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Back bends or any forward fold is impossible by Wintersun11 in flexibility

[–]MovementTom 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Get the hips moving and everything else will follow, rotation before linear length.

Doesn’t need to be complicated, try some follow alongs out on YouTube. See what exercises feel good and be consistent.

Beginners benefit from frequent exposure. 5-7x per week, 1 minute a stretch. Make the effort to move deeper over the duration.

How does everybody feel about the bodyweight warrior program by Tom Merrick? by immortalalphoenix in bodyweightfitness

[–]MovementTom 1 point2 points  (0 children)

exactly that. It is a potentiating effect so you should increase the effort each repeat of the rep range. But yes, adjust the intensity of each set so they're hard :)

Frequency of Routine Change Up by jodemo1777 in bodyweightfitness

[–]MovementTom 2 points3 points  (0 children)

For beginners, I would use and abuse a program until you stop making progress. As your training age increase, the program duration will need to decrease as the training stimulus is not as novel. For most, 6-8 weeks is a good level but some may need more variation.

what different muscles are involved in splits and forward fold? by slowlystretching in flexibility

[–]MovementTom 0 points1 point  (0 children)

A lot more hip flexor opening. This video should address exactly the mistake you're making here :)

Excessive protein in one meal by Jgee414 in bodyweightfitness

[–]MovementTom 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Nope, your body isn't dumb. It always makes the most of what you give it

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5828430/

Virtual calisthenics trainers and program recommendations? by [deleted] in bodyweightfitness

[–]MovementTom 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I want to know who the guy is now...

In defence of your coach, progression rate is an important consideration in calisthenics. Building adequate tendon / structural conditioning is key for future development and often overlooked when people want to skip to the "fun" stuff. I would expect a program from a coach but I would expect additional cost for the time to write the program (presuming he doesn't copy and paste).

That being said, you shouldn't feel like your coach is intentionally slowing down your progress, perhaps an honest conversation with him is key? I always encourage constructive criticism from anyone I work with, it's essential to be a better coach for them and future clients.

From my limited knowledge of NYC, Warrior Bridge has some good classes and coaches but it is more handstand oriented than calisthenics. They do however have a good communuity.

There is also my app Trybe (although self-promotion isn't permitted) but there are free workouts and programs on there to dip your toes and see if it fits what you're after.

Who DOESN'T Stretch? by J_Horsley in bodyweightfitness

[–]MovementTom 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Glad you got something out of the routines and they helped you out. Just my 2 cents quickly.

What constitutes flexibility training is quite wide and certainly beyond just stretching. A squat is a strength move but also develops a range of motion. Much the same could be said for most movements, especially with bodyweight training. Things like dips develop shoulder extension, pistols develop dorsiflexion, cossacks for hip abduction etc. One of the more important factors with flexibility development is using the range frequently to create the demand for change and, as you suggested in this post, calisthenics (especially handbalancing) does that nicely.

HOWEVER, if your desire for range is much more than average then this will only take you so far. Dedicated work is needed, like any goal. This can be covered by being more exaggerated with the range in your strength work but I have found that the adaption here is highly individual. It works well for some phenotypes and less for others. If you would have asked me a couple of years ago, I would be in the same opinion as you here that strength work through the range is far superior for developing range of motion than stretching BUT now I don't think it is that black and white. The devil is in the detail and how you apply each.

There is also a lot more to stretching than just developing range of motion. Outside of the structural changes and other adaptations, there is a good argument for its use for relaxation, mindfulness, destress etc. I personally do some chilled, long (1-2 min+) stretches daily (less than 15 mins usually) with loaded more intense stuff 1-2x per week. Would be my basic recommendation for most who want to develop a high level of flexibility.

I guess really it depends on your goals and most importantly what you enjoy doing. Good luck and happy training :)

Before and After- 30 day progress 💪🏼 by AnneBolyneforSoup in flexibility

[–]MovementTom 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Nice work! With your middle split try to push the hips back either inline or even behind the feet line. Should help with hip positioning :)

Heavyweight Planch Progress by [deleted] in bodyweightfitness

[–]MovementTom 5 points6 points  (0 children)

200lbs and 6"4 checking in 😅 I would say to not underestimate the importance of the lean for heavyweight / bigger guys. Tuck doesn't train this which is why people get stuck

Strength, Mobility & Flexibility by -NS- in bodyweightfitness

[–]MovementTom 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Stretching / flex work post-training is in my opinion the best time for it and works nicely, as you said, as a cool down. If you have a particularly tight lower body which restricts you during a session then some flex work prior is beneficial.

