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Exercises

Gymnastics strength training: the exercises and plans that build skills

Published October 24, 2026

Gymnastics strength training is built on strict bodyweight pulling and pushing, straight-arm strength, trunk shapes and fast legs. The best exercises are the pull-up and front lever raise for bars, the dip, pike push-up and handstand hold for support and inversions, the hollow hold, L-sit and hanging leg raise for core compression, and box jumps, Bulgarian split squats and Nordic curls for takeoffs and landings. Two sessions a week at 2 to 3 reps in reserve fit next to full practice; three harder days fit an off-season block.

  1. Pull-Up Lats
  2. Chest Dip Chest, Triceps
  3. Handstand Hold Shoulders
  4. Front Lever Raise Lats, Abs
  5. Plate Hollow Hold Abs
  6. L-Sit Hold Abs
  7. Bulgarian Split Squat Quads, Glutes
  8. Box Jump Quads, Glutes, Hamstrings

Pulling and straight-arm strength

Bars and rings are pulling events, and gymnasts need two kinds of pull: bent-arm, like a pull-up, and straight-arm, like the front lever. Bent-arm pulling builds the muscle; straight-arm pulling teaches your lats and shoulders to hold your body still with locked elbows, which is what kips, casts and levers demand.

Lats and grip, vertical pull

Pull-Up

Lats

Every bar skill, rope climb and kip swing starts with pulling your own body up, so strict pull-ups are the base the rest of the upper-body work sits on. Adding a vest or a dip belt once you pass 10 clean reps keeps them a strength exercise rather than an endurance one.

How to do it

  1. Hang from the bar with an overhand grip a little wider than your shoulders and your arms fully straight.
  2. Pull your shoulder blades down and slightly together before your elbows bend.
  3. Drive your elbows toward your ribs until your chin clears the bar, legs together and still.
  4. Lower all the way to a straight-arm hang over about two seconds and start the next rep from a dead hang.

Cues

  • Shoulders away from the ears first
  • Legs glued together, no kick
  • Full hang between reps

Common mistakes

  • Kipping or swinging to finish reps: on strength days every rep is strict, so stop the set when the swing starts.
  • Cutting the bottom short: half reps skip the hang position you need for every bar skill.

Swap for: Chin-Up, Weighted Push-Up, Assisted Pull-Up

Build a session with Pull-Up

Lats and trunk, straight-arm pull

Front Lever Raise

Lats, Abs

Raising your straight body from a hang up to horizontal trains the straight-arm pulling strength behind front levers, casts and tap swings. It is one of the hardest exercises here, so most people start with the knees tucked and open the legs as they get stronger.

How to do it

  1. Hang from a bar with an overhand grip, arms straight and shoulders pulled down.
  2. Brace your trunk and tuck your knees, or keep your legs straight if you are strong enough.
  3. Pull the bar down toward your hips with straight arms, letting your body rise until it reaches horizontal.
  4. Lower back to the hang under control over two to three seconds and repeat.

Cues

  • Arms stay locked
  • Press the bar toward your hips
  • Hips level with shoulders at the top

Common mistakes

  • Bending the elbows to cheat the body up: keep the arms straight and shorten the lever by tucking more instead.
  • Letting the hips sag below the line: stop the rep at the height you can hold flat.

Swap for: Hanging Leg Raise, Straight-Arm Pulldown, Back Lever

Build a session with Front Lever Raise

Pushing, support and handstand strength

Support on bars and beam, and every handstand, rely on locked arms and shoulders that push tall. The dip loads the support position, the pike push-up builds overhead pressing before a full inversion, and timed handstand holds train your shoulders to stay open and stacked.

Chest, triceps and support strength

Chest Dip

Chest, Triceps

Supporting your body over straight arms is the starting point of every bar, beam and parallel-bar skill, and the dip trains that same lockout with a deep, loaded bend. It is the press that carries over most directly to support work.

