A Simple Calisthenics Program For Plateau Suppression
Story Time
Plateaus are a pain in the butt. When I first had gotten into progressive calisthenics I had gone from regular handstand push-ups to diamond handstand push-ups very quickly. However, my progress began to slow down. Being the young guy that I was(21 to be exact), I thought that more was better. So I tried to add more volume to my inverse pressing work while adding some rest in between. The results were an utter failure. What’s that saying, “One step forward and two steps back?” That’s exactly what I was doing.
I was operating off limited information and I was aware of the concept of greasing the groove. Greasing the groove is where one practices a movement through the days and hours just enough to provide a stimulus for improvement but not enough to cause exhaustion. However, at this time I was attending a military college and my days were busy with various things. Formations, parades, academic classes, swimming classes, grappling classes, marching, and designated times when I would be sitting at the meal table with my unit. Oh, and mandatory attendance at some sports games.
Greasing the groove didn’t seem like a feasible option at the time and even now looking back, with all the workout knowledge I’ve gained over the years, it would have been difficult to try and squeeze in. Greasing the groove is great for training but for my lifestyle, I choose not to, and here’s why.
Were Are My Thoughts & Attention?
For me, greasing the groove causes me to have my eyes on the clock counting down to the next time in which I’ll do my next rep or reps. Then once I’m done I mark it down in my training log and decide on my next steps. Once I’m done with my sets or workout I’d like to
devote all my focus toward other things like family, friends, business, spiritual health, etc. In a way, at least for now, greasing the groove acts as a distraction from other things in my life.
Are My Muscles and Nervous System Primed?
I’m not a big stretching, foam roller, and warm up kinda guy but I do find value in ensuring that my muscles are ready to go to perform whatever movement. This could be through a light session of overcoming isometrics where I press against an immovable object imitating as closely as I can the calisthenics movement I am about to perform. Or, the other route with muscle control where I contract the needed muscles for eight to ten seconds based on the follow-on movement. With greasing the groove, in order to avoid injury with some of the more difficult movements a warm-up is highly advised. It shouldn’t take long. The further you climb up the ladder of calisthenics ability you may find that your muscles and nervous system are ready for work a great deal quicker. But it’s still needed.
As I said for now the juice is not worth the squeeze for me. It might be really good for busy fathers or parents. Doing a few push-ups or squats throughout the day while taking care of the kids and any household chores. I’m leaning more towards the route of a short workout that sends the signal and I’m off worrying about other things for the next few days before my next session.
But is there another way to get the benefits of greasing the groove as the strength increases but space it out to add more reps as well as have a designated time or times to work out? Is there another way to maneuver around any plateaus in our training that might come up?
What I’m Trying Out Now
I’m trying out something that is pretty simple. I do one set of each movement keeping the reps between each movement the same. For example here is what I usually do.
Pistol Squat(with hands behind my back): 1 x 7
Elevated One-Legged Straight Bridge: 1 X 7
Handstand Push-Up: 1 X 7
Archer Pull-ups: 1 X 7
Pseudo Planche Push-up: 1 x 7
And this is just my current level and for each person it’s going to look different. When I’m doing this I’m not going to failure on most movements but have a few reps in reserve. One week I’ll do seven for each movement and the next week I’ll shoot for eight depending on how the seven felt. The goal is to nourish the muscles as Maxick would say. How much I do this during the week depends on my recovery. I’m averaging twice a week with two days of rest in between. On my days off I just walk a little bit more in the mornings during my usual training times to stay slim.
*Another One Gif*
Here’s another example
Lunge Press: 1 x 8
Two-Legged Straight Bridge: 1 x 8
Push-Up: 1 x 8
Towel Row: 1 x 8
My Intent
My goals for this type of workout are mostly strength related with a little bit of muscle. When someone adopts such a workout by the time they reach double digits on all movements their entire body will be pretty well proportioned. Start low and built your numbers up slowly over time as your body adapts. If you need to stay at a rep level for a few sessions then do so. After you’ve reached the double digits find harder variants and start over from a low number. That number you start with will be dictated by your weakest movement. So, if you want to start at 7 but one of your movements you can only do six then every one of your movements will be to six reps and raise that number higher over the weeks and months.
Think about the story of Milo of Croton who was a Greek wrestler who carried a calf from infancy till it was fully grown. Is about long-term planning. This is not a “Get-big/strong-quick” scheme. It will take time but you will be allowing your body time to recover and get stronger as needed.
Recovery
Due to some recent pondering of Mike Mentzer’s training philosophy, I believe recovery time is underrated. There have been times in my life when taking a week or two off of training has helped me to get stronger. However, this time off does not have to be as drastic as long as we take a little bit more time between workouts. How do you know how long it will be before your next workout? If you’re not jumping into your workout itching to complete it because you have been deprived of it for what seems like ages, you should adopt a better training frequency. For me, depending on how chaotic my week had been this generally occurs after the second day of not working out. By the time the third morning arrives, I’m ready.
This is one of the reasons I don’t use pre-workout. Your energy should be natural and there to help you perform any effort. If your workouts are back-to-back and you’re sluggish well no wonder you need a stimulant to wake you up.
Space out your workouts and see if you have more energy going into your next training session.
LowerBody Movements
Depending on where you are at with certain rep counts you may want to add a bit more stimulus to your legs. There are several ways to do this.
Eccentric Emphasized Training
Concentric Emphasized Training which I explain a little about here.
1.5 Reps
Slower Repetitions
Explosive Repetitions (only after you have been in unilateral movements for over a year)
What To Do On Days Off
Walk
Swim
Garden
Read a book on an interesting topic
Plot to take over the world
Wrap Up
This training acts as a middle road between Greasing the Groove (High-Frequency Training) and High Volume training performed day after day. The strength will come and the muscle will come. But at the pace that’s appropriate for your body.
Thank you for making it to the end and comments are below.
Until next time…