Olympic gymnast, Simone Biles, at the 2021 US Classic, landed the Yurchenko Double Pike on the vault exercise. The first woman to ever perform the “impossible” move in competition just did a pretty good job of nailing the exact same move on the training podium at the Tokyo Olympics.

There was some doubt about whether she would pull the move out for competition in Tokyo, or maybe it was just coyness, but Biles certainly looks ready to do the business and go for gold in the finals.

That’s all kinds of extraordinary and amazing and superlative. Let’s be clear, the Yurchenko Double Pike is a back handspring onto the vault, a flip in the air, two twists at the same time, and a second flip landing in the pike position.

The move is name after former Soviet gymnast, Natalia Yurchenko, and incorporartes speed, elevation off the platform, rotations, and power. Few men perform the move and rarely with the same degree of difficulty and power output that Biles has exhibited.

It is a dangerous move because, if not done right, you can break your neck. Biles, technically, is doing her own variatiion with an even greater degree of difficulty because she is doing two and half filps. If she nails the move at the Olympics, it could end up being a new move named after her.

Biles already has four skill moves to her name, this would be the fifth, which yet another layer of superlative on top of everything else she has achieved.

The post Just How Amazing is Simone Biles’ Yurchenko Double Pike appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Why the Front Lever Is So Difficult

I don’t think I’ve ever seen an overweight person pull off this move! (Though it’s certainly not an impossibility.) But it’s not just how much you weigh, but how tall you are that plays into the difficulty of this movement. As a leverage exercise, one additional inch in height adds many foot-pounds of pressure that you must resist. Personally, at 6’2” and 185lbs, I’m not the standard gymnast size. But that’s no excuse for not being able to achieve this move if you’re willing to put in the work.

The front lever is somewhere around two to three times more difficult than the back lever, at least in my experience. It’s not just about holding your body out parallel to the ground, but also about using your lats to lock yourself into place. In the front lever the lats are at a much more disadvantageous position than in the back lever, making it significantly harder.

I’ve even heard it said that the front lever is tougher than the one arm chin-up, but I think this will depend on the person and their focus. In either case, there will be some carryover between the two.

Six Steps to the Front Lever

In this article, I’ll give you six steps you can use to work up to the full front lever. You may notice these are different than what I advise for the back lever. In my own training, I discovered that this set of progressions worked better for me for the front lever. For example, I found that when I tried to do straddle front levers, there was a likelihood of a pike in the hips, which you want to avoid, but this is easy to avoid with the one-leg versions. That doesn’t mean you can’t do alternate progressions if you want, but this is what has worked for me and for many people I have observed.

Tip: One thing that helps on this exercise, regardless of the step you’re on, is to not only pull down on the bar, but to also pull apart your hands. This action can help stabilize the scapula allowing you to hold the position better.

Tuck Front Lever

Grasp the bar within overhand grip. Pull your legs and hips up, at the same time leaning back. Your back should be rounded and your body tucked up into as much of a ball as possible. Although rounded, you want your back approximately parallel to the ground.

Advanced Tuck Front Lever

Start in the tuck lever position. Instead of rounding your back, now you’re going to straighten it. It should form a line approximately parallel to the ground. At the same time, pull your shoulder blades back in retraction. Open the legs up slightly so your thighs are perpendicular to your body. This opening up increases the leverage.

One Bent Leg Front Lever

From the tuck lever, start with both your legs tucked in hard. Now extend one leg out, but keep the knee bent. The lower leg will be perpendicular to the ground, but your hip will be opened up completely. It may look like an odd position, but it’s not difficult to get into, and is an important step in the progression. Make sure to alternate legs between your sets.

One Leg Front Lever

Start in the tucked front lever position. Extend one leg out completely straight. Your back, hips, and the extended leg will all be in one line, parallel to the ground. It’s okay if there is a slight bow, but you should be mostly straight. The other leg will be tucked in hard to the chest. Make sure to alternate legs on your sets.

Advanced One Leg Front Lever

Start in the tucked front lever position. Extend one leg out completely straight. The other leg is partially un-tucked. The foot will be in line with the knee of the other leg. This halfway open position increases the leverage dramatically. Once again, your back and the straight leg are parallel to the ground. Alternate legs.

Front Lever

Starting from the tuck lever position, keeping both legs together, gradually extend them out at the hips and knees, until they are completely straight. Your entire body will form one straight line parallel to the ground. Pull down hard with the hands and the lats, as well as working the pulling-apart action to assist in stabilization.

Tip: Alternatively, you can pull up into this position from standing, although this is harder to do. These front lever pulls can be a great dynamic exercise, even without holding, to do in addition to the regular progressions of holds.

In the interest of being forthright, at the time of this writing I haven’t achieved the full front lever hold yet. Not for more than a split second anyway. But I am close, having accomplished several seconds in the advanced one leg front lever. And these are the progressions I’ve used to get there.

In the beginning you may progress quickly through this series as your body becomes adapted to the front lever position. As you reach the last three steps, you’ll find things slow down. Understand that it can take months to go from one step to the next. An additional second here and there is great progress. And, as needed, you can do additional in between phases of these exercises.

The post How to Build Up to the Front Lever appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

The last few weeks brought the U.S. Olympic trials in gymnastics, where we got a taste of the strength, power, grace, and athleticism by our men’s and women’s gymnastics teams that we’ll see in Rio.

When the Olympic Games begin in Rio we will marvel at world-class athletes showcasing their skills as they compete for kin and country, medals and glory.

The last few weeks brought the U.S. Olympic trials in gymnastics, where we got a taste of the strength, power, grace, and athleticism by our men’s and women’s gymnastics teams that we’ll see in Rio.

As with every Olympic year, interest in gymnastics and gymnastics-based fitness will peak. Gymnastics skills and strength are sexy, but do not rush straight for the rings or the bars.

High-level gymnastics strength begins with a strong and stable core. If you want to move like a gymnast, you must have a strong hollow body position.

What Is the Hollow Position?

Those committed to functionally-driven fitness programs know the hollow body position. For those less acquainted, and to ensure we agree on the finer points, I offer the following definition:

Hollow Body Position: Characterized by a shortening of the anterior (frontal) portion of the torso and posterior pelvic tilt. Contraction or shortening of the abs (think navel closer to your sternum), and hips rocked under (think pubic bone up toward your navel or imagine pouring water out the back of your pelvis if it were a bowl).

A full hollow body position requires the arms extended straight overhead squeezing the ears and legs extended straight out with toes pointed and heels hovering inches off the floor.

Adult athletes and youth gymnasts perform this position wrong on a daily basis. Simply holding your arms and legs off the floor while lying flat does not, in itself, make your body hollow.

To master the hollow body position, re-frame the position in your mind. Hollow body really means hollow torso. The magic happens between your shoulders and pelvis. Your extremities serve only to add loading to the position.

