L-sits, floor or bars ?

[Spartan300]

I do bodyweight only training and have been adding some BTGB exercises into my routine, what do you guys think about L-sits do you think it's best to buy a set of parallettes or do them from the floor ? I currently can hold the position straight leg for about 15 20 secs, i would think it might be a bit easier on the bars as you're elevated a bit whereas from the floor is quite tough initially, i'm no gymnast but i like bodyweight training as it's a lot more interesting and challenging and i find weights and the like boring and too one dimensional.

[Coach Sommer]

There will be no significant difference between the L-sit on the floor or the bars. My recommendation is to now begin working the L-sit on the rings.

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

[Richard Duelley]

The thing I routinely encounter when I teach others L-sits is the claim that their arms are "to short to do an L-sit on the floor." I thought the same thing at first but it is, in fact, more likely that you would have a lack of strength in the shoulder girdle and core and thus cannot press your shoulders down enough or hold your legs high enough to get your butt off the floor than for you to have short arms. When practicing on the floor strive to pick your feet, legs, and butt all off the floor at the same time. I do this and then pull my feet a little higher and press my hips forward so my legs are at a +5 to +10 degree angle. I personally like training L-sits on the rings best 8) but I do a few holds on the floor as part of my warm up and to just keep the skill fresh

[Spartan300]

One person that really inspires me in my training is Bruce Lee, have any of you seen that black and white photo of him doing an elevated L-sit with his legs pointing way up and his hips pushed way forward? that is one seriously impressive photo, i would think Lee's fitness and condition would be right up there along with a lot of good gymnasts. His strength to bodyweight ratio must have been incredible.

[Crimsoncross]

i would think Lee's fitness and condition would be right up there along with a lot of good gymnasts.

Could he do an iron cross? Could he do the full PL? Full PL pushups? FL? FL pullups?

[Spartan300]

I don't know for sure, but i don't think he would have had too much trouble with any gymnastic move, his power to weight ratio was incredible and he could pull off high reps on one arm chins and regular dips, so with a bit of practice to learn the mechanics, then i would have to say that yes he'd have been able to pull off any gymnastic move. Pound for pound at his peak he was reputed to be one of the strongest men who ever lived don't forget. Have you seen the pic of him doing L-sits? i would bet there's more than a few gymnasts who would have trouble holding that position for the length of time that Lee would hold it.

[Guest TYG]

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[Andrew Browne]

I don't doubt that Bruce Lee would be able to do a planche. He was able to hold a barbell equal to his weight straight armed out in front of him.

By the way, can anyone do an advanced L seat (arms in line with torso and straight spine) on the floor? It doesn't seem like there is enough clearance for that one.

[Nick Van Bockxmeer]

nope save that one for the bars. To get into it, you want to stay in a tight support then try to lift the legs without changing the position of the body. Its actually much harder than V-sit (flexibility pending).

[Spartan300]

I don't doubt that Bruce Lee would be able to do a planche. He was able to hold a barbell equal to his weight straight armed out in front of him.

That's my line of thinking as well, as far as Bruce only doing L-sits, then no that's not quite correct, read "Bruce Lee the Art Of Expressing The Human Body" Bruce was systematic about all his training and recorded everything he did in his diaries, the Flag was also a regular exercise in his routine.

My point really to the person who posted and asked if Lee could do a variety of gymnastic moves was that if he couldn't do them it would not be because of any physical limitations it would only be because the moves were not practiced by him, a period of learning the grooves for any exercise would have removed that and i'm sure he would have excelled at gymnastics if he had wanted to do so.

As far as power and agility look at the scene he filmed in the movie, "Marlowe" i believe it was, with James Garner sitting spellbound behind a desk where he leaps into the air and kicks out the ceiling light, dazzling athleticism.