The Secret To Grow Your Back With Calisthenics!

Training your grip and back are the most important thing when building your upper body.

Most people focus on mid-chest when starting their fitness journey, and often end up lacking upper chest, back and grip strength.

This specific muscle groups will be a limiting factor for progress in the long run.

Here are some simple calisthenics training tips to grow your lats and improve grip strength.

1/ Use a "fat grip" to make the pull up bar thicker and activate more forearm contraction. You can also use a towel or t-shirt to thicken the bar if you don't have "Fat Gripz".

2/ Use a wide grip when doing pull ups.

3/ Include wide-grip chin ups in your routine (the external rotation of the shoulder pulls more on the lats muscles and make them more engaged).

4/ Include overhead press exercises in your routine.

5/ Here is an intermediate-advanced calisthenics training routine you can use on your pull and push days:

• Wide Fat grip pull ups x 55 (11...

How To Train Calisthenics With Bad Weather!

Bad weather is the only real enemy of outdoors calisthenics training, along with extreme heat.

But there are ways around that!

1/ The first option is to stay indoors.

For those who like to go to the gym, that’s an option, then you can train exactly the same way you would at the park.

I personally don’t like the gym environment and prefer home workouts when I have to stay in.

If you live in a place where bad weather or extreme heat is the norm, then investing in a few items such as a doorway pull up bar, dips bar and a few resistance bands goes a very long way!

But you don’t even need any equipment to get a good workout at home.

Here is what I did last Saturday at home, for my push day:

• 300 push ups: 50-30-20-30-70-30-20-20
• 100 ab raises: from the floor, keep your feet on the ground with bent legs and lift your torso off the ground, to bring it to your knees).
• Time: 30-45 min.

2/ There is also a second option: face the...

Simple Calisthenics Workout For Back, Shoulders and Chest

Maximize your fitness gains and save time when needed!

Training calisthenics is great to work on compound movements, maximize gains and save time when needed.

Today I want to share one of my favorite calisthenics routines to train back, chest and shoulders.

Note that every set will also highly engage your abs so your core gets covered as well!

I love using that protocol when training solo and try to keep a solid pace though the workout.

Here are the calisthenics exercises that I do:

• “Fat grip” Wide pull ups to chest + Isometric holds (top-middle-hang on every last rep) x 5-7 x 10 sets
• Deficit pike push ups + isometric hold (bottom) x 5 x 10 sets

Rest:

• I go for minimal, yet efficient, rest time with 30-90 seconds of rest between each set.
• It goes without saying that rest time is lower during the first supersets and tends to get higher towards the end of the workout.

Combining explosive pulling movements and...

Simple Calisthenics Leg Workout!

Build a strong lower body with the horse stance.

It’s one of those that looks easier than it is!

I put it next to the chair’s pose in yoga.

While holding the pose, focus on keeping your legs as engaged and stable as possible.

You will feel your leg posture giving up with time. Fight it.

Keep your adductors, glutes and core very active during the hold.

Also make sure to stay grounded with good ankle and foot activation.

Lastly breathe through the hold and approach the move as a meditation practice.

I did 3 sets of 1.45-2min. My goal is to be able to hold it for 4 min eventually.

Go for 3 sets of your max hold. Rest 2-3 min between sets.

Make it a regular practice (3 times per week) to build solid legs and core.

Get my full calisthenics course and train with me here!

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Calisthenics Training FAQ’s

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What is Calisthenics Training?
Calisthenics, rooted in the ancient Greek...

My First 2024 Pull Up Workout!

I had to step back a bit from training my upper body for the last 4 weeks of 2023.

This was due to different minor injuries, some tendonitis and chronic fatigue, after a full 2023 year of constant, non-stop work and workouts.

I stayed active everyday and arranged my workouts around legs, running and core during the month of December.

I also did some rehab work with bands and active mobility (wrists, shoulders, hips, knees and feet).

Today was my first “real” pull-push day in a month. It was great to be back at it!

I used an additional gripping tool that you simply wrap up around the pull up bar to make the bar thicker and harder to grip.

It makes it almost impossible to wrap your thumb around the bar making the forearms and the entire pulling muscle chain work much harder.

The "fat grip" pull ups are a great tool if you want to build strong forearms and increase your pull ups. They make pull ups twice as hard!

Here is what my full workout...

