Turtle Back Calisthenics Workout
Welcome to our incredible Turtle Back Calisthenics Workout!
Before we dive into this amazing routine, let me share a valuable lesson I’ve learned along the way.
After coaching countless athletes, I’ve noticed a common blunder: jumping into exercises or routines without considering your current level. You see, the workout we’re about to unveil might be a perfect fit for some, but it could be too tough or too easy for others. We’re all unique, after all!
Here’s what could happen:
- You might find yourself struggling with exercises that are way beyond your capabilities, risking injury, or simply not seeing the results you want.
- Generic routines just won’t do the trick. While they’re convenient, they often fall short in terms of effectiveness.
So, as you embark on your calisthenics journey and specifically seek a workout to beef up your back, remember this: some exercises may feel like a breeze, while others might push you to your limits. It’s crucial to find the right level to start with, ensuring you avoid injuries and make the most of your time.
In the past, we used to sort workouts into beginner, intermediate, or advanced levels, but we quickly realized that this approach held back progress. That’s why we’ve created The Movement Athlete Academy – a personalized, progressive, and adaptive training program that uses AI to tailor your plans and guide you every step of the way.
If that sounds like something you’re interested in, why not kick things off with our FREE assessment for a personalized plan? Say goodbye to guesswork and injury risks – trust me, it’s a game-changer!
About this Calisthenics Workout
Most people love building their chest, biceps, and abs. You might one of them, too. I can’t really blame you since those are what you see in front, but how about your back? You are bound to turn around, anyway so everybody’s going to see your other side.
It is imperative to have a well-balanced development, front, and back. Give your back muscles some lovin’. I’m not talking only about your lats and lower back. Train the whole back including your: traps, rear delts, triceps, glutes, and hamstrings for a back as rigid as a turtle’s.
Nothing is sexier than a complete package, front and back. Just like a perfectly crafted sculpture that looks divine 360 degrees.
Build your exceptional muscle with good strength gains that can carry over to your other skill training as well. Most of the workout involves pull exercises with two push exercises for the back of your arms and legs.
Getting back to muscle imbalances, have strong posterior muscles provide better support for your posture. And actually, the workout routine also builds you a strong core that can assist your posture. Goodbye shoulder and back pains from sitting all day in the office!
This workout is for the intermediate. Rep range should still bring near muscle failure to achieve maximum muscle gains.
If you’re ready to build your turtle back, let’s get started then!
Never forget the basic golden rule when performing every exercise
Training your front, back, side or whichever muscle group, you should always follow the basic rules to maximize results and avoid nasty or even minor injuries.
TURTLE BACK CALISTHENICS WORKOUT
Level
Time
Goal
Intermediate
30 minutes
Muscle building
| Move | Sets | Reps |
| Chin-ups | 1 | 10 |
| Handstand Military Push-ups | 1 | 3 |
| Glute/Ham Raises | 1 | 12 |
| Tricep Dips | 1 | 12 |
| Close Grip Pull-ups | 1 | 10 |
| L-sit Pull-ups | 1 | 6 |
| Inverted Rows 45 Degrees | 1 | 5 |
| Muscle ups | 1 | 5 |
No rest between each exercise and rest for 3 minutes for each round.
Total of 3 rounds.
How far in the game are you?
Our certified coaches have developed a fail-proof assessment to give you an idea of where you stand in the Calisthenics game.
How It’s Done
Chin ups
Let’s start with building your lats with chin-ups. Though this pull variation focuses more on biceps, your lats will still be doing a lot of work. Don’t worry because there are more exercises that will focus on your back later in the routine. Practice your perfect form throughout the movement and always complete a full range of motion.
Handstand Military Push ups
The exercise is quite different from our regular handstand push-ups. This one focuses more on your rear deltoids to complete your back development. To execute, it is best against the wall because it’s going to be too difficult to balance compared to our regular handstand push-ups. Keep the elbows parallel when lowering your body and push using your shoulders. Practice perfect form all the time!
Ham/Glute Raises
Let’s not forget about the lower body. Ham/Glute raises basically trains your… of course, hamstrings and glutes. You’ll be activating your core at the same time when performing the movement. Do not forget to fully squeeze the leg muscles during the eccentric and concentric phase of the movement for maximum gains. You could also do it one leg at a time if you find the exercise too easy.
Tricep Dips
Tricep dips or your basic bench dips focuses on the back of your arms, the triceps. This also makes most of the muscles on your arms so your arms will look exceptionally big if you develop your triceps well enough. If the exercise too easy, consider going them on parallel dip bars. Maintain having a straight body line and don’t let your body tilt forward when executing the movement so you can hit your triceps more.
Close Grip Pull ups
You’re going to shift your focus back to your lats with the help of your biceps and a bit of chest activation. Same principles regarding pull-ups apply. No momentum. Drive your elbows down to your hips. Transition to an active hang before pulling yourself with your arms.
L-sit Pull ups
More lats and bicep activation once again. This time, you’ll be engaging your core even more by performing L-sit pull-ups. Form and execution are very similar to your regular pull-ups with an addition of holding an l-sit. It’s going to be more difficult with a lot of muscles activating at the same time so you’ll get to practice your body awareness as well.
Inverted Rows 45 Degrees
To surely reach your muscle failure, let’s go down to a slightly easier variation of the push-ups. Lats and biceps are once again activated to perform the movement. Pull again your elbows to your sides when going up so you can get your back activated. Be aware of your body line when performing the movement. Keep it straight as an arrow.
Muscle ups
The finale of the round mixes both push and pull through muscle-ups. The pull part of the movement workout your back and biceps while the push gets the chest and tricep going. The movement requires not only strength but a good deal of mind muscle connection. Master the skill before incorporating this in the routine. If you’ve mastered it already, just execute with proper form without using momentum then you’re good to go!
Building muscle with calisthenics is still very possible and if this is your goal, don’t leave out your back. As Justin Timberlake might say it, bring sexy back with a sexy back.
In addition to a sexy back, hypertrophy training still produces strength gains!
But wait, the exercises are quite difficult and if you’re still not there yet, there is a better option to produce these amount of gains.
I’m talking The Movement Athlete Academy. No workout too easy or too difficult since every aspect of the routine is catered especially just for you.
Building a turtle back would be a piece of cake. You don’t have to worry about which exercise to incorporate or how much reps or sets should you do. All of the these are taken care of once you’ve set your goal and taken the assessment test.
Start transforming that back of your into a turtle’s shell with The Movement Athlete Academy.
Stay strong, friends!