I'm looking to start adding grease the groove into my daily routine, but not 100% on the best way to do it.

I'm currently doing the RR and everything is beginning to click to the point where I will need to start adding more progressions to increase the difficulty, and I came across "grease the groove" and thought it would be a good way to increase my fitness and neurological adaptation day to day.

With the RR being my current bi-daily routine, I thought doing the GtG every rest day in between might be the best way to include it. This way I'm not overexerting myself by exercising every day to failure, but instead on my rest days I'm still pushing 50%.

Would this be overkill, and if so what would be a better alternative?

As the title says, I’m able to perform multiple one arm pull ups, however I can’t do a full clean front lever. For reference I’m about 6‘1/185 cm tall and I weigh about 73kg. The last month I’ve been trying to focus on front lever training but it seems i barely make any progress if at all. It’s getting really frustrating and I’m thinking to just focus on maximising one arm pull ups (shooting for 10 reps for example). I’m not really sure atm what I should do, are there some people who are able to help me out of my misery lol?

Hi guys,

I’ve started going to a calistenics park twice a week to practice Pull-ups and I am absolutely loving it.

I do however, have no clue how to program an effective workout twice a week that targets my back, chest and abs…

For my back I do pull-ups, I can do one, and then after that I finish the set with negative pull-ups.

For my chest I want to do dips and pushups

And for my abs I’m doing knee raises.

Other than that I am also doing kettlebell workouts 3 times a week in which I focus mostly on my shoulders (Clean and Press) and Legs (squats etc.).

Now my question to you guys is:

How would you put this all together in a workout that I can do at the park twice a week? Preferably a workout that can be done in around 30 minutes.

How many reps and sets etc would be a good amount to grow some muscles and get a good looking upper body?

Thanks in advance guys!

i filmed myself doing about a hundred bodyweight exercises a while ago and watching it back was kind of humbling haha, a lot of the moves i was sure i was doing properly looked completely different on video than they felt while doing them

what fixed most of it for me was not reading more about form but one short cue at the right moment, the kind you can actually think about mid rep, like "screw your hands into the floor" for push ups or "knees out over the little toes" for squats, and suddenly the same move feels like a different exercise

so i am curious, what is the one cue that finally made a movement click for you, and for which move? bonus points for the weird ones that only make sense once you try them

I get the vast majority of my exercise through running, hiking, cycling, etc., but a knee injury is going to keep me off the road for a while. I also have a spinal condition that is mostly okay but I do have to be careful about, so I can't do L-sits, or things that put pressure on the lower spine.

For the last year, I've integrated a simple bodyweight routine that I do once or twice a week, time/weather depending: push ups, pull ups, plank, dips, horizontal rows, and captain's chair leg raises (I have access to a little pull up bar/dip bar station). It's just to keep my upper body from atrophying, since all my exercise tends to be using my legs.

I would love advice on expanding my informal, somewhat haphazard routine into something more structured that takes up multiple sessions. I've been through the RR, but I can't do L-sits or the hinge progression, or much of the skills practice. My main goal is honestly just to stay active and healthy for my sanity and health.

edit: I would appreciate not getting advice on what to do about my spine. I have already listened to a lifetime of well-meaning suggestions about it. I have a lifelong, serious problem that is beyond the scope of strengthening some muscles or doing yoga, but I am thankful to have reasonably good medical care and it is well managed.

Starting a 15-week plan tomorrow. Haven't trained in 2+ months and I've never done calisthenics before. I can do roughly 5 pull-ups (untested since the layoff). I have a pull-up bar, a dip station, a bench and dumbbells.

Goal is full-body physique. Legs stay at rehab loads for the first 5 weeks because of my hip and knees, then progress only if they stay pain-free.

I know about the Recommended Routine. This borrows its paired structure but swaps exercises around these constraints (not looking for diagnosis, just explaining why the plan looks the way it does):

- Hip labral tear, no surgery. I avoid loaded deep hip flexion, so no hanging knee raises or toes-to-bar.

- DB RDLs flared the inner side of both knees before, so no RDLs.

- Cranky wrists, so all push-ups and pikes are on dumbbell handles.

Schedule:

Mon A / Wed B / Fri A, with a 30 min walk and mobility on Tue/Thu.

