In my post about why bodyweight guys are not big, I spoke a lot about how, if properly used, calisthenic training is as good as barbell training. In this post I want to talk about how calisthenics can be better than weight training.
In a word- the perfect body! If you train strictly with calisthenics, using progressive principles, your proportions, your size, your muscularity, the quality of your muscle, your symmetry, your strength (at that bodyweight), your control and your body fat levels and endurance- everything will be perfect! This is entirely due to the nature of training with fixed weights, be it your own body or a fixed barbell.
Let us understand what happens when you have fixed weights. Let us assume you have a barbell that weighs 135 pounds (45 pound bar + two 45 pound plates). You just have 4 more 45 pound plates. This is all the equipment you have, plus a bench. Let us assume you are a 150 pound guy just beginning weight training. You cant do too many fancy movements, cause you don't have any equipment. Lets see what happens.
You decide to make a basic routine comprising of barbell squats, deadlifts, barbell hip thrusts, bench press, military press, bent over rows, barbell bicep curl and sit ups. You can bench press the 135lb bar for 3-4 reps, and push press the same for 2-3 reps. You can't possibly bicep curl it.
Now you are going to have to use your imagination. Lets take the bench press. You will use a GTG (Grease the groove) approach initially to increase your strength. You will bench press the weight for 2 reps every time you cross the bench. This way you work up to 5 repetitions. In ordinary circumstances, once you can do 4-5 sets of 5, you would increase the weight by 5 pounds (maybe). You can't do that here, so you are gonna have to do more reps. After you work up to 20 you have worked both strength (initially) and endurance (in the final stages) and size (in between). While trying to achieve this you will hit a lot of stagnation points- so you will have to improvise. For example, if the lactic acid build up is too much- do pyramids (1, 10sec break, 2, 10sec break, so on until you can't complete the set, then work backwards). This will acclimatize you to the burn. If you can't maintain tension that long, do a set almost to failure, than have a partner assist you in the remaining reps. This will teach you how to extend the time under tension. Doing all this you will develop a lot of things.
Now maybe you can pull off a couple of singles with the 185, but it is still quite un-manageable. You realize this is because your triceps and shoulders are weak. So you decide to master the 135 bar with a close grip (hands 3 inches apart) and pressing from the hip (for the shoulders). Once you do this, you can manage a tripe with the 185 for quite a few sets. Now once again you have to train for strength. Maybe you will decide to bench several times a week but keep your volume low, until you can comfortably do 5 in a set. And so on, you will progress.
The point f the matter is that fixed weight training will expose your weaknesses and lay them bare. You will be unable to move forward until you have eliminated that weakness completely and have mastered every weight thoroughly. At some point your endurance will hold you back, at some point your cardiovascular fitness will hod you back, at some point a particular muscle group will hold you back, at some point a certain portion of the range of motion will hold you back. Ultimately, by the time you get to the point where you are handling double bodyweight on all your lifts, you will have no weaknesses.
In the case of bodyweight training, this is more pronounced. This is because i involves additional factors like body fat levels and control over your bodyweight. There are more weaknesses that will show up as you try to make progress. And you are never gonna make it to uneven push ups if you don't make even versions of push ups your bitch first. And you are never going to master the 1 arm chin up at 20% body fat. And the handstand push up will continue to elude you if you can't control yourself.
Thus a person who uses a fixed weight system and even one movement per muscle group, will develop the perfect body. Very simply, you are never going to master the one arm chin up, if your rowing power is weak. And you can forget the front lever if your abs are not up to snuff. Even if you pick just one exercise per muscle group, you will sooner or later have to master the movement from every conceivable angle and variation. You are not going to get to the one arm push up without mastering full ROM handstand push ups. The exercise categories practically write themselves.
And you are going to have to get bigger and stronger and faster and fitter. You will be balanced. You will be perfect.
And you know what the best part is? Its a thinking man's game! You are going to have to treat your workouts like art. Every plateau will have a unique solution. This has one more great advantage- it keeps you entertained. The most successful athlete is the athlete who knows how to keep life interesting and fun. He will always make progress.
That is the beauty of calisthenics. Combined with its supreme convenience, its pobbly the most practical form of exercise. Remember- Keep your eyes on the prize! Aim always to move up a step, to move to a harder (i.e heavier) technique. Everything else will fall in place.
