When it comes to bodyweight training – or any training method for that matter – I love exercises that are sophisticated and intriguing. The skill element in training is a big draw for me, and that’s what made me gravitate to Circular Strength Training. But I realize that a foundation in the classics like a perfect push up is important.
by Joe Shlabotnik on Flickr
One of the pillar principles of Circular Strength Training (CST) is called Sophistication. It attests to the fact that we are continually looking to improve not only the quantity of work we do, but the quality of the movement. So we don’t just do more push ups, for example, but we take push ups to a certain point of proficiency and then we move on to a slightly more complex variation on the same basic movement pattern.
The problem many people run into when they start exploring CST as a system is that they are drawn immediately to the “sexy” version of the exercises. They want to do the cool looking programs and the funky looking exercises before they can even do a simple push up.
If we start with movements that are too complex, we’ll just jam up the nervous system. We’ve all experienced this. Have you ever tried a new sport like skiing or rollerblading. Chances are you experienced an initial period of Fear Reactivity where you stiffened up and weren’t learning anything. That’s an extreme example of what happens when we load the nervous system up too quickly with sophisticated movement patterns.
So it’s hard to imagine jumping into some of the signature exercises of the CST bodyweight exercise repertoire if you have limited training history, and especially no experience with manipulating your body in space through the classic bodyweight exercises.
There’s tons of material out there teaching you how to perform technically solid push ups, sit ups and the rest. But if you want a total compendium of how to execute and program the classic bodyweight exercises, I think I may have found a great resource for you.
A colleague, Craig Ballantyne, recently sent me his bodyweight conditioning system to review. It includes a manual and 5 DVDs and it covers just about anything you could think of when it comes to basic bodyweight exercises. I think it would provide a great platform if you want to get into more sophisticated programs like Bodyweight Exercise Revolution or something like Scott Sonnon’s Body-Flow DVDs.
The first thing that struck me when I viewed the DVDs is the high production quality. Apart from a few minor sound glitches, this stood head and shoulders above most of the fitness industry instructional DVDs I’ve seen coming out over the last couple of years.
I was also impressed by the simple and effective technical cues that Craig gives for each exercise. And this is what I was looking for. If you don’t have any base at all, you want to build it in the right way, with solid structure and correct movement patterns. The way he cues the exercises will give you a great platform for moving into subsequent levels of sophistication.
I want to be clear, Circular Strength Training programs, including the Bodyweight Exercise Revolution, are very accessible and always provide an entry level starting point. But if you don’t have any experience with the simple but foundational classics of bodyweight training, you may benefit from seeking out a resource like Craig’s. Click here to find out more about his program.
Then come back here and delve into the breadth and depth of a sea of exercises that will keep you enthralled for the rest of your days. I see it daily. The first time a client learns a new skill, and applies it in their exercise session, it always fills her eyes with a gleam of pride. I’m constantly amazed by the nuances I discover in exercises I thought I knew so well. But each layer of sophistication plays on the mastery of the layer before. So it is important to systematically and patiently lay your foundation, and then take your movement to the next level.
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