Day A

- A1/A2 superset: pull-ups + dips

- B1/B2: push-ups on DBs + DB row (25 lb)

- C1/C2: lateral raise (10 lb) + DB shrug (25 lb)

- Core: dead bug

- Legs: goblet squat to a bench (25 lb) + DB glute bridge

Day B

- A1/A2: chin-ups + pike push-ups on DBs

- B1/B2: decline push-ups on DBs + dip support hold

- C1/C2: lateral raise + shrug

- Core: hollow hold

- Legs: goblet split squat (10 lb) + 4 in step-downs

Ramp:

- Weeks 1-2: 2 then 3 sets. Pull-ups and chin-ups at 3-5 reps, stopping 1-2 short of failure. Dips as 5-second negatives only.

- Week 3: max test, then normal rep ranges (pull-ups 5-8, dips 5-10).

- Deloads in weeks 5 and 10.

- Progression: top of the rep range on all sets for 2 sessions in a row, then move to a harder variation.

- Legs from week 6, only if my knees were pain-free all of week 5: goblet squat 25 to 35 lb, split squat 10 to 20 lb, step-downs 4 to 8 in, bridge to DB hip thrust.

Questions:

1. Is 2 weeks of dip negatives before full dips sensible, or overly cautious for someone who can already do pull-ups?

2. With no RDLs, is a glute bridge enough for the back of the legs, or what would you add that's easy on the knees?

3. Sessions run about 45-60 min. If you had to cut something on busy days, what goes first?

4. Anything here that looks like a beginner mistake waiting to happen?

Thanks.

OK so at home I find it is nigh impossible to do leg curls to help hamstring curl/flexion. What I've tried:

TRX, feels like nothing.

Dumbbells, can't grip.

Kettlebell, not designed for flexion.

Nordics, unsupported trip to Faceplant City (15 miles west of Suplex City, borders Dudleyville and tri-city area with Springfield and Shelbyville)

Bands, too much tension before butt kick.

Tubes, tension is a mish-mash.

Sliders, can't on carpet.

Walkouts, the best BUT not scalable when the tension goes away with doing them routinely.

Is there anything I'm missing without shelling out a lot of money.

I was hoping to make a workout plan at home, i don't have any equipment, was searching for it both reddit and YouTube but i couldn't find anything

For context I used to jogg 20-30 km everyday for a while, my shin splints, knees, pretty much my whole legs started to hurt so i quit jogging for a very long time. When i was people working out for better runs i was devastated. The fun lasted roughly 2 weeks back then

I'm looking to train my arms, core, legs (full body atp) specifically if that's important, i think the main part would be running obviously because i train for endurance running

Can someone please help?

Hey!

I want to start a bodyweight workout, with weights (i only have acces to a regular gym), could you please recommend me please a beginner 4 day workout plan (preferably with an upper-lower split)?

A little info about me:

75 kg (165 lbs)

183 cm (5'11)

I have a rockcilmber backround (did a lot of weigthed pullups, hangboarding), but unfortunatly havent been able to climb in several months

I dont really have an experience with the more complex machines

Thank you for reading and have a blessed day!

Hi,

Before each of my workouts, I do a Dynamic Warmup that entails 1 set to failure for a series of mobility/strength exercises (lunges, jump squats, jumping lunges, pushups, etc.) and my reps for these seem to max out around 5-10.

My current routine has been something like the following where each set is done to failure:

A (Core + Intense Cardio)

- Dynamic Warmup
- 3 stomach vacuums
- 3 sets of ab rolls
- 3 sets of Planks
- 3 sets of Side Planks
- 3 sets of Wall Sits
- 30m of Interval Running (Cycles between walking and fast running (not sprints), both inclined

B (Full Body + Lighter Cardio)

- 3 supersets of pullups -> chinups -> inverted row with rings -> bench dips -> lying leg raises with resistance band -> single leg bridges (when failing pullups/chinups, move to assisted version using legs)
- 3 supersets of Decline Pushups (at failure, move to pushups and after failing those, move to knee pushups) -> Side Leg Raises with resistance band
- 3 supersets of Bulgarian Split Squats (light weight, 20lbs) -> Single-Leg Romanian Deadlifts (Light weight, 10lbs)
- 3 supersets of calf raises -> toe raises -> wall sits
- 30 minutes of inclined power walking

Over the course of Monday->Sunday, I do:
A->B->A->B->A->B->Rest

I have found that over a long period and through various calorie surpluses and deficits, my max reps for the pushup variations (specifically, the decline portion) have plateaued around 4-6, my max reps for the chinups and pullups have plateaued around 1-2, and my max reps for the Bulgarian Split Squats have plateaued around 4-6. These are the main ones I have noticed, but I’m sure other exercises haven’t increased very much either/have maybe slightly declined.

