Body weight workout?

TheBiz

I want to improve my fitness.
I'm stats at the minute are;
Male,
19,
11.5 stone,
5'8.

I want to get a physique similar to that of a male gymnast but obvious not as extreme as I wouldn't be training as intense. Not to mention I'm not a gymnast.

Is it realistic to get this physique using only body weight?
And it is realistic to get this physique relatively quickly? (No miracle, but training for 6+ years to get a similar build isn't ideal)

Would I be better just joining a gym?
I'm also taking up boxing so that should help with my fitness..

Other than the obvious, push-ups, sit ups, pull ups what else can I do? I don't have access to gymnastics equipment either.

Mehaffey1

Loads of cardio needed if you're after a leaner type of look and to compliment the boxing. Fast walking, running, cycling and swimming would be on my menu for that. I wouldn't rule out joining a gym, the return in access to equipment against usual price is usually good.

FTA69

Would you consider lifting weights? Likewise boxing is extremely taxing, are you just looking to do boxfit classes twice a week or are you training at a competitive club? If you're putting down 4 two-hour sessions a week in the boxing gym for instance you might be good for little else but bodyweight and kettlebells.

TheBiz

FTA69 wrote: »

Would you consider lifting weights? Likewise boxing is extremely taxing, are you just looking to do boxfit classes twice a week or are you training at a competitive club? If you're putting down 4 two-hour sessions a week in the boxing gym for instance you might be good for little else but bodyweight and kettlebells.

I plan on joining the club in college, 2 2 hour classes a week, I was also looking at Muay Thai which is on opposite days for the same time periods. Probably be one or the other really.

I would join a gym but the one for the college is paid for the college year and it's already January so I'd be paying €250 for half of the time

Elemonator

Combine with kettle bells as a very cheap option and you will have what you want. A single one is all you need. Keep the body fat down with lots and cardio and eating well.

TheBiz

Elemonator wrote: »

Combine with kettle bells as a very cheap option and you will have what you want. A single one is all you need. Keep the body fat down with lots and cardio and eating well.

I have some weights at home that I could bring in with me to college..

Anything in particular I should be eating? Fruit, veg, protein?

Nancy pearl

Anyone recommend a good stretching routine, I have a bit of time on my hands this time in the morning and eventually I am thinking about starting yoga ,but nneed to get my body a bit more supple.
New here so hope im in the right place to ask!!

freemenfitness

Hey OP I mainly train people in bodyweight material and am a trainer with GMB who have a ton of free material worth checking out. I also box and do MMA so can offer some advice on integrating that stuff too.

A lot of what your asking comes down to what your goals are what access you have to equipment and how long and often you can train for. The great part of gymnastic based training is that you need very little equipment all you really need would be a set of rings and maybe some parallettes. Rings will cost you about 20-30 euro on amazon for a good wooden set so they are not expensive and will build a strong upper body unlike anything else.

To answer your questions yes you can build a good body but it takes time 6 months to a year and you will notice big changes. You are short so you will advance quickly as you have less weight to move around.

Gymnastic strength training is very tough and takes time for a ton of reasons you need to build your joints to deal with a lot of stress its worth it though but it is a long process.

As for programs etc I highly recommend finding a good coach, as this stuff even the basics are pretty technical but if you cant afford one or whatever there are 3 free options find yourself convict conditioning 1 online or building the gymnastic body. Or check out the reddit recommenced bodyweight routine its simple well laid out and would fit your goals well. You should be able to find all of these online the thing with Gymnastic strength work is that you progress from one thing to the next and thats how you get stronger eg pike push up - handstand push up and so on. Again the reason for a coach is that you will need to know how to hold a handstand for the final step which is pretty technical.

To build that physique the boxing will be more than enough cardio the 2 most important things is sort your diet out and work hard on your flexibility daily. Diet as its strength to weight the lower your weight the easier to move and for more advanced stuff like handstand presses if your not flexible it wont happen even if your insanely strong. If you need advice on diet the stickys here are good or you can ask away.

Also dont bother with sit ups work on strict leg raises (toes to bar) if you want a decent core. Push ups work to bring your shoulders past your hands and pull ups work toward roll overs or one arms thats the progression part.

As for the legs this depends on your goals a lot of gymnasts squat heavy but you can and should work on pistols and shrimps to keep your knees healthy if you want to get into tumbling. Also if you have weights when you get these down you can then load them.

Anyways if you need more advice drop me a PM or reply here and I will help as much as I can.

@Nancy Pearl Focused Flexibility is a good system worth checking out if you want to get flexible. But it depends on your goals there are a lot of programs out there but FF is a solid one.

Sangre

From a pure aesthetic point of view, you'd would probably be better off joining a gym and lifting weights.

Gymnastic workouts are great. However, in many cases they also require you to improve your flexibility, joint strength and balance. Improving these elements, while very worthwhile, may slow down pure muscle growth as they take time.

I say this as someone who doesn't do much lifting anymore in favour of bodyweight work.

Mellor

TheBiz wrote: »

Is it realistic to get this physique using only body weight?
And it is realistic to get this physique relatively quickly? (No miracle, but training for 6+ years to get a similar build isn't ideal)

Would I be better just joining a gym?
I'm also taking up boxing so that should help with my fitness..

As a direct answer.
Yes you can achieve it with only bodyweight.
It's realistic to get to that physique in months not 6 years.
Joining a gym would give you more options, but if that's not really an option then it's not a option. Bodyweight training will do fine.

Most people in the gym are just dialling it in and not really achieving their goals. A more important factor than the type of training you do if the effort and consistency you approach it with.
And of course the that applies twice as mush in terms of diet.

Bodyweight training still requires some equipment. At the very least a set of rings. If you could stretch to it a kettlebell would be a good addition too.

Some advanced moves require a degree of flexibility and balance. But it's wrong to suggest that all of them do. Fpr example, pistols require adequate ankle and hip flexibility, as well as balance. Step up work the same movement, over the same range, with the same load. But are significantly easier.

A good place to start is the r/bodyweightfitness recommended routine. Level 1 is quite easy, but it gets rapidly harder. Any one that's basing out reps on the upper levels is in great shape imo. This is minimal equipment. If you don't want to invest in rings just yet. You can still start by finding suitable bars for pull-ups and dips (like in a park or something).
Here's the source for further details


(click to enlarge).