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When it comes to creating an effective calisthenics arm workout. I’ve always found that practicing basic fundamental movement patterns over and over again is the best way to get things done.
My motto has always been work hard, stay consistent, and the results will soon follow.
And after years and years of training with calisthenics. I can honestly say that I’ve never really strayed too far from this mentality.
Don’t get me wrong, there’s always room for improvement. And that’s why I’m constantly testing and tweaking my workouts to make them as practical and time-efficient as possible.
Which is why today, I’m going to personally give you the keys to the kingdom by showing you everything you need to start building the blazing guns of an action hero.
So sit back, relax and start taking notes because, by the time we’re done, you’ll have the in-depth knowledge you need to start sculpting the ripped and ready arms you’ve been dreaming about all your life.
WATCH VIDEO: Discover How To QUICKLY Master Advanced Calisthenics Exercises Like The Muscle-Up, Front Lever, Pistol Squat And Other Epic Moves That Defy The Law Of Gravity
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Table of Contents
Basic Calisthenics Exercises That Work The Arms
So if you’ve read some of my other blog posts, then you’ll know that I’m all about getting the most out of every minute of my workout.
I’m all about function, and this is why you’ll rarely find me picking up a set of dumbbells and hammering out biceps curls until my eyeballs bleed.
Because honestly, I’d rather spend my time utilizing movement patterns that target multiple muscle groups. So I can get in, get the work done, and ultimately get out before most people have even warmed up.
And when it comes to upper body training (or, more specifically, the arms), my approach isn’t really any different.
Anyway…
When it comes to programing an effective calisthenics arm workout, there are really only four exercises you need to be concerned with.
These include…
- Chinups (close grip)
- Parallel Bar Dips (tricep version)
- Inverted rows (Supinated or hammer grip)
- Pushups (diamond/close grip)
In a nutshell, these are the four fundamental movement patterns that will give you the most bang for your buck when it comes to targeting your arms.
There are other exercises that I’ll be touching on further down that page.
But for now, just stick with me while I give you a little more insight into what makes these four exercises perfect for getting results.
See, when it comes to a pulling movement. Chinups and inverted rows are always going to have some degree of bicep activation regardless of how you perform them.
However, depending on your hand position, it’s easy to make these exercises a lot more back and lat focused. Which will often leave the biceps playing second fiddle to these larger, more powerful muscles.
The same can be said for dips and pushups aswell. Both of these exercises target your triceps, but they’re also a very dominant chest exercise.
Which again, can leave your triceps underworked and underdeveloped if you don’t perform them correctly.
So what can you do to specifically target your arms?
The short answer is to simply adopt a narrow grip.
That’s it…
Nothing technical or revolutionary here. Just keep your hands as close together as possible, and you’ll instantly make each exercise more arm dominant.
And the reason this happens, and you’ll notice this especially with pushing exercises. Is that it forces the elbow joint behind the hands during the negative phase of the movement. (see image)
This massively reduces the assistance from the chest and the back (depending on the exercise). Which, in turn, places a lot more of the load on your arms.
Now, as far as the basics go, there’s not really much more you need to know about effectively targeting your arms.
In fact, I’ll even go as far as to say that you can build a very decent set of rock-solid guns using nothing more than these four moves.
For instance, if you wanted a basic plan of action, you could stick with a simple workout like this…
Superset 1:
- Close Grip Chinups
- Parallel Bar Dips (tricep version)
Perform 3-5 sets of 8-12 reps
Superset 2:
- Inverted Rows (Supinated close grip)
- Pushups (Close grip/Diamond variation)
Perform 3-5 sets of 8-12 reps
Pretty basic, right?
But being the calisthenics freak that I am. I also want to dive a little deeper into the subject and give you a bit more insight into planning your own specific workout, depending on your goals.
So, in addition to this basic beginner workout, I’m going to reel off a list of my favorite bicep and tricep exercises that will hammer your arms from every possible angle.
Then, finish up by giving you a few of my very own go-to workouts that’ll help shape your arms into that of a calisthenics beast.
Specific Arm Exericses For The Biceps And Triceps
So other than the fundamental movement patterns discussed. There are also quite a few other calisthenics exercises that target the arms quite well.
I won’t lie, some are beginner-friendly, and some are a little more on the advanced side. But regardless of your current strength and fitness level, I’m sure you’ll find one or two to your liking.
