Aside from eating right, exercising is crucial for a strong, healthy body. It helps control fat and cholesterol, substances that can cause a wide array of illnesses if they enter our system in large amounts.
There are many types of exercises, with some of the most popular being weight training and cardio. Weight training involves pushing or pulling weighted items in successive repetitions, while cardio refers to a wide array of exercises that target the cardiovascular system such as running and walking.
Another form of exercise that’s slowly gaining traction these days is calisthenics. Simply put, this type of exercise only makes use of our own body weight to sculpt and strengthen muscles. In this article, we present the three main benefits of calisthenics.
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Calisthenics can be cheap
It’s true that you can perform some calisthenic exercises without equipment. Exercises such as jumping jacks, push-ups, and curl-ups can all be performed equipment-free. To perform these exercises, you only need your body and a space that can comfortably accommodate it.
However, some calisthenic exercises require tools. Pull-ups and muscle-ups require bars, while more advanced forms of an L-sit may require some stable grip bars. It’s entirely up to you if you want to perform these exercises or not, and exercises that don’t require equipment are just as effective.
Calisthenics exercises the whole body
When you do weight-training, you are most likely targeting a specific muscle group. A bench press targets the chest, while barbell curls effectively target the biceps. These targeted efforts rarely occur in calisthenics. Even an exercise as simple as a push-up engages several muscle groups including the biceps, pecs, and even the core muscles.
In addition to sculpting and strengthening many muscle groups at once, calisthenics also help in working out your heart. Try burpees and you’ll see what we mean. Calisthenics makes your heart beat fast, which means that you are also strengthening your cardiovascular system while burning fat quickly.
Bear in mind that calisthenics poses a certain risk to the heart and body, especially if performed recklessly. It’s ideal to be guided by someone who has had first aid training from reputable schools such as Lifesaver Education when you try calisthenics, or any other form of exercise, for the first time. You can also get trained yourself so that you can assist others who want to try calisthenics or any workout that engages the heart.
Bodyweight training improves movement.
As mentioned, a bodyweight exercise engages several muscle groups at once. If you do three to five exercises regularly and frequently, you can safely say that you are giving your whole body a good workout. This workout not only strengthens your muscles, but also enhances your overall flexibility. You can just imagine the benefits that you get from strong and flexible muscles. Aside from doing many of your physical tasks with ease, you’ll also able to execute them without getting worn out easily.
Exercising is helpful, there’s no denying this. There are many forms of exercises, and calisthenics is surely among the most effective and easy to execute.
