To get your workout to the next level be sure to invest in exercise rings or do you have the feeling your body is developing uneven or are you in need of a bigger challenge. Be sure to keep reading. I will tell you about why in both situations you will benefit from buying exercise rings. I will first elaborate on both subjects before we get into the benefits a little more.

Unbalanced muscles

Especially when you come from a gym background and your main goal was to look good, there is a big chance some of your muscles are developed without proper balance. There can more than one way a part of your body is unbalanced. Most muscles in the body have both a right part and a left part. Your biceps, your quads, and your lats are just examples of those muscles that always come in two. There can be a difference between the left and right part of the body. Next to left and right, there can also be a difference between the back and the front of the body. For the last one, probably everyone remembers the phrase; “Never skip leg day”, exactly the difference in the lower and upper body.

The other way the body can be unbalanced happens when a muscle group is developed over time without changing the routine. One of the biggest unbalanced muscle groups within calisthenics athletes is the shoulder. The front delt of the shoulder is the one that is the biggest focus within calisthenics workout routines. Your push-ups and the front lever are both examples of exercises where the front delt is focused heavily. Not adding variety to your routine will develop a big imbalance between the front delt and the other two delts. Therefore a muscle group imbalance may occur.

Why are rings a good way to remove these unbalanced muscles? Doing the same exercises on the rings will not work sudden miracles and not create unbalanced muscles. The key here will always be variety!

Just like your dumbbells, rings will activate all the muscles involved in the movement, because your body needs not only to move the object in a certain motion it also needs to keep it from moving in any other direction. The great thing when doing calisthenics is that your whole body is the weight and therefore the exercises mentioned before need to be done by engaging the whole body! If you do not engage the whole body the exercise will only get harder.

A bigger challenge, not to be underestimated!

Are you considering training with rings, be sure to consider the following first. Training with them is not to be underestimated. By now there is a big chance you are able to do a good amount of reps on the dip bars and a good amount of pull-ups. Have you ever tried doing these on the rings? If not you’ll be surprised about how much harder these exercises get once you try to perform them hanging from the rings.

Training on rings for half an hour can be just as hard as doing the same routine on a fixed station. This reason alone should have you motivated to buy your own set of rings. Apart from them not being fixed and creating a harder way of performing a certain exercise, there is another reason why you should consider adding the rings into your training routine.

The rings are movable and because of this very reason it allows more wiggle room and might fit your body better. Each and everybody is built differently and therefore this extra room might give a more comfortable way of exercising while increasing intensity.

The rings force your body to stabilize as mentioned before and because it needs to stabilize it needs a bigger amount of strength to be able to do the exercise. Are you up for the task?

Building that core!

As mentioned before the rings activate the whole body and the core is the part of the body that needs to work the hardest to prevent your body from moving in the wrong direction. Using rings will allow you to create a lot of strength within the core muscles. First off by the engagement but also because the rings allow you to perform certain core exercises. Leg raises and the L-sit are your starting point when it comes to creating a strong core on the rings.

Having a strong core will benefit you greatly and allows you to improve all your advanced movements. A strong core can be the most important thing when it comes to getting to that next level! Apart from that, there are two more reasons why I like having a strong core.

Personally, I have struggled with my posture and still do, due to the work office work I do and the posture I inherited from my parents. Strengthening my core greatly benefited me and allowed me to create a better posture. I’m still working on this as we speak and to be honest, I should focus on it more than I do at the moment. This will also apply to you and is one of the few big steps you can take to a better posture!

The other reason is preventing back pain, when you strengthen the core part of your body it will allow you to prevent and take away back pain, especially lower back pain. A lot of people work at the office and sit down for a long time without moving the body or focus on a good posture. Strengthening your core makes sure your body can coop with this seating for a longer amount of time. Keep in mind though this should not be your focus, be sure to have a good seating position and get up to get some coffee or take a small break to prevent serious issues.

The perfect travel buddy

Since the rings are so versatile and allow for a lot of added variety they are perfect to take on your next trip. Usually, you can find a bar park, playground or gym to start using your rings right away. Just attach them to a bar and start exercising!

Next, to their versatility they are very lightweight and small so you don’t need to worry about whether they will fit into your suitcase. No need to skip your training, no matter where you are!

Things to keep in mind

Before you start to exercise with the rings make sure your body is ready. Exercising with rings is very hard and therefore you should make sure you are strong enough before you start. Overloading the body is easily done and rings are no exception when it comes to this matter. Test out some basic movements like a push-up or a pull up on the rings before even considering any of the other, harder movements.

Always do a proper warm up before you start. Especially once someone gets a bit older the body needs a warm up more than ever before to be ready and pump out those hard movements. Take care of your body and it will take care of you!

The last thing to keep in mind is your body’s flexibility. Without the proper flexibility, you won’t be able to use a full range of motion. This will not only decrease the effectiveness of the training but also increase the risk of injuries. Imagine doing a skin the cat movement without having the proper room to perform this exercise.

The benefits of exercise rings

Let me sum up the potential benefits of using the rings. First of all, you use it to get rid of muscle imbalances. When using exercise rings the body needs to engage the whole body in order to perform the exercise in perfect form.

Next to that, they will create a much harder challenge than your fixed bar or the floor. Therefore, using rings can’t be underestimated. They should not be the first piece of equipment in your journey of calisthenics. Make sure you are strong enough and have enough flexibility!

Thank you for reading and please leave any questions or feedback below I’ll be sure to get back to you.