There are some bodyweight exercises that are as difficult as any weighted exercise out there. There are others that look far more difficult than they actually are to perform. In this video, I’m going to show you the “cheat codes” for making 5 bodyweight exercises much easier than they look in just minutes. By the end of the video you will be much more likely to be able to do high box jumps, the dragon flag, floating planche tucks, hannibal pushups and typewriter pullups.
Let’s get started with the dragon flag exercise. This is definitely one of the more challenging ab exercises out there, but that is if you try to turn it into just an ab exercise. You see, the cheat code for performing this exercise better is to not forget to use your glutes when doing it. When you lift your body up and try to maintain a perfectly straight torso you will find that as you fatigue your hips start to drop faster than your feet do. This is because you are not consciously trying to squeeze your glutes as hard as you can to prevent it.
When you get a good glute contraction, you are able to keep your body much straighter and take some of the load off of the abs. Instantly, the exercise becomes easier and your chances of being able to perform it for a longer period of time go way up.
Next, we cover the hannibal pushup. This explosive plyometric pushup variation is known to be rather difficult when viewed but much easier when performed. This is because you have to push your body up off the ground with enough force to be able to touch your hands and toes together in the middle of the rep. The key however, is the word middle. You are not touching in mid-air. You are touching on the ground in the middle of your body.
This means that in order to do this properly you only need to think about dividing the distance in half. Bring your hands from your shoulders to your hips and your feet from behind you to your hips. When you see it this way you understand that the distance needing to be covered is far less. Visualize targeting this position on the floor and use it as the landing spot for both your feet and your hands.
The next exercise is the typewriter pullup. This cool looking pullup variation is again much easier to perform when you implement the cheat codes I’m showing you. As you slide your body to the right or left, realize that you still have the other hand on the bar. Just because it isn’t clasped around the bar doesn’t mean that it cannot exert downward force into the bar (as you normally would in a pullup). Set your hands out wide to better allow for the sliding of the body left to right and turn your thumb downward as you move to hook the hand on the bar and provide the best support.
The high box jump is much easier when you stop thinking of the move as one that requires a tremendous vertical jump. When you realize that the key to the movement is getting your knees as close to your head as possible, it becomes much easier to perform the exercise (especially when doing the quick warmups that I detail out).
Finally, the floating planche tuck takes advantage of physics to make the exercise much easier than it seems. Keep the hands facing backwards so that the natural bend of the elbows takes your arms closer to your center of mass not further from it. This will allow for a better balance point and give you a much better chance of executing this difficult bodyweight exercise more easily.
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Jeff Cavaliere M.S.P.T, CSCS
Jeff Cavaliere is a Physical Therapist, Strength Coach and creator of the ATHLEAN-X Training Programs and ATHLEAN-Rx Supplements. He has a Masters in Physical Therapy (MSPT) and has worked as Head Physical Therapist for the New York Mets, as well as training many elite professional athletes in Major League Baseball, NFL, MMA and professional wrestling. His programs produce “next level” achievements in muscle size, strength and performance for professional athletes and anyone looking to build a muscular athletic physique.
