One of the things that got me started training with Calisthenics is the impressive strength level that bodyweight athletes demonstrate. The way they defy the laws of gravity in their movements got me really curious about how far we can take our current level of strength using this method.

Here are the 12 things that we need to consider in building a strength training program for our Calisthenics practice:

1. Know your current strength level

The very first step that you need to undertake before going straight into a training program is knowing where you are in relation to where you want to be. 

“A map will not be able to give you direction unless you know where you are.”

In terms of fitness in general, there are 2 common variables to knowing your level.

• How many reps can you do? Or how long can you hold the position?
• How heavy can you carry?

This is very true especially training in the gym, but it is a little bit more complicated when you are doing bodyweight training as you cannot just increase your weight to increase the intensity of the exercise except when doing weighted calisthenics. Some bodyweight movements use the lever advantages to increase and decrease the intensity. You may have to look at your physics book to read on torques and fulcrums again to understand these mechanics.

Let’s look at the front lever exercise, for example:

The intensity is at the lowest when your legs are tucked close to your chest, and it will be at its hardest when your legs are fully straightened.

So make sure you assess your level first before starting your training. The help of an experienced Calisthenics teacher will be very valuable, especially if you are very new to the training. It is a common practice in our Calisthenics class to see the current level of our new students so we can give them the right variation of the exercises.

2. Learn to perform the bodyweight movements correctly

After you have established the level where you are at, you want to make sure you have learned the standards of the movement you will tackle. 

One of the most common causes of injury is doing the movement with bad form. This will unnecessarily stress the joints and ligaments wrongly. 

It can result in you compensating when you push harder, creating muscle imbalances instead of getting stronger.

3. Build a wide base through volume training; the Accumulation stage

Once you have found the right level you are in and have already studied the movements you are going to tackle, the safest way to start your training is to slowly accumulate volume. 

Volume in strength training means the total number of repetitions you are doing in relation to time (in a session, week, or month).

I will illustrate it in a linear progression to make it easier for you to understand but bear in mind that it rarely works this way in practical application.

	Number of reps	Number of sets	Total daily volume
Week 1	12 reps	3 sets	36
Week 2	13 reps	3 sets	39
Week 3	14 reps	3 sets	42
Week 4	15 reps	3 sets	45

The table above illustrates changing the number of reps, but you can also adjust the number of sets to control the volume of your training. The important thing to remember is a gradual increase in the total volume.

Since you are increasing your volume gradually in this stage, it is important to take note that you don’t increase the intensity of your exercise. In fact, you want to make sure that you are doing a less intense version of the movement where you can do around 15 to 20 reps range.

Why is it important to accumulate the volume when you’re building strength?

Like a pyramid, you can only go higher if your base is wider. It’s the same in training; you will not be able to achieve a high level of strength if you don’t spend time building your base. 

4. Incorporate a muscle-building, the Hypertrophy stage

There is an overlap between building muscle and accumulating your volume, but the rep range is the main difference. Though the accumulation stage will also build muscles, the main goal is to increase endurance and strengthen the ligaments and tendons in your joints to prepare it for heavy loading once you progress with your training program.

According to Brad Schoenfeld’s article: 

“For a variety of reasons, a moderate-repetition scheme (approximately 8 to 10 repetitions per set) is the decidedly better choice for achieving optimal gains in muscular mass.”

5. Stimulate CNS through high-intensity work

The CNS or Central Nervous System is, in simple terms, the wires from your brain to your muscles. In a regular effort where you feel the pump in your muscles, you only use a percentage of the muscles that can do the task. Lesser wires are activated. 

So that means you actually have more potential to do a more advanced movement but your body is not able to access these unused muscles unless you really push your body to the limit. 

A typical rep range for training to stimulate the CNS is between 2-6 repetitions. This type of training will not build muscles because of the low volume, but it is the most effective way to train your strength.

You must be working with good form when doing exercises as the load is very high that you are at risk of getting injured. Doing the volume and hypertrophy phases will prepare you for this stage. 

6. Rest longer in between sets

Once you reach the level where you are working on advanced movement or a very high load, the rest time should be longer in between sets.

Here is a table of rest time between sets, number of sets, rep range, and the training phase you are in.

	Volume or accumulation phase	Hypertrophy phase	High-intensity phase
Rep range	15-30	8-12	2-6
No. of sets	3-6	3-6	3-4
Rest between sets	1 minute or less	2-3 minutes	4-5 minutes
Intensity	Very low	Low	High

Disclaimer: The data in this table is a concise summary of extensive variations in the training methods. I have gathered this from various reliable information to make it simpler for you. Suppose you want to read the extensive studies and more in-depth articles. In that case, you can read my sources here: “Defying Periodization” by Jim Stoppani and “Five Steps to Increasing the Effectiveness of Your Strength Training Program” by Charles Poliquin.

