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One of the biggest appeals of calisthenics is learning different movements, exercises, or “skills” that look impressive, eye-catching, or challenging.

A lot of people have one of these movements in mind as a goal, but they run into the same question: 

 That’s a completely reasonable doubt, because it’s often hard to tell at a glance which skills are actually easier to learn.

In fact, many people misjudge the difficulty of certain exercises. It’s common to see people think a front lever or a planche is relatively easy, while a pseudo planche on the bar or a back lever looks extremely difficult, when in reality it’s often the other way around.

In this article, we’re going to go through a guide so you can understand the logical path of calisthenics progressions by level and clearly see how to move forward step by step, from the most beginner-friendly skills to the most advanced ones.

Why It’s Important to Follow an Order in Calisthenics

 One of the most common reasons people get injured in calisthenics is trying skills or exercises their body is not ready for yet. That’s why knowing the progressive order of calisthenics skills can help you avoid this problem.

 If you’re a beginner and you try to learn one of the most advanced skills right away, your progress will be very slow, you’ll feel stuck, and it will seem like you’ll never reach your goal. On the other hand, if you choose a skill that actually matches your level, you’ll see meaningful progress from workout to workout and feel that your goals are achievable within a reasonable time frame.

The key to progressing in calisthenics is building a solid foundation first.

In our sport, that foundation is built with the following exercises:

 You should work on them until you can do at least around 10 reps. If you can’t do any yet, start with Australian pull-ups, and on a high bar use isometrics, short or partial ranges of motion, mid-range holds, and negatives. We have a much more detailed explanation and a full guide 

 Work on them until you can do around 15–20 full-range reps. If you can’t do even one, use partial reps, isometrics, and negatives until you gradually build up to strict reps.

 You should have enough strength and endurance to do at least 20+ full-range push-ups on the floor. If you’re not strong enough yet, work with knee push-ups, elevated-hand push-ups, and partial ranges of motion.

 Even though most calisthenics skills focus on the upper body, it’s still important to have at least a basic level of leg strength. This helps your body maintain a certain muscular and aesthetic balance, improves safety in jumps or falls, and prepares you for advanced movements such as the pistol squat.

Depending on your starting point, it may take more or less time to master these exercises. But they are the base that will let you progress in everything else later on, so don’t neglect them.

Once you feel comfortable with the basic exercises, you can start trying your first skills. Here are some that are genuinely simple to learn, while still looking flashy and impressive.

 This involves combining different push-up variations into a kind of “choreography.” This can include variations such as clap push-ups, knuckle push-ups, cross-hand push-ups, clap push-ups between the legs, elbow push-ups, 360 push-ups, and more. All of these movements look harder than they really are, and each one has a certain trick that makes it much easier to perform than people think. If you want a clear example, check out 

 In this planche variation, you position yourself on the floor, a bar, or parallel bars with your body horizontal and parallel to the ground, keeping your whole body straight. At first glance it looks very hard, but the trick is that you support your weight by placing your elbows against your abdomen, which makes it dramatically easier than a regular planche. From there, it’s mostly about finding the right position and controlling your balance. There are also some eye-catching variations with your legs apart or with your weight supported on just one elbow, and they’re still relatively easy to perform.

 Another variation where the trick lies in how you support your weight—this time by placing the inside of your thighs against the back of your elbows. From there, you just need to gradually lean forward and find your balance.

 Since you have 3 points of support that transfer the weight directly to the floor, this handstand variation mainly requires you to build a stable base on those 3 supports and make small balance corrections with your legs and hips. The good thing is that it requires very little strength. 

 Getting into a vertical upside-down position looks impressive and can seem dangerous, but if you have decent grip strength, you should be able to do it without much trouble.

 This branch of calisthenics consists of performing different skills on parallel bars and linking them together in a specific choreography, prioritizing fluid movement and an “urban” style rather than a gymnastics style. That usually means slightly bent knees, unilateral and circular movements, and feet that aren’t pointed. It looks more like breakdancing than artistic gymnastics. The good thing is that many P-bar flow movements are beginner-friendly, as long as you have some basic strength in parallel bar dips.

