2 creditsIn progress

Calisthenics 101

Turn the pull-up I already have into a muscle-up, twenty minutes at a time.

Units

One step a week · 5 of 18 done

Unit 1Pulling volume

Weeks 1–3 · 5/5

Done: Baseline: max strict pull-ups, max chest-to-bar pull-ups, max dips, and max push-ups. Write them all in this week's check-inWk 1
Done: Circuit A1, a 20-min AMRAP, reps by feel: strict pull-ups, rows on a low bar, dips (deep, and slow on the way down), hollow hold. My pull-up max is 2 or 3, so 1 or 2 a round, always a rep short of failure; when a strict one will not go, jump to the top and lower for 5 s instead. The rows carry the pulling volume. Then 3 × 10 s false-grip hangWk 1
Done: Skill day S1: 6 sets of 1 or 2 strict pull-ups with a full rest between, then 3 slow negatives, 5 s down; 3 sets of chin-ups, palms facing me, a rep short of failure; 3 × 5 s top holds, chin over the bar; 3 × 10 hollow-to-arch swings on the bar; 3 × 15 s false-grip hangWk 2
Done: Same circuit as Wk 1; beat its totalsWk 2
Done: Away Oct 11–18, no bar: towel-on-a-door rows for the pull-ups and the rows, chair dips for the dips; the AMRAP as usualWk 3

Unit 2Pull higher

Weeks 4–6 · 0/4

Not done yet: Circuit A2, reps by feel: strict pull-ups pulled as high as I can, rows with feet on a chair, dips, hanging knee raises. Then 3 × 2 explosive pull-ups, as high as they go. A new circuit, so these totals are the new baselineWk 4
Not done yet: Skill day S2: 5 × 2 explosive pull-ups; 3 × 5 straight-bar dips (jump to the top of the bar); 3 × 8 kip swings, hips to the bar; 3 × 2 false-grip pull-ups; 3 sets of chin-ups, a rep short of failure; 3 × 10 s top holds; 3 × 10 straight-arm band pulldowns, bar height to hipsWk 4
Not done yet: Same circuit as Wk 4; beat its totalsWk 5
MidtermNot done yet: 5 strict pull-ups in one set, 1 chest-to-bar pull-up, and 5 straight-bar dips. The AMRAP beats its Wk 4 totalsWk 6

Unit 3The transition

Weeks 7–9 · 0/4

Not done yet: Circuit A3, reps by feel: chest-to-bar pull-ups (or as high as I can), rows with feet on a chair, straight-bar dips, hanging knee raises. Then 3 × 2 muscle-up negatives: start locked out over the bar, lower slowly through the transition to a hangWk 7
Not done yet: Skill day S3: 3 × 5 transition drills on a chest-high bar, feet on the floor; 3 × 3 band-assisted muscle-ups; 5 × 2 kip to a high pull, bar to the waist; 3 × 10 straight-arm band pulldownsWk 7
Not done yet: Same circuit as Wk 7; beat its totals. Band muscle-ups easy? Drop to a lighter bandWk 8
Not done yet: Thanksgiving at my parents': a lighter week. The AMRAP without a bar (towel-on-a-door rows and chair dips), skill day optionalWk 9

Unit 4The muscle-up

Weeks 10–12 · 0/4

Not done yet: Circuit A4, reps by feel: chest-to-bar pull-ups, explosive pull-ups to the waist, straight-bar dips, hanging leg raises. Then 3 × 2 muscle-up negativesWk 10
Not done yet: Skill day S4: first muscle-up attempts, fresh, on video: 5 × 1 with full rest, band-assisted if they failWk 10
Not done yet: Same circuit as Wk 10; beat its totals. Keep the skill day light so the final is freshWk 11
FinalNot done yet: FINAL: one bar muscle-up, filmed. Then retake every Wk 1 baseline and post both side by sideWk 12

Unit 5Wind down

Weeks 13–13 · 0/1

BufferNot done yet: San Diego week: rest, or one beach AMRAP for funWk 13

Check-ins

2 check-ins

Oct 13, 2026Update

Worked out in the gym at the Hilton in Vegas. I was able to get a band and bust out 14 assisted pull-ups, 60 planche push-ups, 60 squats, and 60 crunches over a 20-minute period.

Oct 7, 2026Update

Turns out I'm a lot weaker than I remember I was able to do three good chest bar pull-ups focusing on back I did 27 push-ups and 28 seconds of a handstand with my feet and my body fairly off the wall I could barely go down for my pistol squat

Final exam · Wk 12 · Sat Dec 19One bar muscle-up: from a dead hang to locked out over the bar. A kip is fine; no band, no jump. On video.

Midterm · Wk 65 strict pull-ups in one set, 1 chest-to-bar pull-up, and 5 straight-bar dips. The AMRAP beats its Wk 4 totals

Syllabus

Weekly minimumCircuit day: a 20-minute AMRAP of the unit's circuit, reps by feel, then 10 minutes of muscle-up drills. Every movement in it is a piece of the muscle-up: the pull, the dip on top, and the body lineBoth days open with 2 × 8 scapular pull-ups (hang, then pull the shoulders down with straight arms) and a 20 s active hang. From Wk 4, 15 band pull-aparts tooReps by feel: no set number per round. Open each movement at a number I could do again, then match or beat it every round, until the clock runs out or I can no longer hold the numbersSkill day, about 30 minutes and no clock: the second pulling day of the week. Pull-ups and muscle-up practice, done freshA check-in at the end of the week with the total for each movement from the AMRAP, e.g. 12 pull-ups and 60 rows in 20 minutes. The movements stay the same for a whole unit, so the totals compare week to weekLegs, push-ups and everything else happen outside this class: yoga, and my own 20 minutes a day

When and whereBoth days need a bar I can get over: the gym's pull-up bar or a park bar, not a doorway bar. A low bar (Smith machine or a park's low bar) for rows and transition drills, parallel bars or two sturdy chairs for dips, a resistance band from Wk 4. A day off between the circuit day and the skill day, so the pulling muscles get a rest. Travel weeks (Oct 11–18, Thanksgiving) swap the bar for towel-on-a-door rows and chair dips.

Credits2 · about 2 hours a week

Progress · 28%

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