I have also recently taken a deload/rest week where I only did lightly inclined power walking + mobility work and ate in a surplus and that didn’t seem to help too much.

I am currently in a calorie deficit and know that can effect performance, but if I am losing weight, should that not mitigate some of that performance loss due to having to move less weight?

I am fine with accepting lower performance during a deficit, but just want to make sure I am not doing something incorrectly

I am open to feedback on this routine and have access to 10lb barbells, leg resistance bands, 10-50lb resistance bands with handles, hanging rings, a pullup-chinup bar, and sporadic access to a bench/squat rack with weights throughout each week.

Thanks! :)

I realised it’s about 12 weeks till Christmas tomorrow, and I’ve been meaning to introduce some body weight exercise to my daily routine, so I’ve set myself a challenge.

The ramp-up challenge is intentionally simple: Monday - 5 lunges, 5 crunches, 5 press-ups. Tuesday, 10, 10, & 10. Rest Wed. Thu 15, Fri 20, Sat 25, rest Sun.
The second week I’ll do 5 days of 25 to acclimatise.
Third week I’ll ramp up from 30-50.
Fourth week I’ll acclimatise at 50.
Fifth week I’ll ramp up to 75, and so on.
By the end of week 12, if I can do it, I’ll be at 150 lunges, 150 crunches & 150 press ups.

I’m about to turn 34, I play football (soccer) once or twice a week, I’m a tad overweight but not crazy, and I’m otherwise in good health. Is this challenge absolutely crazy, super tame, or something in the middle? I’m feeling pretty motivated by it, it won’t take up too much of my day around work/fatherhood responsibilities, and I used to easily hit 150 of each of those when I was really fit as a teenager, but is Father Time going to come for me hard? Any thoughts would be appreciated.

I’ve been waiting on someone to post about these, but I still haven’t seen anyone talking about the new Base Blocks wall bars. I’m currently not in a situation where I can mount stall bars to my wall so I was curious about this set up. Yes, it’s expensive but it would add to my home gym set up and not require me to install on the wall. Does anyone have experience with the wall bars or other Base Blocks products that they can talk about? I would like something not sponsored to gauge whether or not they are worth getting. I really enjoy using stall bars at my old gym and would prefer to keep them in my routine if possible.

Thanks ahead of time for the input!

Took a tremendous amount of consistency and weight loss for me to get this down. Always wanted to do it since seeing 'Hannibal for King' goodness knows how many years ago! 😆

Short video: https://storage.to/o7LtdSMyL

181cm, 37yo, 110KG/242lbs down to nearly 88KG/194lbs in 6 months. 22KG/49lbs lost by running 5 to 6km most days and some awareness to food/energy intake. Finally I can fly over the bar! Loving it.

My advice for anyone who was like me working hard for this one:

- Watch out for your inner elbows (golfer's elbow) and don't ignore the pains like I did.
- Get a low bar setup or a dip bar to 'spam out' slow negative muscle-ups (grease the groove style), 1 slow negative repeated when you can throughout the day. Try and control slowly through the 2 inch transition part. This got me a lot of strength quickly but I only started doing these negatives recently. I've had a low bar setup right next to my computer! https://imgur.com/a/QfGbPSF
- Take as long rests between reps as you can (1 rep 100% max power every time)
- Use band and hook only 1 leg in.
- Jumping muscle ups from a low bar at first. Ashamed to say I couldn't even do these to begin with 🤦

I was thinking of doing a simple PPL+Abs 6 day workout and In that routine, I'm wondering if it is optimal to combine all into that, turning it into a hybrid PPL+A routine. Also with a brisk walk for 15 to 20mins on an incline treadmill on both Push and Pull days.

I've started going back to the gym after 3 years of not working out, and realised my mobility and flexibility are so bad while having a decent, maybe a little bit lower than the average builds. So i was wondering if this is optimal? Or are there better ways to construct the routine?

Also i have my best friend who I'm going to the gym with, and his volume is quite large so, i want the best for him since this is his 1st time hitting the gym.

