Hello, everyone!
I have just finished reading overcoming gravity, and I am feeling slightly overwhelmed.
My goals are as follows:
Handstand Pushups x 10
V-Sit for 25 seconds
1.5x my bodyweight on pullups for five reps
Full Front Lever for 10 seconds
Full Planche for 10 seconds
I would classify myself as a trained beginner (level 6 on dips, 5 on pushups, 4 on pullups, 5 on FL rows, etc.) This being so, full body would make the most sense. The book states that two goals should be selected per muscle group, though a third one can be added if you ease into the movement (say, adding only a set of tuck bl's). A rough sketch of my routine can be found below:
Weighted Pullups - 25x7 for 3 sets.
Front Lever Rows - 5 reps for 4 sets
Isometric Back lever (?, thinking of easing into it, because steven recommends progressing the back lever before the front)
Pike pushups 5 sets of 5 reps
PPPU - 3 sets of 8 reps
(Ring Dips for general strength?? Perhaps for 3 sets of 10 reps. Let me know if you think this is counterproductive to my other two push movements. I did them for a while and progressed quite well, but they are really boring. Another alternative is archer ring pushups to develop single arm strength).
Zercher squats 3x8
Romanian deadlifts 3x8
3 min rest for basically everything
L sit Hold for 4x16 second sets
Some Compression work
My questions are as follows:
(1) Should these exact exercises remain fixed between workouts. Meaning, should I be doing this exact full-body routine (with no modifications), M W F SU? If not, what sort of variations would you recommend?
- (1.1) How should I approach variety/exercise selection in general? For beginners, it seems best to stick with one set of exercises for progress' sake. Take weighted pullups as an example. Are these too taxing on the body to do 3/4 times a week? The same goes for Zercher squats and Romanian deadlifts.
(2) Handstand pushup progressions are found in a separate chart from the pushing section. But they are considered strength work. How should I approach this? Are Pikepushups added onto my two pushing exercises, or do they replace one of them?
(3) For flexibility, are pancakes, butterflies, pike stretches, horse stance, compression work (leg raises) and German hangs enough? I don't particularly care for flexibility, but I never want it to be the bottle neck of any bodyweight movement I may attempt
(4) Say I decided to Grease the Groove pike push-ups. Would this replace ALL other pushing exercises? The technique sounds interesting to me, but not interesting enough to replace all my other pushing exercises.
Thank you in advance, and please let me know what you think of my tentative plan. I have been stuck in analysis paralysis and really want to start with a routine that I am somewhat satisfied with.