Where To Train Calisthenics

Calisthenics is known for its versatility and free bodyweight exercise. Everyone knows you can train it anywhere, but which is the best?

The best place to train calisthenics is one that is social, has a range of equipment, and can be used by all skill levels. Places like commercial gyms, parks, or beaches are familiar, but you can also train in your room if you want!

Below we have listed the best places to train and their advantages and disadvantages:

Commercial Gym.
Home/ Bedroom.
Parks.
Outdoor Gym/ Calisthenics Park.
Streets.
Beaches.

Training Calisthenics In A Commercial Gym

Commercial gyms have running machines, dumbbells, mats, and, more relevantly, a calisthenics section. This will include pull-up bars, gymnastic rings, and tricep bars – different gyms have different equipment, but these are most common.

Advantages:

As commercial gyms aren’t exclusively made for calisthenics you meet different people who have a range of interests, body types, and backgrounds. This makes exercise social and gives you the chance to learn about other training methods.
The calisthenics section is usually quiet compared to the weights or running machines. Therefore, it’s unlikely you have to wait for equipment and can maintain a highly intense workout.
Some commercial gyms have other facilities, such as pools, spas, and sports courts. This is a great way to add variety to your workout and have a complete break from calisthenics (from time-to-time!)

Disadvantages:

As the name suggests, you must pay a fee. The cost affects people differently, but it’s always something to consider.
Low-quality gyms may have dirty equipment. It may be sweat on mats, dirt on pull-up bars, or an unhygienic pair of wooden rings. Either way, it can be enough to make you never step foot in there again!
Commercial gyms suit the needs of everyone in the local public. Even though we’d love it, not everyone is passionate about calisthenics – in fact, it’s very niche compared to other training methods. Therefore, the calisthenics section is commonly hidden in the corner and has limited equipment.

Using Your Room To Train Calisthenics

Whether it’s your bedroom, office, or a flat, you can train calisthenics anywhere! From beginner level to professional, all calisthenics athletes can build relative strength without leaving their room!

Advantages:

You have no added cost – no pesky joining or leaving fees and no monthly memberships! This is great for beginners who don’t want to commit financially when starting out.
You don’t have any opening or closing times, so be a night owl or early worm; you can workout whenever you like!
You can train without judgment. If you want to exercise topless, blasting music, or even naked there is nobody stopping you! However, be mindful of neighbors and anyone you live with!

Disadvantages:

The chances are you don’t have much calisthenics equipment. As a result, you must improvise, for example, using trees as chin-up bars or sticking to floorwork. While you can build your own gym, it can get very expensive – to the point where it may be cheaper to join a commercial gym.
There is no change of scenery or socializing with people outside of who you live with. Staying in the same place gives you brain fog and completely demotivates you. Therefore, training calisthenics should be a temporary/spontaneous solution rather than a permanent one.
Experts find practicing skillful moves, such as front levers or handstands, challenging. As they have limited space (due to furniture, tables or paintings), they can’t fully extend their legs without smashing an ornament or bashing into a wall!

Using A Public Park To Train Calisthenics

Outdoor parks are one of the best places to train in calisthenics; you can complete a thorough, full-body workout using their calisthenics-specific equipment – commonly pull-up bars, monkey bars and tricep dips.

Advantages:

You have the beautiful greenery of the park, fresh air, and exposure to the sunlight. This makes you more connected to nature, which keeps you mindful and focused during a workout. In addition, during our warm-up and cool-down, the deep breaths we take assist blood flow and allow us to train better.
Most public parks have no opening or closing time, so you can train calisthenics whenever possible. Although, not all parks have floodlights to let you see the equipment in the dark.
The open field parks have mean you can easily incorporate various other training methods, such as sprints. Therefore, you can workout alongside other athletes or use hybrid training to spice up your training plan.

Disadvantages:

The quality of your workout is weather-dependent. Exposure to harsh cold winters / boiling hot summers can get dangerous and prevent you being able to workout. We live in England, and the rain gets so torrential we can’t workout due to it waterlogging the pull-up bars
Public parks have lots of spectators – be children, adults, or even dogs! It isn’t the worst thing in the world; however, it’s off-putting when you want to put in some practice. For example, if you’re learning muscle-ups, we don’t think you’d want the public watching you fail each repetition.(Though it would be satisfying when you finally get one!)
The equipment you use is council-owned; so, if it were to break or be vandalized, they are the ones who fix it. Unfortunately, they work on a long time scale, and it could be months until something is done about it.

Going To A Calisthenics-Specific Park

A calisthenics park differs from a regular one as it’s designed solely for bodyweight exercise. They contain specialist equipment and have calisthenics experts, making it a great spot to get involved with.