How to do it

  1. Grip the dip bars and jump to a support position, arms locked and shoulders pushed down away from your ears.
  2. Lean your torso slightly forward and bend your elbows, letting them travel back rather than flaring out.
  3. Lower until your shoulders sit just below your elbows.
  4. Press back up to a full lockout and hold the support for a beat before the next rep.

Cues

  • Tall support at the top
  • Elbows back, not out
  • Lock out every rep

Common mistakes

  • Sinking far below parallel with the shoulders rolling forward: stop at the depth where you can keep your chest open.
  • Soft elbows at the top: the locked support is half the point for a gymnast.

Swap for: Bench Dip, Machine Chest Dip, Close-Grip Push-Up

Build a session with Chest Dip

Shoulders, overhead press in an inverted position

Pike Push-Up

Shoulders

With your hips high and your head traveling toward the floor, the pike push-up is a pressing pattern that looks like a handstand push-up with your feet still on the floor. It builds the overhead strength for handstands and presses before you can hold a full inversion.

How to do it

  1. Start in a push-up position, then walk your feet in until your hips are high and your body makes an upside-down V.
  2. Set your hands a little wider than your shoulders and look back toward your feet.
  3. Bend your elbows and lower the top of your head toward a spot just in front of your hands.
  4. Press the floor away until your arms are straight and your shoulders push up toward your ears.

Cues

  • Hips stay high
  • Head lands in front of the hands
  • Push tall at the top

Common mistakes

  • Letting the hips drop until it turns into a regular push-up: walk the feet closer and keep the V shape.
  • Elbows flaring straight out to the sides: keep them angled back at about 45 degrees.

Swap for: Handstand Hold, Dumbbell Shoulder Press, Decline Push-Up

Build a session with Pike Push-Up

Shoulders and full-body line, inverted hold

Handstand Hold

Shoulders

Holding a straight handstand trains the stacked line of wrists, shoulders, hips and feet that every handspring, walkover and press needs. Timed holds build the shoulder endurance and the body tension to stay there without arching.

How to do it

  1. Place your hands about shoulder-width apart, fingers spread, close to a wall or in open space if you can already balance.
  2. Kick up one leg at a time until both feet meet overhead.
  3. Push the floor away so your shoulders open fully, squeeze your legs together, and tuck your ribs in so your back stays flat.
  4. Hold for the target time, then come down one leg at a time.

Cues

  • Push the floor away
  • Ribs in, glutes tight
  • Fingers grip to steer

Common mistakes

  • Arching into a banana shape: tighten your abs and point your toes up, and use the wall if the line falls apart.
  • Sinking into the shoulders: a passive handstand loads the joint instead of the muscles, so end the hold when you can no longer push tall.

Swap for: Pike Push-Up, Dumbbell Single-Arm Overhead Carry, L-Sit Hold

Build a session with Handstand Hold

Hollow body and compression

Two trunk shapes run through all of gymnastics: the hollow, where your abs keep the lower back flat, and compression, where your hip flexors pull your legs close to your torso. Train both with holds and strict hanging raises rather than crunches, since the sport asks you to hold shapes, not curl up.

Abs, hollow body shape

Plate Hollow Hold

Abs

The hollow body is the shape gymnasts hold in every swing, jump and handstand, and holding a plate overhead lengthens the lever so it stays hard as you improve. It teaches you to keep your lower back pinned while your arms and legs reach away.

How to do it

  1. Lie on your back holding a light plate with both hands, arms straight above your chest.
  2. Press your lower back into the floor and lift your shoulders and straight legs a few inches off it.
  3. Reach the plate back until your arms are beside your ears, keeping the lower back down.
  4. Hold the shape for the target time, then lower everything to the floor.

Cues

  • Lower back stays glued down
  • Long arms, pointed toes
  • Breathe without letting go of the shape

Common mistakes

  • Letting the lower back peel off the floor as you tire: raise the legs a little higher or bring the plate forward.
  • Holding your breath for the whole set: take short breaths through the hold.

