Archives for December 2013

The Top Ten PCC Blog Posts of 2013

December 31, 2013 By Al Kavadlo 8 Comments

The Progressive Calisthenics Certification made its mark on the fitness world in 2013 and I am very excited to have been a part of it. It’s almost hard to believe that this blog has been up and running for an entire year, yet on the other hand, it’s amazing to think that in such a small amount of time, the PCC has already grown into an international phenomenon. Next year, we will be holding PCC workshops in a half dozen different countries!

I am proud of every one of the nearly 50 posts we shared this year on the PCC blog, so it was hard to assemble this list. With that in mind, let’s take a look back at my top ten PCC blog posts of 2013 (in no particular order):

We’ll start with the most popular post this blog has ever seen, Paul Wade’s Ten Commandments of Calisthenics Mass.

And let’s not forget my counterpoint to that piece: Building Strength Without Mass.

My brother and fellow PCC Master Instructor Danny Kavadlo shared his personal experiences with Bodyweight Training.

PCC Team Leader Adrienne Harvey gave us her unique perspective on PCC Sweden.

A fantastic motivational piece from Dragon Door Founder and CEO John Du Cane on How to Be Successful at Anything.

Another classic post from Coach Wade, this time discussing the Tao of PCC.

PCC Team Leader Logan Christopher made a case for Curved Handstands.

PCC Senior Instructor Steven Low gave us this great piece on the Marriage of Bodyweight Methods.

PCC Team Leader Angelo Gala shared his Journey to the Back Lever.

And last but not least, this touching father and son calisthenics story from Peter D’Epiro.

Thanks to all of you who read this blog and support the PCC movement! I can’t wait to see what next year has in store for the PCC and the entire bodyweight strength training community.

We’re Working Out!

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About Al Kavadlo: Al Kavadlo is the lead instructor for Dragon Door’s Progressive Calisthenics Certification. Recognized worldwide for his amazing bodyweight feats of strength as well as his unique coaching style, Al is the author of three books, including Raising The Bar: The Definitive Guide to Pull-up Bar Calisthenics and Pushing The Limits! Total Body Strength With No Equipment. Read more about Al on his website: www.AlKavadlo.com.

The Case of the Missing Pull-up Bar

December 17, 2013 By Al Kavadlo 19 Comments

The day after Thanksgiving I showed up to work out at my number one training spot, the iconic jungle gym in the Northeast corner of Tompkins Square Park. I always like to get a serious workout in the day after Thanksgiving to offset the gluttonous amount of savory meats and sweet dessert treats that I’ve consumed during the previous day. Imagine my shock when I arrived at the jungle gym to find that my favorite pull-up bar had gone missing!

Well to be honest, I wasn’t that surprised. After all, the bar had gradually been getting loose over the course of the last several months. Since the park reopened in the early ‘90s following the infamous Tompkins Square Park Riot of ‘88, the jungle gym has gradually become one of the most popular outdoor training spots in the NYC area. Even on the coldest winter day, a handful of dedicated loyalists are still out there getting their reps in. Hundreds of pull-ups, muscle-ups and other exercises are performed on that bar every day. It’s taken a beating over the years!

Without my normal pull-up bar available I was forced to improvise a lot of my workout, which often winds up being a good thing. Instead of doing my typical overhand pull-ups, i used the bars on the big yellow monkey bar arch to do pull-ups, which places the hands into a neutral position.

I did muscle-ups on the low bar, which forced me to hold my legs in an “L” to avoid hitting my feet into the floor at the bottom of each rep, adding an extra challenge to an already difficult move.

I still did my handstand push-ups and pistol squats like I normally would. Exercises that require no equipment at all will forever be available to you no matter what!

At the end of the workout, I was over my initial disappointment about the missing bar and I actually started to see the whole thing as a blessing in disguise (the endorphin rush from a good training session often gives me better perspective). I’ve always believed that the universe opens a window every time it closes a door. I was looking forward to seeing what other variations I might come up with in future workouts, as it appeared I would no longer have access to the high bar that facilitated so much of my training for so long.

Indeed, the next few times I trained at the park, I continued to work around the missing high bar. My L-Muscle-ups began to get a bit smoother. The neutral grip pull-ups quickly started to feel just as comfortable as the standard pronated grip. I almost forgot there was anything missing. Just when I had fully accepted the situation, things suddenly went back to normal just as quickly as they initially changed.

On Friday, December 13th I showed up to train at TSP and the high bar was back! The bar appears to have been reinforced and it feels more secure than it has in years. The low bar also appears to have been reinforced – an extra bonus! It felt great to muscle-up on that high bar again; it didn’t roll around or squeak at all.

Though it appears to be the very same bar that went missing two weeks prior, the exact details of what happened remain a mystery to me. There are still questions that I may never know the answer to:

What was the final straw that brought it down? A plyo muscle-up? A giant rollover? A simple bar hang? Was anyone hurt?

