3 ms·

"Grave mistake" is a hyperbolic criticism, considering your only arguments for calisthenics revolve around strength based on personal anecdotal evidence, and a

"Grave mistake" is a hyperbolic criticism, considering your only arguments for calisthenics revolve around strength based on personal anecdotal evidence, and a personal, subjective view of aesthetics. I've tried calisthenics and lacks in many areas. For starters, it woefully neglects the legs. Pistol squats and bridges are not nearly as taxing as barbell squats and deadlifts, though bridges have the added benefit of working flexibility. Push ups and pull ups quickly reach a plateau with 1 arm variations, and at that point you're no longer doing calisthenic movements but training like a gymnast. Calisthenics seem to be most effective at building strength for the core (pikes, leg raises, planks) and the shoulders (if you have the coordination to do hand stand push ups). Barbell training should not be avoided. I've also had serious injuries, such as a broken humerus as a child, where rotator cuff and deltoid muscles atrophied to an extreme level; and those joints are now stronger than ever because I weight trained in specific movement patterns that are difficult to replicate with calisthenics. And I say this as someone who has also been lifting weights for over a decade and has competed in both powerlifting and bodybuilding.

matte_black 9y ago
It sounds like you didn’t use gymnastic rings. I agree it doesn’t target the legs as much, and that’s one area where weightlifting helps, but unless you are doing the most complicated version of many calisthenics exercises (i.e. human flags, v-sit, iron crosses, dragon flags...) then you are not quite at the plateau. It’s easy to neglect other things with barbell training. You need to train your flexibility, you need to train under instability, you need to strengthen connective tissues. Also you need to work straight arm strength and straight leg strength, not just bent, and they are not interchangeable.
- IceDane 9y ago
  To me, you are making it blatantly obvious that you barely know what you're talking about. Not only are you basing your claims on only the anecdotal evidence which is your subjective experience, but you are also making completely outrageous claims. Someone who has exclusively trained calisthenics isn't going to be magically able to lift two times his own body weight, simply because your body and muscles will get used to training with the same load and strength gains will simply plateau. Someone who has specifically trained to get stronger by using an increasing load is going to be able to lift more than his own bodyweight. Stop trying to sell one thing as the cure, denouncing everything else. Ultimately the most important thing is that people just do any kind of exercise. People should do what they like best - be it calisthenics, weightlifting or even powerwalking. Naturally, one approach might be objectively better for your health than another in the long run, but that doesn't matter if the alternative is not doing any exercise at all.
  - andscoop 9y ago
    >"Someone who has exclusively trained calisthenics isn't going to be magically able to lift two times his own body weight" I have personally witnessed a gymnast who had never bench pressed before in his life bench press ~400lbs while weighing ~200lbs. I won't speak to some of the OPs other points but you are severely underestimating calisthenics.
  - matte_black 9y ago
    I used to think the same. I avoided body weight exercises because I figured my body just isn’t that heavy and I need to lift heavier weights to become stronger. What I later realized is that body weight becomes very difficult by merely changing the technique. There are a lot of body weight exercises that are some of the hardest lifts I’ve ever done. A person who has been dedicated to calisthenics can almost certain lift twice their body weight or more. Some can even squat a ton of weight without ever hitting the squat racks. Like I said, the strength you build from calisthenics is very deceptive. People look at you and underestimate your strength because you don’t look like a weight lifter. I’ll give you an example, sit on the floor with your legs straight out in front of you, back straight, and palms flat on the ground next to your knees. From this position, keep your back straight, legs straight, and lift your legs up as close as possible to your chest and hold it there for 10 seconds. Seems difficult? There’s calisthenics guys who can not only bring their legs all the way up, they can do it while simultaneously lifting their entire body off the ground in this position. Doesn’t matter how much weight you push in the gym, you will never be able to do that without the strong stabilizing muscles you can only get through calisthenics. And nothing you do with weights will ever be as useful or as impressive as feats of strength like this.

matte_black 9y ago

It sounds like you didn’t use gymnastic rings. I agree it doesn’t target the legs as much, and that’s one area where weightlifting helps, but unless you are doing the most complicated version of many calisthenics exercises (i.e. human flags, v-sit, iron crosses, dragon flags...) then you are not quite at the plateau. It’s easy to neglect other things with barbell training. You need to train your flexibility, you need to train under instability, you need to strengthen connective tissues. Also you need to work straight arm strength and straight leg strength, not just bent, and they are not interchangeable.

IceDane 9y ago
To me, you are making it blatantly obvious that you barely know what you're talking about. Not only are you basing your claims on only the anecdotal evidence which is your subjective experience, but you are also making completely outrageous claims. Someone who has exclusively trained calisthenics isn't going to be magically able to lift two times his own body weight, simply because your body and muscles will get used to training with the same load and strength gains will simply plateau. Someone who has specifically trained to get stronger by using an increasing load is going to be able to lift more than his own bodyweight. Stop trying to sell one thing as the cure, denouncing everything else. Ultimately the most important thing is that people just do any kind of exercise. People should do what they like best - be it calisthenics, weightlifting or even powerwalking. Naturally, one approach might be objectively better for your health than another in the long run, but that doesn't matter if the alternative is not doing any exercise at all.
- andscoop 9y ago
  >"Someone who has exclusively trained calisthenics isn't going to be magically able to lift two times his own body weight" I have personally witnessed a gymnast who had never bench pressed before in his life bench press ~400lbs while weighing ~200lbs. I won't speak to some of the OPs other points but you are severely underestimating calisthenics.
- matte_black 9y ago
  I used to think the same. I avoided body weight exercises because I figured my body just isn’t that heavy and I need to lift heavier weights to become stronger. What I later realized is that body weight becomes very difficult by merely changing the technique. There are a lot of body weight exercises that are some of the hardest lifts I’ve ever done. A person who has been dedicated to calisthenics can almost certain lift twice their body weight or more. Some can even squat a ton of weight without ever hitting the squat racks. Like I said, the strength you build from calisthenics is very deceptive. People look at you and underestimate your strength because you don’t look like a weight lifter. I’ll give you an example, sit on the floor with your legs straight out in front of you, back straight, and palms flat on the ground next to your knees. From this position, keep your back straight, legs straight, and lift your legs up as close as possible to your chest and hold it there for 10 seconds. Seems difficult? There’s calisthenics guys who can not only bring their legs all the way up, they can do it while simultaneously lifting their entire body off the ground in this position. Doesn’t matter how much weight you push in the gym, you will never be able to do that without the strong stabilizing muscles you can only get through calisthenics. And nothing you do with weights will ever be as useful or as impressive as feats of strength like this.