Advantages:

You’ll find the best equipment for example, parallel bars, dipped bars or stepped bars. What’s better, the huge variety ensures you aren’t left twiddling your thumbs as there’s always something available.
Everyone at the calisthenics park has a common interest. It sparks conversations where you learn about new tricks and skills and make friends. The sense of community makes you feel warm, especially because people love helping one another!
Calisthenics parks suit all skill ranges. If you’re a beginner testing the waters or an expert preparing for a competition, a calisthenics park is one of the best places you can go.

Disadvantages:

They can get busy – unless you go in antisocial hours. If you are under a strict workout plan and need a specific pull-up bar, you may be waiting hours. However, if you’re flexible there’s always something you can use.
Calisthenics parks are mostly outdoors, so once again, you’re weather-reliant, though the extent of this depends on where you live.
Calisthenics parks aren’t as common as traditional ones (unfortunately). As a result, you may have to travel to find one, making it a costly experience. Sometimes, you may not be able to travel there without a car!

Practicing Calisthenics In The Street

You can train calisthenics anytime, anywhere – even on the street! Using man-built structures or earth’s nature is a much more adrenaline-filled workout. It’s thought of closely to parkour, but it’s still the same bodyweight exercises you do in the gym.

Advantages:

Street calisthenics is by far the most exciting and engaging way to apply bodyweight exercise. You must be creative to see objects as workout tools – rather than letting a machine do all the work for you. It’s as mentally challenging as it is physically.
Despite calling it ‘street’ calisthenics, you can do it anywhere – remote or urban. For example, you can use a lamp as a pull-up bar or a tree branch. Either way, it’s inclusive for anyone around the globe.
Calisthenics is known as a ‘street‘ workout, so you pay homage to it’s history. This means you learn about the core of calisthenics, it’s real benefits, and how it was intended to be executed – it was arguably meant to be more than a pull-up bar sitting on your doorframe.

Disadvantages:

Athletes may get into trouble. Sometimes, people are naughty and ‘accidentally’ do calisthenics on private land or participate in exercises that disturb the public. Have you ever got into bother?
The better you get at calisthenics, the more daring you become with the tricks. Have you seen the people jump from building to building? Yeah, we’re talking about them. The more riskier you are, the more severe the injury becomes if something doesn’t go to plan.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, beginners may lack the experience/ industry knowledge to turn something like a table into a workout. As a result, they get themselves injured or have an unfulfilled training session.

Going To The Beach To Train Calisthenics

The beach. A time to relax, or have a sweaty calisthenics workout? Turns out many athletes go to the beach to exercise. The soft sand helps cushion landings but is more challenging to maneuver as it sinks from your bodyweight. In addition, many have bars, dumbbells, and platforms for athletes to train with.

Advantages:

When you go to a beach, you drop lots of unwritten rules. For example, training topless and blasting speakers out loud is more accepted. Lots of athletes prefer this training environment compared to gyms with enforced rules and regulations.
Beaches are full of life! It’s one of the most social places to train, though not everyone will necessarily be into their fitness!
Sunbathers hate the cold sea; however, athletes love it. It creates a perfect cool-down as you can jump straight into it to lower your body temperature. This speeds muscle recovery, improves blood flow, and gradually lowers your breathing rate.

Disadvantages:

Beaches almost always have a crowd watching the athletes exercise. It could be the opposite sex flirting, someone comparing themselves to you, or a child watching in amazement. Most people see it as a drawback, but some like the attention.
It can get windy, so sand gets into your eyes. It’s most common on beaches close to the Atlantic Ocean; nonetheless, it happens everywhere.
During summer, the sun’s heat can make metal bars untouchable. If you’re aware of it, you can chuck seawater at it, but if you aren’t, you’ll get a nasty burn.

Where is Our Favourite Place To Train Calisthenics

It’s difficult to say our all-time favorite place to train calisthenics as each one serves a different purepose. So, we have narrowed it down to three and explained how we use them to our benefit.

Our go-to is a commercial gym. Luckily, our local center has sufficient and clean equipment for an intense calisthenics workout. While we have to pay £50 a month, it’s worth the convenience and prevents us from having to train outdoors in the winter.
We use calisthenic parks for inspiration or when we’re tired of repeating the same exercises. No matter how often we go, we always learn a new trick, challenge, or static. It isn’t our go-to because it is a 25-minute drive and outdoors – not lovely in the winter!
Thirdly, we train in our room when it’s cold outside and past 10 p.m. (when our gym closes). We use our floor, press-up bars, and a doorframe pull-up bar to create a solid workout. This is the last resort because we spend most of our time in our rooms, and there isn’t much space.

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