Front Lever Training

[marc_leclerc]

I'm working on front levers at the moment.I can do them and hold them with my knees bent so that my thighs are at a 90 degree and to my body and my lower legs are paralell to my body. From that position I can hold it and do pull-ups.

Do you guys have any tips or excersizes I can do in order to build the strenght to extend my legs into a full froint lever?

[John Frieh]

Will Gadd covers how to train up to one in his how to climb ice book.

[powderhound]

do them with only one leg bent and alternate which leg you bendin towards your core.

[Sol]

cool site

 

 

 

[el jefe]

sounds like people are starting to get into their rainy day routines...

[Sol]

This link was on my computer at school.

 

Beast Skills

 

[fern]

If you can get someone to spot you then you might find it easier to follow these progressions.

 

Basically you have 2 variables you can control for progression: Leverage and Range of Motion.

 

What you are doing now (holding the F-L in a tuck and trying to extend your legs) is working the leverage progression. The key thing here is to maintain a tight hollow body position at all time (suck your ribs down to your pelvis with no break at the hip) and straight arms. Doing pullups in a tucked front-lever has zero relevance to holding a full front lever.

 

In addition to extending your legs straight out one at a time you can vary the leverage by extending them both out into a straddle.

 

To work the range of motion progression you need to invert yourself in a full extended hollow position. (Hang - Roll your body up in a tuck, knees to chest, lift the hips right over the shoulders with tucked knees to chest, extend the legs to hollow). Then with straight arms slowly lower you legs away from the bar(or rings) to whatever is your limit and then return back up to vertical invert. This is a good one to do with a spotter as they can help you really find your limit and get back out of it. Your arms should not bend. If you bend your arms then you are just reducing the leverage to compensate and you are short-circuiting the progression you are trying to train.

 

Another option I have seen described by some coaches that I think know their stuff, is to lower from the invert as slowly as you can until you lose it and fall down - crash mat below. I am not super keen on this idea as I think the potential for shoulder overuse and injury is pretty high. But totally up to you if you want to try it - have an ice bath ready for your lats the next day.

 

[marc_leclerc]

thanks for the suggestions guys.. and gals

 

I have it now so that I can hold it in good form with one leg out (no bend at the waist) for about 5 seconds then switch legs and hold that for a few seconds and so on..... its very good training and I find I am climbing more controlled on really steep stuff like roofs or anything requiring a lot of squeezing type power (not sure if its related though) I have also been working holding a straddle planche on paralettes wich is a very good workout...