 One of the first freestyle bar moves you can learn. It consists of building a swing on the bar and then changing direction by releasing your hands, switching them to the other side, and letting your body rotate with the movement.

In this section we have skills you can start aiming for once you already have a solid command of the basics, but that are not as easy or quick to learn as the ones in the previous section. These skills will usually require at least a few months of training with specific exercises and progressions for each one.

If you need help learning them, remember that in Calisteniapp we have 

training programs for each of these skills.

 One of the most iconic exercises in calisthenics. Once you have enough strength in regular pull-ups, you can start practicing explosive pull-ups, which are the key to achieving the muscle-up. On top of that, you’ll need to train the technique and the transition. 

, you’ll find a more detailed explanation.

 This consists of hanging from the bar with your body parallel to the floor, facing downward. It requires a certain amount of pushing strength, shoulder mobility, and specific adaptation to the movement, but in many cases it can be achieved within a few months.

 One of the most eye-catching skills. Depending on whether pulling or pushing strength comes more naturally to you, it may feel easier or harder. Start with tucked-leg and straddle progressions, and little by little you’ll get there.

 A spectacular exercise that isn’t that hard to master, and is probably the most accessible skill at this level. You can find a 

 Another key movement that opens the door to more difficult skills. Once you have enough pushing strength, it becomes a matter of practicing consistently and learning the technical details that help you control your balance. You can find a 

 Two of the foundational dynamic moves. Depending on your agility and your previous athletic background, they may feel fairly easy to learn—or they may require more dedicated practice.

Now we move on to the skills that are often the “end goals” for many people who start calisthenics. These are the kinds of movements athletes consider to be among the highest levels in our sport.

These are usually skills that take at least several months of dedicated training—if not years, in some cases.

Remember that you have training programs for each of them in our app, and if you want more specific information about static skills in calisthenics, check out 

Straddle planche, full planche, and Maltese.

 These are the main planche variations, in order of difficulty. The straddle version is done with the legs apart, which makes it the “easiest” of the three. The full version is done with the legs together. Finally, Maltese variations involve a grip width so wide that your body is practically at the same height as your hands. The progression would again be straddle Maltese first and then full Maltese.

Front lever, Victorian, and one-arm front lever.

 The pulling skill above all others. The Victorian variation consists of keeping your torso at the same height as your hands, usually using the forearms as support, and the next step beyond that would be the one-arm front lever. In these movements, you can also use straddle and full variations as different steps along the way. In 

, you’ll find a complete and very detailed guide to everything related to the front lever and its variations, including some less well-known ones.

 One of the hardest and most eye-catching skills, consisting of pulling with your back facing the bar until you reach a Korean dips position. This movement requires a lot of adaptation and preparation, because it places a high demand on the joints and connective tissue—especially the biceps tendons—so you need to be very careful with it.

 An exercise popularized by Artem Morozov that consists of performing a dip while supporting yourself on your forearms, without leaning your torso forward, and keeping your hips in front of your shoulders. It’s a highly technical movement that requires tremendous triceps strength.

 In this case, flexibility may be the main limiting factor, because in terms of strength it’s not as demanding as the other movements. Even so, it does require you to be able to lift your legs into a very deep hip flexion.

 An extremely technical movement that usually requires years of consistent practice.

 This exercise is one of the greatest demonstrations of pulling strength you can perform. The good news is that there are many asymmetrical and unilateral progressions you can use to move forward step by step in a steady way. In our 

, you can follow this process with guidance adapted to your level.

 Some of the key movements for advanced dynamic athletes. These are one and a half turns, two turns, and two and a half turns respectively, and they require notable agility and body control. For some people, getting at least the 540 may be relatively easy, but if you want to do it cleanly, with good height, a controlled landing, and the ability to link it into your next trick, it usually takes at least a few months of practice.

Example of a Full Progression (Realistic Roadmap)

Here’s an example of what a typical progression might look like for a calisthenics athlete starting from beginner level with some of the most common skills:

 basics: pull-ups, dips, push-ups, squats.

 full planche, Hefesto, one-arm front lever.

