Calisthenics Workout

Most Athletes think of calisthenics as boring exercises performed while wearing military fatigues or middle school gym uniforms. Not surprisingly, most of us can’t summon much enthusiasm for such old-school movements as the sit-up and the jumping jack.

But those same calisthenics prescribed by generations of drill sergeants and gym teachers have been rebranded in recent years as body-weight exercises. Much of what constitutes CrossFit, boot camps, and obstacle race training is simply calisthenics, except with better marketing and packaging.

The word calisthenics comes from the Greek words kallos (beauty) and sthenos (strength). Indeed, there’s a timeless beauty to training for strength and flexibility via pushing, pulling, lunging, and lifting movements using little to no equipment. When performed in a continuous, rigorous fashion, calisthenics train up your strength and aerobic capacity.

And in an increasingly mobile, time-pressed culture, it’s important to have training options that can be performed anywhere, anytime and with little equipment. Good old calisthenics provide those workout opportunities.