here's the three most underrated bodyweight exercises you're not doing one half muscle
ups improve the skill of pulling no wasted energy dipping two wall handstands are the
smarter way to progress and are useful for all levels three the
pelican curl grows functional biceps for pain-free pulling and bulletproof elbows
what's the most underrated bodyweight exercise in your opinion let's chat about this in more
detail the half muscle up provides all of the advantages without the downsides you're probably
looking at this variation and thinking what's the point the half muscle up is the smartest and most
optimal way to improve this exercise addresses the most difficult parts and skips the dip
we're training explosive pull-ups and practicing the technique for transition success if you can't
progress with muscle ups dip strength is rarely the reason once we can pull our chest over the
bar most people are sweet to lock out and finish the rep why then do we as a calisthenics culture
default to full range muscle ups we're wasting our precious resources on the body weight dip which
serves minimal utility instead it makes sense we direct all of our attention to improving the
weak links which are holding us back the half muscle up will have you pulling more explosive
and also improving coordination guys when it comes to calisthenics everything we do in our training
should be done for a reason this mindset is going to give us the biggest return on our effort
without wasting our precious resources a common calisthenics challenge is how best to structure
all of the exercises we want to train the half muscle up is easy to fit into your schedule
because we've eliminated the dip we can categorize this variation as a pull and treat it accordingly
these are best included at the start of a pulling or upper body workout muscle ups should be
featured at the start of a workout this is because of the explosive and technical requirements
the half muscle up is a variation which won't conflict with your other training goals you're no
longer going to be burdened by the pseudo-pushing fatigue which comes from unproductive straight bar
dips here's a summary of the key techniques for sound form during your half muscle ups you want
to keep your scapula engaged into depression this is very important especially during the pull phase
to maximize your efficiency and also stability otherwise we want to keep a hollow body posture
this helps to make sure that you're not flopping around and it's going to make your muscle ups
much more successful if you're struggling with half muscle ups swinging kipping and using a lot
of momentum that is a clear sign that you don't have enough explosive pulling power go back to
your pull-ups build your foundation first and this one is going to be productive afterwards the most
important technique tip that i can provide is to stay close to the bar when you're pulling this is
going to make your ups easier and also increase your performance as you pull up and over the
bar into the transition i want you all using an active dipping technique this is going to have a
greater transfer ability to your real muscle ups don't get lazy by flopping over and just resting
passively on the bar during your muscle ups the grip width determines your technique the closer
your hands are you're going to be using more of a tucked elbow position the further apart your hands
are the more flared your elbows are going to be neither is better or worse but that is the impact
of the biomechanics with your grip width everyone from beginner to advanced can improve quicker when
using the wool the biggest advantage of using a wall is there's no need to balance this training
environment is optimal for increasing overhead strength endurance the downside with freestanding
handstands is most people lose their balance before muscle fatigue only training freestanding
won't unlock your full potential this training approach is a common reason for plateauing
thanks to the extra contact points and stability our pushing muscles can be genuinely challenged
with the wall we're able to push our muscles to their limits and beyond this allows you to focus
on one thing increasing handstand hold time unless you're able to tolerate three to five
sets of sixty plus seconds on the wall handstand stick to the wall it's important we have a buffer
of capacity when it comes to our handstands the wall helps us gain a surplus of overhead strength
endurance because we're building more time this way when you return to freestanding the expanded
capacity will make balancing much easier another advantage of the wall is it's an excellent method
for understanding body alignment having a tactile reference helps us to correctly stack our joints
one over the other the wall is your personal handstand teacher it's constantly providing
feedback you're able to make adjustments to your posture based on the wall pressure and also body
tension what's best about the wall is how it makes everything more efficient and effective
if we lose balance the wall is there to catch us which increases the amount of quality practice
even if you're comfortable balancing a handstand the wall remains valuable for advanced athletes
once again it's going to provide perspective of body orientation in space the downside with
freestanding is it's difficult to know if you're correctly stacked we often feel in good alignment
when in reality we're flopping around everywhere most of the best hand balancers in the world
insist on their students using a wall this is because it keeps you honest
and it keeps you strict the wall is going to let you know straight away if you're under
or over balancing corrections are going to happen organically the first thing we need to consider is
should we go chest to wall or back to wool let's talk about it the back to wall variation is not
recommended because it tends to instill bad habits we're more likely to use a banana back
