Ignore Social Media - This Is What Calisthenics Should Look Like

I love how popular calisthenics is on social media, but there’s a downside to it. Cali content can make beginners think that everyone is streets ahead, busting out front levers and human flags every day. Social media isn’t really showing you what true calisthenics looks like – it’s showing you what gets views.

Has social media changed perceptions of calisthenics?

20 years ago, calisthenics was people working on the basics – pull ups, push ups, dips, rig work. Maybe someone was working towards a muscle up or a handstand. But those high-level skills weren’t common.

Today, someone doomscrolling social media could be forgiven for thinking you need a full planche and a handstand push up before you can call yourself a calisthenics athlete.

Let me assure you, that’s not true. And it’s not even the reality of the cali scene.

We all know that the algorithm rewards the most impressive clips. That’s why very few people are filming the hundreds of ordinary sessions that got them where they are today. The highlights are just that – highlights, not everyday stuff.

What calisthenics actually looks like

Most calisthenics training isn't flashy. That’s what I love about it, and it’s probably what attracted most athletes to the sport in the first place. It’s good honest work, done using your bodyweight.

To me, calisthenics is showing up 3-5 times a week and doing the work. It's practising a movement when it still feels awkward. It’s working on mobility because your hand balance work needs it. It’s spending months or even years mastering a skill.

I've been around the calisthenics community long enough to know that the strongest athletes are often the least interested in showing off. They love training, they get a buzz from improving, and they understand how important the basics are.

The standard isn't as high as social media makes it look

This might sound controversial, but I think social media has made people underestimate what counts as progress in calisthenics.

Someone learns to hold an L-sit but feels disappointed because they can't do a V-sit yet.

Someone loses 10kg, feels healthier, moves better, but feels like it doesn't count because they can’t do a muscle up.

When you stop and think about it, any calisthenics progress is incredible. A strict pull up? A controlled dip? Amazing.

All calisthenics movements show that you have the strength to master your own bodyweight, under control, with awareness.

I think we need to congratulate ourselves more for that – not immediately set ourselves the next big goal.

And that’s before we talk about the personal challenges of consistently doing calisthenics in this modern world.

Being stronger at 40 than you were at 30 is impressive. Training whilst raising a family, working shifts, studying, or running a business is incredible.

The problem isn't that social media shows advanced athletes, it’s that we forget that those athletes represent a tiny part of this community.

How to take calisthenics back to its roots

True calisthenics is pretty simple – master your bodyweight, get stronger, enjoy the process, build on your skills. That’s it.

You don’t need a list of advanced skills, you don’t have to train for socials, you don’t have to build your identity around whatever level you’ve reached.

If social media is making you feel behind, focusing on these questions:

• Am I stronger than I was 3 months ago?
• Am I moving better than I used to?
• Do I enjoy my training?
• Am I more confident in my body?

How to get started without overcomplicating it

If you're new to calisthenics, focus on doing good clean reps of:

• Push ups
• Pull ups (or row progressions)
• Dips or dip progressions
• Squats and lunges
• Hanging exercises
• Core work

Don't rush it, learn the movement patterns and build strength gradually.

Benefits of calisthenics beyond fitness

The longer I spend in this community, the more benefits I see to calisthenics. Yes, you get stronger but you also get more confident, more patient with yourself, and you learn to play the long game.

So if social media has made you feel that calisthenics is only for people doing planches on a beach at sunrise, don't buy into it.

Calisthenics is for that person doing their first assisted pull up. It's for the parent squeezing in a workout before work. It's for the runner who wants to get stronger. It's for the 50-year-old who wants to move well for another 30 years.

It's for anyone willing to show up and put the work in.

It’s for you!

Thanks for reading – come and join the Gravity Fitness community at one of our meet-ups some time and you’ll see just how diverse calisthenics is.