Common Mistakes When Trying to Learn Calisthenics Skills

Trying skills or progressions too early, before you’re ready

Rushing is never a good idea. One of the most common mistakes is trying skills, progressions, or exercises without proper preparation and forcing your muscles and connective tissue too soon. This often leads to injuries, discomfort, or pain. Use this guide to follow a logical order based on your level, prepare properly for each movement, and avoid falling into this mistake.

Another very common mistake is trying to learn something like the planche or the front lever only by doing attempts of the skill itself, without using specific preparatory and strengthening exercises, structured progressions, or dedicated routines for that movement. If you’re genetically gifted and things come easily to you, you might get away with learning some skills like this. But one thing is certain: it will take longer, your injury risk will be higher, your progress will be less solid, and you won’t learn the technical details of each skill as effectively.

A lot of the time, people spend weeks or months training for a skill without really looking into the technical details—body position, involved muscles, leverage, and so on. This can lead to learning the movement with incorrect or inefficient technique, which means wasting time and then having to spend weeks or even months fixing it later. Pay attention to this from the beginning and you’ll avoid wasting training time.

As the saying goes, “he who tries to do too much ends up doing little well.” If you try to learn too many skills at the same time, you’ll probably progress very slowly in each one. It’s better to choose just 1 or 2 main skills and focus most of your training on them. Once you master them, move on to the next ones and just do enough maintenance work to keep the ones you’ve already built. That way, your progress stays at the right pace.

Some of the most important skills and progressions require a certain level of mobility and flexibility. For example: the muscle-up, back lever, and Hefesto require good shoulder extension mobility; straddle progressions require good leg-opening mobility; handstand work requires good shoulder flexion mobility; muscle-ups and planche work require good wrist mobility, and so on. Ignoring this part can slow down your progress and may even prevent you from achieving the skill at all. For example, if you want to do a straddle planche but have very limited leg opening, it will be much harder, because without opening the legs the leverage becomes more demanding. Every time you train for a skill, check whether it requires specific mobility and work on it so that, at the very least, you meet the minimum requirement to perform it.

How to Train with Guided Programs in Calisteniapp

As we mentioned, in Calisteniapp you’ll find 

specific training programs for each of these skills

. We also have another training method called 

, which give you a routine that automatically adjusts every time you complete it based on your feedback, so you can keep progressing in the smoothest and most effective way possible. 

Frequently Asked Questions About Calisthenics Skills

What should you learn first: muscle-up or front lever?

In most cases, people learn the muscle-up first, because it requires less pulling strength than a front lever and is usually achieved faster. If you already have a solid pull-up base, you can go for the muscle-up first, and once you’ve mastered it, you can focus on the front lever.

How long does it take to learn calisthenics skills?

That depends on your starting level and on the specific skill we’re talking about. Easier skills can be learned in days or weeks, while more advanced ones may require months—and in some cases even years.

Some skills require at least a pull-up bar, such as the muscle-up, front lever, or back lever. Others, however, can be practiced at home without equipment, such as the handstand, planche variations, or push-up freestyle movements.

Learn the right order to master calisthenics skills and tricks, with progressions from beginner basics to advanced moves like front lever and planche.

Learn Calisthenics tricks in the right order: Full Guide for All Levels

What to Eat After Calisthenics Training (Complete Post-Workout Guide)

When you practice calisthenics, the muscles receive a demanding stimulus that causes small fiber tears, empties glycogen stores, and generates significant metabolic stress. Understanding what to eat after training can be decisive for gaining strength and muscle mass instead of stalling your progress.

After the training session, the body enters a recovery period in which muscle repair processes and glycogen replenishment remain activated. Although there is no "anabolic window" limited to a few minutes, there is increased sensitivity in muscle tissue for several hours.

Ensuring an adequate intake of quality protein along with enough carbohydrates during this period favors protein synthesis, glycogen recovery, and better training adaptation, while also helping to minimize accumulated fatigue in subsequent sessions.