there's less contact points with the wall and it's just not recommended for beginners getting into
their handstands the chest-to-wall handstand is recommended by everyone in calisthenics and also
hand balances at large the reason for this is we can get a better awareness of our body in space
we can stack our joints and it has a much better transfer to strength skills later on with regard
to the shoulders in the handstand you want to internally rotate you want to retract and you
also want to elevate the shoulders this creates enough space within your glenohumeral joint to get
maximum shoulder flexion and your handstand much more stacked in terms of your hands you should
have them shoulder-width apart the reason for this it challenges your overhead mobility to improve
and number two it has the greatest transfer to calisthenic strength because it promotes a tucked
elbow orientation for the strength skills to come with regard to tension in your handstand we want
to take a top down approach we want to have the most tension in our upper body and as we go down
progressively less and less with our shoulders we want to push tall elevating the scapula with our
stomach and our glutes we want to have just enough tension to prevent any banana back and maintain
our position as we go progressively down the body you're going to have less tension just enough in
the legs in order to maintain your posture and the stacking of your joints if you're watching and you
feel scared to kick upside down or you just lack strength you should try out pike hand stance first
these allow you to build overhead strength without fully committing just yet pike handstands are
perfect for beginners new to inversion gross technique for these is very similar to the
handstand you want to have straight arms you want to push tall you want to stack your joints and of
course embrace the burn during your handstand you want to try and get yourself as close to the wall
as possible at the start you might be further away based on your strength confidence and ability in
the handstand but definitely challenge yourself to try and get close to the wall as soon as possible
that way you're in a more stacked alignment and it's going to translate better to freestanding
let's continue to the next exercise pelican curls target the biceps in a unique way for complete
calisthenics gains which is the best way to train the bar or the rings if you have access to rings
this is definitely the superior option rings are free to move whereas a bar is rigidly fixed
the ability for the rings to move means your body also moves through a range of strength and comfort
the orientation of the shoulders relative to the elbows and wrists will automatically be optimal
for your mobility we all come in different shapes and sizes with our upper body structure rings plus
pelican curls make bicep training a possibility for all body proportions and flexibility levels
the pelican curl is an effective isolation exercise for muscle growth we're using an
eccentric contraction or negative to grow bigger the bicep muscle is creating tension
as it lengthens that's the real value of these bad boys by performing only negative reps we can train
the biceps with supra maximal effort the ideal posture is one where you can control the negative
but lack the strength to curl back up force negatives with the pelican curl
are a training method which is guaranteed to pack on bicep size don't forget a larger
muscle has the potential to be a stronger muscle bigger biceps can become functionally useful
on compound calisthenics when you teach them how ring curls aren't only about aesthetics they also
build strength at length the pelican exercise challenges the biceps most when lengthening we
can see the bicep stress peaks towards full elbow extension contrast this with a chin up
where the biceps are worked most when shortening most other calisthenics exercises challenge the
biceps towards full elbow flexion the pelican curl stimulates the biceps in a non-traditional manner
warding off acute injuries most bicep tears happen at full stretch when contracting and creating
tension the pelican curl provides complete size strength and resilience benefits many people
suffer from chronic elbow pain being golfer's elbow aka medial epicondylal jump isolating the
bicep muscles reduces the risk of experiencing an overuse injury bigger stronger biceps can bear the
burden of hard training which spares the tendons and the elbow complex time under tension is what
makes pelican curls effective we want to use our muscles as breaks slowly lowering all the way
down using a controlled negative offers the best of all worlds we're building bicep strength into
long muscle lengths we're increasing size thanks to the muscle damage effects of slow negatives
lastly isolation targets the missing components of traditional compound movements resulting in
a well-rounded body to be able to use your best technique i recommend using chalk plus a false
grip this combination is optimal because it allows you to have a strong grip and it also
shortens the lever arm of the exercise allowing you to be mechanically stronger in the biceps
and get more out of the exercise in terms of your shoulder rotation you can keep them neutral or you
can externally rotate them during your pelican curl either option is fine go with what feels
the most comfortable and strong for you don't over complicate what your scapula is doing from the top
you want to lower down treating it like a normal push up letting your scapula organically move
into retraction as you lower to end range full range of motion pelican curls is absolutely key
to ensure this is happening as you lower down into full elbow extension give your tricep a squeeze
every single rep this is going to ensure your bicep is fully stretching fully elongating
and fully being stimulated thanks everyone for watching fitnessfaqs.com for the best calisthenics
programs otherwise check out our free content here on youtube and i'll see you legends next video