Lats are the engine of every pulling movement. They pull your arms down and back, enabling pull-ups, rows, and front levers. Wide lats give you that V-taper look, but their real value is functional strength. Strong lats protect your shoulders and generate serious power. Train them with vertical pulls (pull-ups, chin-ups) and horizontal pulls (rows, inverted rows). They respond to volume and heavy loading.
Bodyweight Exercise Collection
Shoulder Dislocates
Shoulder Dislocates are a mobility exercise that improves shoulder flexibility and stability for straight-arm movements.
Rope Climb with Legs
The Rope Climb with Legs is a foundational rope climbing exercise using leg assistance to reduce arm load.
Rope Climb Negatives
The Rope Climb Negative focuses on the eccentric phase, lowering the body slowly on a rope.
Rope Climb
The Rope Climb is a dynamic pulling exercise that builds grip, arm, and back strength by climbing a vertical rope.
Front Lever to Back Lever Press
The Front Lever to Back Lever Press is a dynamic transition from Front Lever to Back Lever, requiring extreme straight-arm strength.
Full Iron Cross
The Full Iron Cross is a straight-arm static hold on rings where the body is completely horizontal, arms extended to the sides.
Iron Cross Negative
The Iron Cross Negative focuses on the eccentric phase, lowering the body slowly from the Iron Cross position.
Iron Cross Hold
The Iron Cross Hold is a straight-arm static hold on rings where the body is held horizontal, arms extended to the sides.
One-Arm Chin-Up
The One-Arm Chin-Up is a unilateral vertical pulling exercise with a supinated grip, emphasizing the biceps.
One-Arm Pull-Up
The One-Arm Pull-Up is a unilateral vertical pulling exercise where one arm supports the entire body weight.
Full Human Flag
The Full Human Flag is a static hold where the body is completely horizontal, supported by one arm pulling and the other pushing.
Human Flag Negative
The Human Flag Negative focuses on the eccentric phase, lowering the body slowly from vertical to horizontal.
Human Flag Hold
The Human Flag Hold is a static lateral pulling and pushing exercise where the body is held horizontal, supported by one arm pulling and the other pushing.
Negative One-Arm Pull-Up
The negative one-arm pull-up focuses on the eccentric phase, building the specific strength needed for the full movement.
Assisted One-Arm Pull-Up
The assisted one-arm pull-up uses the other arm or a band to reduce load while practicing the one-arm pulling pattern.
Band-Assisted Muscle-Up
The band-assisted muscle-up uses a resistance band to reduce the load, allowing you to practice the full movement.
Muscle-Up Transition Drill
The muscle-up transition drill isolates the crucial transition phase between the pull-up and the dip.
False Grip Pull-Up
The false grip pull-up is a crucial progression for muscle-ups, building the specific strength needed for the transition.
Negative Front Lever
The negative front lever focuses on the eccentric phase, lowering the body slowly from a front lever position.
Full Back Lever
The full back lever is a straight-arm pulling hold where the body is completely horizontal and inverted, arms locked behind the body.
Back Lever Straddle
The straddle back lever extends the legs to the sides, increasing the lever arm and demanding greater strength.
Back Lever Advanced Tuck
The advanced tuck back lever increases the lever arm by opening the hips while keeping the knees tucked.
Back Lever Tuck
The tuck back lever is a straight-arm pulling hold where the body is horizontal with knees tucked, supported by the lats and core.
German Hang
The German Hang is a straight-arm inverted hanging position that builds shoulder mobility and back lever strength.
Superman
The Superman exercise builds strength in the lower back, glutes, and hamstrings by lifting the arms and legs off the floor.
Negative Muscle-Up
The negative muscle-up focuses on the eccentric phase of the muscle-up transition, building control and strength.
Skin the Cat
Skin the Cat is a gymnastic movement that builds shoulder mobility, straight-arm strength, and body control.
Full Front Lever
The full front lever is a straight-arm pulling hold where the body is completely horizontal, legs together, supported by the lats and core.
Front Lever Straddle
The straddle front lever extends the legs to the sides, increasing the lever arm and demanding greater strength.
Front Lever Advanced Tuck
The advanced tuck front lever increases the lever arm by opening the hips while keeping the knees tucked.
Front Lever Tuck
The tuck front lever is a straight-arm pulling hold where the body is horizontal, knees tucked, supported by the lats and core.
Muscle-Up
The muscle-up combines a pull-up with a dip transition, requiring explosive pulling strength and powerful pressing.
Archer Pull-Up
The archer pull-up is a unilateral pulling progression where one arm takes most of the load while the other provides balance.
Chest-to-Bar Pull-Up
The chest-to-bar pull-up requires pulling the chest to the bar, increasing lat and rhomboid engagement.
Standard Pull-Up
The pull-up is the foundational vertical pulling exercise, building back, biceps, and core strength.
Chin-Up
The chin-up is a pulling exercise with a supinated grip (palms facing you), emphasizing the biceps and lower lats.
Negative Pull-Up
The negative pull-up focuses on the eccentric phase of the pull-up, building strength by lowering the body slowly from the top position.
Inverted Row (Australian Pull-Up)
The inverted row is a horizontal pulling exercise that builds back, biceps, and core strength using a bar at waist height.
Parallel Bar Dips
Parallel bar dips are a compound pressing movement that builds serious upper body strength in the chest, triceps, and shoulders.
Scapular Pull-Up
The scapular pull-up builds scapular depression and retraction strength, essential for pull-ups and front lever.
Passive Hang
A passive hang is a hanging position where the shoulders are relaxed, the scapulae are elevated, and the body hangs with minimal muscle tension.
Active Hang
An active hang is a hanging position where the shoulders are packed down and the scapulae are retracted, engaging the back muscles.
Planche Push-Up
The planche push-up is a straight-arm pressing movement where the body is held parallel to the floor while pushing.
Full Planche Hold
The Full Planche Hold is one of the most demanding skills in calisthenics—body completely straight and parallel to the ground, legs together, supported only by the hands.
One-Arm Push-Up
The one-arm push-up is the peak of unilateral pressing strength, requiring full-body tension and massive triceps power.
Typewriter Push-Up
The typewriter push-up combines an archer descent with a lateral shift, building extreme unilateral pressing strength.