7. Avoid circuit type of workout

A circuit training is a type of workout where you set up multiple stations. You will do different exercises at each station, and the rest times between stations can be quite short.

This type of training is very effective to burn fats, improve your conditioning and build volume overall but it comes short in building real strength. One of the main reasons is its short rest time and the multiple movement variations in a circuit. It is not possible to place a pure strength-building movement in one of the stations without compromising the quality.

You may be able to do it well on the first round, but as you fatigue from the other exercises, the quality of the movement will be compromised in the coming rounds so is your strength gains.

You are better off doing a more focused program where you do the hardest movement first, finish all the sets, then followed by a not-so-hard one, and then end your session with the easiest movement.

A beginner workout example will be:

Exercise 1 Pull-ups - 4 sets of 3 repetitions with 4 minutes rest
Exercise 2 Parallel bar dips - 4 sets of 3 repetitions with 4 minutes rest
Exercise 3 Ring rows - 3 sets of 15 repetitions with 1-minute rest
Exercise 4 Push-ups - 3 sets of 15 repetitions with 1-minute rest 

Make sure you finish all the sets of exercise 1 before you proceed to exercise 2. This type of training can be time-consuming because of the rest time between the sets, but it is also very effective in building strength.

8. Narrow down your goals

Another thing that you have to consider when working on improving your strength is not to be too greedy with your goals. Unless you are a professional athlete that can burn 5 hours daily in your training. 

If you have more goals than the number of hands you have, it is very likely that you can’t hold on to them.

Focus on one or two goals at a time and put all your energy into it. And in bodyweight exercises, there is a very high transferability between one movement to the other, especially if you know the progressions of the exercises. In my Calisthenics classes, we focus on a series of progressions as our short-term goals. This will keep us motivated as the goals are not too far out of our reach.

9. Do weighted Calisthenics

Calisthenics training can be very challenging to progress because the intensity gap between the progressions can be quite big or vague. For example, a tuck planche to an advance tuck planche can be a very tricky situation to bridge.

One solution to build strength in Calisthenics is to do loaded bodyweight exercises. 

This can be done by wearing a weighted vest or a belt to hang regular plates into it. This will make your workout progression more linear, just like working in the gym. It doesn’t apply to all movements, but it works very well with Dips, Push-ups, Pull-ups, and Chin-ups

10. Don’t forget to recover well

You don’t get stronger in the session; you are getting weaker as the session progresses. You will only gain strength the next day once you replenish the energy that you have spent in training and when you give your body a chance to recover.

Here are some recovery methods that you can work on if you really want to bring your strength to the next level.

• Hot and cold contrast bath - the expansion and constriction of the blood vessels 

when exposed to contrasting temperatures will increase your sore muscles’ circulation, eliminate toxins, decrease inflammation, and increase the Growth Hormone. That means faster recovery.

• Massage or stretching to release your tight muscles - It is very normal that the muscles shorten after a hard session, and tight muscles can restrict circulation; thus, it will hinder your recovery. 

Working on your mobility will also improve your movement pattern, which will enhance the effectiveness of your workout in the next session.

• Active recovery - fully resting in between sessions is good, but a very light exercise session can aid your recovery faster. 

• Sleep well and day naps - the most essential part of your recovery is when you are sleeping. This is when the body is repairing the damaged muscles to get them ready for the next session. 

11. Clean food and protein intake

According to the Human Kinetics Journal’s article about the “Effects of Exercise on Dietary Protein Requirements,” that those involved in strength training might need to consume as much as 1.6 to 1.7 g protein ⋅ kg−1 day−1 (approximately twice the current recommended daily allowance).

Aside from a higher protein intake, a cleaner diet of fewer junk foods and free from preservatives would always be a good thing.

12. Give your training program some time

According to the book “Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning” by the US National Strength and Conditioning Association that Long-term heavy resistance training brings about significant adaptive responses that result in enhanced size, strength, and power of trained musculature.

Building strength is not gonna come fast and easy. So expect some serious time commitment to work on it. It is going to take years of consistent training to get you to an advanced level of strength. 

If you are just getting started with Calisthenics, here are some of my articles that you might want to read:

Wrist warm-up for Callisthenics
Best Calisthenics approach for beginners
Muscles that work in Handstands