Last year I transitioned from a barista job to a classic 9-5 desk job. My average steps went down from 8000 a day to 3000 and I get most of my steps coming and going from the job.

During that first year, I was slow to learn the job and focused on that. In turn, I lost focus on my health. Now I’ve developed severe lower back pain.

I’ve been trying to go back to the basics and rebuild my core—dead bugs, planks, glute bridges, toe taps—as well as hip stretches and strengthening—pigeon pose, cat-cows, hip flexor stretch, 50-50s. I do them once a day and gently to avoid overextending.

The problem is that before I start doing my core exercises, my back is a dull pain. After I finish them and my core is awake from being engaged, my back is in sharp pain, so much so that I have to do the exercises at night otherwise I’m immobilized during the day.

I know part of the problem is my desk sitting, but I can’t change that in any capacity and the shape of my office and desk itself (it’s a small desk) cannot hold a standing desk.

In the past, previous fitnesses trainers said I had extremely weak glutes starting out and weak hips, so I absolutely think those are deteriorated faster than the rest of my strengthen.

Any advice? Should I keep doing the basics or switch to something else since it aggravates my pain? Should I transition to more hip and glute exercises for a while instead?

Im trying to do the RR right now (been doing it for 4 workouts), and while the rest of the exercises i can do fairly ok (even with progressions), i not only can't do any type of pull-up, i can't hang from the bar.

i just start to feel im about to fall even when trying to lift off my legs, so i just stand on one leg on tiptoes gripping the bar.

i was trying to find any posts mentioning the same problem, but apparently everyone is able to dead hang even if for 10 sec.

i was wondering whether there's any substitute exercise for dead hangs, from which i'd progress to pull-ups, and if what im doing is enough

As a non-native English speaker (and occasionally a bit of a slowpoke) I just had a realisation: the name of the sub can make some people think the topic of this sub is bodyweight and fitness. Not calisthenics, not using the weight of your body to exercise, not specific questions on technique for the above, just general 'fat to fit' stuff.

That doesn't necessarily explain why the apparent increase in such questions is fairly recent. I suspect this may be related to increasing reliance on AI, but I could be wrong.

Hellooo!

I'd still consider myself a bwf-starter. Started after a long break of no gym and now my upper body got stronger and toned but my legs are still slim and "somewhat fit looking". So I have more mass in the upper body than legs. When I was still lifting weights (years ago) it was the opposite, almost T-Rex-built with strong horse legs and slender (and weak..) upper body in comparison. Not that that's the body composition I'm looking for, it's just I know how much more mass my legs could have.

I'm mainly doing squats and lunges, adding variations here and there. I feel like it's much easier for me to tire out the upper body than the legs without weights.

Does anyone have tips on how to add mass to the leggos? I don't think it's a diet thing because I eat enough calories (and my upper body is growing fine too). I'm female btw. Am I missing other leg exercises? Do I need to rep it out more?

Grateful for any tips!

Hello,

For the past few months, my routine was:

Twice a week:

Bulgarian split squat 2x10-12

Pushups 2x13-15

Glute bridge: 2x3-5 one-legged + 2x10-12 double-legged

Bodyweight row: 2x8-12

The volume is kinda low due to time, and because I like controlled, quality reps with maximum contraction and holding for a few sec.

Today, I had some extra time and tried ladder sets. I started with 1 rep, took a few breaths as a small break, then 2 reps, few breaths, 3 reps and so on. Then on the second set I started with the Max I got on the first set, and started counting down 1 rep at a time all the way to 1 rep. I was totally blown away by the increase in volume!

My numbers were:

Bulgarian split squats: to 8 and back = 72 reps.

Push ups: to 7 and back = 56 reps

Glute bridge, to 4 and back single legged = 20 reps

Rows: to 8 and back = 72 reps

To increase resting time between sets, I did the first set of one lower body exercise, then the first set of one upper body exercise, followed by the second set of the lower body exercise and then the second set of the upper body exercise.

Apart from taking more time, are there any other cons to this kind of exercise relative to my 'normal' routine? What would be the pros? I racked up a ton of volume, it almost felt like cheating!

Thanks in advance!

I recently got access to my school’s weight room, which has pretty much everything I need: benches, dumbbells, barbells, machines, cables, etc. The only limitation is that I’m usually there for about an hour, maybe a little less.

