The Minimalist’s Guide to Fitness: Calisthenics Challenge

With zero (or minimal) equipment and no gym membership, calisthenics lets you build strength, flexibility, and endurance.

If you're thinking about taking on a calisthenics challenge, you might wonder where to begin and what to know before you start. Together with experts from various fields, I have prepared a short guide to help you start out in your journey.

What is calisthenics?

Before we jump into more practical information, it is good to know what calisthenics is.

Simply put, calisthenics encompasses a wide range of body-weight exercises to strengthen one’s body. A full calisthenics program will include various exercises that train each muscle group. Along with strength, mobility, flexibility, and endurance can be developed with calisthenics.

It is beginner-friendly, but for many, the goal is to progress to more advanced exercises such as handstands, muscle-ups, or planches.

Main exercises

When it comes to gold standard exercises, you can’t go wrong with the squat, push-up, and pull-up.

While most people can perform bodyweight squats, push-ups and pull-ups can be tricky. In this section, I will give you some tips on how to build enough strength to perform push-ups and pull-ups.

Push-up

Push-ups are great exercises that target upper body strength, especially the chest muscles and triceps. Not ready to do push-ups yet? No worries, there are plenty of alternative exercises to try out:

• Wall push-ups. Instead of pushing yourself up from the floor, you can do wall push-ups that mimic the exercise. Simply stand facing a wall and place your hands on it at shoulder height. Perform push-ups while keeping your body straight. Since it requires less resistance but utilizes the same muscles, it is a great beginner exercise.
• Knee push-ups. Yet another great alternative, knee push-ups are performed while keeping your knees on the floor. Again, since less resistance is needed, the exercise feels easier on the body than push-ups.
• Incline push-ups. Use a sturdy surface like a table, bench, or couch for your hands, keeping your body in a straight line as you lower yourself. The higher the surface, the easier the movement.

Other exercises that strengthen muscles needed for a push-up:

• Plank. While this is primarily a core-strengthening exercise, it also engages your shoulders and arms, and is a great way to build strength. To do a proper plank, maintain a straight line from head to heels, engage your core, glutes, and quads, keep your shoulders over your wrists or elbows, and avoid sagging or lifting your hips.
• Tricep dips. Using a sturdy chair, lower yourself by bending your elbows and push back up to target your triceps. Don’t arch your back while performing this movement.

Pull-up

Pull-ups are also an upper-body exercise, but they mostly target the back muscles. Moreover, when it comes to arm muscles, pull-ups target biceps more than triceps. This is the reason why push-ups and pull-ups complement each other well in a workout routine. In other words, combining them ensures balanced upper-body development.

However, pull-ups are notoriously hard. It is no secret that plenty of seemingly fit people can not even complete one pull-up. So, don’t be discouraged — there are plenty of ‘easier’ exercises to do that will enable you to build the upper body strength required for a pull-up.

Here are some exercises to try:

• Dead hangs. Simply hang from a pull-up bar with your arms fully extended and your grip secure. This helps you build grip strength and get your body accustomed to supporting its weight. Over time, aim to increase the duration of your hangs. It is not as easy as it sounds, though.
• Negative pull-ups. Stand on a platform or jump to get your chin over the bar, then lower yourself down slowly.
• Assisted pull-ups. Wrap a resistance band around the pull-up bar and under your knees or feet to help lift less weight.
• Inverted rows. Lie on your back underneath a sturdy table, grab the edges, and pull your chest up toward the underside of the table. Alternatively, you can set a broomstick or similar sturdy bar across two stable surfaces.
• Plank with scapular retraction. No equipment needed for this one — start in a high plank position with your hands under your shoulders. Without bending your arms, squeeze your shoulder blades together, then push them apart again.

By consistently practicing these exercises, you’ll build muscle and grip strength that is essential for a pull-up.

Squat

The squat is a foundational lower-body exercise as it engages a broad range of muscles, including the quads, hamstrings, and glutes. While it is generally easier to perform than a push-up or pull-up, proper form is crucial.

Here are some variations of squats to try out:

• Split squat (Bulgarian squat). Place one foot on a bench or similar sturdy surface, then lower your body to perform a squat. This single-leg exercise is considered to be more demanding than a simple body-weight squat.
• Pistol squats. “Pistol squats (single-leg variations) take things up a level by activating stabilizers in the knees and ankles,” explains Zach Watson, lifting club Coach at Gymshark. This variation is done by extending the leg straight in front while performing the squat.
• Wall sits. The wall sit is an isometric hold that mimics the bottom position of a squat. Lean against a wall with your back and lower your body into a squat position. Hold it still as long as you can. This exercise builds endurance.

How to see and track progress?

Progressive overload is a fundamental principle of training, even if you choose to do body weight exercises. It refers to increasing workout load by either increasing repetitions, volume, duration, or overall intensity.

Why is progressive overload important? Without it, the workout will become less demanding as your body adapts. This is when you might reach a plateau, meaning your strength is no longer improving or improving little despite consistency.

In weight lifting, progressive overload is usually achieved by gradually increasing the repetitions or the weight lifted. When you perform body weight exercises, it is a bit trickier, but there are ways to achieve that. Here are some tips:

• Increase repetitions or sets. The easiest way is to simply increase the repetitions or sets performed. However, this type of progressive overload is limited.
• Incorporate more challenging variations. As we saw in the previous section, some exercises are harder than others. Finding the right balance that is challenging enough can require some experimentation, but it is an essential aspect of calisthenics.
• Slow down. By slowing down your movement, you are increasing the time the muscle is under tension.
• Employ equipment. You can also use weighted vests and resistance bands for your training sessions.

How do you know if you are progressing? According to Dr. Mariam Zakhary, Clinical Advisor at Ikon Recovery Center, progress in calisthenics can be effectively tracked using measurable performance markers. You can keep records of your activity, including a training log to note reps, sets, rest times, and difficulty levels by rate of perceived exertion.

Remember, your workout should feel demanding, so you can see progress. If it doesn’t, it is probably time to try to make it more challenging.

How to avoid injury

You might be tempted with very frequent and vigorous exercises when starting out, but it is necessary to take breaks.

Allow 48 to 72 hours between sessions that target the same muscles, and prioritize mobility, especially in the shoulders, hips, and wrists, to reduce your risk of injury.

Dr. Zakhary

It’s also important to focus on proper form. You can film yourself to see if you are executing the exercise correctly.

Gradually increasing intensity and listening to your body’s signals (such as soreness) can guide you.

Lastly, warming up before you jump into training can also help you avoid injuries.

Nutrition: short introduction for a calisthenics challenge

If you have decided to give calisthenics a go, nutrition is something you should also consider.

It's important to focus on whole foods, proper hydration, meals rich in vitamins and minerals, and hitting adequate protein intake for muscle repair, recovery, and performance.

Dr. Zakhary

How much protein you need depends on your goals, but for those who work out, the number falls between 1.2 and 2.2 grams per kilogram of body weight.

Dr. Zakhary also emphasizes maintaining a slight caloric surplus for faster muscle growth or a deficit for leanness. If you want to both grow muscle and reduce fat mass, the body recomposition route is also possible, which is achieved with a slight calorie deficit.

Final thoughts

“Calisthenics is one of the most functional ways to train,” says Watson. “It doesn’t just help you build muscle. It trains your body to move better in everyday life. You’re building strength, balance, coordination, and control all at once.”

You can start without any previous experience, but keep it slow, and adjust the calisthenics challenge as you go. Progressive overload is crucial to see improvements.