In this guide, I explain clearly and based on scientific evidence what to eat after training calisthenics according to your goal.

Why Is It Important to Eat After Training?

After training, the body enters a recovery period in which muscle repair and glycogen replenishment remain active. Although there is no "anabolic window" limited to 30 minutes, there is increased metabolic sensitivity for several hours.

Intense exercise reduces glycogen stores. Consuming carbohydrates after the session favors their replenishment, especially if you train daily.

Training increases muscle protein synthesis for 24–48 hours. An intake of approximately 0.3–0.5 g/kg of protein per serving optimizes this process.

An adequate combination of protein and carbohydrates helps improve adaptation to training and reduces accumulated fatigue.

What Your Body Needs After Training Calisthenics

After an intense session, the body activates muscle repair and energy replenishment processes. Although there is no 30-minute anabolic window, there are several hours during which it is advisable to provide adequate nutrients.

Guideline recommendation: 0.3–0.5 g/kg per serving

They improve performance in subsequent sessions

More relevant if you train daily or do double sessions

 They aren't an immediate priority, but they are essential to your daily intake.

 Fluid loss affects performance and recovery.

They maintain cognitive and physical performance

What to Eat After Training to Gain Muscle

If you are wondering what to eat after training to gain muscle, the key is to combine quality protein and sufficient carbohydrates. This combination favors muscle recovery and helps optimize training adaptations within a well-planned nutritional strategy.

Carbohydrate → replenishes glycogen and reduces metabolic stress

You don't need anything extreme or mandatory supplements: well-distributed real food works perfectly.

Protein: 0.3–0.5 g/kg of body weight (per serving)

Carbohydrates: 0.5–1 g/kg (according to training volume and intensity)

Example: 70 kg person → 25–35 g of protein → 35–70 g of carbohydrate

High-protein yogurt + banana + sugar-free corn flakes

If you are looking for real options for your post-workout meal, these are the most effective foods to favor recovery and stimulate muscle synthesis:

 Complete protein with high biological value, rich in leucine. Ideal combined with bread or potatoes.

 Provides intermediate-digestion proteins and is very practical if you need something quick.

Chicken, turkey, or plant-based alternatives (tofu, tempeh):

 Lean protein source that helps repair muscle tissue after effort.

 Carbohydrates that replenish muscle glycogen used during training.

 Provides fast carbohydrates, antioxidants, and facilitates recovery.

 Source of healthy fats. Better in moderate amounts if the goal is to prioritize rapid glycogen replenishment.

 Provide carbs and plant protein. Very useful if the post-workout meal is more complete and not immediate.

 Practical option when you cannot have a complete meal. Can be combined with fruit or oats.

If you are unsure about what to have after training, here are practical options based on the time you have and the time of day.

 Simple combination of protein and carbohydrates that favors muscle recovery. Ideal if you are in a rush or train between meals.

Rice + protein source (chicken, turkey, tofu) + sautéed vegetables

 Provides carbohydrates to replenish glycogen and enough protein to stimulate muscle synthesis. Perfect if your post-workout coincides with your main meal.

French omelet + whole wheat bread + fruit

 Balanced alternative, easy to digest, and suitable if you train in the afternoon.

Light protein (yogurt, cottage cheese, or shake) + fruit

 Enough to favor recovery without being too heavy before sleeping.

How Long After Training Should I Wait to Eat?

If you're wondering when to eat after training, the short answer is: there is no rigid, mandatory 30-minute window. The famous "anabolic window" is much more flexible than previously thought.

After training, muscle protein synthesis remains elevated for several hours (even up to 24–48 hours). This means you don't need to eat immediately to get benefits.

Current research indicates that exact timing is less relevant than total daily intake. The determining factors for gaining muscle mass are:

Distributing protein into several servings throughout the day

 They usually provide empty calories, low-quality fats, and added sugars without enough protein. They do not favor optimal recovery.

 Can interfere with muscle protein synthesis, worsen recovery, and affect hydration.

Not eating anything if your goal is to gain muscle

 If you are looking for hypertrophy, you need to ensure enough energy and protein. Skipping post-workout intake can make it harder to meet daily requirements.