Building the Hollow Position

Lie flat on your back and slide your hands into the void between your low back and the ground. You will aim to fill this void during your hollow position.

Bring your knees over your chest and notice how this void disappears – your low back is now flush with the ground. Bringing your knees over your chest brings your pelvis into posterior pelvic tilt.

Remember this position and the feeling of your low back on the ground. Your goal in hollow body position is to maintain both.

With your arms down by your sides, lift your head and shoulders off the ground so that only your mid and lower back touch the ground. Congratulations, you’re in hollow body.

Feel free to load this position by both extending your legs out straight and your arms over your head. Maintain your low back on the ground and your head and shoulders up.

If you feel your low back arch or your ribs point up toward the sky you have extended too far and broken hollow. Play with extension and pay attention to where you break position. You can periodically return to this test to measure your progress.

If you have difficulty determining when you break position, use a friend or a prop to give you feedback. Place something flat under your back (t-shirt, belt, stretching band, martial arts belt, etc.). Ask a friend to gently tug on the belt as you extend from your tuck into a straighter hollow position.

When you break position the pressure on the belt will decrease allowing your friend to pull it free.

You can perform this test solo by pulling the band yourself. A blood pressure cuff also provides great feedback. Tuck the slightly inflated cuff under your low back and observe the needle for a decrease in pressure.

You can’t have moves like this without first building your core. [Photo courtesy Pixabay]

Strategies for Training Hollow Position: Give Plenty of Time to Scaled Versions

Train the bent hollow position to excess before progressing. Recognize that the value in the hollow position happens in your torso. Choose versions that you can maintain for extended holds.

Even after you have a well-trained and strong hollow position, the earlier versions serve as a great warm up. Your body can handle much longer holds and extreme versions after working up to them.

Think of these easier versions as analogous to the lighter warm up sets you would perform with a barbell.

Simply because you are not using external weights does not mean that your system does not need ample time to adjust to intense loading.

Strategies for Training Hollow Position: Practice Humility

Extended hollow body holds and high-repetition hollow body rocks serve you well to develop high-level core strength.

However, I have met very few bodies, including well-trained athletes and gymnasts, who can maintain a perfect hollow position for long.

• Coaches: Consider the hollow body position an extreme load for any client or athlete until you have tested the early variations.
• Athletes: Yes, this means you. Unless you have specifically trained it, you probably have a weak hollow body position.

When beginning to train this position forget about creating that beautiful straight line. Emphasize perfect form in your torso and understand that scaled versions offer the best method to train it.

Strategies for Training Hollow Position: Scale Back Intensity and Increase Volume

If you can achieve a perfect, straight-line hollow but break down after less than one minute, you need to train easier variations. Shorter bouts of a fully extended hollow offer a great opportunity to reinforce the ultimate position, but apply the same strategy to training hollow as you do to barbell training.

Occasional loading at the peak of your strength provides a necessary stimulus and vital information, but the real gains of the program come from the repeated, high-volume, sub-maximal loading of each training session.

Let a 1-minute perfect hollow hold be your goal for proficiency. After a warm up of easier variations, train 5 sets of a 1-minute hold. Select a variation that you can maintain a perfect torso position for the full minute but requires the peak of your strength to do so.

This variation will likely become slightly less intense in your later sets as fatigue sets in. The hollow body position is infinitely scalable by adjusting your arms and legs. Adjust accordingly to maintain perfect form as you progress through your sets.

Slowly work your way flatter and straighter as you progress from one training session to the next. Let your goal be to achieve 5 sets of 1-minute, perfect, flat, straight hollow body position.

Strategies for Training Hollow Position: Accessory Work and Breathing to Round Out Your Sessions

One-minute hollow holds are quite taxing. Allow several minutes of rest between sets. Use any relaxation and breathing techniques you know between sets. Box breathing, a simple and effective technique, offers recovery and relaxation.

Lie on your back and take a long inhale through your nose. Push the breath down into your belly (a hand resting on your stomach provides excellent feedback).

Hold the inhale, then slowly release and fully exhale. Hold again before beginning the next inhale. Make each phase of this breath – inhale, exhale, and both holds – at least 5 seconds and up to 8 seconds if you can achieve it.

Lengthy hollow body holds create high blood pressure and intra-abdominal pressure. Hollow body position requires full body engagement with no movement to drive circulation. Do what you can to fully release this tension between sets.

Athletic movement requires an extremely strong and stable core. However, training smooth, rapid cycles of full release and tension builds true athletic prowess.

The hollow body position primarily engages your body’s anterior, or frontal, half. Hollow body training pairs well with posterior-focused movements. Supermans offer a great reciprocal position to hollow body.

Deadlifts and kettlebell swings also provide a great posterior stimulus. Hollow body training also pairs well with movements that require strong core stability while moving. Use bird dogs or similar to train core stability with movement from your extremities.

Here is a sample session that incorporates anterior and posterior stimulus, and breathing exercises for recovery:

5 rounds:

• 1 minute hollow body hold (whatever variation you can maintain)
• 10 Supermans with 3 second hold at the top
• 10 Bird dogs to each side
• Rest 2 min or 5 rounds of box breathing

Master the Hollow Body

A strong hollow body position is a vital piece of every athlete’s training, especially those who desire high-level gymnastics strength. Understand that the fully extended position creates a load too extreme for most people, possibly even you.

Prioritize perfect form and long holds in the scaled versions to build a strong and stable core, which is the foundation to skilled athletic movement. You’ll be moving like a gymnast in no time.

Is your core getting stronger, but your back still hurts? It might be your breathing:

How Abs of Steel Cause Back Pain

The post Master the Hollow Body Hold to Move Like a Gymnast appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Day 1

5 sets for quality:

• Chin up pull over x3
• Hollow body ring push up x10
• High box jump x10

Day 2

3 sets of:

• Bridge up and hold for 3 seconds x5
• 30seconds left split
• 30s right split
• 30s pancake

Day 3

Roll variations, 10-20 minutes:

• Forward roll
• Back roll
• Handstand forward roll
• Back extension roll

Day 4

3 sets of:

• Skin the cat x3
• 30s each leg – hip/quad stretch
• 30s pike stretch

Day 5

Lever variations, 10-20 minutes:

• Front lever
• Back lever
• Planche work

5 sets for quality:

• Strict muscle ups x2-5
• Right leg raises x5
• Left leg raises x5

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 2

Day 1

3-5 Sets of tap swings on rings x10

5 Sets for quality:

• Strict chin up x5-10
• Hollow body ring push up x10
• Candlestick negatives x5

Day 2

3 Sets of:

• 3-10seconds wrist support
• 30s left split
• 30s right split
• 30s pancake

Day 3

Press to handstand variations

• Bent arm
• Straight arm
• Tuck, pike, straddle, hollow back

5 Sets for quality

• Handstand push up x5-10
• V-ups x20
• Candlestick roll to jump x10

Day 4

3 Sets of:

• Skin the cat x3
• 30s ankle stretch
• Roll to pancake x6

Day 5

Lever variations, 10-20 minutes practice:

• Front lever
• Back lever
• Planche work

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 3

Day 1

Handstand balance work, 10-20 minutes

5 Sets for quality:

• Chin up pull over x3
• Feet-elevated ring push up x10
• High box jump x10

Day 2

3 Sets of:

• 10-20seconds dip stretch
• 30s left split
• 30s right split
• 30s pancake

Day 3

Roll variations:

• Forward roll
• Back roll
• Handstand forward roll
• Back extension roll

5 Sets for quality

• Ice cream maker x5
• Superman rocks x20
• Knee-down lunge to handstand x10/leg

Day 4

3 sets of:

• Skin the cat x3
• 30s each leg – hip/quad stretch
• 30s pike stretch

Day 5

10-20 minutes:

• Headstand work
• Assisted single-arm handstand work

5 Sets for quality:

• Strict muscle ups x2-5
• L-hang toes to bar x5-10
• Lunge to cartwheel x5/leg

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 4

Day 1

10-20 minutes of:

• Elbow lever skill work
• Planche variations – tuck, straddle, banded

5 Sets for quality

• Wide grip behind-the-head pull up x10
• Weighted dips x6
• Candle stick pulls x5

Day 2

3 Sets of:

• 5-10seconds wrist support
• Grip complex x5
• 30s middle split

Day 3

Press to handstand variations, 10-20 minutes:

• Bent arm
• Straight arm
• tuck, pike, straddle, hollow back

5 Sets for quality:

• 1 leg raise + 1 strict pull up x5
• Strict handstand push up x10

Day 4

3 Sets of:

• Bridge up and hold for 3s x 5
• 30s left split
• 30s right split
• 30s pancake

Day 5

Lever variations, 10-20 minutes:

• Front lever
• Back lever

5 Sets for quality:

• Wall climb x3
• Legless piked rope climb
• High box jump x3

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 5

Day 1

Handstand Walk Complex, 15 minutes:

• Forward steps x3-5
• Sideways steps x3-5
• Backward steps x3-5
• Sideways steps x3-5
• Repeat

Day 2

3 Sets of:

• Skin the cat x3
• 30seconds per Leg – Hip/Quad Stretch
• 30s pike stretch

Day 3

10-20 minutes:

• Ring support ro Forward Roll to Chin Hang x10
• Back Lever Work

3 sets of:

• 5 L-Sit press to Straddle L-Sit
• 10 Wide Grip Behind Neck Pull Up
• 20 Superman Rock

Day 4

3 Sets of:

• 5-10 Wrist Push Up
• 5 Grip Complex
• 1:00 Middle Split

Day 5

Roll Variations:

• Forward Roll
• Back Roll
• Handstand F. Roll
• Back Extension Roll

5 Sets of:

• 10 Elevated Feet Ring Push Up
• 10 Supine Ring Row
• 10 Box Jump Over + Stick

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 6

Day 1

10 x 1 chin up pull over + front roll to hang

5 sets of:

• 30s chin hang
• 30s L-hang
• 30s handstand – free standing if possible

Day 2

3 sets of:

• 10-20s dip stretch
• 30s left split
• 30s right split
• 30s pancake

Day 3

Roll variations:

• Forward roll
• Back roll
• Handstand fprward roll
• Back extension roll

5 sets of 30-45s each:

• Front plank
• Side plank – left
• Side plank – right
• Reverse plank

*All planks on hands – not elbows

Day 4

Skin the cat x 3
30s each leg – hip/quad stretch
30s pike stretch

Day 5

Headstand variations:

• Tripod, tucked, straight

Presses:

• Tuck, straddle, pike
• Headstand push up to handstand

2 sets of:

• 10 muscle up
• 50 V ups

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 7

Day 1

5-10 x 3 tap swing + muscle up (or front uprise)

10 sets of:

• 3 chin up
• 3 left leg raise
• 3 right leg raise

*Try to complete the set without letting go.

Day 2

3 sets of:

• 1:00 ankle stretch
• 1:00 pike stretch
• 1:00 pancake stretch

Day 3

Press to handstand variations:

• Bent arm
• Straight arm
• Tuck
• Pike
• Straddle
• Hollow Back

10-20 L-sit rope climbs

Day 4

3 sets of:

• 10-30s wrist support
• 5 bridge up and hold 5s
• 30s each ankle stretch
• 10 pass through

?

Day 5

Handstand balance ork
Cartwheel or arial work
10 x pull over to front roll to hang

5 sets of:

• 10-15 ring push ups
• 10-15 supine ring row
• 5 high box jump

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 8

Day 1

3 sets of:

• 10 low casts
• 10 tap swings on bar

5 sets of:

• 2 chin up to pull over
• 3 quick kip (bar muscle up)

Day 2

3 Sets of:

• 5 skin the cat
• 30s dip stretch
• 30s pike strech
• wrist and ankle rolls 10s

Day 3

Roll Variations:

• forward roll
• back roll
• handstand forward roll
• back extension roll

5 Sets of:

• 5-10 wide grip behind-the-neck pull up
• 20 V up
• 30 superman

Day 4

3 sets of:

• 1:00 left split
• 1:00 right split
• 1:00 pancake

Day 5

Press to handstand variations

• bent arm
• straight arm

Tuck, pike, straddle, hollow back

20 strict muscle up

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 9

Day 1

3 sets of:

• 5-10 tap swings on rings
• 1-3 chin up pull over on bar

3 sets of:

• 5-10 parallette handstand push up
• 25 V up
• 20 jumping lunges

Day 2

10 x grip complex

3 Sets of:

• 10-15s wrist support
• 5-10 ankle stretch
• 10 bridge up

Day 3

10 x 1 pull over/back roll on rings
*Use a band if necessary

5 sets of:

• 10-20ft handstand walk forward
• 10 leg raise piked
• 20 superman rock

Day 4

3 sets of:

• 1:00 left split
• 1:00 right split
• 1:00 middle split

Day 5

Roll variations:

• forward roll
• back roll
• handstand forward roll
• back extension roll

3 sets of:

• 10-15 feet elevated push up
• 10-15 supine ring row
• 10 candlestick to jump

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 10

Day 1

3 sets of:

• 3 low cast to undershoot + dismount
• 3 pull over

3 sets of:

• 5 banded planche slow
• 5-10 ice cream makers

100 hollow rocks

Day 2

4 Sets of:

• 10-20s dip stretch
• 30s left split
• 30s right split
• 30s pancake

Day 3

10 X 3 tap swing + pull over on rings, use band if needed

10-20 push up + press to headstand + HSPU

Day 4

3 sets of:

• Skin the cat x 3
• 30s each leg – hip/quad stretch
• 30s pike stretch

Day 5

Press to Handstand variations:

• Bent arm
• Straight arm
• Tuck, pike, straddle, hollow back

3 X max distance handstand walk

3 sets of:

• 5-10 strict muscle ups
• full recovery

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 11

Day 1

Work on cast to back hip circle. If you can do that, follow through with undershoot + dismount.