Good luck and train hard.
In a word- the perfect body! If you train strictly with calisthenics, using progressive principles, your proportions, your size, your muscularity, the quality of your muscle, your symmetry, your strength (at that bodyweight), your control and your body fat levels and endurance- everything will be perfect! This is entirely due to the nature of training with fixed weights, be it your own body or a fixed barbell.
Let us understand what happens when you have fixed weights. Let us assume you have a barbell that weighs 135 pounds (45 pound bar + two 45 pound plates). You just have 4 more 45 pound plates. This is all the equipment you have, plus a bench. Let us assume you are a 150 pound guy just beginning weight training. You cant do too many fancy movements, cause you don't have any equipment. Lets see what happens.
You decide to make a basic routine comprising of barbell squats, deadlifts, barbell hip thrusts, bench press, military press, bent over rows, barbell bicep curl and sit ups. You can bench press the 135lb bar for 3-4 reps, and push press the same for 2-3 reps. You can't possibly bicep curl it.
Now you are going to have to use your imagination. Lets take the bench press. You will use a GTG (Grease the groove) approach initially to increase your strength. You will bench press the weight for 2 reps every time you cross the bench. This way you work up to 5 repetitions. In ordinary circumstances, once you can do 4-5 sets of 5, you would increase the weight by 5 pounds (maybe). You can't do that here, so you are gonna have to do more reps. After you work up to 20 you have worked both strength (initially) and endurance (in the final stages) and size (in between). While trying to achieve this you will hit a lot of stagnation points- so you will have to improvise. For example, if the lactic acid build up is too much- do pyramids (1, 10sec break, 2, 10sec break, so on until you can't complete the set, then work backwards). This will acclimatize you to the burn. If you can't maintain tension that long, do a set almost to failure, than have a partner assist you in the remaining reps. This will teach you how to extend the time under tension. Doing all this you will develop a lot of things.
Now maybe you can pull off a couple of singles with the 185, but it is still quite un-manageable. You realize this is because your triceps and shoulders are weak. So you decide to master the 135 bar with a close grip (hands 3 inches apart) and pressing from the hip (for the shoulders). Once you do this, you can manage a tripe with the 185 for quite a few sets. Now once again you have to train for strength. Maybe you will decide to bench several times a week but keep your volume low, until you can comfortably do 5 in a set. And so on, you will progress.
The point f the matter is that fixed weight training will expose your weaknesses and lay them bare. You will be unable to move forward until you have eliminated that weakness completely and have mastered every weight thoroughly. At some point your endurance will hold you back, at some point your cardiovascular fitness will hod you back, at some point a particular muscle group will hold you back, at some point a certain portion of the range of motion will hold you back. Ultimately, by the time you get to the point where you are handling double bodyweight on all your lifts, you will have no weaknesses.
In the case of bodyweight training, this is more pronounced. This is because i involves additional factors like body fat levels and control over your bodyweight. There are more weaknesses that will show up as you try to make progress. And you are never gonna make it to uneven push ups if you don't make even versions of push ups your bitch first. And you are never going to master the 1 arm chin up at 20% body fat. And the handstand push up will continue to elude you if you can't control yourself.
Thus a person who uses a fixed weight system and even one movement per muscle group, will develop the perfect body. Very simply, you are never going to master the one arm chin up, if your rowing power is weak. And you can forget the front lever if your abs are not up to snuff. Even if you pick just one exercise per muscle group, you will sooner or later have to master the movement from every conceivable angle and variation. You are not going to get to the one arm push up without mastering full ROM handstand push ups. The exercise categories practically write themselves.
And you are going to have to get bigger and stronger and faster and fitter. You will be balanced. You will be perfect.
And you know what the best part is? Its a thinking man's game! You are going to have to treat your workouts like art. Every plateau will have a unique solution. This has one more great advantage- it keeps you entertained. The most successful athlete is the athlete who knows how to keep life interesting and fun. He will always make progress.
That is the beauty of calisthenics. Combined with its supreme convenience, its pobbly the most practical form of exercise. Remember- Keep your eyes on the prize! Aim always to move up a step, to move to a harder (i.e heavier) technique. Everything else will fall in place.
Good luck and train hard.
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