{"id":2255,"date":"2018-05-15T09:32:31","date_gmt":"2018-05-15T09:32:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.realmuscleforum.com\/content\/?p=2255"},"modified":"2024-06-07T22:26:09","modified_gmt":"2024-06-07T22:26:09","slug":"8-best-gymnastic-strength-exercises-for-physique-training","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.realmuscleforum.com\/content\/8-best-gymnastic-strength-exercises-for-physique-training\/","title":{"rendered":"8 Best Gymnastic Strength Exercises for Physique Training"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you\u2019ve got an eye for muscle and physique, you must have noticed Olympic gymnasts. They\u2019re some of the most athletic, jacked athletes at the games and they\u2019re renowned for their core and upper body strength. There\u2019s a reason for this: gymnastic strength training.<\/p>\n

What is GST?<\/h2>\n

GST stands for gymnastic strength training \u2013 all the stuff gymnasts do in training to build the muscle and strength they need for their crazy feats of athleticism.\"8<\/a><\/p>\n

Parallel bars and rings are some of the most demanding pieces of equipment: you can\u2019t do an iron cross without huge chest and shoulder strength! Gymnasts do very little weight training, but have some of the strongest, most functional bodies in all of sport.<\/p>\n

This article is all about how you can use gymnastic movements as part of your own training for improved results. These are 8 of our favourite gymnastic strength exercises for bodybuilders and physique enthusiasts:<\/p>\n

1. Ring Push Ups<\/h2>\n

Gymnastic rings are awesome. Gymnasts consider them to be the single best tool for building upper body strength \u2013 they can be used for a whole bunch of exercises, they challenge your grip strength and they add a huge stability challenge to hit the muscles you miss with a bench press.<\/p>\n

Ring push-ups<\/a> are one way you can add serious difficulty to a simple movement. Think you\u2019ve mastered the push-up? Get your hands on some rings and elevate your feet off the floor \u2013 you\u2019ll soon find that they\u2019re much harder than you thought.<\/p>\n

This variation puts your shoulders and chest through a longer range of motion \u2013 meaning more eccentric loading and thus more muscle gains \u2013 as well as adding work for the shoulder stabilisers.<\/p>\n

If you only ever bench or flye, you\u2019re going to feel a whole new set of DOMS in the morning as you\u2019re working totally-neglected muscles!<\/p>\n

2. Maltese Push-Up<\/h2>\n

Another pull-up variation that shows that the push-up isn\u2019t dead.<\/p>\n

The Maltese push-up<\/a> is all about hitting the chest \u2013 the wider grip and supinated hand position mean that you\u2019re relying on the triceps less and the pecs far more. This exercise is great for both pecs \u2013 minor and major \u2013 and its going to be totally different to anything you\u2019ve done before.<\/p>\n

The Maltese push-up can be done with your feet on the wall to make it harder, but its still going to be easy enough that you can squeeze out a bunch of reps and burn your chest out. Because it\u2019s lighter than bench or other heavy weights, it makes a great addition to a chest\/shoulders\/tricep superset.<\/p>\n

3. Low Dips<\/h2>\n

We\u2019ve all seen guys doing short-range dips to hit the triceps, but today we\u2019re big advocates of the long, low dip<\/a>. This is like any other dip, but you go as low as your shoulder mobility will allow, keeping the upper back tight and staying \u2018hollow\u2019.<\/p>\n

Pausing at the bottom of each rep really stretches the chest and shoulders out \u2013 great for mobility and muscle size. You\u2019ll immediately realise how much harder this variation is, while the extra range of motion builds serious muscle in the pecs and the supporting muscles of the shoulders.<\/p>\n

You can also combine these with leg raises for an awful-but-amazing finisher for the chest and abs.<\/p>\n

4. L-stand press<\/h2>\n

It\u2019s not quite a handstand push up but, trust us, it hurts so good! The L-stand press<\/a> is like a handstand press but your legs take some of the weight to make it easier and reduce the chances of falling on your head if you mess up.<\/p>\n