Swap for: L-Sit Hold, Dead Bug, Landmine Hollow Hold

Build a session with Plate Hollow Hold

Hip flexors and abs, compression hold

L-Sit Hold

Abs

The L-sit makes your hip flexors lift your straight legs while your arms hold you up, which is the compression strength needed for pikes, straddle presses and clean leg positions on bars. Short, hard holds count more than long, sloppy ones.

How to do it

  1. Sit between parallettes, dip bars or two sturdy blocks and place your hands beside your hips.
  2. Push down through straight arms until your hips lift off the floor and your shoulders drop away from your ears.
  3. Lift your straight legs until they are level with the floor, toes pointed.
  4. Hold for the target time, then lower your legs and sit down with control.

Cues

  • Shoulders down, arms locked
  • Knees locked, toes pointed
  • Lean very slightly forward

Common mistakes

  • Bending the knees as the hold gets hard: tuck both knees on purpose and hold the tuck instead of a sagging L.
  • Shrugging up toward the ears: press down until your neck looks long.

Swap for: Hanging Leg Raise, Plate Hollow Hold, Lying Knee Raise

Build a session with L-Sit Hold

Abs and hip flexors, hanging compression

Hanging Leg Raise

Abs

Lifting straight legs from a hang builds the compression for toes-to-bar, kips and pike positions on bars, and doubles as grip work. Done strictly, it is one of the best trunk exercises a gymnast can do with a single bar.

How to do it

  1. Take an overhand grip on the bar and hang with straight arms and your shoulders active.
  2. Brace your abs and lift your straight legs in front of you without swinging.
  3. Raise them until your feet reach at least hip height, or toward the bar if you can.
  4. Lower slowly to the hang and stop any swing before the next rep.

Cues

  • No swing, no kip
  • Curl the pelvis up at the top
  • Slow on the way down

Common mistakes

  • Swinging the legs up with momentum: pause in the hang between reps.
  • Bending the knees more and more: switch to knee raises for the rest of the set rather than letting the form slide.

Swap for: Hanging Knee Raise, Captain's Chair Knee Raise, L-Sit Hold

Build a session with Hanging Leg Raise

Leg power and landings

Tumbling, vault and leaps need legs that produce force fast and take it back on landing. Pair one explosive move with one heavy single-leg exercise and one hamstring exercise that trains braking, and keep jump volume low since practice already includes hundreds of takeoffs and landings.

Lower-body power, jump takeoff

Box Jump

Quads, Glutes, Hamstrings

Gymnastics scores reward height on vault, tumbling and leaps, and box jumps train the same fast triple extension with a soft, controlled landing. Few, crisp jumps go first in a session while your legs are fresh.

How to do it

  1. Stand about a foot from a sturdy box feet roughly under your hips.
  2. Swing your arms back as you dip into a quarter squat.
  3. Swing the arms forward and jump up, landing softly on the box with both feet flat and knees bent.
  4. Stand tall on top, then step down rather than jumping down.

Cues

  • Quick dip, big arm swing
  • Land quiet
  • Step down every rep

Common mistakes

  • Choosing a box so high you land in a deep squat: the box measures your jump, so pick one you land on with knees only slightly bent.
  • Rushing reps: reset fully between jumps so each one is maximal.

Swap for: Jump Squat, Single-Leg Box Jump, Frog Jump

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Quads and glutes, single-leg strength

Bulgarian Split Squat

Quads, Glutes

Every vault run, tumbling takeoff and landing happens with uneven loading between your legs, and the rear-foot-elevated split squat trains each leg alone through a deep range. Dumbbells make it easy to load progressively without a barbell on your back.

How to do it

  1. Hold dumbbells at your sides, stand about two feet ahead of a bench, and rest the top of your rear foot on it.
  2. Lower straight down so the front thigh ends near level with the floor and the rear knee hovers close to the floor.
  3. Keep your front knee tracking over your toes and your torso upright or slightly forward.
  4. Drive through the front foot to stand, finish all reps, then switch legs.

Cues

  • Front foot does the work
  • Straight down, straight up
  • Knee follows the toes

Common mistakes

  • Standing too close to the bench, which pushes the front knee far forward: hop the front foot out until you can reach full depth.
  • Pushing off the back foot: it only rests there for balance.

