147877199-Leverage-Your-Gains.pdf
1
Start by hanging from a pull-up bar with your arms fully extended, using a standard overhand, shoulder-width or close grip. Tighten your core and glute muscles, point your toes and keep your legs together and straight. Begin to rotate your body backward by pushing your shoulders back, but keep your arms locked and legs straight. Don’t flare your elbows. Stop the backward rota- tion when you hit the extended straight lever point, and feel the intense contraction in your abs. Try to hold this position. After a few seconds it’ll feel like you have to tighten all the muscles in your body to hold that perfect form. Slowly rotate forward out of the straight lever and back to a dead hang, keeping your arms fully extended throughout. 24 \\ REPS \\ MAY • JUN 2012 30 \\ REPS \\ JUL • AUG 2013 Bodywork Killer bodyweight workout First Rep ased on a difficulty scale of 1–10, calis- thenics trainer Hit Richards rates the front lever as a solid 9 or 10. This advanced exercise takes you from a dead hang to a hor- izontal position underneath a pull-up bar, hammering your shoulders and core muscles. “A lever is not an easy move to do,” Rich- ards says. “You have to keep your entire core tight, including the lower back and glutes. And 10 or 15 seconds sounds like a short time, but when you’re holding a lever, it’s long!” B LEVER TRAINING EXERCISE Hyperextensions for the lower back Ï You need a strong lower back to success- fully perform a lever, so Richards recommends doing hyperextensions on monkey bars or a dip bar. Hook the back of your heels on one bar and rest your pelvis on another bar. Gently rest your fingertips on the side of your head (don’t pull) and raise your upper body just past parallel, hinging only at the hips. Pause slightly at the top to engage the lower back, and then hinge back down to below parallel. Ï Do 3–4 sets of 10 reps with 60–90 seconds of rest between sets. Ï You can also use a weight vest to increase the tension. Ï Hit Richards is the original bar athlete and founder of Calisthenics Kingz, a group that promotes bodyweight- based exercise (Facebook. com/CalisthenicsKing). GREGORY JAMES 1 2 3 4 5 6 Leverage Your Gains Bodyweight-training expert Hit Richards of Calisthenics Kingz walks you through the front lever, a move that’ll blast your delts and chisel your core When you get into the straight lever position, it’s like a handstand — you need to hold that equilibrium by tensing up your whole body. The Front Lever Underhand Lever The front lever is already an advanced move, but if you want to take it to an- other level, Richards says you can try to do one with an underhand grip, which makes it much harder. If you want to give your biceps a workout, you can also try pulling yourself up a bit by bending your elbows when you hit the straight lever position. ADVANCED MOVE STEP BY STEP BY MICHAL KAPRAL
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Transcript of 147877199-Leverage-Your-Gains.pdf
Start by hanging from a pull-up bar with your arms fully extended, using a standard overhand, shoulder-width or close grip.
Tighten your core and glute muscles, point your toes and keep your legs together and straight.
Begin to rotate your body backward by pushing your shoulders back, but keep your arms locked and legs straight. Don’t flare your elbows.
Stop the backward rota-tion when you hit the extended straight lever point, and feel the intense contraction in your abs.
Try to hold this position. After a few seconds it’ll feel like you have to tighten all the muscles in your body to hold that perfect form.
Slowly rotate forward out of the straight lever and back to a dead hang, keeping your arms fully extended throughout.
24 \\ REPS \\ MAY • JUN 2012 30 \\ REPS \\ JUL • AUG 2013
Bodywork Killer bodyweight workoutFirst Rep
ased on a difficulty scale of 1–10, calis-thenics trainer Hit Richards rates the
front lever as a solid 9 or 10. This advanced exercise takes you from a dead hang to a hor-izontal position underneath a pull-up bar, hammering your shoulders and core muscles.
“A lever is not an easy move to do,” Rich-ards says. “You have to keep your entire core tight, including the lower back and glutes. And 10 or 15 seconds sounds like a short time, but when you’re holding a lever, it’s long!”
B
Lever Training exerciseHyperextensions for the lower back
Ï You need a strong lower back to success-fully perform a lever, so Richards recommends doing hyperextensions on monkey bars or a dip bar. Hook the back of your heels on one bar and rest your pelvis on another bar. Gently rest your fingertips on the side of your head (don’t pull) and raise your upper body just past parallel, hinging only at the hips. Pause slightly at the top to engage the lower back, and then hinge back down to below parallel.
Ï Do 3–4 sets of 10 reps with 60–90 seconds of rest between sets.
Ï You can also use a weight vest to increase the tension.
Ï Hit Richards is the original bar athlete and founder of Calisthenics Kingz, a group that promotes bodyweight-based exercise (Facebook.com/CalisthenicsKing).
Gr
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1 2 3 4 5 6
Leverage Your GainsBodyweight-training expert Hit Richards of Calisthenics Kingz walks you through the front lever, a move that’ll blast your delts and chisel your core
When you get into the straight
lever position, it’s like a handstand
— you need to hold that equilibrium by
tensing up your whole body.
The Front Lever
Underhand LeverThe front lever is already an advanced move, but if you want to take it to an-other level, Richards says you can try to do one with an underhand grip, which makes it much harder. If you want to give your biceps a workout, you can also try pulling yourself up a bit by bending your elbows when you hit the straight lever position.
ADVANCED MOVE
Step BY Step
BY MICHAL KAPRAL