Or was it just taken down by the NYC Park’s Department as a precaution until they could properly reinforce it?

And what brought it back? A crafty calisthenics practitioner with some welding prowess? My brother Danny’s phone call to 311? Or maybe it was just a Christmas miracle!

Whether it was the work of the NYC parks dept, a fellow bar athlete or the supernatural, I may never know. However, this much I can say for certain: Pull-up bar or not, it is always possible to have a great workout; our only limitations are the ones we place on ourselves.

And to whoever it was that fixed the pull-up bar at TSP: Thank you!

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The Week of a Thousand Push-ups

December 10, 2013 By Danny Kavadlo 23 Comments

As 2013 winds down and I reflect on the days and months behind me, I find that it’s impossible for me to go a moment without mentally celebrating the launch of the Progressive Calisthenics Certification. From the United States to Sweden (and soon to Australia, Ireland and more), the energy and talent that fills these rooms is simply magnificent. It is almost becoming a common occurrence to witness amazing feats, such as a first ever muscle-up, back lever, or pistol squat. As mind-boggling as that seems, these spectacular displays of strength, balance, and sheer training ethic are becoming what could almost be considered “normal.”

But it isn’t. Not to most.

The truth is that in the world of commercial fitness, these feats are about as far out as it comes. With machines comprised of shining stacks on sliding tracks have become the standard, our simplicity is bold like a ruby in a pile of rocks. We stand proud, defiantly deviating from product-based workouts encouraged by the man. Given the tightness of the calisthenics community, it is sometimes easy to forget how far we fall from the mainstream. We’re not looking for 7-minute abs and 21 day transformations. We seek something more. We are on the outskirts of physical culture, the edge of the norm. Dammit, we are the freaks and geeks of fitness!

So, what does that have to do with the Week of a Thousand Push-ups? Well, quite a bit. Even though the noble push-up is one of the most popular—and best—upper body exercise of all time, like the room full of Personal Records at the PCC events, the thought of doing nothing but a thousand push-ups for a week would blow most people’s minds. But that is exactly what my personal training client Mike did recently. As you know by now, we are definitely not “most people.”

Mike’s Story

Mike was going out of town for a week and planned on continuing his training even though we would not be meeting. We have trained twice a week for years and he is serious. On this particular business trip, his time was limited and he was going to be without a gym, bicycle, or pull-up bar. Although my personal clients know better than to make excuses, they are sometimes uncertain of what to do without me. I am often asked some version of “what should I do while I’m out of town?”, to which I generally reply: “Keep it basic–squat, push-up, pull-up.”

But this time Mike already had an idea in mind… and it was more basic and brilliant than I could have imagined!

“The week of a thousand push-ups,” he said.

The way it came out of his mouth, I thought it was a movie title: Simple. Concise. Even catchy.

Mike had it figured like this. There are seven days in the week, therefor an average of over 143 per day would put him at a numeric advantage. He intended to keep his plan as simple as possible, doing his first set to failure every day, then doing recurring sets throughout the day until he surpassed his daily goal 143.

Though it’s nice to start with a plan, like many activities in life, it’s often best to improvise. As I would have done under the same circumstances, Mike changed his intended plan throughout the week. Some days, he did indeed go til failure on his first set; others, he did multiple sets of twenty or thirty throughout the day. There were days of over 300 push-ups before noon. There were also days where he barely met his goal. There are many ways to skin a cat.

Needless, to say, my man Big Mike wound up doing way over the thousand push-ups he planned on! (The next time I saw him, we trained legs.)

Keepin’ It Real

Prior to his week of a thousand push-ups, Mike informed me that to “keep an even playing field’” he would be doing only push-ups of the classic variety—feet together, two handed, no incline. He explained that this method would eliminate the temptation to switch to easier variations if his goal of 1,000 proved too challenging. I respect his decision. The classic push-up is honest, strong and true. It’s a classic for a reason.

However, there’s also something to be said mixing it up, in push-ups and life.

Mix-Master Mania

Any one who truly knows me is well aware of my passion for the push-up in all of its wonderful forms. From the fragility of knee push-ups, to the muscular methods of plyos, to me, every single type of push-up has an art and beauty intrinsic to it that makes it stand on its own.

We already discussed some training techniques and methods (Divide evenly, go until failure, multiple daily sets), but what about different kinds of push-ups?

Although some push-up varieties are more challenging than others, it can be fun to do a thousand push-ups of several variations. Have fun and be creative. Mix it up! Here are just a few of my favorites:

The narrow grip push-up, shown here, places more emphasis on the arms.

The wide push-up is also a great variation and is a precursor to archer push-up.

Doing push-ups on your fists places a unique challenge on your hands, and extends the range of motion of your push-ups.

Get creative. Employing inclines is an excellent way to step up your game. Combine this method with different grips (like fingertips) for an added challenge. Have fun with it. The sky’s the limit!