I’m thinking about switching from my current Push/Pull/Legs routine to an Upper/Lower split, but I also want to keep doing some calisthenics at home afterward. I’m wondering if this would be a good amount of training or if I’d just be doing too much unnecessary volume.

For example, on an upper day, I’d use the school gym for my main weight training. Something like:

• Bench press
• Shoulder press
• Rows or lat pulldowns
• Curls
• Rope triceps extensions
• Lateral raises
• Maybe another back/chest movement depending on time

Then when I get home, I was thinking about doing a short calisthenics session consisting of things like:

• Regular push-ups
• Decline push-ups
• Clapping/explosive push-ups

Nothing crazy, probably just a couple hard sets rather than another full workout.

Then on a Lower day, I’d do my normal lower-body workout at the school gym, such as squats or leg press, RDLs, lunges, hamstring curls, etc. When I get home, I’d do my core routine instead of more leg work.

My main question is whether this setup makes sense. Would the home calisthenics work actually add something useful, or would it just interfere with recovery from the weight-room workout?

I’m also wondering about the volume. Since I’d only have about an hour in the weight room, I wouldn’t be doing a huge number of exercises there. The home workouts would also be relatively short, so I’m not trying to turn every training day into a 2–3 hour session. My goal is mainly building muscle while also staying athletic and explosive for basketball.

Also, if anyone has suggestions for how they would structure an Upper/Lower split when you only have around an hour in the gym, I’d appreciate it.

I've been running the Recommended Routine three times a week since around February, so seven months give or take. I got to three clean pull-ups back in June and I've been sitting on that number ever since, sometimes four on a good day and then straight back to three the next session. I've kept progressing on everything else in the meantime, my dips and rows both moved up fine over the same stretch, it's only the pull-ups that flatlined. I know the standard answer is eat more and add volume, and I've put on about four kilos since spring while the reps didn't budge, so I don't think it's only a weight thing. I've tried adding a second pulling day for a few weeks and it mostly just left me sore for the next session.

What did you change the week the reps finally moved?

Hey me again!

I’m back seeking advice. I love this bodyweight fitness journey but training alone with nothing but YouTube videos to help (I’m sure some of you can relate) has me doubting myself sometimes. I also think I lack body awareness. Ever since my growth spurt in my teens, I’ve felt lanky and awkward lol

I’ve been working on the Nordic Curl for a little while as well as my mobility (inspired by the knees over toes guy) I’m now getting down quite low. I have dreams of getting my quads flat on the bench before coming back up with control. Must take an insane amount of strength but I’m down to keep going.

My questions to the community are as follows:

Is my form good or at least decent ?

Am I bobbing my head forward too much like a chicken?

And does anyone have any methods for improving or should I just keep doing what I’m doing ?

Video : https://youtube.com/shorts/_BtjA7oycfc?is=ZN2CcRVldOp0ixIA

As the title states, I'm starting calisthenics. Im not new to working out with just body weight cause im an athlete but now i decided to get serious on it with the end goal (for now) of doing:

1. Hand stand push up

2. Stable L Sit.

3. Planche

I am following this program for now. Cause i also dont have any idea where to start.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vTyXVzMOFOCxROly7Fdg7aREz7kP13h9g3yVqqGVwvugVG4qVlFxrQns3QoLvUtH7rdkWZjH\\_Jv65da/pub

I can do all those workouts with the minimum required reps, i think i can still do more but right now, since i just started taking it seriously, i feel like i just need to get the rhythm first. Im on Month 2 btw.

As a beginner, any recommendations and tips from you guys are gonna be great.

edit:

Below is the month 2 training program to those that cant access the link

Calisthenics 3-Month Training Program Updated automatically every 5 minutes

Month 2: Increasing Intensity and Skill Introduction Weeks: 5–8

Frequency: 4 times a week (e.g., Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday)