So here they are…
Bicep Focused Exercises
Pelican Pushups
This is quite an advanced bicep workout, and to be honest, I wouldn’t attempt it unless you’ve got at least a few months of training experience under your belt.
You’ll need a set of rings or gymnastic rings or TRX straps to perform this.
But if you’re an intermittent to advanced calisthenics junkie, then it’ll add a whole new element to your bicep training.
Basically, it’s an adaption of standard bodyweight flyes. Only now, you’ll be going a lot deeper with your range of motion to isolate the biceps.
But rather than explain it in depth. I think it would be a lot better if you could just see the exercise for yourself.
So I picked up a quick video from Beast Skills so you can see how it’s done…
Again, this isn’t a newbie-friendly exercise, and you need to be pretty strong already to attempt this.
But if you’ve got the stones to give it a go, I think you’ll be surprised at how far this will take your bicep development.
Moving on…
Headbanger Pullups
Another great bicep exercise is the almighty headbanger pullup.
This is quite an unorthodox movement, but it’s still awesome for adding a new dimension to your training.
It’ll also develop your forearms and grip strength nicely, so it’s something you should aim to master. Or at the very least, work towards.
Here’s the video from JustCalisthenics so you can see what it looks like…
Pseudo Pushups
Last up on the list of bicep exercises is non-other than the pseudo pushup.
If you’ve never heard of a pseudo pushup. It’s basically a planche progression that has you performing pushups with your hands placed further down towards your waist.
It looks like this…
Now, at first glance, it seems like it wouldn’t really do much to target your biceps.
However, the trick with this exercise is to point your hands towards your feet. And the lean forward as far as possible to really set your arms on fire.
It’s also great at targeting your front delts, so there’s more than one reason to practice this exercise consistently.
WATCH VIDEO: Discover How To QUICKLY Master Advanced Calisthenics Exercises Like The Muscle-Up, Front Lever, Pistol Squat And Other Epic Moves That Defy The Law Of Gravity
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Tricep Focused Exercises
Tricep Extensions
This is a great isolation exercise for zoning in on your triceps.
To execute it, all you need to do is get yourself down into a plank position with the palms of your hands flat on the floor.
Then when you’re ready, simply push your elbows away from the floor using the muscles in your triceps until your arms are fully locked out.
Hold for a brief second, and then return your elbows to the floor in a slow and controlled manner.
That’s one rep.
If you want to make this exercise harder. You can easily leverage this exercise to your disadvantage by placing your arms further out in front of you.
Another thing you can do is perform this exercise on a low-level bar. This will give you a better range of motion and allow you to really go deep with this exercise.
If you’re feeling dangerous, you could even take it to the extreme and perform them on TRX straps while wearing a weighted vest.
Like this…
Source: T-Nation
L-Sit
Now, most people would consider this a more core dominant exercise.
And while they’re great for targeting your midsection. L-Sits are also a killer tricep exercise that involves both skill and strength.
Here’s how it looks…
Again, this is a very core dominant exercise that might take away from the tricep activation you get from holding a full L-sit.
So if you’re struggling a hold this exercise for more than 10 seconds, then I’d recommend regressing it to a tuck L-sit by bringing your knees closer to your chest.
This will allow you to hold the position a lot longer, giving you triceps that much needed beating they deserve.
On the flip side, another heavily dominant tricep exercise is the not so common L-sit parallel bar dip.
It looks awkward as hell, and to be honest, I’ve only ever attempted it once.
But the tricep activation you’ll get from doing this will far outweigh anything you’ve ever attempted in your entire life.
Here’s what it looks like in action…
Source: BarScience101
The Ultimate Calisthenics Arm Workout For Rock Solid Guns
Now, during any arm workout, my aim is always to create an intense, quickfire workout that heavily works both my biceps and triceps into the ground.
And there are 3 specific workouts I use to achieve this…
The Superset Workout
The first is a superset workout that focuses on the four main movement patterns we talked about earlier.
Here’s a quick recap to remind you…
Superset 1:
- Narrow Chinups
- Parallel Bar Dips (tricep version)
Superset 2:
- Inverted Rows (supinated close grip)
- Close Grip Pushups
Now, depending on your goals, there are three specific ways you can program this workout.
