistol Squat, eine einbeinige Hocke, bei der Ihre Gesäßmuskulatur fast den Boden berührt.

Calisthenics is an incredible way to create a mind-body connection while building tons of strength and appearanceextremely coolwhile you do it. It's a great introduction to training as a whole - it's a low equipment, low pressure, high energy method to push your body to achieve all of your fitness goals!