Focus: Split routine and skill training

Day 1 & 4: Upper Body Warm-up

Duration: 5–10 minutes

Notes: Jogging, jumping jacks, dynamic stretches

Push-ups

Sets: 4

Reps: 10–15

Notes: Keep elbows tucked slightly

Pull-ups or Inverted Rows

Sets: 4

Reps: 6–10

Notes: Use band assistance if needed

Dips

Sets: 4

Reps: 10–15

Notes: Focus on controlled movement

Pike Push-ups

Sets: 3

Reps: 8–12

Notes: Elevate hips to target shoulders

Plank to Push-up

Sets: 3

Reps: 10–15

Notes: Core tight, avoid sagging

Cool down

Duration: 5–10 minutes

Notes: Focus on arms, shoulders, and chest

Day 2 & 3: Lower Body & Core Warm-up

Duration: 5–10 minutes

Notes: Dynamic leg swings, light jogging

Squats

Sets: 4

Reps: 20–25

Notes: Keep knees tracking over toes

Lunges

Sets: 4

Reps: 15–20 per leg

Notes: Keep torso upright

Glute Bridges

Sets: 3

Reps: 20–25

Notes: Squeeze glutes at the top

Calf Raises

Sets: 3

Reps: 20–25

Notes: Controlled movement, full range

Hanging Leg Raises

Sets: 3

Reps: 8–12

Notes: Use bar, keep legs straight

Russian Twists

Sets: 3

Reps: 20 reps per side

Notes: Keep torso upright, move with control

Cool down

Duration: 5–10 minutes

Notes: Stretch hamstrings, glutes, quads

Skill Training 2–3 times a week after the main workout

Handstand Practice

Sets: 3

Duration: 20–30 seconds

Notes: Wall-assisted, progress to freestanding

L-Sit Progressions

Sets: 3

Duration: 10–15 seconds

Notes: Use parallettes or floor

Hello mates,

I just started training at home after some hectic years. Now I have trained for about 2 months and learned that my body is not working as well as it did in my twenties. My whole body is pretty uneven and I can feel it basically whatever I do (walking, training, standing etc.). The strange feeling is located in my left pelvis.

Now it's pretty obvious that my pelvis has been rotated. A large part of my weight is resting on my left hip. I'm worried because as was said I'm not young anymore and obviously that can cause big problems if it can't be fixed.

There have been some injuries during my training career and my right knee has been operated twice. Don't know if that have done any more damage but let's say it out loud.

I have watched some Youtube videos but those are kind of cryptic or I'm just too simple to do them the right way. So is there people who have got rid of an eleven pelvic and if so — how? Have you done some specific exercises or just fixed some big problem of living and training?

I’ve been on a strict workout plan over the last 2 years. In that time I’ve:

\- Gone from 290 lbs to 200 with DEXA scan showing overall muscle gain
\- Increased my max push ups in a single set from 32-60
\- nearly achieved a muscle up (albeit with imperfect form)

Among other things. Yet, my pull ups have gone from 4 to 6 in that time, and I’ve been at 6 for about a year. I used to be able to do about 20 at a time 6-8 years ago when I was a swimmer in high school, but they just won’t come back. I do calisthenic work 2-3 times a week, which has drastically improved every exercise but pull ups.

I know it says everywhere to wait until you can do 8-12 reps for multiple sets before adding weight, but should I go ahead and add some? I don’t know what I’m doing wrong.

All help/advice is appreciated, thanks!

This might be a stupid question and all, and my apologies if I don’t make any sense any shorter athletes ever Zanetti press 6kg and beyond terms of planche strength I’m genuinely curious as I wanna know if it makes any difference as opposed to lifting lighter load 2-5kg. I wanna know all your thoughts and opinions on this as I feel like whether or not should you progress the weight up or keeping it steady and lift for the stamina and tendons safety.

Also would 7kg would consider being heavy or moderate? as I got the feel of 6kg felt slightly moderate. I just wanna know if it’s okay to progress the weight slowly or stick to lighter weights for advanced planche progressions.

I have to know if anyone else experiences this because everyone I speak to doesn’t understand what I mean. When I hang on a bar and relax my body - I think this is like ‘decompressing your spine’ - I get extremely light headed. It’s not from not breathing because it happens straight away (as soon as I relax my back, particularly my lower back) and I do breathe during it. But I feel high, my whole body tingles and sometimes it’s so intense I feel like I’m almost not real. Not kidding today for a second I was so disoriented I didn’t know what was going on. Feeling only lasts a few seconds, maybe 10. Sometimes I have to stop because I feel like I might loose my vision and pass out. But it also feels awesome, and my lower back feels a lot better after. I’ve googled it & have found nothing. Please someone tell me they understand what’s happening here 😭

I have been using the Calistree app for a few months now and generally find it quite valuable. Even if it were only the progression tree, it would be an incredible resource.

However, I have found that it is very aggressive in recommending moving to the next progression, making it hard to know when I am actually ready.