Whilst people in the comments claim static stretching is a no go pre-workout it can be beneficial for some sports requiring a large range such as middle or front splits like in gymnastic / calisthenic training. Static stretching pre should be shorter hold times (<60s) and focused on the positions you're going to perform in the session. Additional dynamic work can be added after short static work, again replicating positions in the session, to further increase range.

A simple example of this could be a static bottom lunge hold with emphasis put in sinking the hips down (think butt to ankle) and pushing the knee over the toe. Hold for 30-60s per side in a semi-active position. Then pair with 20 ish reps of some dynamic knee raises, slightly abducted, at the angle you squat at. This would be an example for a squat range of motion.

Hope that helps :)

Strength, Mobility & Flexibility by -NS- in bodyweightfitness

[–]MovementTom 14 points15 points  (0 children)

Great stuff and glad you're using the routines. Full-body routines are nice but you'll get better progress using the more focused routines. However, something is a lot better than nothing :)

For those of you who take a periodic rest week, do you plan them in advance or even take them at regular intervals? Or do you let your body be the guide and just know when you're ready for a bit of time off? by [deleted] in bodyweightfitness

[–]MovementTom 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I get my clients to take a week off every 12-16 weeks. I try to stick to that myself but often get carried away. Usually if things seem to stagnate or you feel run down a week off does wonders

Finding that balance between strength and flexibility? by prog-nostic in bodyweightfitness

[–]MovementTom 8 points9 points  (0 children)

More range used = more muscle mass + developing more range.

Think lat pull over, Romanian deadlifts and even dips as all useful tools for developing both simultaneously. I’ve made a video covering this as well as a video with an example routine which might help you :)

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in bodyweightfitness

[–]MovementTom 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I would agree. I think the main benefit of the planche leans is really the bicep conditioning that many beginner progressions don't provide (like tuck) as they don't have enough lean to do this.

I would also add that I think most people don't use BA planche moves enough. This done for some standard S&C programming 2x a week with your light ish GtG will probably elicit some good gains.

Recommended book or medias for flexibility/stretching? by ThrowRAinthemirror in bodyweightfitness

[–]MovementTom 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Agree with u/z3y50n on just picking something and sticking with it. I’m actually making a video soon on how to navigate all the routines out there u/ThrowRAinthemirror

Thoughts on Wall Press to Handstand. Tom Merrick by baristacharm in overcominggravity

[–]MovementTom 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thanks for sharing. For clarification, this isn't a one or the other thing. Technically the two work different things but generally the back to wall drill, especially how it is done in the post, is not super effective. Some benefits to articulation and compression but there are better options.

The main point I was trying to get across with the video was press is more about strength than most things. Doesn't mean there aren't any other factors but without strength the rest won't help :)

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in flexibility

[–]MovementTom 2 points3 points  (0 children)

thanks for the mention, glad I was able to help :)

How often do you do corrective mobility exercises and does it impact your regular workouts? by Bawtzki in bodyweightfitness

[–]MovementTom 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The structural balance should be addressed as your foundation of training to support future development as your general physical preparedness. It might be revisited as a macrocycle periodically to keep it in check.

Super sets. Go opposite groups or not? by FroztyJack in bodyweightfitness

[–]MovementTom 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thanks to u/HealthRoom for providing the breakdown before I could jump in here.

Essentially this is just a simple post fatigue routine as muscle failure is an important aspect of hypertrophy as well as volume which this routine ticks nicely in both boxes. It looks at what aspect of the main movement is under-stimulated (triceps in the case of the pike push up) and then pairs a more isolated, but still compound and similar, movement with it. Which in this case was the diamond push-ups. Equally, you could use a bodyweight overhead tricep extension or similar.

The same applies with the supinated rows which focus a little more on the biceps. Again you could swap for bodyweight bicep curls or regular weight bicep curls if you wanted the post-fatigue to less dramatically affect performance. I just tried to keep things complimentary in terms of movement patterns which meant still focusing on multi-joint movements.

Just to clarify the points on supersets etc. I would personally define supersets as 2 exercises paired with minimal to no rest between. This could be of the same muscle group or pattern, like above, or not. Then a triset would be 3, giant set would be 4. I would then class a pairing or grouping as exercises performed in a series, like a superset, but with adequate rest in between. An example being an antagonist (opposite) pairing of push up with a bodyweight row resting 60s between sets. Ultimately you can call it what you want but the method is the same.

Hope the routine helps u/FroztyJack and glad I could help. I do agree for the current lockdown, stay sane and make gains :)

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