5 sets of:

• 5 wall climb
• 2 legless piked rope climb

Day 2

3 sets of:

• Skin the cat x 3
• 30s ankle stretch
• Roll to pancake x 6

Day 3

Work on swing to pull over on rings

5 sets of:

• 10 elevated feet push up
• 10 chin up in L hang

Day 4

3 sets of:

• 5 bridge up and hold 3s
• 1:00 left leg split
• 1:00 right leg split

Day 5

Roll variations:

• forward roll
• back roll
• handstand forward roll
• back extension roll

3 sets of:

• 10 parallette handstand push up
• 10 parallette shoot through
• 30s parallette L- or V-sit

?

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 12

Day 1

Forward and backward roll work on rings

3 sets of:

• 5-10 muscle up
• 10 high box jump

Day 2

3 sets of:

• 5 wrist push up
• 5 grip complex
• 3 skin the cat and hold 3s

Day 3

Back hip circle + undershoot + dismount work

100 hollow rocks
100 superman rocks

Day 4

3 sets of:

• 1:00 left split
• 1:00 right split
• 1:00 middle split

Day 5

1. Put 5-10 skills together into a routine (complex)

2. Practice it.

The post Build Your Gymnastic Base: Handstands and Roll Variations appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Day 1

Handstand balance work – 15 minutes

3 Sets of:

• 10 Chin ups
• 10 Ring dips
• 15 V-up

Day 2

4 sets of 1:00 holds:

• Left split
• Right split
• Middle split/pancake

Day 3

3 x 10-20 tap swing on rings

Week 1

Day 1

Handstand balance work – 15 minutes

3 Sets of:

• 10 Chin ups
• 10 Ring dips
• 15 V-up

Day 2

4 sets of 1:00 holds:

• Left split
• Right split
• Middle split/pancake

Day 3

3 x 10-20 tap swing on rings

5 x 5 ice cream maker

Tabata jumping switch lunge

Day 4

4 sets of:

• 5 bridge ups
• 10 pass-throughs
• 1:00 couch stretch

Day 5

3 x 5-10 candlestick pulls

As Quickly As Possible (AQAP):

• 50 hollow rocks
• 50 supermans

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 2

Day 1

Headstand and handstand balance work – 15 minutes

3 sets of:

• 10 wide grip behind neck pull up
• 10 ring push up with :30 hold in support
• :30 L-sit

Day 2

4 sets of:

• 3-5 skin the cat
• 10-20 scarecrow stretch
• :30 weighted standing pike stretch

Day 3

5 x 5 forward roll to vertical jump

5 x 5 candlestick roll to vertical jump

5 x 5 pistol

Day 4

4 sets of:

• :30-1:00 ankle stretch
• :10-:30 wrist support
• :30 bridge

Day 5

3 x ME strict muscle up

5 x 1 legless rope climb

3 x 3-5 L-sit stoop-through to front support

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 3

Day 1

Balance work – shoulderstand on parallettes – 15 minutes

3 sets of:

• 10-20 supine ring row
• 10-20 handstand push up
• 10 piked leg raise

Day 2

4 sets of:

• 5 bridge up
• 10 pass-through
• 1:00 couch stretch

Day 3

5 x 3 tap swing + 1 front uprise (muscle up)

5 x 5 ice cream scoops

Tabata squat + jump

Day 4

4 sets of 1:00 holds:

• Left split
• Right split
• Middle split/pancake

Day 5

5 x ME (no longer than :30) back lever

AQAP: 100 V-Ups

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 4

Day 1

Balance work – handstand on paralletes

3 sets of:

• 5 chin up to pull over
• 10 plyo push up
• 20 russian twists

Day 2

4 sets of:

• :30-1:00 ankle stretch
• :10-:30 wrist support
• :30 bridge

Day 3

5 x 6 (3 per leg) forward roll to lunge

5 x 6 (3 per leg) candlestick roll to lunge

5 x 5 pistol

Day 4

4 sets of:

• 3-5 skin the cat
• 10-20 scarecrow stretch
• :30 weighted standing pike stretch

Day 5

3 x ME strict muscle up + 2 dips

5 x 1 tucked legless rope climb

3 x 1:00 under grip plank hold on hands

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 5

Day 1

10 x 1 controlled forward roll to hang (rings)

3 sets of:

• 5 weighted pull up
• 5 weighted dip
• 5 high box jump

Day 2

4 sets of 1:00 holds:

• L-split
• right split
• middle split/pancake

Day 3

10 x 1 swing to skin the cat dismount

5 x 2-4 ice cream scoop to support

Tabata jumping switch lunge + squat

Day 4

4 sets of:

• 5 bridge Up
• 10 pass through
• 1:00 couch stretch

Day 5

3 x 5-10 candlestick pulls

As unbroken as possible:

• 10 V-ups
• log roll
• 10 superman

*Goal = feet and shoulders don’t touch down

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 6

Day 1

7 x 1-3 forward roll to support (rings)

3 sets of:

• 10 wide grip behind the neck pull up
• 10-20 handstand push up
• 5-10 L-hang to leg raise

Day 2

4 sets of:

• 3-5 skin the cat
• 10-20 scarecrow stretch
• :30 weighted standing pike stretch

Day 3

5 x 6 alternating forward roll to pistol

5 x 6 alternating candlestick roll to pistol

3 x 10 step up (no push off bottom leg)

Day 4

4 sets of:

• :30-1:00 ankle stretch
• :10-:30 wrist support
• :30 bridge

Day 5

3 x ME ring pull up + MU + dip

50 *shoot through
*Front support stoop to rear support

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 7

Day 1

Tucked shoulder stand on rings – 15 minutes practice

3 sets of:

• 5-10 strict chest to bar pull up
• 10 lateral raise
• :30 L-sit

Day 2

Day 3

10 x 1 swing to back roll dismount

5 x max effort strict muscle up

Tabata squat jump + tuck

Day 4

4 sets of 1:00 holds:

• L-split
• Right split
• Middle split/pancake

Day 5

5 x max effort (no longer than :30) back lever

3 sets of 1:00 max distance plank walks

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 8

Day 1

Shoulder stand on rings – 15 minutes practice

3 sets of:

• 3-7 quick kip bar muscle up
• 7 high box jumps
• 15 weighted sit ups

Day 2

4 sets of:

• :30-1:00 ankle stretch
• :10-:30 wrist support
• :30 bridge

Day 3

5 x 4 alternating forward roll to pistol + jump

5 x 4 candlestick roll to pistol + jump

3 x 6 weighted step up (no push off with bottom leg)

Day 4

4 sets of:
3-5 skin the cat
10-20 scarecrow stretch
:30 weighted standing pike stretch

Day 5

3 x max effort strict muscle up + max effirt kipping muscle up

100 hollow rock
100 superman rock
*Partition the work any way you want.