 Consuming only simple carbohydrates without accompanying them with protein does not optimize the stimulation of muscle synthesis.

Post-Workout in Calisthenics vs. Gym (Differentiation)

At a physiological level, the foundations of recovery are similar: you need sufficient protein and adequate carbohydrates to favor muscle repair and glycogen replenishment. However, post-workout calisthenics has some interesting nuances.

Calisthenics: Bodyweight + High Muscle Tension

Calisthenics combines bodyweight work, high mechanical tension, and, in many cases, great demand on joints and connective tissue (shoulders, wrists, elbows).

In general terms, the needs are very similar to those of gym training:

Carbohydrates adjusted to volume and intensity

The difference is not so much in the macronutrients as in the frequency of stimulus and joint recovery, which can be higher in calisthenics.

Regardless of whether you train in a gym or do calisthenics, the determining factors are:

Covering enough energy to adapt to training

Discover what to eat after calisthenics to optimize recovery, build muscle, and reduce fatigue. Maximize your results with the right post-workout nutrition.

What to Eat After a Calisthenics Workout: Recovery and Muscle Growth

Introduction: The Quest for Pull-ups in Calisthenics

As the pull-up is one of the basic, iconic, and representative exercises of Calisthenics, it is natural for people entering this discipline to want to "master" them. 

The problem is that people who do not have a training history in other disciplines or basic strength often find they cannot perform even a single repetition and, therefore, their first goal is to achieve their very first pull-up. In this article, we are going to explain how to fulfill that goal of the first pull-up. 

We will begin with simple progressions from level 0, for people who have absolutely no strength or have never exercised before, and we will advance little by little until achieving the highly prized pull-up.

Why is it so hard to do the first pull-up?

The pull-up is a vertical pulling exercise in which we have to lift almost our entire body weight (relative strength). Therefore, it is not a simple exercise, and it is normal that many people cannot perform even one repetition. As the main factors explaining why this exercise is so resistant to the majority of the population, we have the following:

 If throughout their life a person has performed different sports that include upper body musculature, has done exercises, played, climbed, and performed physical activity, it is likely they can perform at least one pull-up. But, unfortunately, nowadays it is normal for many people not to have this healthy exercise history and, therefore, they cannot lift their own weight.

 As we mentioned, in the pull-up, you have to lift your own weight. Therefore, if you have excess body fat, above limits considered normal or healthy, this will make the exercise difficult for you. If you need help with the subject of nutrition, I recommend taking a look at 

This exercise works a large number of upper body muscles, whether for the main movement of shoulder extension and elbow flexion, or secondarily for the grip, to stabilize and maintain body posture. 

Forearms (brachialis and brachioradialis)

Muscles that receive residual work for stabilization and posture:

If you want to see what other exercises work the biceps in calisthenics, we recommend 

. And if you want to see how to work the back specifically, we have 

We are going to try to explain the progressions practically from level 0, so there is really no strict requirement to start. It would be convenient if you can hold yourself hanging from the bar for at least 10 to 20" and if you can do a controlled Australian pull-up on a high bar. If you do not meet these requirements, do not worry; below we will explain how to work at your level until you achieve them.

Progression to achieve your first pull-up (from zero)

Australian pull-ups are key for people who do not yet have the strength to do exercises on a high bar. Furthermore, they have the great advantage that, by adjusting the height of the bar itself, you can increase or decrease their difficulty until you find the progression suitable for your level. The higher the bar is, reaching at most chest height, the easier the exercise will be. 

The Australian pull-up consists of placing your body under the bar while keeping your feet supported on the ground. You can place your legs completely extended or flexed, whichever is more comfortable for you. Then flex your arms while keeping your back aligned with your thighs, without the hips dropping or rising above that level. Reach the bar with your chest and extend your arms again to complete one repetition. 

As you get stronger, you can gradually lower the height of the bar until you can do them with the bar at thigh height. To do these variations, you have different options:

Train in a Calisthenics park that has bars at different heights.

