Calisthenics workout for beginners: 6 best exercises

Summary

1
Handstand
2
Muscle up
3
Front lever
4
Back lever
5
Human flag

Calisthenics is a great workout routine to improve overall stamina, endurance and strength. With minimal equipment, calisthenics uses bodyweight and natural resistance from gravity to work out your muscles and strengthen them.

Fitness trainer and dancer Nipun Viju teaches calisthenics in a Kochi gym. He says that he most often gets requests to learn calisthenics skills. His simple advice is to make sure your muscles are very strong before you try any skills.

Nipun Viju is a Kochi-based fitness trainer in calisthenics. — Nipun Viju
© Jishnu Vaimeethil

“Before jumping right in, it is important to build a solid foundation by practising push-ups, pull-ups and their variations. Else, one can risk injury,” says Nipun.

Here Nipun explains what it takes to learn five calisthenics skills for beginners with a step-by-step guide on how to do it.

01

Handstand

Kochi fitness trainer Nipun Viju performs calisthenics exercises in a gym. — Nipun performs the handstand
© Jishnu Vaimeethil

“Balancing in a handstand requires fine motor control through multiple joints and this requires a lot of patience. The handstand involves learning of new motor functions and it requires ‘time on task’,” says Nipun.

Requirements to learn handstand:

Shoulder strength
Shoulder endurance
Shoulder mobility

Step 1: Start by practicing a handstand against a wall; with your hands making contact with the ground, your back and legs should be resting on the wall. Try holding that position for 10 seconds or more. The goal is to get comfortable with this position.

Step 2: Once you are comfortably holding the first position for several seconds, you can move onto the next step where you will raise one leg off the wall and keep it extended in the air. Hold that position for 10 or more seconds, and alternate legs with each hold.

Step 3: Practice the wall-assisted handstand but with your chest resting on the wall.

Step 4: Once you are comfortable with your chest on the wall hold, try the variation with one leg on the wall and one leg off the wall. Practice the hold for 10 seconds or more and alternate legs.

Step 5: Now practice by keeping your chest a few inches off the wall (so only one leg is resting on the wall and you are standing on your hands). Remember to practice the hold while alternate legs, 10 seconds or more each time.

Step 6: Lift both legs off at the same time so you are in a full handstand unassisted. You will be able to do this for only a few seconds but over time you will maintain the balance and be comfortable in the position.

Exercises that can help you master the handstand:

Pike push-ups to develop shoulder strength
Downward facing dog stretch for shoulder mobility
Hollow body hold for a stable core

Learning time: Two to six months

02

Muscle up

“This has an explosive pull-up motion involved and hence I’d insist anyone trying the muscle up movement to practice pull-ups extensively first,” says Nipun.

Requirements to learn muscle up:

Shoulder strength
Ab strength
Core strength

Step 1: Attempt pull-ups 10 to 15 times as a starting point.

Step 2: Move to explosive pull-ups where you pull your body up till your chin is over the bar.

Step 3: Gradually, attempt doing explosive pull-ups till your chest is level with the bar.

Step 4: Do five-six explosive pull-ups till chest and then extend your body over the bar so you are in the position of a straight bar dip. When attempting this position, make sure your thumbs are above the bar and your palms face the ground so that you have a solid grip. From here you push your entire upper body over the bar to complete the muscle up.

Tips to help you master the muscle up:

You can use an exercise band initially. Grip the band at the under and extend it to under your feet to help you do the pull-ups and straight bar dips easier.
Practice some breathing exercises because the pull-ups and straight bar dips need coordinated breathing.

Learning time: Three to four months

03

Front lever

“If you want strong lats and phenomenal core strength, you should practise the front lever. It is way more difficult than the back lever in my experience,” says Nipun.

Requirements to learn front lever:

Back strength
Core strength

Step 1: Start by hanging onto a bar and leaving your body loose. Now tighten your grip on the bar and flex your arm and lat muscles to raise your body into a tucked front lever hold (your knees will be tucked into your chest as you hang). Make sure you can hold it for 10 seconds or more.

Step 2: Once you can do the tucked hold comfortably, move onto the advanced tuck front lever hold where your knees are slightly away from your chest.

Step 3: Now practice the straddled front lever hold where your legs will be extended but wide to the sides.

Step 4: After you are good with straddles, you can try a modified front lever hold wherein your body from head to the knees is parallel to the ground but bent at the knees to let your legs hanging loosely.

Step 5: Practice a full front lever with the use of resistance bands.

Step 6: Once you’ve built up enough strength and your body is comfortable, practice the full front lever without assistance.

Exercises that can help you master the front lever:

Front lever raises for straight arm strength
Dragon flag for core strength
Reversed deadlifts for core and straight arm strength

Learning time: Four to six months

04

Back lever

“This calisthenics skill exercises your entire body, but with an emphasis on the back and the core,” says Nipun.

The steps to practice the back lever are the same as the front lever; tucked back lever hold, advanced tuck back lever hold, straddled back lever hold, modified back lever hold, and finally the full back lever hold unassisted.

The only difference is that you will be facing the ground and hanging with your arms on the bar behind you. It requires quite a bit of strength and flexibility in the shoulders and arms, especially since it is a typically untrained position.

Exercises that can help you master the back lever:

Skin the cat for mobility and strength in shoulders
Dragon flag for core strength

Learning time: Within one year if you have a good foundation in calisthenics

05

Human flag

“This calisthenics skill is very difficult because it forces you to pull and push at the same time which feels quite unnatural,” says Nipun.

Requirements to learn human flag:

Powerful arm
Shoulder strengh
Strong back
Strong core

Step 1: The first position that you have to master is the vertical flag down hold exercise. One hand holds the bar above you (arm at full extension) and the second hand holds the bar around your waist level. Pull with your top hand and push with your bottom hand, keeping your legs off the ground and balancing the weight of your body by the strength in your arms. This exercise is the first step in the push-and-pull action needed for the human flag.

Step 2: Now practice the tucked human flag with knees bent close to your chest. Practice holding the position for 10 seconds or more at a time.

Step 3: Now slowly extend your body (diagonally up and not horizontally) to increase the lever length, and increase the hold time.

Step 4: Now practice the straddle hold with your body horizontal to the ground and legs wide. Also practice the one-leg-bent-human-flag-hold at this stage.

Step 5: Now move into the human flag with your feet together and body horizontal to the ground.

Learning time: Three to six months

5 basic skills to master if you want to get started in calisthenics

Summary

Try these 10 calisthenics exercises for greater leg strength

Handstand

Try these bodyweight exercises for a super core workout

Muscle up

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Front lever

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Back lever

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Human flag