Training

Calisthenics VS Weightlifting

Conor Heffernan

Fascinating insight into callisthenics training. Maybe Charles Atlas was onto something after all!

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Published by Conor Heffernan

Conor is a Lecturer in the Sociology of Sport at Ulster University. When not in the library or the gym, he likes to try his hand at writing, often with mixed results.

2 thoughts on “Calisthenics VS Weightlifting”

  1. Frankly, Conor, I have never been much of a fan of bodyweight exercises on the theory that with many of the most challenging and beneficial bodyweight and calisthenic exercises, e.g., rope climbing, chin ups, pull ups, handstand push-ups, etc., if you can’t perform them to begin with, how are you going to make any improvement? On the other hand, anyone not on life support can perform a variety of beneficial exercises with lightweight dumbbells and work up from there. Bodyweight exercises are not without dangers. There was an interesting case in a nearby city where a woman performing handstand pushups fractured her cervical spine and died. Her relatives accused her husband of murdering her. However, the DA’s office declined to prosecute. On the principle of “reasonable doubt,” it would have been very hard to obtain a conviction. From your sojourn in Texas, you may recall a game show “Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Challenge” in which the contestants grappled with each other and ran obstacle courses involving strength, balance and agility. Some contestants who had performed admirably washed out on the final test, which was a rope climb. The show was supposed to take place at Steve Austin’s ranch in Texas. It didn’t look like any part of Texas I knew, but it did look a lot like the Sierra Pelona region north of Los Angeles, and that’s where the episodes were actually filmed

    Reply

    1. I think that is a very good point Jan and something I often see happen to someone’s detriment. The need to progressively overload is trickier and while resistance bands can go some way to helping, as can modification, for the general public it can be difficult to exert force consistently on these exercises.

      My goodness I can certainly see how that injury can happen but the sheer ill luck. the poor woman!

      Haha yes, one of many issues with the ranch (which admittedly I did love watching)

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