- If you’re looking to build pure brute strength. I’d recommend using weighted calisthenics and performing 5 sets of 5 using a heavy load with 2-3 minutes rest between sets.
- If you want to build size and torch fat, then a 6×6 routine would be the way to go. Again using weighted calisthenics but keeping the load lighter and the rest periods short (30-45 seconds max).
- And if muscular endurance is your goal. I’d go for a simple approach and perform 3-5 sets of unweighted work. Making sure you max out to near failure on each set.
To be honest, there isn’t really any hard and fast rule here, and what works for me might work a little differently for you. Depending on your body type…
…genetics
And, ultimately, your work ethic.
But these are the 3 specific rep ranges I practice regularly.
And I’ve found that mixing these up every 3-4 weeks has allowed me to build a decent amount of strength and size while torching huge amounts of unwanted body fat in the process.
So try mixing it up and see how it goes.
Pushup Finisher
This is a quick but very effective workout for giving your arms a blast in under 5 minutes.
Basically, it’s a take on the Tabata protocol that has you performing 20 seconds of work followed by 10 seconds of rest for 8 rounds.
It only takes 4 minutes to complete. But I promise that each and every minute will be pure hell provided you push yourself to the limit.
So here what you need to do…
- Pseudo Pushups (20 seconds)
- Rest (10 seconds)
- Close grip Pushups (20 seconds)
- Rest (10 seconds)
Repeat 4 more times for a total of 4 minutes
The idea behind this workout is that you’re constantly changing between a bicep and tricep focused exercise to completely obliterate your muscles in the shortest time possible.
Four minutes might not seem like much, but it’s incredibly challenging and requires huge amounts of muscular endurance to get anywhere near completing all 8 rounds.
Now, the first time you attempt this, you’re more than likely to fail halfway through the workout.
So if this happens (and it probably will), all you need to do is regress each exercise and perform them from a kneeling position until you’ve completed all 8 rounds.
It might take a while, but I promise if you practice this workout consistently (2-3 times a week). You’ll notice how effective this type of training can carry over to other areas of your workout aswell.
The 50/100 Chinups And Dips Workout
Again, this is another quickfire workout that takes around 10 minutes to complete (sometimes less).
And as the name suggests, you’re going to be completing 50 reps of chinups and 100 reps of dips as quickly as you can.
Here’s what it looks like…
- 50 Chinups (narrow grip)
- 100 Dips (tricep version)
Aim to complete in under 10 minutes
The aim here is to simply apply a balls to the wall approach to exhaust the muscles as quickly as possible.
Personally, I like to set a timer to go off at one-minute intervals and keep alternating between chinups and dips every minute.
This way, I’m allowing one muscle group to partially recover while focusing my efforts on the other.
Now, depending on how efficient you are at these exercises. The rep ranges might be way out of your comfort zone.
If this is the case, all you need to do is reduce the repetitions to say 30 chinups and 60 dips…
…Or, increase the time allowed to complete the workout to 15 or even 20 minutes.
The most important thing here is to continually challenge yourself, so you keep improving.
Taking Your Workout To The Next Level
Although these workouts seem quite basic on the surface. I’m willing to bet my right eye that if you practice them consistently. Your arms will get bigger and stronger than you ever thought possible.
See, it doesn’t take a complex workout plan to get results. And as long as you do the work, stay consistent, and, more importantly, push yourself to get better every time…
…Then, the results will soon follow.
However, I know these workouts won’t be for everyone, and there’ll be some people reading this who want a complete plan of action when it comes to smashing through their workout goals.
If this is you, then I’ve got a little something extra that’s going to take your calisthenics arm workout to an entirely new level…
It’s called Bar Brothers – The System
And it’s a 12-week transformation program that goes way beyond the realm of basic calisthenics.
In fact, I can pretty much guarantee that if you invest in this program, impliment its teaching, and work your nuts off for the next 3 months…
…then you’ll be able to transform your body and achieve new skills that you didn’t even think were possible.
Anyway, here’s the link to take a look for yourself: Bar Brothers – The System
WATCH VIDEO: Discover How To QUICKLY Master Advanced Calisthenics Exercises Like The Muscle-Up, Front Lever, Pistol Squat And Other Epic Moves That Defy The Law Of Gravity
(Video Will Open In A New Window)
Anyway, that about wraps things up for today’s post, but if you have any thoughts or comments, feel free to drop them in the comments section below…
