Showing posts with label progression. Show all posts
Showing posts with label progression. Show all posts

Sunday, 14 September 2014

Front planche on a rope

bodyweight exercise
When my circus and aerial skills instructor showed this technique to me, she called it a 'front planche on a rope'. The name seems a little misguiding to me -and I am not sure it is even the common name for this move- but for want of a better one, I have kept it here...

The technique itself is not terribly hard -maybe of an intermediate level- and it relies more on skill than brute muscle power. It does require a fair amount of core strength however, and -as you can see from the picture- some straight arm and bent arm pulling strength.

Sunday, 19 January 2014

Handstands

One of the main aims of many of those who come to bodyweight training is to learn how to do a handstand.
A solid freestanding handstand is by no means an easy feat however, and it will require many hours of practice before you can hold the position for any length of time.

This progression will suggests some steps towards building a strong handstand.
There are many different methodologies to train this skill however, and this is only one of many.

Prerequisites: Wall handstand push ups


Thursday, 9 January 2014

Back levers

Back levers involve the posterior chain, the core muscles, and the shoulder flexors (particularly the anterior deltoids). They are an intermediate bodyweight exercise which can be performed on rings, or on a pull up bar.

Prerequisites:
arm and leg lift plank, legs forward dips


Wednesday, 8 January 2014

Dragon flags

Dragon flags are an old Bruce Lee favorite which target the core muscles, but also can be quite taxing on the lats, triceps and forearms, depending on how you hold the bench.
This progression will show you how to gradually achieve full dragon flags.

Prerequisites:
leg lift plank, pull ups, hanging bent leg V-raises


Tuesday, 7 January 2014

L-sit

The L-sit (a.k.a. floor L-sit) is a core exercise which places quite a lot of stress not only on your core muscles, but also -isometrically- on your hip flexors and on your triceps.  It is a good idea to follow a progression in order to build up to the full exercise.

Prerequisites: 
Hanging straight leg raises, dips

Monday, 6 January 2014

The crow stand

The crow stand (a.k.a. the frog stand) is a classic pose found in yoga. It is usually performed to develop hand balancing skills, and -in gymnastics- and as a building block towards the unsupported handstand and the planche. As well as developing your hand balancing skills, the crow stand will work your core stabilising muscles.

 Prerequisites:
pike push ups and plank.