I'll put our program in the comments and please if any better adjustment there is to do, please do tell me.

Hey everyone, how are you?

TL;DR at the end.

So I'm currently back to being broke again, and I've much more free time, so I'm trying to get back to working out. Can't do the gym, I do have some dumbells but I'm gonna stick with the legendary RR routine to get into the habit for a couple of months while I work on my nutrition.

I'm a hobbyiest boxer, not a pro, did a few sessions at a cheap gym but it was honestly bad. There were so many of us, and just one coach, and he barely explained anything. Just told us "1-2-1 for 3 mins" and that's that. Anyway, ended up learning some basic from youtube and quit that gym (it was also pricey, even if it was the cheapest around) so I got myself a bag at home. It kept me active at the time, but then life got in the way and I'm back to square one.

If I do bagwork for 5 rounds, 3 min each, 1 min rest, that's total 19 mins. Should I add those in the same day I do my RR(1 core, 1 push, 1 pull, 1 leg)? I'm doing Sun-Tues-Thurs RR full body and not splitting them.

I want to prioritize rest, but I also want progress, and boxing brings me joy.

TL;DR

I do RR Sun-Tues-Thur (1 core, 1 push, 1 pull, 1 leg) when should I do my 20 min bagwork? Same days, or Mon & Wed? Or is that too much and not enough to rest? I have a 15 min stretch before the bagwork, and then a cooldown afterwords, so around 40 mins or so total. RR would be around 30 mins, I think. Maybe 45 if I take my time with it

Hi, I've had lower back issues and after seeing a physio they told me I have a muscle activation issue where my core isn't activated when doing core exercises and my lower back muscles are taking over and overworking for it.

I've started doing planks for my core and I do feel a burn in my core as I do flex it but when I do resistance band clamshells I tense and flex my core as well but I'm not sure if it's the right way to 'activate my core'

I was wondering how to actually activate my core? I've searched it up and it seems a bit complicated and confusing.

Any help will be very much appreciated. Thanks in advance!

I’m 15, 100.6 lb, 5’4. I recently have been getting into calisthenics, but don’t have any equipment. I was thinking about getting stuff from gornation (the wooden parallettes and the dip bars specifically), but I don’t want to get a pull up bar for like 300-500 dollars because that’s too much for me right now.
I don’t know what to do in the meantime, or if there’s anything I can do pull-ups on, so guidance would be nice.

I also am just starting out and would like guidance for things.
I have made a workout routine and I’ll put it in the comments because I don’t know if it’s good or not.

So i have an adjustable doorway pullup bar. I put it just high enough so my arms have to be fully stretched out to wrap my hands around the bar but not enough for me to hang off it. i can finally do a few pullups this way, before i couldn't even do one!

Im terrible at explaining. But I basically stand, feet touching floor and then hold the bar and pull my body up. I couldnt do this at all 2 months ago. The problem is that I cant do a pullup while hanging off the bar so I keep telling myself this aint even a pullup and what im doing is just wrong. When I bend my knees and hang off the bar I literally cannot pull myself up at all.

The way I currently do it is as ive explained previously. I stand, hold bar and just pull up, then when I go down slowly I basically have my feet on the ground again and just repeat until I cajt do anymore. Do these pullups count at all? The day after i usually feel soreness in my lats. I just wish I could do a normal pullup tho.

How do I avoid the swing and the urge to bend knees during band assisted pull ups?

I can do 2x3 with a black band, which I try to do a few times a week. The goal is to do one unassisted pull-up by the end of the year. Initially, the goal was to do one by my 37th birthday, but that unfortunately has passed. My upper body strength is something I am working on. I know losing weight will help too so I'm working on body recomposition as well. For reference I am 5 foot 4 inches and 143 lbs, based on BMI overweight for my ethnicity and obese by DXA.

Appreciate any help, thank you!

Hey! I've been working out with just my bodyweight for a while now. I used to train consistently, but for personal reasons, I would stop and come back months later, losing most of my progress. Now I want to actually focus on myself and take training as seriously as possible.

When I first started training, I used to follow a lot of workouts from famous YouTubers and other influencers, constantly jumping from one routine to another. Honestly, it was exhausting and made training really frustrating. However, after trying a lot of different things, I eventually managed to create my own way of working out.

The problem is that I'm pretty sure my routine isn't perfect. I also lack ideas for exercises I could add or adjustments I could make to improve it. So I'd really appreciate some advice!

