http://www.fitapp.app/calisthenics-evolution/

About Simon Ata

Simon Ata (aka "Simonster") is a world renowned calisthenics athlete, trainer and physiotherapist. Starting gymnastics at an early age, he became passionate about mastering body control and immersed himself in the world of bodyweight strength training. He has also trained in martial arts, circus, and breakdance and incorporates his knowledge from each of these disciplines into his teachings.

Simon strives to open the door to bodyweight training for beginners and maximize results for advanced athletes by creating effective and systematic training programs backed by scientific evidence and personal experience.

Inside Calisthenics Evolution

Pseudo Planche Press

Bulgarian Split Squats

Weighted Pull-ups

Crossover Toes-to-Bar

Weighted Dips

Weighted Jumping Squats

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Overload your muscles by adding weight to your calisthenics training.

FAQ

Am I strong enough for this program? What are the prerequisites?
This is a weighted calisthenics program, so you should already be proficient with the basics using your bodyweight. It is recommended that you do at least 8 pull-ups and 8 dips with your bodyweight before starting the program.

What equipment will I need?
All you need for this program is basic calisthenics bars and a weight vest. If you have equipment for dips, rows, and chin-ups, you have everything you need. The fit app home gym is sufficient. The exercises can be done on rings, though using stable bars will allow for better performance. You can also overload chin-ups and dips with a weight belt, rather than a vest if you prefer.

Does this program include leg training?
The program includes leg exercises to build lower limb strength and power. As with the upper body exercises, these can be overloaded with a weight vest. Cool-down stretches conclude each session. This is designed to be a stand-alone program and does not need to be supplemented with anything else.

What is the frequency of training?
The program is eight weeks in duration, though it’s designed so you can repeat it indefinitely. Using this program, you will be able to make gains for many months or even years.

Included are two different options for training splits - both of which utilize the same exercises and will be effective for building strength. This is to accommodate different people’s schedules and preferences.

UPPER/LOWER
The upper/lower split has 3 upper body sessions and 2 lower body sessions per week.

PUSH/PULL/LEGS
The push/pull/legs split has 4 upper body sessions (2x push, 2x pull) and 2 lower body sessions per week. Each session includes a warm-up, workout, and mobility cool-down, and will take approximately one hour to complete.

The push/pull/legs split includes slightly more upper body training and is recommended for advanced athletes. If you’re new to the program, I encourage starting with the upper/lower split. If you want an extra challenge upon completing this, you can progress to the pull/push/legs split.

Testimonials

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Sam Henderson

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Lucy Campbell

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Betty Jenkins

LEARN MORE

Target your muscles for growth

What about advanced bodyweight exercises?

Why add weight to calisthenics?

Is bodyweight not good enough

It may take years of skill development before you can utilize certain exercises (e.g., handstand push-ups and human flag raises) for a sufficient workout. If you're limited by your skill development, your body may not experience the fatigue to stimulate growth.

With weighted calisthenics you can progress incrementally while overloading the most useful fundamental exercises (push-ups, chin-ups, rows, dips) so they remain challenging. This provides a simple and highly effective to build strength and muscle.

While bodyweight exercises are effective, they’re often too easy for strong individuals. If you can already do 40+ push-ups, increasing rep numbers won’t do much for building muscle mass or strength. To maximize strength and hypertrophy (muscle growth), you want to be using lower rep ranges.

By adding weight with a vest, you can overload the primary calisthenics exercises and continue to provide a good stimulus for strength and hypertrophy.

If you want to build muscle and strength that’s highly transferable, one of the best ways to do this is with weighted calisthenics. Through these exercises, you’ll improve strength, body composition, balance, and motor control.

All athletic disciplines rely heavily on these attributes. By improving these with weighted calisthenics, you’ll be improving your athletic potential.

With bodyweight calisthenics, there’s often a large jump in difficulty between progressions. Often it takes years to develop a skill. This can make it difficult to find an appropriate intensity for maximizing muscle growth. However, by utilizing added weight, we can better target areas of the body for strength and muscle growth.