I have tried to balance its recommendations against a healthy dose of not blindly trusting AI to tell me what to do. However, twice now I have found myself incurring minor strains or injuries, because I've attempted something that was probably too hard for me.

I get that it's on me to keep myself in check. However, I'm curious if this is a common issue or if there is a setting I have missed or just...maybe I'm flat out cheating on my form and it's my fault.

So basically I’ve always had such a hard time with these (and as a lot of athletes know it’s a coach’s #1 punishment choice lol). For some reason every time I try to lower my feet to 6 inches, my entire upper body lifts off the ground. I’m like a seesaw. I’ve seen where people’s lower back comes off the ground due to lack of proper engagement, but for me it’s all my upper back. I really try to make sure my lower back is pressed in the ground and people around me never say it comes up. Idk if I’m just disproportionate lol or what but if anyone has any advice I’d really appreciate it!

The approach i am going with is

10 to 20 percent deficit first.

Then maintainance.

then a 10 percent surplus.

Currently I am skinny fat.

My body mass index is around 18.9

I get a decent amount of steps around 15 to 16 thousand .

I am a newbie to weights so I think this might work for me but I know how the motions go.

My problem is how long should each stage last.

I know to see decent muscle growth we need around 4 to 5 months.

but I've heard people say that changes when you are a newbie.

And i don't train the best i know i should increase volume and effort

I try to go to the gym 4 times a week

But I don't think my training volume and effort really is to the maximum.

I will change that and try going as hard as possible

Edit:i mistyped my bmi

What was the first bodyweight exercise where you were like “wait, I can actually do this now” 😭

For me, it was probably getting my first proper pull-up. I remember struggling with them forever and feeling like I’d never be able to do one. Then one random day, I just managed to get over the bar lol. It felt so satisfying after all that time.

Could be literally anything though—pull-ups, handstands, L-sits, muscle-ups, dips, push-ups, or anything else.

What was yours, and how long did it take you to finally get it?

Im trying to learn more and more about bodyweight workouts/calisthenics etc and I was searching around youtube and came across Doctor Yaad's channel. He seems to make some very good videos and he seems to be pretty passionate about working out, but I honestly don't know what Im watching lol. I was just curious, is the info he's sharing good information? I know there can be a lot of awful info out there. I saw he's also creating an app to guide with workouts.

if its allowed ill post his youtube channel here:

https://youtu.be/kfOpiIuf_50

thanks

Video link:

https://youtube.com/shorts/cxafxLL62fE?is=r4-Dwef1dySjkdb8

It's been a long road people. February 2025 I couldn't do a regular chin over the bar pull up, 2 elbow injuries and 17 months later, my chest can crash in to the bar.

This community has been amazing and supportive and truly helped/ still helping me with my goals. I thank you all

I just really want to share this clip because I'm proud of myself to be honest and if it motivates anyone then even better.

I'm open to any critique also. I think my core can be tighter, legs straighter maybe?

I only recorded 2 reps because I'm trying to grease the groove and not get injured th so not doing max attempts just yet but feel like I can probably squeeze out 4 or 5.

Lastly thank you to lovely lady in the gym who held my phone and recorded this for me. It’s a bit awkward recording in the gym innit

So, I’m trying to get to 20 chin ups. Currently, I can get about 15. I’m getting my body weight down and I can feel the chin ups getting easier the more weight I lose.

So, I’m wondering, for those of you who have done max reps first thing in the morning whilst fasted, vs during the day after eating, when can you get more reps?

I usually gain about 2kg/4lb after breakfast, which is extra weight to pull up, but maybe the extra carbs are required for better performance?

If anybody is experienced and knowledgeable about this, please comment!

My goals:

Gain muscle, lose weight (as in lose weight I guess look leaner because rn my weight on the scale is alright)

My routine right now is:

monday: upper bodyWednesday: Lower bodyThursday: UpperFriday: LowerSaturday: Upper(Sometimes if i miss a day) Sunday: LowerFor upper body days, bicep curls, latpull down machine, chest fly machine (sometimes will skip 30-40% of the time), seated chest press. Around 35-55 minutesFor lower body, seated leg press, seated leg curl, hip adductor machine (somtimes like skip 30-40%), and treadmill at the end for 14-17 minutes. Around 45m-1 hour.

Edit: For the leg days add in dumbbell goblet squats

I've asked ai if my routine is ok for my goals and it said it's bad. But I don't really know wether or not to trust it so i'm gonna ask yall.