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 9

Day 1

7 x shoulder stand on rings – bail to forward roll to hang

3 sets of:

• 5 weighted chest to bar pull up
• 5 weighted ring dip
• 10-15 piked leg raise

Day 2

4 sets of 1:00 holds:

• Left split
• Right split
• Middle split/pancake

Day 3

10 x 1 back flip tucked dismount from rings

5 x 2 legless rope climb

100 hip height box jumps AQAP (as quickly as possible)

Day 4

4 sets of:

• 5 bridge up
• 10 pass through
• 1:00 couch stretch

Day 5

3 x 5-10 candlestick pulls

4 sets of:

• 60ft plank walk
• 60ft hip shoots

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 10

Day 1

7 x 1 shoulder stand on rings – forward roll to support

3 sets of:

• 10 chin up pull over
• Rest as needed

Day 2

4 sets of:

• 3-5 skin the cat
• 10-20 scarecrow stretch
• :30 weighted standing pike stretch

Day 3

Handstand forward roll work – 15 minutes

5 x 2 tucked rope climb

3 x 10 weighted step up without pushing off with the bottom leg

Day 4

4 sets of:

• :30-1:00 ankle stretch
• :10-:30 wrist support
• :30 bridge

Day 5

3 x max effort strict muscle up + max effort kipping muscle up

As unbroken as possible:*

• 20 hollow rock
• Log roll
• 20 superman
• Log roll

*Goal = feet & shoulders don’t touch down

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 11

Day 1

On rings – 7 x tuck shoulder stand – roll to tuck shoulder stand

3 sets of:

• 3-6 weighted muscle up
• Rest as needed

Day 2

4 sets of:

• 5 bridge up
• 10 pass through
• 1:00 couch stretch

Day 3

On rings – back roll to support work – 15 minutes

7 x 1 straddle L rope climb

100 air squat AQAP

Day 4

4 sets of 1:00 holds:

• Left split
• Right split
• Middle split/pancake

Day 5

5 x max effort back lever (no longer than :30)

5 x max effort front lever

3 x 1:00 undergrip plank hold on hands

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 12

Day 1

On rings – 7 x shoulder stand – roll to shoulder stand

3 x

• Max effort muscle up
• Rest as needed

Day 2

4 sets of:

• :30-1:00 ankle stretch
• :10-:30 wrist support
• :30 bridge

Day 3

10-20 handstand forward roll to pistol

3 x max effort L rope climb with :03 pause on the ground

2:00 max effort alternating leg pistols

Day 4

4 sets of:

• 3-5 skin the cat
• 10-20 scarecrow stretch
• :30 weighted standing pike stretch

Day 5

3 x max effort front uprise (kipping muscle up)

3 x max effort handstand push up (use wall if necessary)

3 x max effort piked leg raise

The post Developing Elite Gymnastic Strength: Upper Body and Core appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Day 1

5X1 legless rope climb

3-5 sets of:

• 10 strict pull ups
• 25 V ups

Day 2

3 Sets of:

Week 1

Day 1

5X1 legless rope climb

3-5 sets of:

• 10 strict pull ups
• 25 V ups

Day 2

3 Sets of:

• 1:00 Left Split
• 1:00 Right Split
• 1:00 Middle Split

Day 3

5X: 15 seconds L-sit in tuck position

1 X 50 box jump-overs

The video below shows an extended L-sit. Pull the knees to the chest for the tucked version.

Day 4

3 X 5 bridge push ups

5 x 1 skin the cat

3 X 30 seconds weighted pike stretch

Day 5

3 X 5-10 strict handstand push ups

3 sets of:

• 10 strict toes to bar
• 15 ring push ups

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of programming you’re in.

Week 2

Day 1

4X2 legless rope climb

3-5 sets of:

• 10 strict pull ups
• 15 ring push ups

Day 2

10 sets of grip complex

Day 3

5X 15 seconds L-sit in tuck position

3-5 sets of:

• 5 wall climbs
• 20 jumping lunges

To achieve the tuck position, pull the knees tightly into the chest.

Day 4

3 Sets of:

• 1:00 Left Split
• 1:00 Right Split
• 1:00 Middle Split

Day 5

3 X 5-10 strict handstand push ups

4 sets of:

• 5-10 ice cream scoopers (aka pull up to front lever)
• 10 high box jumps

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 3

Day 1

4X2 Legless rope climb

3-5 sets of:

• 20 V ups
• 20 Hip extensions

Day 2

3X5 Bridge push ups

5X1 Skin the cat

3X30 seconds Weighted pike stretch

Day 3

5X15 seconds L-sit

3-5 sets

• 10 High box jump
• 25 Hollow rock

Day 4

10 sets of grip complex

Day 5

3X10-20 Strict HSPU

75-100 Ring push ups

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 4

Day 1

5X1 legless tuck rope climb

3-5 sets of:

• 10 behind-the-neck pull up
• 10 burpee box jump

Day 2

3 sets of:

• 1:00 left split
• 1:00 right split
• 1:00 middle split

Day 3

5X15 seconds L-sit

For form:

• 50 hollow rocks
• 50 superman rocks

Day 4

3X5 bridge push up

5X1 skin the cat

3X30 seconds weighted pike stretch

Day 5

10:00 handstand work

3X10-20 strict HSPU

50 burpees

100 double unders

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 5

Day 1

5X1 L-sit rope climb

3 sets of

• 5 wall climbs
• 10 high box jumps

Day 2

10 sets of grip complex

Day 3

5:00 tripod/headstand work

5:00 handstand work

30 strict ring dips

Day 4

3 sets of:

• 1:00 left split
• 1:00 right split
• 1:00 middle

Day 5

5-10X1 press to handstand

3-5 sets of

• 30 double under
• 25 squats
• 20 tucked leg raises

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 6

Day 1

3X5-10 L pull up

3-5 sets of

• 3 inverted hang lower slow to hang
• 6 high box jump

Day 2

3X5 bridge push ups

5X1 skin the cat

3X :30 weighted pike stretch

Day 3

3X10 strict ring dips

100 push ups (hollow)

Day 4

10 sets of grip complex

Day 5

5-10X1 press to handstand

5-10X1 press to headstand

100 V-ups

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 7

Day 1

5X1 L-sit rope climb (can sub legless)