Have a bar at home that you can adjust to your liking, for example, a pull-up bar that is placed in a door frame.

Train in a gym using a Smith machine bar or a squat rack that you can place at different heights.

We recommend training them with both a prone grip (palms facing forward) and a supine grip (palms facing your face). If you need a more detailed explanation of this exercise, you have it in 

 sets of 12 - 15 repetitions without a problem.

2a. Top-position isometric with supine grip

Once you have some strength in Australian pull-ups, you can begin to do an isometric hold in a supine grip, holding for time at the top with your chin above the bar. Place something to help you get up or jump to the bar and maintain the isometric hold. 

The supine grip is the one where your palms are facing your face. It usually tends to be easier to start with for the first progressions. Monitor how long you are able to hold and try to gradually increase it until you are able to hold for at least about 20" before moving to the next progression. 

A complementary exercise that will be very useful when you have to make full pull-up attempts is scapular retractions. Start hanging completely and, without flexing your elbows, try to bring your shoulder blades together, performing the retraction. Think about trying to stick your chest out and retracting the upper part of your back. I recommend practicing this exercise in both prone and supine grips. 

 10 - 12 consecutive scapular retractions.

3. Short partial repetitions in supine grip

Once you can hold at the top without much trouble, you can do partial range repetitions. Start by making them very short, with very little range of motion, so that you gain strength and comfort with the exercise; over time, you can increase the range and the number of repetitions. 

A key point in your progress towards the pull-up will be when you can already do repetitions to the midpoint of the range. Starting from the top with a jump, lower yourself until your arms form a 90º angle and pull back up. If you manage to increase the repetitions until you can do about 5, you will be very close to achieving your first pull-up. 

One of the best ways to gain strength is to use eccentric or negative repetitions. Start by jumping to place yourself in the isometric position with your chin above the bar and descend as slowly and controlled as you can. Try to achieve at least 3 or 4 seconds of descent and increase the number of repetitions you can do consecutively. 

 3 - 5 consecutive negatives of at least 3" duration.

6. Your first attempts at a strict pull-up

Once you become fluent in the exercises we have described so far and have met the set goals, it is time to make your first attempts at a full supine pull-up (chin-up). Start completely hanging and pull with force. The first movement is a scapular retraction that you have already mastered, which will give you momentum to continue with the rest of the repetition, for which you have prepared by training in different ranges.

How to transition from supine to prone pull-ups

Once you can do your first supine pull-ups, you can repeat the entire process mentioned above with all the progressions but in a prone grip. Now they will be much easier for you and you will progress faster, as you have a fairly good strength base, so you can advance without problems until you achieve the prone pull-up. Meanwhile, continue getting more repetitions of supine pull-ups and working on the progressions.

Weekly routine to achieve your first pull-up

To achieve your first pull-up, we recommend training it between 1 and 3 times a week, depending on how much priority you want to give to this goal. Some people will want to focus all their efforts on the pull-up and, therefore, will train it several times a week. Others will want to combine it with other goals or also train the rest of the body and, therefore, will train it fewer days. 

Regarding the routine itself, we recommend choosing the progressions in order, starting with those you can do at your initial level (even if that implies you can only do the first progression). 

Place them in order from most difficult to easiest and perform between 3 and 4 sets of these exercises with a number of repetitions that takes you to 80 - 90% of your capacity. For example, for a person who can only do up to short partial repetitions in a supine grip, their routine would look like this (the number of repetitions is indicative):

Use intermediate rest times of between 1 and 2 minutes and, in case you are very close to your capacity limit, extend them up to 3'. As the weeks go by and you perform the routines successfully, gradually increase the number of repetitions until reaching the recommended goals. When this happens, replace the easiest exercise with the next one on the progression list so that you keep moving forward. 

If you want an automated routine that follows this scheme easily with our app, we recommend 

our EVO routine "Back and Biceps Muscle Building,"

 which will have you follow this entire process automatically.

Learn how to achieve your first pull-up from scratch with simple progressions, key exercises, common mistakes, and tips to progress faster.

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How to achieve your first pull up

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