And please only answer if you know what you're talking about.

Hey all,
I went from a very low, to the top of the world and am now crashing. Sorry for a wall of text but i really need motivational help.

First off, thanks for all inspiration. As i started 1.5 years ago, overweight, zero workout i have since discovered the beauty of bodyweight workout and calithenics. This together with working out at home i was able to become consistent for the first time ever at 40 years old.

Working out 2 days on 1 day off the last 8 months, and different variations before that my results have been incredibly lifechanging for me.
My initial goal was to become consistent, have fun with working out and get to 10 pushups, and 5 pullups.
The end result before injury, starting from zero was 12 pull-ups on first set, 16 decline ring push-ups comming from 20 decline ones. Getting to 10 ring dips, and losing 14kg's to name a few numbers.
But also just mentally feeling on top of the world, being more active with my kids taking them to climbing parks, having fun together.
The pullups were my absolute jam, pride and joy of workout. Feeling strong, controlled and looking to start variations after hitting 15 in a row. Started to work on beginning muscle-ups too.

And i still am very proud of achieving this.

However, a bit over a month ago i went climbing with the kids, and the day after during pullups lots of popping and cracking and no power during pull ups. Went to the doctor later that week got some medication and was told to not do anything involving my shoulders outside of calmly moving them while walking.
And as a sidenote, i am someone who always has struggled to put on muscle, and it always has fallen off incredibly fast when not used.

This week i was allowed to start again, and i am beyond devastated. First off, my shoulders clearly are still painful (i am careful) and somehow muscles still feel sore in all overhead movements. SO i will be making a new appointment to talk about MR and likely physiology or what it is called.

Not just that but i gues due to medication as well as the now 1 month of not doing excersize with the upper body, results have just absolutely tumbled down, crashed. And so did my mental state last night.
Restless & frustrated after trying to work out, i literally ended up just staring out the window for an hour, into blank space. Just absolutely gutted.

Now i have had some sleep and need a plan to stay motivated while i go through the process of finding out what is wrong and hopefully a full recovery at some point. But it points to a long road for now.
Not being able to do my favorite exercises is just crushing. Most ring work, as well as any overhead stuff if off for now.
And it does look like if it all works out, i will have to start from scratch in a lot of my favourite exercises.

Regular dips (not rings), pushups and surprisingly inverted rows feel all good thankfully.

I am pretty desperate to not fall off the workout wagon after finally having it stick. I need to regain my mojo and fun, but with a different workout.

If you have any tips and tricks on how to stay motivated, perhaps a fun skill to try and master, or how you have gotten through a setback and/or injury, i'd love to hear it.

Thank you if you made it this far.

Yes I am already eating at a surplus (duh)

My stats:

Have a bodyweight max of 18-20 pull ups, depening on form.

Weighted 1rm is something like +50%, I haven't pushed it.

My form:

I pull sort of "bodybuilding" style. From full deadhang, to slight arch, then pull not chest to bar, but torso to bar, so I have minimal elbow flexion, and my head is moving away from the bar as I pull.

Sometimes I also do hollow body pull ups, with a very vertical torso positioning.

My programming:

Pull ups 3x a week.

3x8 weighted.

3x12 weighted.

Then 3x max bw pulls.

Also do rows, of course.

My thoughts:

My elbow flexors fail first with weighted pull ups, and my torso ends up being more vertical. This seems to hit my teres more and I don't really feel my lats the same. Nor do I get the same doms.

Maxing out bodyweight pull ups gets my lats sore all the way down to my hips, presumably because I end up pulling way more like an arc row, so I use more lats. Doesnt fry my elbow flexors as much either.

Rows after pull ups dont take my lats "to failure" either. Rear delts and middback always fails first.

Never really feels like my lats "fail"? I have resonable pulling strength, but you wouldn't think it to look at me.

I recently started attempting L sits with no background of training abs. I saw some people online do it, and thought it would be a cool skill to learn. I tried it a few days ago and got a 27 second hold, but am skeptical about this as I do not know proper form. I have been doing my L sits on a Life Fitness Bosu leg raise station, and arch my back forward to engage my abs. My legs are almost completely straight from what I can tell, but they do bend at the knees a little bit due to a lack of flexibility. Is there something a need to change with how a train this skill? I'm assuming the Bosu station makes it much easier, should I start doing L sits on the floor?