As with the Week of a Thousand Push-ups, Mike and I have continued to keep our training exciting and, of course, effective. That’s what it’s all about. As is often the case, the client inspired me!

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Danny Kavadlo is one of the world’s most established and respected personal trainers. He is a Master Instructor of Progressive Calisthenics and the author of Everybody Needs Training: Proven Success Secrets for the Professional Fitness Trainer. A true in-person experience, Danny is known globally as a motivator and leader in the body-weight community. Learn more about Danny at: www.DannyTheTrainer.com.

The Case for Curved Handstands

December 3, 2013 By Logan Christopher 24 Comments

Ask any gymnast or circus performer about doing handstands and they’re likely to tell you that a straight handstand is the only way to do it. It’s the perfect form, and anything else is wrong.

I disagree! Let me tell you why.

Recently on this site was an article all about the straight handstand and the benefits of doing them in that manner. I don’t disagree with those points, but wanted to give a different opinion on why the curved handstand is a viable option as well.

Are Curved Handstands Dangerous?

First off, let’s talk about the claim that doing a curved handstand is going to hurt your back. Just like anything else, it can happen, but if you’re smart about it, they’re completely safe.

I think this myth is simply a result of people doing straight handstands for other reasons, and then not knowing why that is the case. To think that bending your spine is going to hurt you is ridiculous.

Push too far with bridging exercises and you can tweak your back, but doing them right you’ll develop more flexibility and strength.

When doing a handstand if you let gravity just pull your legs over without maintaining any core tightness, it can take you into a position that you’re not ready for. Doing too much of can certainly cause you to strain your back.

Instead maintain tightness, and build up what you do over time. Just like any other exercise.

Are Straight Handstands Necessary for Higher Level Skills?

The straight handstand can help you do harder skills but it is not necessary.

I have heard people say that you need perfectly straight alignment to hold a one arm handstand. Tell that to Professor Paulinetti, the man who basically invented the one arm handstand.

You see, old school hand balancers, did all their handstands with curves in their backs. All of them! And they pulled of amazing skills.

They treated the straight handstand as an advanced variation of the handstand. This harder skill was something to practice later on after you could stand on your hands.

Over time, hand balancers transitioned away from the curve to the straight position you see commonly today. Part of this was for aesthetic reasons. It’s more pleasing to the eye, and for things like gymnastic competitions, you’re judged on this.

Another part is that a straight handstand does help you to achieve more difficult skills. By beginning with it you can build those habits from the beginning. This is a smart thing to do if you plan on taking your hand balancing skills far.

To prove this point, in the future, I’d like to build up to the one hand handstand in a curved position like the old timers did.

What About The Beginner or Recreational Athlete?

Don’t plan to be paid to do hand balancing professionally? Not a gymnast? Would you just like to be able to hold a freestanding handstand? If that’s the case I don’t think going for the straight handstand is necessarily for you.

If you ask anyone to hold a handstand that has never done it before, what will you see? When they kick up, before they fall down almost instantly, they’ll be in a curved position.

The curved handstand is a more natural position. It takes a lot of effort to get a perfect line in your handstand because it is unnatural. To tighten the muscles as needed to form a straight line is significantly more difficult, and not to mention, it takes additional shoulder flexibility, that many people don’t have.

If you choose, you can practice the curved handstand. You’re likely to gain the skill faster than someone going after a straight handstand. You’ll be freestanding in a shorter amount of time, which is of course dependent on how much you practice. Then from there you can practice other hand balancing skills and work on straightening out later if you choose.

Or you can practice a straight handstand from the beginning. It will take longer with more practice time. But once you have it you’ll be good to go onto other more advanced skills.

It is a choice you can make.

Sure, a straight handstand is better, in that it is more advanced. Just like a 315 lb. snatch is better than a 225 lb. one. But that doesn’t make the curved handstand wrong.

How to Learn the Straight or Curved Handstand

If you’re going to do handstands the starting place is against the wall. But depending on which of these two you want to go for you’re going to do them differently.

If you choose to go with the curved handstand then when doing wall handstands your back can face the wall. Kick-up into position then hold for time.

If you choose to go with a straight handstand you’ll want to face the other way. The reason for this is that this orientation forces you into a straighter position, especially as you inch your hands closer and closer to the wall.

In either style you build endurance by holding for time and maintaining your position. Then when it comes to freestanding handstands this skill set should be built in as you learn to balance out in the open.

So let’s take a poll. Do you do curved or straight handstands? Even if its just against the wall, what are you going for? Answer in the comments below.

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About Logan Christopher: Logan Christopher has been called a physical culture renaissance man as he is accomplished in a wide range of strength skills from kettlebell juggling, performing strongman stunts, and bodyweight exercises. He is the author of numerous books including Secrets of the Handstand and The Master Keys to Strength & Fitness. In addition, he’s spent the last several years going deep into mental training to find out what it takes to really excel and tactics that can help people instantly improve their exercises. You can find out more about all this at http://www.legendarystrength.com/.