Myth: Bodyweight training is just for beginners.

Bodyweight training, or calisthenics, is a type of exercise that uses your own bodyweight as resistance, such as pushups and pullups. It is often recommended for people new to exercise to begin with calisthenics for a variety of reasons; such as the scalability of exercises, the ability for anyone to do it at any time, and the relative ease the form of exercise has on your joints. For all these benefits and more, it comes as no surprise that calisthenics exercises are extremely common in beginner routines. However, in many fitness circles calisthenics also gets labelled as only being appropriate for beginners and that as you become more advanced, you must use external loads to see continued progress. While there are other benefits to using weights in your training routine, to say that calisthenics is only for beginners is a major myth! In fact, calisthenics can be an effective form of exercise for people of all fitness levels, from beginners to advanced athletes. Here are four reasons why bodyweight training is suitable everyone from beginners and advanced athletes:

1) Calisthenics can be adapted to any fitness level. 

Unlike traditional weightlifting exercises, calisthenics can be modified to suit any fitness level. For example, to make a standard pushup easier, you could raise your hands higher and perform decline pushups or wall pushups. Similarly, to make pushups harder you could perform more advanced variations such as handstand pushups or planche pushups. The scalability of calisthenics making it a benefit for beginners is the same reason it is a viable option for more advanced individuals. Additionally, just as with weights, you can perform more and more reps of bodyweight exercise variation before moving on to another variation; which is analogous to adding more weight to weighted exercises. While it may take more time to reach another variation of a calisthenics exercise than adding five lbs to a barbell, the scalability and variety of exercises make it appropriate for all fitness levels.

2) Calisthenics can help to build strength and muscle. 

Often inspired by bodybuilding and instagram personalities, many people believe that lifting weights is the only way to build strength and muscle. As we discussed in the last point, bodyweight exercises can be performed with both beginner and advanced variations, as well as a high amount of repetitions. By progressively and consistently increasing the difficulty of your calisthenics exercises, you can continue to challenge your muscles and see results just like with weight training (provided you are eating a high protein diet conducive to building muscle). Resistance is resistance, whether it comes from your bodyweight or external loads. Your muscles adapt, grow, and gain strength by exerting hard contractions for sufficient loads and time under tension. If you need proof that bodyweight training builds muscle, look at any calisthenics athlete or gymnast. They are seriously strong!

3) Calisthenics can improve your overall fitness.

Many calisthenics based exercises require good flexibility, core engagement, and coordination. As exercise variations get harder, there are many options that challenge these fitness qualities. An example is performing a pistol squat instead of a regular bodyweight squat. By progressing to one leg, we challenge our balance more throughout the movement in addition to the increased strength demands. Additionally, there are very few isolation movements in calisthenics. This means that you are primarily limited to compound movements, which teaches your muscles to work in unison. By moving the body through more varied movement patterns, we improve our muscular coordination. Therefore, calisthenics has the necessary components to improve your overall fitness to advanced levels!

4) Calisthenics is accessible. 

While not specifically a reason why bodyweight training is suitable for beginners and advanced athletes alike, it emphasizes the accessibility of calisthenics. Calisthenics can be done anywhere, anytime, and for free. Since it is scalable to any fitness level, all you need is your body and time! This means that no matter your situation, you can use bodyweight training to improve your fitness levels.

In conclusion, calisthenics is not just for beginners. It is a versatile and effective form of exercise that can be adapted to any fitness level and can help to build strength, flexibility, and improve overall fitness. While you may not become the next top bodybuilder using only calisthenics, you can certainly reach advanced levels of physical fitness!

References

Kotarsky, C. J., Christensen, B. K., Miller, J. S., & Hackney, K. J. (2018). Effect of progressive calisthenic push-up training on muscle strength and thickness. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 32(3), 651-659. https://doi.org/10.1080/11745398.2021.1949738

Pinar, L., Kara, B., & Kozan, Ö. M. E. R. (2014). Effects of long-term calisthenics on physical fitness and quality of life in older women. Fizyoterapi Rehabilitasyon, 25(2). 

Schoenfeld, B. J. (2010). The mechanisms of muscle hypertrophy and their application to resistance training. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 24(10), 2857-2872. https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0b013e3181e840f3 

Thomas, E., Bianco, A., Mancuso, E. P., Patti, A., Tabacchi, G., Paoli, A., ... & Palma, A. (2017). The effects of a calisthenics training intervention on posture, strength and body composition. Isokinetics and exercise science, 25(3), 215-222. https://doi.org/10.3233/IES-170001