This calisthenics (bodyweight) arm workout can be performed at home, with no weights whatsoever, and minimal equipment. The best part of all is that there are no pull-ups required.
Calisthenics arm workout without a pull-up bar.
I have a vast array of bodyweight/calisthenic workouts, but there are few that don’t require a pull-up bar for upper body.
Why? Well, pull-ups are, frankly, awesome.
They work the lats (latissimus dorsi muscles) like nobody’s business, the triceps, biceps and abs. And while it doesn’t focus on the other muscles, it works muscles in the entire body (even your legs) as you work to lift your body upwards. I mean come ON.
On top of that, if you pull-up to a park or a gym and bust some out, you (meaning I) feel pretty badass—as a woman, yes, but also just as a person. Pull-ups are hard. I have a whole post on them here, and how to progress in them.
But even once you can do pull-ups, you can’t do that many. And sometimes it’s just too much. Pull-ups are the real diva of your workout. I mean, everything has to work around them. You often can’t just bust them out and get them over with, either; as you get going, you can only do two or one at a time, and it can bust up your rhythm.
But sometimes you are on vacation, at your mom’s house, or you just don’t feel like dealing. So, you need a non-pull-up option. Enter this workout.
What about pulling exercises and back exercises?
Ideally, if you’re doing calisthenics on a regular basis, you need to do some pull-ups, Aussie pull-ups or something that works your back. If not for balance, then just for workout variety and the joy of building your skillset.
Calisthenics is amazing, but can feel limiting (it’s not, and that’s your opportunity to get creative, but bear with me).
For the upper body, you have push-ups, and you have pull-ups. That’s it (and that might be all you need.) You have dips, yes, but that’s another pushing exercise that targets the chest and triceps. Handstands and shoulder presses? Same thing, just focusing on the shoulders and triceps.
The great thing is that you can do infinite variations on these two exercises. So, cutting out one entire family (the pulling family) won’t benefit you in the long run.
Buuuut… you don’t need to do them all the time, every single workout. So, work on those pull-ups, or substitute them with Aussie pull-ups if they’re too difficult for now. You can take a breather one in a while with this calisthenics arm (and core) workout, which should also give your cardiovascular system a decent run for its money.
Balance.
Because we don’t have a pulling or back-focused exercise today, I threw in some ab exercises to give a rest from all the pushing. We have two kinds of shoulder presses: elevated (or on the balance ball) shoulder presses, and scorpio push-ups.
Originally, I did this workout with the shoulder presses elevated on the balance ball. If you have one, great! This is more of an advanced move, but it gives you a decent amount of instability to give your core an extra challenge as you work those shoulders. It also forces you to rest more of your bodyweight on your shoulders and upper body, and less on your toes.
I did not have a balance ball, so I just did them elevated. This puts extra stress on the shoulders (more than regular shoulder presses), but lacks the instability of the balance ball. That’s just fine for now, as it will focus more of our attention on strength.
Scorpio push-ups are something I stole from Zuzka Light back in her Bodyrock days. It’s a shoulder press movement paired with a reptile, which puts extra stress on one side as you push back up. It also works your core.
“Pillow” passes.
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The other exercise that I originally used a balance ball for was the balance ball pass, which is a standard ab move, but honestly–-you just need something big and light. I used a pillow. If you have nothing, you could just do v-ups.
Calisthenics workouts are amazing for arms.
Look, I don’t mean to toot my own horn, but I get more compliments on my arms than anything else, and I attribute it all to calisthenics. If you want lean, strong, shapely arms, calisthenics is amazing. And while pull-ups do work the arms, the lats do mosts of the heavy lifting. Also, the difficulty of pull-ups limits the amount you can do.
While push-ups and shoulder presses (sometimes called pike presses) are still difficult, they’re easier and more modifiable. Plus, they target the arms (triceps) nicely.
So if you’re ready to sculpt those arms, let’s jump into this workout!
Instructions.
Curious Conquistador Workout
(Honestly, I don’t know why I named it this; I just like to name things.)
Part 1:
20 min countdown
- Elevated (or balance ball) shoulder presses – 12
- Rolling knee-to-chest – 12
- Scorpio push-ups L – 6
- Scorpio push-ups R – 6
- Pillow/balance ball passes – 6
Part 2:
40&20×5
- Reptile push-ups
- Iso reptiles/Reptile plank
Video instructions.
Hi, Mom! I’m on TV! Check out my instructional video here:
Elevated (or balance ball) shoulder presses.
From pike position with hands on floor and feet up on chair, step or balance ball, and your butt in air, lower your head to the floor by bending your elbows, then push yourself back up.
Rolling knee-to-chests.
Get into hollow position. Roll to one hip and bring knees in towards your chest, crunching your abs and the obliques. Repeat, rolling to each side.
Scorpio push-ups.
From pike position with one leg in the air, lower your head to the ground by bending your elbows while bringing your knee towards the same side elbow, like a reptile. Push back up to starting position.
Pillow/balance ball passes.
Get into hollow position with a balance ball (or a pillow or something similar) between your hands, held off the floor above your head. Lift your hands with the pillow/balance ball up as you bring your feet up, then meet them both and transfer the pillow/balance ball to your feet, and bring your feet down towards the floor, but don’t rest them. Bring your feet back up to meet your hands, transferring the pillow/balance ball back into your hands and back up over your head.
Reptile push-ups.
From a plank, lower your chest to the ground while bringing one knee out and forward towards your elbow. Return to starting position as you push back up.
Isometric reptiles/Reptile plank.
Get into a plank position on your elbows. Bring one knee out and forward towards your elbow (same movement as with the reptile push-up). Replace leg and repeat on opposite site.
How’d you do?
How do your arms feel after this calisthenics arm workout?
I found part 2 extremely hard. I had to take many, many breaks. Part 1 I did 5 rounds exactly.
Let me know how you did in the comments! Happy workouting!