There are a few secrets that successful people use to live a healthy and wealthy life, despite the ups and downs, no matter what day it is!

Here are my 3 secrets to keep growing and progressing in 2024!

1. Progressively get rid of bad habits

That means, identifying and being aware of your own flaws, then pro-actively finding and implementing solutions to change them overtime.

For example:

• If you are overeating at night, you can simply re-arrange your schedule around food during the day. That means eating a bigger and more nutritious breakfast, and eating dinner around 6-7pm. It's also important to prioritize fruits (apples, pineapple, berries) for late snacks.
• If you train regularly and are not seeing muscle gains, make sure your training routine is adapted to your goals and focus on getting enough calories and protein through the day.
• If you have bad posture or chronic pain, start doing 3-5 minutes of mobility work daily.   

2. Create or be consistent with your current...

How Pull Ups Increase!

These methods are great if you can already 12-15 solid pull ups.

Schedule 3 pull up sessions per week for 8-12 weeks.

Here is what each day-session looks like:

Day 1 - Pull Up Emom

• Emom stand for "every minute on the minute". 
• The rule is simple: you do as many reps as you can every minute, including rest.
• You set a timer 5-10 minutes (sets).
• Every minute is a set.

Day 2 - Weighted pull ups

A great way to train weighted pull ups is drop sets.

This is where you lower the weight set after set.

The trick is to start at you max weight-max reps and increase the amount of reps, for each set (every time you lower the weight).

Here is an example of what I do (6’1 - 177 lbs):

• 115 lbs x 1 
• 90 x 3 x 2 
• 85 x 3
• 70 x 3
• 60 x 5
• 55 x 5
• 45 x 6
• 35 x 6
• 25 x 10
• 10 x 10
• 0 x 13
• Bodyweight Australian rows x 23

If you don’t have that many weight options, then simply triple the amount of sets you do for each weight.

Test your max first and...

12 Weeks To Double Your Pull Ups

Earlier I covered how to get started with pull ups.

Today I want to share a tested plan to boost your max pull-ups. 

Whether you're a beginner or a pull-up enthusiast, this three-day-per-week pull up program is designed to take you to the next level. 

Let's dive in and double that max of yours!

this plan works great for anyone currently able to do 4-12 pull ups. 

It still works if you are above that but I’ll write another article to cover this in depth.

You would use that pull up program every other day.

Day 1 - Max reps Sets

This is the day where we run our max sets.

This time we go for 5 sets of your maximum repetitions. 

This mean you have to keep good form through all the reps and not kip for it to count!

Note that you can use a light band during set 4 and 5 if your strength starts to be low. You can also stop after set 3 or 4 if you can’t get any repetition.

The goal is progress to 5 sets overtime.

Rest 3-5...

Calisthenics when overweight?

I have sometimes heard: “I think I need to lose weight before I can start calisthenics”.

This is because people think they need to be able to do pull ups and hard push ups right away.

And this isn’t the case at all!

In fact, it’s the opposite!

Starting and doing calisthenics will make you lose weight.

You will also then become stronger and able to achieve the harder moves that you once thought was impossible!

Watch my client Antal’s transformation, from calisthenics beginner to achieving the muscle up in 2 years!

If you are a beginner and/or need to lose weight here are some useful substitutions for the movements you can’t do yet:

Push ups: 

• Start in a plank, do the negative repetition all the way to do get your chest to the floor, then use your knees to come back up. 
• If you can’t do that yet, start with standing push ups against a wall or elevated push ups with hands on a bench or chairs.

Pull ups:...

Can Calisthenics Build Muscle?

Have you ever wondered if calisthenics, with its bodyweight-focused approach, can truly help you build muscle?

Let's break it down and explore why calisthenics is the muscle-building secret you've been searching for, with insights from a seasoned calisthenics coach.

Understanding Calisthenics:

Calisthenics, a workout method emphasizing bodyweight exercises, introduces a unique dimension to muscle building.

This dynamic training, consisting of push-ups, pull-ups, squats, and dips, relies on your body weight as resistance, setting the stage for a comprehensive strength-building experience.

•  Bodyweight Resistance and Functional Strength:

The power of calisthenics lies in utilizing your body as resistance. This holistic approach engages every muscle group, fostering not just hypertrophy but also functional strength – the kind that makes daily activities a breeze.

•  Progressive Overload for Growth:

Calisthenics offers a progressive...