Tee Major - Urban Calisthenics: Get Ripped and Get Strong with Progressive Street Workouts You Can Do Anywhere

Are you seeking a better way to get fit and strong? If youve picked up this book, youre already halfway there. Welcome to a better way to build a more complete self, both in body and in mind.

The U.S. military is made up of 1.2 million service members and an additional 800,000 volunteers, which means its comprised of an incredibly diverse sampling of people from every corner of the country. There is, however, one thing nearly all of them have in common: theyre very fit. Entry into these elite groups of protectors, where strength and fitness levels are reassessed every 6 to 12 months, requires personnel to spend weeks in boot camps where peak fitness is achieved, in part, through calisthenics.

I honed my calisthenics craft working with multiple branches of the U.S. military. Superior fitness is critical to a soldiers success. A soldiers mission might include a door-to-door patrol in enemy territory while carrying heavy gear and a rucksack, or, as I know from working with troops in Kyrgyzstan, traversing steep mountain ranges to retrieve downed aircraft parts. For this reason, I decided to take my knowledge and apply it to training every branch of the military possible. My mission, simply put, was to maximize the athletic potential in all of my training partners so, no matter their mission, they were prepared.

My grandfather served in the military, and so did many of my uncles and cousins, and Ive always been enamored with the discipline, structure, honor, and selflessness that every military member embodies, all of whom selflessly give themselves and their time to protect and serve those of us at home. However, underneath the battle rattle, these men and women are just like you and me. On top of their jobs, they have duties to fulfill as mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters. The lives of a military member and that of a civilian are both filled with everyday life struggles, but despite all of lifes challenges, getting the job done no matter the circumstances, and reaching our full potential, is what the warrior spirit is about.

Over the years, my approach to training has evolved from using weight resistance and machines to mastering the art of calisthenics. Using the same methods outlined in this book, I was able to accomplish my 44 Best Bodyweight Exercises Ever! video, which has garnered over 12 million views on YouTube. After I released The 44 I embarked on a journey to learn as much about my mind and body as possible. I wanted to know what I was truly capable of, rather than settling for what I already knew I could accomplish. I viewed each training session as a learning experiencean opportunity for Kaizen , which is my adopted personal training philosophy. What I learned was that in order for us to reach our full physical potential, we need to approach our training with discipline, and we can never settle for mediocrity. We have a duty to realize our full human potential, and the more disciplined we are, the better the results will be. Plain and simple.

This book is written for all warriors, not just military, and its designed to systematically elevate your fitness beyond what youve thought possible for yourself. The exercises and workouts in this book will help you develop strength and power, and reach your full potential, using only your mind and a few simple pieces of equipment. These methods have enabled countless men and women to extend their military careers and improve their physical test scores far beyond what they ever expected. Theyve also empowered men and women on the cusp of obesity and life threatening disease to improve their lives, and have given people of all backgrounds a higher quality of life, health, and performance. These methods can do the same for you.

Welcome to our journey.

Tee Major

When you hear the word calisthenics, do you think of push-ups and pull-ups? Im here to tell you that its much more than that, and its a better way to train.

Ironically, todays calisthenics movement was borne out of necessity. It all started in the streets and in urban environments, where people started using what was around them to get strong because they didnt have ready access to gyms and advanced equipment. Instead, bars in parks, flights of stairs, or ledges on buildings became the equipment, and the urban environments where people lived became the gyms. What people started to realize was they were getting incredibly strong, and also incredibly ripped, without a going to a gym or using expensive equipment. People soon realized they only needed simple environments and their own body weight to get as ripped and as strong as someone who was spending hours in a gym, and they were doing it in less time. What was once a necessity was now being embraced through a desire for simplicity and a deeper desire to free oneself from the confines of a gym. As the trend progressed, calisthenics gyms started popping up in parks across the U.S. and around the world, competitions sprouted and grew in number, and eventually calisthenic training became a movement. What was discovered was a new way to train that was simpler, more holistic, and faster than other, more commonly accepted methods of training.

The roots of todays modern calisthenics movement took hold long ago. Before the days of gyms, humans built strong physiques through a more simplistic style of bodyweight training. Actions such as pushing, pulling, lifting, and other dynamic movements were natural components of everyday activities like farming or building, and these movements helped our ancestors build bodies that were strong, balanced, and functional. This ancient precursor to modern day training has been around since the Greeks coined the term ages ago. Kallos, which means beauty, and sthenos, meaning strength, are the roots of the modern term, and its what defines the art form of using your own body weight to maximize human power and athletic ability. Centuries have passed, but the knowledge of the ancients has transcended time, and we can see and feel its influence in modern day systems of conditioning.