Overcoming Gravity Review: Does It Live Up To The Hype? 

I originally got this book off of a recommendation from my friend with no information about it, other than it fit within what I was already doing. I do want to point out that his first planche progression is the frog-stand which is far easier than the tucked planche, 2 progressions later. Overall this hit many aspects of the book accurately. Pros: Lots of information for understanding the How's and Why's different exercises and routines work the way they do. Detailed information for every exercise. Teaches you how to set your fitness goals in a way that is "S-M-A-R-T", thus allowing you to develop a routine / program for yourself. The progression charts are designed to show you where you should be when you are at a certain level. (e. Beginner lvl 3 can do a, b, c... x, y, z exercises if all groups are equally strong) Thus giving someone an idea of what exercises to develop to get to the next level or where to catch up if they're not as strong in a certain area. And many more. Cons: It is a massive amount of information to process. Theory, exercise science, pre-habilitation, goal setting, routine developement, Meso-cycles, etc. Then, you get to the progressions, which is the other half of the book. It is definitely a struggle for beginners, especially for those learning on their own. Coaching goes a long way when starting calisthenics as it can be difficult to find those sweet spots in various exercises alone. Since getting this book, I learned so much that allowed me to progress towards my own goals. My advantage was that I already had some previous strength work and conditioning from other programs. My advise would be, if you want to go full hardcore into calisthenics, but are a beginner, start with the free systems online (like your channel) and develop a foundation. Then, if you want more 'on your own' development, get this book. If / when you get this book, there is a subreddit r/overcominggravity that Steven Low is a moderator. The community is very helpful and he even chimes in with his advise and opinions when people come up with a routine.

lol, love the "2 minutes later..."

I got this book on a whim in March when Texas started it's quarantine because I felt like I had a basic idea of programming from you and other channels, but not enough to feel 100% confident. As I started reading, I realized that this was exactly the information I needed. I forced myself to read through this as fast as possible so I could implement it into my programming (I had only been strength training since November of last year). My progress has been fantastic, and I feel like I know what to do in so many scenarios now. I had noticed early on that the legs portion was lacking, so after enjoying a couple of mesocycles of pistol squats, I kind of transformed lower body into a traditional weightlifting routine. I was still able to apply the programming principles to set it up, so I would say even if gymnastics aren't 100% your goal, the information is still pretty helpful.

Uderstanding allows for improvisation, imporvisation allows for adaptation, and adapting workout to your specific situation is best way to stick with it. Overcoming Gravity gives you understanding.

Agree with your assessment of the book. As someone who's only a couple of years into calisthenics (and not religiously, so I'd consider myself beginner+) I found the book overwhelming but also rich in information. I really appreciate gymnastics and wish I could do a lot of that, but like you, I'm more into the fun aspect.

It's a phenomenal book. The section on generalised strategies for exercise progression helped me break through barriers. There are places where the writing could be clearer and benefited from closer editing. For example, he introduces arrows in exercise notation in one chapter but doesn't explain what that means until the next chapter! A good editor would have caught that. Overall, it shouldn't be your introduction to calesthethis but perhaps your second book.

Look again. Tuck Planche is 3rd progression. 1st Frog Stand, 2nd Straight Arm Frog Stand

Nice timing, I just d̶o̶w̶n̶l̶o̶a̶d̶e̶d̶ ̶i̶l̶e̶g̶a̶l̶l̶y̶ bought the book 2 days ago.

Thank you Ryan for your supportive, proactive, and impartial review on "Overcoming Gravity". I appreciate your kudos to everyone for supporting your channel. I am currently waiting to receive my first T-shirt (Push, Pull, Squat, Hinge) I ordered a week ago.....very excited :). Take care....keep them coming. Trev

You definitely hit the nail on the head. Coming from a beginner looking to get into calisthenics that is exactly how the book is. It's heavy on information but like you said, it's good for helping work through injuries, working around them, programming, understanding why you program that way, and what I use it for most, is the extensive breakdowns for movement progressions. Overall, good video and good breakdown! Love your content man. I really appreciate the flow movement videos you have made. Your follow alongs are great and I enjoy them a bunch. Hope to see more in the future if you're feeling it!

well done on growing like crazy! I've been here since you had tens of thousands of subs and participated in your 100K subs giveaway.

Omg i literally searched calisthenics book on google 5 min ago and i found the book, now i enter in youtube and i find your video

I've always wanted to check out this book. Glad to hear your review on it. I bought the book complete calisthenics before I saw overcoming gravity. It's a good book but wish I would've gotten overcoming gravity instead.

What other books would you recommend for beginning calisthenics, I am not new to gym based training but love bodyweight training....

Currently i am reading "How not to die" which i would highly recommend as well and then this one.

Been subbed for a while dude! your content is always top notch! Grats on almost 250k Subs!

I just bought this book. It's huge!

just started adult gymnastics,so going of your review i will give it a go,thanks

Good review, could you do “Never Gymless” by Ross Enameit next? I think it’s pretty underrated myself but would love to get your thoughts

Fully agree with your comments. It’s quite an intense read at times but nevertheless some really useful stuff! I still haven’t got to the exercise progressions after a few months of reading it when I can. I would also highly recommend but it is a little pricey.

Clicking Like before I watched. Been waiting for this one for a year.

Great video, maybe your next review can be on the book: HOW TO BE A SUPPLE LEOPARD; i"m curious about your take on it. thankyou for your informative videos.

