page_title: Calisthenics
section_title: Common exercises
hierarchical_section_title: Calisthenics / Common exercises
caption_attribution_description: A US Marine Doing Pull-ups.
context_page_description: Calisthenics or callisthenics is a form of exercise consisting of a variety of movements that exercise large muscle groups, such as running, standing, grasping, pushing, etc. These exercises are often performed rhythmically and with minimal equipment, as bodyweight exercises. They are intended to increase strength, fitness, and flexibility, through movements such as pulling, pushing, bending, jumping, or swinging, using one's body weight for resistance. Calisthenics can provide the benefits of muscular and aerobic conditioning, in addition to improving psychomotor skills such as balance, agility, and coordination.
  Urban calisthenics is a form of street workout; calisthenics groups perform exercise routines in urban areas. Individuals and groups train to perform advanced calisthenics skills such as muscle-ups, levers, and various freestyle moves such as spins and flips.
  Sports teams and military units often perform leader-directed group calisthenics as a form of synchronized physical training to increase group cohesion and discipline. Calisthenics is also popular as a component of physical education in primary and secondary schools over much of the globe.
context_section_description: The more commonly performed calisthenic exercises include: 
  Most common 
  Push-ups
  Performed face down on the floor, palms against floor under the shoulders, toes curled upwards against the floor. The arms are used to lift the body while maintaining a straight line from head to heel. The arms go from fully extended in the high position to nearly fully flexed in the low position while avoiding resting on the floor. Chest, shoulders, and triceps are trained with this exercise. An easier version of this exercise consists of placing the hands on a wall and then bending and straightening the arms.
  Sit-ups
  A person lies on their back with their legs bent. They bend at the waist and move their head and torso towards their legs. They then lower themselves back down to the start position. For people who find it difficult to get down onto the ground, a similar range of motion can be achieved by standing with the legs slightly bent, and then bowing slightly and straightening up again.
  Squats
  Standing with feet shoulder-width apart, the subject squats down until their thighs are parallel with the floor; during this action, they move their arms forwards in front of them. They then return to a standing position whilst moving their arms back to their sides. Squats train the quadriceps, hamstrings, calves, gluteal muscles, and core. The height of the squat can be adjusted to be deeper or shallower depending on the fitness level of the individual i.e. if someone struggles with exercise they can do half or quarter squats. They are among the most versatile calisthenic exercises because they can be performed easily in most environments and with a limited amount of space.
  Common
  Burpees
  A full body calisthenics workout that works abdominal muscles, chest, arms, legs, and some parts of the back.
  Chin-ups and pull-ups
  Chin-ups and pull-ups are similar exercises but use opposite facing grips.
  For a chin-up, the palms of the hands are facing the person as they pull up their body using the chin-up bar. The chin-up focuses on the biceps muscles, rather than the latissimus dorsi muscle which is the focus of the pull-up.
  For a pull-up, the bar is grasped using a shoulder-width grip. The subject lifts their body up, chin level with the bar, and keeping the back straight throughout. The bar remains in front of the subject at all times. The subject then slowly returns to starting position in a slow controlled manner. This primarily trains the lats or upper back muscles, as well as the forearms.
  Dips
  Done between parallel bars or facing either direction of trapezoid bars found in some gyms. Feet are crossed with either foot in front and the body is lowered until the elbows are in line with the shoulders. The subject then pushes up until the arms are fully extended, but without locking the elbows. Dips focus primarily on the chest, triceps, and deltoids, especially the anterior portion.
  Front lever and back lever
  A front lever is performed by performing a lat pulldown of the bar with straight arms until the body is parallel to the ground, with the front of the body facing upwards. May be done on rings or pull-up bar.
  A back lever is performed by lowering from an inverted hang from rings or bar, until the gymnast's body is parallel to the ground and facing towards the floor.
  Handstand
  A handstand is the act of supporting the body in a stable, inverted vertical position by balancing on the hands. In a basic handstand, the body is held straight with arms and legs fully extended, with hands spaced approximately shoulder-width apart.
  Hyperextensions
  Performed in a prone position on the ground, the individual raises the legs, arms and upper body off the ground.
  Leg raises
  Lying on the back, hands in fists under buttocks, move feet up and down.
  L-sit
  The L-sit is an acrobatic body position in which all body weight rests on the hands, with the torso held in a slightly forward-leaning orientation, with legs held horizontally so that each leg forms a nominal right-angle with the torso. The right-angle causes the body to have a notable "L" shape, hence the name "L-s
caption: A US Marine performs a pull-up, a common calisthenic exercise.
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