4 sets of

• 5 undergrip pull up
• 5 overgrip pull up
• 5 kipping pull up

all done without letting go of the bar

Day 2

Day 3

5:00 tripod/headstand work

5:00 handstand work

40 strict ring dips

Day 4

3X5 bridge push ups

5X1 skin the cat

3X :30 weighted pike stretch

Day 5

5X1-2 press to handstand

5X2-3 press to headstand

5 sets of

• 5 consecutive box jumpovers (line up 5 boxes or hurdles)

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 8

Day 1

3X5-10 L-pull ups

15 candlestick to tuck jump

50 jumping lunges with arms over head

Day 2

10 sets of grip complex

Day 3

4X10 strict ring dips

3-5 sets of:

• 20 hollow rocks
• 20 superman rocks

Day 4

• 1:00 left split
• 1:00 right split
• 1:00 middle

Day 5

5X1-2 press to handstand

5X3 press to headstand

15 muscle ups

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 9

Day 1

5-10 minutes skill work: forward roll

5-10 sets of complex:

forward roll to press handstand, pike down. roll to candlestick

Day 2

3 sets of:

• 1:00 left split
• 1:00 right split
• 1:00 middle

Day 3

5-10 sets of complex:

muscle up to L-sit, control to hang to inverted hang, control lower to hang

Day 4

10 sets of grip complex

Day 5

20-30 minutes of of work:

day 1 and 3 complexes

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 10

Day 1

5-10 minutes skill work: back roll

5-10 sets of complex:

press headstand to back roll to plank + 5 push ups

Day 2

3X5 bridge push ups

5X1 skin the cat

3X 30 seconds weighted pike stretch

Day 3

5-10 minutes skill work: ring forward roll to hang

5-10 sets complex:

muscle up to front roll, hang + 10 leg raise to L position

Day 4

3 sets of:

• 1:00 left split
• 1:00 right split
• 1:00 middle

Day 5

20-30 minutes work:

day 1 and 3 complexes

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 11

Day 1

5-10 minutes skill work: forward roll

5-10 sets of complex:

headstand to handstand, step down to forward roll, drop to 5 push up

Day 2

3 sets of:

• 1:00 left split
• 1:00 right split
• 1:00 middle

Day 3

5-10 minutes skill work:

ring control roll back to inverted L position

5-10 sets of complex:

muscle up control back roll to inverted L-hang to skin the cat

Day 4

10 sets of grip complex

Day 5

20-30 minutes of work:

day 1 and 3 complexes

Click on the number below that corresponds to the week of training you’re in.

Week 12

Day 1

5-10 minutes skill work:

back roll

5-10 sets of complex:

forward roll to press handstand, pike down, back roll to candlestick

Day 2

3X5 bridge push ups

5X1 skin the cat

3X 30 seconds seated pike stretch

Day 3

5-10 sets of complex:

muscle up to front roll to hang, muscle up control back roll to inverted pike

Day 4

3 sets of:

• 1:00 left split
• 1:00 right split
• 1:00 middle

Day 5

20-30 minutes of work:

day 1 and 3 complexes

The post Train Like a Gymnast: Bodyweight Skills, Strength, and Flexibility appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Top Video of the Week:

Sima Tamaddon shows how to improve your front squat rack strength and mobility (read: comfort) with this impressive video demonstration and instruction. Click here for the entire article, which includes the video.

Reader Favorites of the Week:

THE FEMALE GUIDE TO GETTING LEAN – Do you have some “storage” that just won’t budge no matter what you’ve tried? A fitness competitor reveals her secrets.

6 MOBILITY EXERCISES FOR AN ATG SQUAT – If you struggle to squat to parallel with hands overhead, try any of these six techniques from physiotherapist Cassie Dionne.

STRAIGHTENING UP: PROGRESSIVE POSTURE ALIGNMENT (4-WEEK VIDEO PROGRAM) – Alleviate pain and fatigue by gently realigning your body with this four-week, four-video series.

TWO OVER-60 ATHLETES WHO PROVE YOU CAN COMPETE AT ANY AGE – We can’t all be twenty-something firebreathers, and even those of us who are won’t be forever. Get inspired at any age by these two real-life stories.

GLOBOGYMS AND BUTTWINK: SMART STRENGTH WITH CHARLES STALEY – Get answers to life’s persistent questions from “The Secret Weapon,” coach Charles Staley. Fun stuff here.

Workout Programs: Muscle Up Focus

MANY MUSCLE UPS: A 4-WEEK PROGRESSION – Once you’ve got the muscle up figured out, you’re on a new level. But there’s a lot of room to move up from there. Join CrossFit Games athlete Phil Hesketh for this precision program to skyrocket your muscle up endurance.

THE KEY TO CONQUERING THE ELUSIVE MUSCLE UP – Not ready for multiples yet? Specific training for when you’re close to that first muscle up, but can’t quite get over the top.

MUSCLE UP VIRTUOSITY WITH COACH DUSTY HYLAND – An eight video series on the fundamentals through the finer points of the muscle up.

From the Archives:

GET STRONGER WITHOUT GETTING BIGGER – Want to move bigger weights but not increase your weight? Learn what factors you can optimize for strength without bulk.

SQUAT THERAPY: 4 DRILLS FOR A BETTER SQUAT – Techniques to use during your active recovery periods to improve your squat mechanics. Learn them and use them – you’ll be glad you did.

COACH, I CAN’T DO PULL UPS: 7 TIPS TO GET YOU THERE – Just like the title says. Includes links to a few other programs to improve your pull up performances.

Thanks for reading – see you all next week for another installment.

The Breaking Muscle Team

The post 12 Reps – The Breaking Muscle Digest – Vol. 1, Issue 2 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Here are a dozen top picks and reader favorites from the past week and the archives.

GO RUN UP A WALL! HOW TO DO A PARKOUR WALL RUN – This technique, explained in easy-to-follow steps, will help you glide over barriers quickly and easily.

VIDEO: 2 WAYS TO BULLETPROOF THE FREESTANDING HANDSTAND – Use these two techniques to get past the “jump and hope” roadblock and arrive at handstand happiness.

4 SIMPLE GYMNASTICS DRILLS FOR STRENGTH AND MOBILITY – Gymnastics training requires intense, full-body muscle contractions and significant time spent under tension, which lead to great gains in hypertrophy, increased lean muscle mass, and fat loss.

THE KETTLEBELL SNATCH – A SWING THAT ENDS OVERHEAD – While they may seem like distinct moves, the kettlebell snatch is an extension of the kettlebell swing, according to a study in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research.

THE 5 BEST SHOES FOR OLYMPIC WEIGHTLIFTING AND CROSSFIT – Examining any one thing in a vacuum makes objective comparison impossible. So, we compared five pairs of weightlifting shoes based on their relative merits and drawbacks.

3 REASONS YOU DON’T SQUAT MORE WEIGHT (AND WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT) – How to tell if you have any of a few common problems that can halt your squat progress and what to do to fix them.