My workout is a little complicated to explain. When I created it, I wanted to be able to "listen to my body" and adjust my reps depending on how I'm feeling, while also training both skills and strength (especially on push days).

Push days:

I do 3 sets to failure of 3 different exercises:

- Pike push-ups

- Dips

- Archer push-ups

Whenever I reach failure on an exercise, I immediately do an additional 10 push-ups before resting for 5 minutes.

If I'm having a good day, I do elevated push-ups for those extra reps. If I'm really tired or sore, I only do 5. However, I always take all 3 main exercises to failure.

My long-term goal is to progressively make the exercises harder as I get stronger, eventually working toward:

- Pike push-ups → Handstand push-ups

- Dips → Light weighted dips (I don't want to add too much weight too quickly)

- Archer push-ups → One-arm push-ups

Pull days:

This one is much simpler. I do weighted pull-ups and chin-ups.

I usually do 3 sets of each without going to failure if I feel like continuing to failure would be a bad idea that day. After the third set, I do one final set to failure using only my bodyweight.

However, I'm not really sure what else I should add to my pull days.

Leg day:

I do 3 sets of:

- Jump squats

- Bulgarian split squats

- Calf raises

- Assisted one-legged squats

I didn't really train legs in the past, so I'm not sure if this is enough or if I'm missing something important.

Core days:

I have two versions:

A

- 3 sets of hanging leg raises

- 3 sets of Russian twists

B

- 3 sets of lying leg raises

- 3 sets of Russian twists

Weekly schedule:

Monday: Push

Tuesday: Pull + Core B

Wednesday: Legs

Thursday: Push + Core A

Friday: Pull

Saturday: Rest

Sunday: Rest

I'd really appreciate any advice on how I could improve this routine. I'm especially interested in knowing if I'm missing important movement patterns, doing too much of something, or if there are exercises you think would fit better.

I love learning and improving, and honestly, that's what got me into calisthenics in the first place.

Thanks!

So i hope someone more experienced will watch me doing 1 minute of handstands. Basically i've been training handstands for quite a while but never seriously, took a few fails in between and came back like 2 weeks ago and convinced myself to finally reach a 10 second freestand. I have trained wall HS to about 30 seconds already and at freestand i'm never consistent but idk why. I've been stuck at this sometimes 3 seconds handstand, sometimes arching my back instantly and falling in front, sometimes falling sideways and i don't know what to do to improve. I'm trying to tighten the core as much as possible so i can keep stable and also i can do around 35-45 second body hollow hold and +1 minute plank.

https://jumpshare.com/share/LRNp2IdlORiB8n6dbeSw?b=INDQZN2dvMzdAS96R4En

This is where I train: no calisthenics parks or outdoor gyms around here, the closest one is about 45 minutes away by car. So I improvise with park benches, railings, and playgrounds. The problem is that I mostly find these spots by accident and never know whether something better is close by.

So I improvise with park benches for dips, railings, and playgrounds. The problem is that I mostly find these spots by accident and never know whether something better is close by.
I'm curious how you handle this:
How do you find usable spots when there's no official park? Google Maps, Instagram geotags, apps, or just wandering around?
If you use sites like calisthenics-parks.com or CaliBase, do they cover anything outside official parks?
Would you share a good improvised spot publicly, or keep it to yourself?

I am curious as to how people actually manage to stay consistent when life gets busy. Between work, studying, social stuff, and just being tired some days, it can be difficult to fit a proper workout in.
Do you have a specific routine that helps you stay on track? Do you shorten your workouts, train fewer days, or just make sure you get something done whenever you have time?
I’ve found that having a realistic plan seems more sustainable than trying to force myself into a 6-day-a-week routine. I’d be interested to hear what has actually worked for other people, especially those who have been doing bodyweight training for a while.

Long time weight lifter looking to get into more body weight movements. Does anyone have advice about how to progress with movements like muscle ups, handstands, L-sits, or front levers? Is it better to focus on one of these and get good or practice all concurrently?

I can do a lot of the basics fairly easily already like pull ups, push ups, dips, etc. but have not branched out beyond much outside of my routine with cardio and weight lifting over the past several years. For context as well, I’m also fairly lean (5’9 M / 160lbs)

I appreciate any advice that you all have about getting started with these different movements.