Tag Archives | front lever

How to Progress to a Front Lever

By on July 6, 2015 in Other Skills, Rings

Ryan from Gold Medal Bodies goes deep into front level progressions and shows one of the ways to work your way up to a front level. Below are the recommended steps, but make sure to watch the entire video to fully understand them.

1. The mini pull – To strengthen up your scapula
2. Straight arm chest pullups – To increase ROM
3. Mini pulls with knee pulls – Improve core strength
4. The front tuck
5. The front tuck to the open front tuck
6. Tuck for reps
7. Tuck with leg extensions

Tumbling Illustrated
Tumbling Illustrated on Amazon

Your gym doesn’t have gymnastic rings? Get them here.

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Gymnastic Rings Dream Machine

By on July 2, 2012 in Rings

The other day my friend was telling me about this device called a gymnastic rings dream machine. Surprisingly I had never heard of it. Well, he built one in his gym, and just yesterday I got to try it out for the first time ever.

The True Art and Science of Hand Balancing
The True Art and Science of Hand Balancing on Amazon

Sorry the video isn’t great, but it was shot with an iphone on a whim.

The gymnastic rings dream machine allows you unload a significant portion of your bodyweight and thus you can work on harder skills. You see me here doing an iron cross and front lever, two moves that are currently outside of my ability (but not for too much longer).

Does anyone else have experience with the dream machine?

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Back Lever Flutter Kicks

By on April 30, 2012 in Uncategorized

Since my recent progress in the back lever I’ve been looking to make it harder. Just a couple months ago I held my first ever, legs together back lever, and now that’s pretty easy. So I’m adding some movements into the mix and I came up with this one, which I call back lever flutter kicks.

Trampoline Handbook
Trampoline Handbook on Amazon

It’s much harder then the regular lying on your back version of flutter kicks that the Navy Seals made famous. Though it is tougher then a hold it’s not that too much harder to do. The reason I didn’t do it longer in the video was because I shot this after a new PR for me, of a 10 second back lever hold.

Of course this same movement could be done in the front lever position. Haven’t got to the full position there yet though.

I’m thinking about doing a DVD just on Lever progressions. Would you be interested in that?

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First Back Lever

By on February 15, 2012 in Rings

I was “playing” at the park yesterday with my friend. Great to always have a camera on hand.

Here I was able to hold my first back lever with legs straight but also together.

Check off one major goal for this year!

Compare this to my earlier straddle back levers.

Straddle Back Lever

The crazy thing is I haven’t even been working on this skill lately. I have been working towards one arm pullups and a number of exercises with the Power Wheel to strength the abs. I guess those two things are carrying over. I also noticed I was better at various front lever progressions we worked on.

Hand Balancing Made EasyHandBalancingMadeEasy_on_Amazon

I also think that it may have been a little easier on these monkey bars, over the rings that I’ve normally done them on. But then I did another back lever, possibly even better then this one, on some rings they had there a little later. Sorry, no video of this one but I will have lots more from the park in coming weeks and months.

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