SMART STRENGTH WITH CHARLES STALEY – Read Staley’s answers to reader questions on life and training, submit your own questions for next week’s column, and get a look at the Secret Weapon’s own training log. This week he discusses fat loss and goal setting.

YOU DON’T NEED MEDICATION TO MAINTAIN A HEALTHY LOW BACK – Learn to strengthen and lengthen certain muscles in conjunction with hydration to give your lumbar spine the love it so desperately craves.

GREASING THE GROOVE: A MORE EFFECTIVE WAY TO PREPARE FOR PUSH UP TESTS – Many of us would have no problem if we had to drop and do twenty push ups. But what about forty? 100? Here’s a training method for that challenge.

THE TOP 10 FITNESS BLOGS OF 2015 – Every year we hold a contest to determine the top ten fitness blogs on the Internet. There are a lot of sites out there, and we need your help to sort through them all.

THE 3 KEYS TO OBSTACLE COURSE RACING SUCCESS – Andrew Read sees three big mistakes when it comes to obstacle course training. Let’s look at what the errors are and how to avoid them.

THE ROLE OF A WEIGHTLIFTING COACH, EP 10 (PODCAST) – Sit in on a Q&A session with three icons of weightlifting – Bob Takano, Greg Everett, and Ursula Garza Papandrea.

The post 12 Reps – The Breaking Muscle Digest – Vol. 1, Issue 1 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Additionally, the intense full-body muscle contractions and significant time spent under tension lead to great gains in hypertrophy, lean muscle mass, and fat loss.

The Road to Gymnastic Success

The greatest benefit from gymnastics strength training is not directly related to either ability or physique, but rather to your mindset and approach. In the fitness industry, just as in life, it is all too common to encounter people who want instant gratification and immediate results.

“Stretching, high reps, and joint prehab. There’s no time for that,” they think. They just want to hold a handstand, climb a rope, or learn a back flip. The big problem, though, is that these people often end up injured, plateaued, or both.

Successful trainees are those who take gradual, consistent steps on the path towards long-term growth by prioritizing quality and mastery. Coach Sommer, the founder of Gymnastic Bodies, likes to compare this shift in mindset to the difference in maturity between a child and an adult.

“Successful trainees are those who take gradual, consistent steps on the path towards long-term growth by prioritizing quality and mastery.”

A child wants things right away, and if a task takes hard work, discipline, or commitment, the child is likely to give up and shift attention to something new. As a person matures into an adult, they are more likely to realize the potential benefits of focusing on one task for longer periods of time, even if it does require significant amounts of energy.

Four Basic Gymnastics Strength Training Tests

Here are four basic gymnastics strength-training tests to get you started toward long-term growth. For many of us, modern lifestyle and one-sided training have stolen our ability to complete these relatively simple bodyweight tasks, so do not be surprised if these end up being a bit more challenging than you first presume.

Hollow Body Hold

The hollow body hold is a foundational position in all of gymnastics, and as such it is one of the first positions you should master. Begin by lying down on your back, with your legs outstretched and together. Completely straighten your legs by flexing your knees, and ensure proper form by pointing your toes as far away from your body as possible. Also reach your arms overhead, completely straightening your elbows and looking up towards the ceiling.

From this outstretched position, engage your entire anterior core by lifting your arms and legs off the floor. You should focus on pressing your lower back into the ground while squeezing your entire abdominal wall. Be sure that your shoulders are slightly lifted and your ribs are tucked in rather than protruding from your chest. Ideally your body shape should be smooth and round, almost like a banana.

Hold this hollow body position for a full sixty seconds. To ensure there is no cheating, use a timer, metronome, or stopwatch to count your minute. If you cannot hold the position with integrity for the full time, then you might need to start with a scaled version such as tucking your legs in towards your chest or bringing your arms down by your side.

Arch Body Hold

This is the complete opposite position as the hollow body. Where the hollow body works the entire anterior core, the arch body position will expose any weakness along your posterior chain. Additionally, many people are chronically tight in the front of their bodies, and the arch body hold will open up tight areas such as your chest and hip flexors.

“This should serve as a wake-up call for you to strengthen your posterior chain and stretch your chest and hip flexors.”

To start, lie facedown on your belly with your arms outstretched overhead and your legs straight and together. As you can imagine, the goal here is to completely arch your entire body as much as possible, so lift both your upper and lower body as high as you can towards the ceiling. Focus on engaging your glutes and mid-back so you are not exclusively arching from your lower back.

If you are like most people who try to hold an arch body position for sixty seconds, you will begin to tremble, shake, curse, and drop to the floor before the minute has expired. This should serve as a wake-up call for you to strengthen your posterior chain and stretch your chest and hip flexors.

If necessary, break down the arch body position in a similar fashion to the hollow body hold by bringing your arms down to your side, bending your knees, or both.

Bent-Arm Chin Hang

So now that we have thoroughly tested (and trashed) your core strength, we move on to the bent-arm chin hang. The key phrase here is time under tension, as you will attempt to hold your chin over a bar for, you guessed it, sixty full seconds. Grip the bar with a supinated, underhand grip, and pull yourself as high above the bar as you can. Keep your legs together, make sure your body is not swaying excessively, and hold on tight.

“The key here is that training your strength endurance at slightly lower intensities builds more than just muscle.”

If you cannot yet do a chin up, then this bent-arm chin hang might help you get there due to the amount of time you will spend holding on above the bar. If you cannot hold this position for any significant period of time, then you might need to start on an incline by holding onto a set of rings set approximately to shoulder height.

If you can already do strict chin ups, then you may be wondering why bother just holding the top position for time? The key here is that training your strength endurance at slightly lower intensities builds more than just muscle. Your connective tissue needs longer to adapt, and as such you should spend time mastering the bent-arm chin hang before moving on to more advanced (and potentially injury-inducing) pulling movements such as muscle ups and rope climbs.

Standing Pike Stretch

Finally, you get to relax and stretch. The standing pike stretch will assess flexion through the hips and spine, and those of you with tight hamstrings might struggle a bit here. Stand up tall with your legs completely straight and knees locked out, and completely fold over forward, placing your hands on the ground as fully as possible. Your goal is to reach your hands behind your feet to the point where you can press your bodyweight up onto your toes.

“The standing pike stretch will assess flexion through the hips and spine, and those of you with tight hamstrings might struggle a bit here.”

If this position is unattainable for you right now, then try doing a partner seated pike stretch. Sit up tall with your legs outstretched in front of you, knees totally straight, and have your partner gently push forward on the middle of your back. Inhale and exhale with your partner’s pushes, and reach your hands towards your feet, all while pressing the backs of your knees into the floor.

