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Calisteniapp / Front lever strength

Front lever strength: your step-by-step plan.

The front lever is one of the best known tension exercises in the world of calisthenics and Street Workout. It is an exercise that requires great strength in the back, mainly dorsal, as well as a stable core, so you must control the basic pull-up exercises to be able to carry out their execution correctly and safely.

Available in Calisteniapp for iOS and Android.

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Front lever strength

Objective

The goal of this program is for you to be able to make a front lever of at least 5" with good technical execution.

Frequence
See program guidance
First session duration
24 min
Program
21 estimated weeks

01 / Requirements

Required prerequisites

  • × 5 Prone pull-ups

Necessary equipment

For this program you will need Pull up bar, Low bar, Parallettes.

02 / Program

Build your path.

Each phase prepares you for the next. Weeks are a guide: repeat a phase when you need more practice before moving on.

  1. Week 1–2Conditioning

    What you will practise

    This phase is designed to make sure you have the basic strength needed to start working on the front lever. It is ideal if you have not been training for long or if you still need to prepare your shoulders, back, and core before moving on to more specific progressions. Here you will build a solid foundation of horizontal and vertical pulling with exercises such as Short supine pull-ups, Short prone pull-ups, and Australian pull-ups, while strengthening the midsection with Leg raises on the ground, Bar knee raises, and Plank. The goal is not only to complete reps, but to learn to maintain body tension, scapular control, and good trunk alignment.

  2. Week 3–4Solid basics

    What you will practise

    Once you know you are able to perform the exercises needed to work on the front lever, we increase the difficulty and the reps to make sure this base is truly solid before starting with the first specific progressions. Here the work focuses on consolidating the strength of the lats, biceps, rhomboids, and abs through Supine pull-ups, Prone pull-ups, and Explosive pull-ups, combined with Explosive australian pull-ups and hanging core work. This block prepares you to tolerate more tension and produce force more quickly, which will be very useful when you begin to control front lever positions.

  3. Week 5–7Tucked front lever mastery

    What you will practise

    In this phase we begin working on the Tucked front lever, which already has the same movement pattern as the final front lever. We also introduce Singe leg dragon flag progressions, which share a very similar demand for full-body tension, although with support from the upper back, and we continue strengthening the muscles involved with back, biceps, and abdominal exercises. The Tucked front lever will teach you to generate strength in scapular depression, keep the pelvis under control, and understand how the body should feel when working as one unit. From this point on, you are no longer just building general strength: you are starting to develop specific strength in the isometric horizontal pulling pattern.

  4. Week 8–10Single Leg Front Lever

    What you will practise

    In this phase we move on to a slightly more difficult progression with the Single leg front lever, while continuing to reinforce the previous work to consolidate the tucked. Remember to work both legs equally to avoid imbalances and to make the transfer to the full front lever more even. The main change here is that you increase the lever length and, therefore, the demand on the lats, teres major, rear deltoids, core, and scapular control. In addition, we keep Dragon flag as a complementary progression, which is very useful for continuing to develop body rigidity and anti-extension strength.

  5. Week 11–13Advanced tucked

    What you will practise

    In this phase we work with one of the most important progressions: the Advanced tucked front lever. Although visually it may seem like a small variation compared with the tucked, the demand changes a lot because the hips open and the lever gets longer, forcing you to produce more force with the lats, shoulder extensors, and all the core musculature. At the same time, you continue improving the previous progressions, especially the Single leg front lever and Fallen tucked front lever, so that the transition between levels is stable and you do not depend only on isolated attempts.

  6. Week 14–17Advanced progressions

    What you will practise

    In this phase we already work on some progressions that are very close to the final front lever, such as the Half front lever and Advanced tucked front lever pull-ups. It will probably take you some time to reach the required level, so work consistently and, if necessary, add extra weeks. This block develops specific strength at very demanding angles and improves your ability to produce tension both isometrically and dynamically. The Half front lever clearly increases the lever compared with the Advanced tucked front lever, while Advanced tucked front lever pull-ups force you to maintain body structure during the pull, something that transfers very well to the full front lever.

  7. Week 18–21Attempts and improvement

    What you will practise

    In this phase you will start attempting the Front lever, and you will keep training until you can do sets of 5 seconds with good technical execution. We will complement this with previous progressions and with new strengthening variations to refine any weak points that may still appear. The full Front lever requires a very high combination of lat, shoulder, scapular, and core strength, as well as a great ability to keep the body rigid in extension. That is why you will see both direct Front lever attempts and work with Half front lever, Advanced tucked front lever pull-ups, Front lever raises, and Negative front lever, which will help you improve the entry, exit, and control of the position.

Estimated end of the plan

Choose a valid date to preview your plan.

This date reflects the planned duration, not a guaranteed date for completing Front lever strength. Your progress may take additional weeks.

03 / Calisteniapp

Your first session, step by step.

Here is the first session of the program, so you have a reference for how the sessions are structured.

Estimated duration of 24 min depending on the rest periods you choose. Sets and reps are a reference: adjust them to your level.

The exercises you will discover.

Every movement that appears at least once across the program.

Understand the reason behind each step.

  • The speed of progress will be determined by your current level, which will mean that you can complete phases more quickly or have to work on them for a longer time.
  • We will train 3 times a week.
  • The approximate duration of the training is 50 minutes and it is recommended for intermediate athletes and advanced, although the first levels are adapted for beginners.

They train with Calisteniapp.

App reviews already published on our website. These are not specific to this program.

The best. I've been on the pro plan for two years and have achieved excellent results. Resistance, strength, skill, and aesthetics, I've obtained it all thanks to the guidance of this app on this beautiful calisthenics journey.
Roberto Duarte
If the free option is already great, the pro option has to be amazing. I'm super happy. I'm a beginner, a very beginner, and really everything is simple, the exercises can be done anywhere without equipment, and it's helping me a lot.
Maite Ruiz

From “one day” to your first session.

  1. Download Calisteniapp on your phone.

  2. Find Front lever strength and check its access options.

  3. Review the terms shown in the app and start the first phase.

If the app offers you a 7-day trial, check the subsequent price, billing period, renewal and cancellation before activating it. Availability and terms are those shown in your account and store.

Before you start.

To start this program it is necessary to be able to perform at least 5 pull-ups without problems.

Every step counts.

Start with preparation. Follow the path. Give your progress time.

Available in Calisteniapp for iOS and Android.

Your program continues in the app.

Download Calisteniapp and find “Front lever strength” in Programs. If you already have the app, open the program directly.

I have the app: open Front lever strength
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