Swap for: Dumbbell Split Squat, Goblet Squat, Step-Up

Build a session with Bulgarian Split Squat

Hamstrings, lowering strength

Nordic Hamstring Curl

Hamstrings

Your hamstrings absorb hard braking forces on every punch, landing and sprint down the vault runway, and the Nordic curl loads them heavily while they lengthen. A partner holds your ankles, and you lower yourself as slowly as you can.

How to do it

  1. Kneel on a pad with a partner holding your ankles firmly to the floor.
  2. Keep a straight line from knees to shoulders and cross your arms or hold your hands in front of your chest.
  3. Lean forward slowly from the knees, fighting the fall with your hamstrings for as long as you can.
  4. Catch yourself with your hands, push back up lightly, and return to the start for the next rep.

Cues

  • Hips stay in line with the body
  • Fight every inch on the way down
  • Push off the floor to come back up

Common mistakes

  • Bending at the hips to make it easier: the line from knee to shoulder stays straight the whole way.
  • Dropping fast once you pass halfway: count the lowering and aim to make it a little longer each week.

Swap for: Glute Ham Raise, Lying Leg Curl, Stability Ball Leg Curl

Build a session with Nordic Hamstring Curl

Put them together: example sessions

Each session below picks from the exercises above for one situation, with the sets, reps, rest and RIR filled in. Open one in the session builder to change a pick, price it from a recent set, and add it to RIRLift.

Session 1

Two short sessions next to full practice

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets21 a week
  • Per workout~25 min
  • EquipmentPull-Up Bar, Dip Bar, Barbells, Plyo Box +1

You train in the gym three or more days a week for skills and routines, and you have two extra windows of about 40 minutes for strength.

Practice already loads your wrists, shoulders and legs hard, so these sessions keep each exercise at 2 to 3 reps in reserve, use 2 to 3 sets, and put jumps first only on the leg day. Session A is upper body and trunk with 13 working sets; session B is legs and trunk with 12. Ending sets short of failure means you leave with the strength stimulus and still have fresh shoulders for the next practice.

A: Upper and trunk
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Pull-UpStrict. Dead hang every rep. 3 × 4–8 2 2:30 min
Chest DipHold the locked support 1 s. 3 × 5–10 2 2 min
Pike Push-UpHips high. Head in front of hands. 3 × 6–10 2 90 s
Plate Hollow HoldSeconds. Light plate. 2 × 20–40 2 1 min

Open A: Upper and trunk in the session builder

B: Legs and trunk
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Box JumpStep down. Reset fully. 3 × 3–5 3 90 s
Bulgarian Split SquatPer leg. 3 × 6–10 2 90 s
Nordic Hamstring CurlPartner on ankles. Slow lower. 2 × 3–6 2 2 min
Hanging Leg RaiseNo swing. 2 × 6–12 2 90 s

Open B: Legs and trunk in the session builder

How to run it
Do A and B on separate days, ideally after a lighter skills practice or on a day without one. Leave at least one day between B and a hard tumbling or vault session.
How to progress
Add one rep per set each week at the same reps in reserve. When the pull-up or dip hits 8 strict reps at 2 in reserve, add a small weight; for holds, add 5 seconds once every set reaches the top of the range.
Open in the session builder

Session 2

Three days in the off-season or a summer block

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts3× a week
  • Working sets39 a week
  • Per workout~35 min
  • EquipmentPull-Up Bar, Barbells, Dip Bar, Plyo Box +1

Competition is weeks away, practice volume is lower, and you have room for three real strength sessions a week to build a base.

With less practice load, sets move closer to failure at 1 to 2 reps in reserve and each session runs 14 to 15 working sets. The three days split pulling and straight-arm work, pressing and handstands, and legs, so each part gets a hard day and two days of rest before it is trained again.