Very informative and well explained.. review

Im 40, 180 cm, 105kgs. 19% bf Im a former pro rugby player and have been training since I was 15. I have a lot of muscle and gain and maintain it easy. I can currently deadlift 220kg 1rm, bench 145kg, squat 160, 11 pull ups, and 85kgs on the overhead press. So I have a good strength base. The thing is I want to get smaller. My diet is in check but I really dont want to have that boldybuilder type physique and just want to go back to being more athletic. My question is do you recommend this book, and calesthenics in general, for someone like me. Thanks

I have the first edition, I love it.

Ever thought about reaching out to Steven and seeing if he'd be willing to do a youtube interview with you? I think that'd make great content. I saw that Antranik did one with him a few years back.

Hey bro!! thanks for the review of the book, now I have an idea of what it is about, now do you recommend other books about calisthenics??? is there any other books out there?? Thank you!!!

Can you review the Reddit Recommended Routine?

Thank you for this review. You say that the book is not going to show a beginner a step-by-step program. What book would you recommend in that regard? As a beginner, I would like the most basic beginnings with step by step progressions to the advanced stuff. Does that exist? Thank you!

when you criticize convict conditioning: lol so dumb a whole category for handstand? when you criticize overcoming gravity: a whole category for handstand wow Pog i've never seen this before *btw all major strength programs include the big 4 which is squat bench deadlift military press, which is exactly the same as handstand, push, pull, legs and core, so i don't understand why you said you've never seen this combination before as it's literally the most popular one

You are the Johnny Sin calisthenics version

Video was helpful for sure. If I wanted a book to learn how to plan a program for myself (8weeks) - would this be the best resource in your opinion ?

Thanks for the advice I would only, buy because for the programming part. Could you recomend or maybe review a book about how to make a program. Because everything I find in the Internet is: do this plan for this much weeks and not more. Maybe it'a also because my poor googeling skills.

Please suggest a book that explains calisthenics fundamentals, techniques, progression and variations which is not like gymnastic style calisthenics..

If you simply want to get started with a workout program, check out the free Reddit recommended routine which Steven Low contributed to! If you want the full in depth on how that program was designed, how you would customize it, and what principles apply to it, buy the book

Hey Ryan I would like it if you did a review on Super functional training by the Bioneer( a RU-vidr).

I can only have a hand on the first edition of this book . Is the first ed is also resourceful as second ?

I bought this book awhile back but haven’t really opened it up.

Thank you for your review, I'm training calisthenics for 8 months but I'm doing bad in the progressions and I want to expand my knowledge to learn all the Cali-Skills. Does the book have all the techniques or tips for the skills (Muscle Up, Handstand + Variations, Planche, Front Lever, Back Lever, V-Sit, Manna, Human Flag)? Kind Regards ;)

Hi Ryan, I was going to mention about your t-shirt...I didn't know you had merchandise. Congratulations, very cool and clever designs. Best of luck :) Can I ask you what size are you wearing in the video? And your height? It will be helpful when choosing for my husband...he seems to have your same body. Thanks!

Hi Ryan, If i am doing the beginner routine with the 3 workouts per week with push/pull/squat/hinge, how do i implement extra exercises such as negative pull-ups into my routine?

What's the "old school" style of bodyweight/calisthenic training that you mention in comparison to the more gymnastic-oriented workout?

Do you have any nutrition book to recommend? Thx

overcoming bad posture what is your thoughts on that

The book doesn't recommend to start with the tuck planche.

I've thought about buying this book. It's a popular Calisthenics book.

Does the book include anything about how to combine BW training with weights? I’m a barbell-junkie looking to get started with BW training but I believe the magic bullet is the combination of them both…

I'm reading the book and I'm currently on page 111. I'm a beginner to bodyweight training and I totally agree with you that it's a lot of information for a beginner 😅 But all in all it's a great book with a lot of useful informations.👍 I'm also looking/reading thru the book Complete Calisthenics The Ultimate Guide To Bodyweight Exercises by Ashley Kalym. I don't know if you know the book or already did a review of it, if not I would like to hear your thoughts about it. Thanks Ryan 😀

@Minus The Gym Hii uncle I am 14 year old and I can do frog stand I want to convert my frog stand to handstand what I should do?

Where to see the 2 minutes cut parts. :D

plant-based diet, you said? don't you have to calculat A LOT for this? I mean, in an impractical way? And can you make do without expensive and exotic stuff like moringa or spirulina etc?

Start with convict conditioning 1 then jumpt into this. Boom, ten years of training in one comment.

Will you make a tutorial of planche?

I have this book :)

Could you please review: YOU ARE YOUR OWN GYM by Mark Lauren

"2 minutes later"😂.. That's a first in RU-vid

Lol this is why I own the kindle version ?

The main downside of this book is neglecting core workout which is the main muscle for calisthenics

Maranantha

The guy who disliked this thought planche was an appropriate beginner skill.

Where did U get ur shirt from bro 🤣

I think gymnastics is way much harder than calisthenics , but cali is love 💗 so who cares

I got it since january but i'm too lazy to read :(

Exelente....es español sería ideal..

I'm mostly interested in the t-shirt he's wearing in the vid. Where can I find one?

Блэт. На русском бы книгу)

*Receiving training from One Punch Man himself!*

I dont like the book its not simple very scientific

First 😇

You still living on just plants?