Conclusion

In any endeavor in life, you get out exactly what you put in. Impatient, shortsighted efforts will yield incomplete and poor-quality results, if not long-term injuries. On the other hand, a consistent work ethic, when paired with world-class programming and coaching knowledge, will allow trainees to continue to experience progress for months and years on end.

What else are people reading?

• Mobilize Your IT Band and Posterior Chain: Yoga for Strength Athletes
• Earn Your Muscle Up: 4-part Video Training Plan
• Guaranteed Success Through Consistent, Hard Effort
• Three Traps of Modern Day Thinking That are Killing Your Progress
• What’s New on Breaking Muscle Today

Photos courtesy of Orench Lagman and Crystal Hatch from Awaken Adult Gymnastics.

The post 4 Simple Gymnastics Drills for Strength and Mobility appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

The Gymnast Bridge Is About the Entire Spine

The key difference with the gymnast bridge is that neck strength is no longer the main point. Instead, this move becomes much more about flexibility throughout the entire spine as well as in the shoulders and wrists.

Being able to do a great gymnast bridge will go a long way in keeping you free from back pain and shoulder pain. It’s not a Holy Grail for curing everything, but it can be an important component among others. If you can do a solid bridge, chances are you won’t suffer back pain, or at least not nearly as much.

Become Strong and Stable

When I first started working on the gymnast bridge, I was very inflexible. I could barely raise my body off the ground. But I worked at it and developed a strong and stable position. From that foundation, I’ve gone on to many advanced variations.

To get started, lie with your back on the ground. Your knees should be pointed up with your feet flat on the floor. Your hands should be placed next to your head with fingers pointing parallel to your body and elbows up in the air.

“Being able to do a great gymnast bridge will go a long way in keeping you free from back pain and shoulder pain.”

From this position, push yourself up into the air. This movement has also been called a reverse pushup. Unless you’ve done this or similar work before, chances are you won’t be able to get all the way up into the full bridge (as pictured). That’s fine. Just push up as far as you can go. You can repeat these reverse pushups for reps or just get into the top position and hold for time.

The position you’re working toward is one where your elbows are locked out. But that’s not all. The chest and shoulders also need to open up. When you get to the point that your arms are locked out, then extend your chest more over your hands.

The Ideal Final Bridge Position

The ideal final position is one in which you shoulders are close to straight over your arms, down to the ground. This is a strong position. Here it doesn’t take as much strength as holding something with bent arms, as you’re relying more on your structure rather than strength. This is the key to longer holds.

When you achieve this ideal position, your entire spine is curved. But chances are your spine will not be equally flexible and mobile throughout all your vertebrae. So you may find most of the work is being done by the lumbar spine, while the thoracic remains mostly flat. The ideal is for the entire spine to be curved equally, without all the stress being place in one area. Think about a bridge over water. Real-life bridges are designed to be strong throughout, not just at one single point.

RELATED: Rehabilitation for Lumbar Spine Recovery: The Science and the Truth 

Got Flexibility? A Variation to Help You Progress

Here’s one variation that can help you get to that uniformly mobile and strong place. The regular gymnastic bridge position has the heels flat on the floor. But if you raise up onto the balls of your feet, you’ll gain a couple of inches. In doing this, the rest of the move will require a little less flexibility. This is something you can play around with as you develop your bridging skill.

How to Program the Gymnast Bridge

The gymnast bridge can easily be added to any workout. It is best to do after you’re warmed up, as it requires lots of flexibility. Just a set or two done twice a week can be enough to continually improve. Of course, this is also something you can work on a little bit every day.

My recommendation is to build up to a minute hold in good position. Once you have this down, that’s just the beginning. If you’re feeling strong and stable, just raise one arm off the ground and hold. Be sure to work both sides evenly.

And there are many additional harder variations – back bends, kickovers and back, rotating from side to side, walking around, and more (see video below.) All of these continue to increase your flexibility, often in dynamic ways, and thus are great for body control and coordination, too. 

The post A Bodyweight Exercise to Prevent Back Pain and Shoulder Pain appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Cycle six of the gymnastics workout program concentrates on upper body and core strength with some unilateral leg exercises worked in. This cycle applies the rolls and balance work we have done in past cycles to more than just the floor and strikes a good balance between basic skill and strength work.

For more videos of the movements in these workouts, visit the Breaking Muscle Youtube channel and the CrossFit EST Youtube channel.

Week One

Day One

Handstand balance work – 15 minutes

3 Sets of:

• 10 Chin ups
• 10 Ring dips
• 15 V-up

Day Two

4 sets of 1:00 holds:

• Left split
• Right split
• Middle split/pancake

Day Three

3 x 10-20 tap swing on rings

5 x 5 ice cream maker

Tabata jumping switch lunge

Day Four

4 sets of:

• 5 bridge ups
• 10 pass-throughs
• 1:00 couch stretch

Day Five

3 x 5-10 candlestick pulls

As Quickly As Possible (AQAP):

• 50 hollow rocks
• 50 supermans

Want More? Click Here to Download the Entire 12-Week Cycle

The post Gymnastics Training: Upper Body and Core Strength Focus appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Although the practice has evolved since then, many of the modern gymnastic events such as pommel horse are derived from more practical tasks performed in the ancient world, like mounting and dismounting from a horse.

“Let us describe the education of our men. What then is the education to be? Perhaps we could hardly find a better than that which the experience of the past has already discovered, which consists, I believe, in gymnastic, for the body, and music for the mind.” – Plato

Some things never change, and having a solid base in gymnastics skills is still sure to carry over into many other aspects of life. If you’re wondering how to build that base, we have over sixty weeks of workouts to help you master basic gymnastics skills like planche, handstands, and rolls.

RELATED: CrossFit Gymnastics: Bodyweight Mechanics Are Basics for a Reason

Meet the Coach

The gymnastics workouts are designed by gymnast and CrossFit coach Chris Lofland. A lover of all things athletic, Chris has been a competitive gymnast, diver, baseball player, CrossFitter, and Olympic weightlifter. While competing in gymnastics, he started coaching, and went on to open his gym, Elite Sports Training in North Richland Hills, Texas.

Chris believes everyone should do gymnastics at some point in their life to develop body control and awareness. He says, “Why start moving and controlling other things before you have learned how to move and control yourself?”

Click the Cycle Names Below to See Each Program

Gymnastics Workout: Cycle 1

Gymnastics Workout: Cycle 2

The second cycle of gymnastics workouts will focus on level, planche, and handstand skills, as well as developing flexibility and joint strength.

Gymnastics Workout: Cycle 3

Repetition is what makes a gymnast so good at their sport. The third cycle of gymnastics workouts focuses on repetitive skill work to help you achieve basic movements.

Gymnastics Workout: Cycle 4

Gymnastics Workout: Cycle 5

Cycle five of the gymnastics workout program focuses on more traditional style strength training. We will also build some foundational movements in gymnastics such as roll and handstand variations.

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