Pull
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Pull-UpAdd weight past 8 strict reps. 4 × 4–8 1 2:30 min
Front Lever RaiseTuck as needed. Arms locked. 4 × 3–6 2 2:30 min
Hanging Leg RaiseStrict. 3 × 6–12 1 90 s
Plate Hollow HoldSeconds. 3 × 20–45 1 1 min

Open Pull in the session builder

Push
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Chest DipAdd weight past 10 reps. 4 × 5–10 1 2 min
Pike Push-UpElevate feet as it gets easy. 4 × 6–12 1 90 s
Handstand HoldSeconds. Wall if needed. 3 × 20–45 2 90 s
L-Sit HoldSeconds. Tuck if the L sags. 3 × 10–25 1 1 min

Open Push in the session builder

Legs
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Box JumpMax height, soft landing. 4 × 3–5 3 90 s
Bulgarian Split SquatPer leg. 4 × 6–10 1 2 min
Nordic Hamstring CurlSlow lower. 3 × 3–6 1 2:30 min

Open Legs in the session builder

How to run it
Run Pull, Push and Legs on non-consecutive days, such as Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Do skills practice after the session or on the off days.
How to progress
Add reps until each set reaches the top of its range at the target reps in reserve, then add load to pull-ups, dips and split squats. For the front lever raise, move from tucked knees to one leg extended, then both, only when you can lower every rep slowly with straight arms.
Open in the session builder

Session 3

New to strength work, building the basics

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets24 a week
  • Per workout~30 min
  • EquipmentBarbells, Pull-Up Bar, Dumbbells

You are a younger gymnast, an adult returning to the sport, or someone who has done skills but never structured strength training, and strict pull-ups or dips are still a struggle.

This plan uses the most learnable versions and keeps every set at 2 to 3 reps in reserve so you finish each rep in clean form. One full-body session twice a week with 10 working sets builds the habit and the base without eating into practice energy. Holds come before the harder bar work so the hollow and support shapes are learned first.

Full body
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Plate Hollow HoldSeconds. No plate at first. 2 × 15–30 3 1 min
Pull-UpOr slow lowerings from the top. 3 × 2–6 2 2 min
Pike Push-UpHips high. 3 × 5–10 2 90 s
Bulgarian Split SquatPer leg. Bodyweight to start. 2 × 6–10 3 90 s
L-Sit HoldSeconds. Knees tucked is fine. 2 × 10–20 2 1 min
How to run it
Do the same session twice a week with two or three days between. If a strict pull-up is not there yet, do slow lowerings from the top for the rep range instead.
How to progress
Add a rep or 5 seconds of hold time each week. When pull-ups reach 6 strict reps and dips reach 8, move to the in-season plan.
Open in the session builder

Make it fit you

Questions

What strength training do gymnasts do?

Mostly bodyweight work done strictly: pull-ups, dips, handstand and pike presses, straight-arm pulling like front lever raises, and holds for the hollow and L-sit shapes. Legs get jumps plus single-leg and hamstring work. Many gymnasts also add light weights, such as a vest on pull-ups or dumbbells on split squats, once bodyweight reps get easy.

Does gymnastics help with strength?

Yes. Holding your body in handstands, supports and swings builds a lot of relative strength, especially in the shoulders, back and trunk. Strength sessions outside practice add the parts skill work leaves out, such as loaded single-leg strength and hamstring braking, and let you push specific weak links.

How many days a week should a gymnast lift?

Two short sessions are enough during heavy practice periods, with every set ending 2 to 3 reps short of failure. In an off-season or lighter block, three sessions a week at 1 to 2 reps in reserve build more strength without crowding out skill work.

Should gymnasts lift weights?

Yes, in sensible amounts. Weights let you keep progressing once bodyweight exercises stop being hard, and they are the easiest way to load the legs. The sessions here add weight gradually to pull-ups, dips and split squats and keep sets short of failure.

What are the hardest gymnastics strength exercises?

Straight-arm holds and raises like the front lever, back lever and planche are the hardest because your arms stay locked and your body acts as a long lever. Build them with tucked versions and strict pull-ups and dips before you try the full shapes.