The difficulty of this movement is keeping the core tight and using both the upper back and triceps together. You\u2019re going to have a serious pump in the upper back, traps and shoulders tomorrow \u2013 but you\u2019re also going to build stability, balance, functional strength and a ton of new muscle as a result.<\/p>\n

5. Ring Rows<\/h2>\n

Ring rows<\/a> are one of the best exercises for the upper back. They\u2019re used by gymnasts to strengthen the upper back muscles for the pull-up so, if you\u2019re working on getting your pull-ups stronger, they\u2019re the right place to start. This is going to add serious meat to your upper back without having to fiddle around with bands or eccentric pull-ups.<\/p>\n

You can make these harder by elevating your feet more, so that your leverage gets worse and the movement gets harder. This is going to add difficulty without adding weight \u2013 something that\u2019s going to be key if you\u2019re looking to get your first pull-up.<\/p>\n

Even if you can do pull-ups, the ring row is a great exercise to hit your muscles from a different angle. While the pull-up is all vertical (more lats), the ring row has a bigger role for the rhomboids and other scapular retractors \u2013 the muscles near the spine that control the shoulder blades and build deep crevices in your upper back.<\/p>\n

6. Legless Rope Climb<\/h2>\n

These aren\u2019t just for elite gymnasts or kippy CrossFitters \u2013 they\u2019re a legit exercise for building strength and balance in your upper back (and some sneaky bicep and core work).<\/p>\n

Legless rope climbs<\/a> are a key part of progressing to a strict, gymnastic pull-up and they\u2019re going to build athleticism, core strength and upper body size in a totally new way.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s somewhere between a bicep curl and a pull-up, which means its great for size and strength and, if you can do more than one, its more fun than your normal cardio!<\/p>\n

7. Pull-Up Like A Gymnast<\/h2>\n

You probably already train, or want to train, pull-ups. However, if you\u2019re looking to get bigger and stronger then the gymnastic approach to pull-ups is going to be ideal for both<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Gymnasts don\u2019t mess around when it comes to pull-ups<\/a>. Doing pull-ups like an Olympian is going to mean two things: slower and more controlled. Slow pull-ups are a great way to add time under tensions, improve your control over the muscles, and boost your muscle growth.<\/p>\n

Adding more control simply means keeping the core tighter and learning to sequence your muscles better. This approach to pull-ups will make you stronger in the movement so you can add weight, do more reps, and improve your muscle gains.<\/p>\n

8. Hollow Holds<\/h2>\n

The hollow position is key to gymnastics and it\u2019s a great skill to learn if you want a core that looks good and performs amazingly.<\/p>\n

The hollow hold<\/a> is a simple core exercise that involves stretching out your arms and legs as much as possible while keeping the core rock solid. You can build up to it, or make it harder, but the variations are all going to contribute to massive core strength and thick, aesthetic abs.<\/p>\n

Closing Remarks<\/h2>\n

You don\u2019t need <\/strong>to use weights to get bigger and stronger. While gymnasts aren\u2019t built like bodybuilders, they\u2019ve got great aesthetics: a fantastic taper, strong shoulders and a lean physique.<\/p>\n

They\u2019re doing something right and combining these movements with your regular workouts is a great way to improve your progress. Even if you\u2019re just looking for new and exciting ways to switch it up and enjoy your training!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you\u2019ve got an eye for muscle and physique, you must have noticed Olympic gymnasts. They\u2019re some of the most athletic, jacked athletes at the games and they\u2019re renowned for their core and upper body strength. There\u2019s a reason for this: gymnastic strength training. What is GST? GST stands for gymnastic strength training \u2013 all the stuff gymnasts do in training to build the muscle and strength they need for their crazy feats of athleticism.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":2256,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n8 Best Gymnastic Strength Exercises for Physique Training - Body Building and Fitness News Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.realmuscleforum.com\/content\/8-best-gymnastic-strength-exercises-for-physique-training\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"8 Best Gymnastic Strength Exercises for Physique Training - Body Building and Fitness News Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"If you\u2019ve got an eye for muscle and physique, you must have noticed Olympic gymnasts. 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