Throughout high school, I started each morning by going down to the basement to lift weights for an hour. But this routine fell apart as my schedule became more hectic during and after college, and eventually I stopped exercising altogether. Six years later, after losing all my strength and muscle mass, I set out to recover it.

While it wasn't feasible to recreate the old environment of a basement gym, I identified the key factors that led to success in that environment, and realized that they could be accomplished in a bedroom with gymnastic rings hanging from a pull-up bar.

Initially I focused on simply getting back into shape: getting ripped and then building mass.

Then I started taking things more seriously, trying to maximize performance on various calisthenics. I've started posting on YouTube to hold myself accountable for making progress. It really helps to see video evidence of tiny improvements compounding into massive long-term gains.

While my main goal is just to have fun staying fit, I do want to continue building a physique and see how far I can go with exercises that feel like they're in my natural wheelhouse.

Daily morning workouts.

Workout 1: 2planche/4cross + back lever + light follow-ups

1. [filmed] 2x supinated full planche (straight arms, try to straighten out sagging torso)
2. [filmed] 4x iron cross (parallel grip, fast descent)
3. 20m rest
4. [filmed] 1x strict back lever
5. [2 supersets] wide pullups, handstand pushups

Workout 2: 2planche/2cross + taxing follow-ups

1. [filmed] 2x supinated full planche (straight arms, try to straighten out sagging torso)
2. [filmed] 2x iron cross (parallel grip, fast descent)
3. [4 supersets] slow deadhang pullups, 80lb banded deep dips

Workout 3: 2planche + deadlifts + pushups + curls

1. [filmed] 2x supinated full planche (straight arms, try to straighten out sagging torso)
2. [3 sets] heavy banded deadlifts
3. [3 supersets] 100lb banded pushups, heavy bicep curls

Workout 4: deadlifts + squats + cardio

1. [3 sets] heavy banded deadlifts
2. [2 sets each leg] front split-squats
3. jump rope