Against gravity

Innsbruck is home to numerous sports where the fun factor is inevitably linked to the equipment. Anyone who has ever tried to survive a day with blunt edges, flabby tires or vice shoes knows what we are talking about. In comparison, it's uncomplicated when there's only a little thing like gravity in the way. This is the basic principle behind Calisthenics, a strength sport for which you theoretically need nothing more than your own body.

In addition to your own body, a few sturdy poles are admittedly also helpful, which you can choose to have held as close as possible or at arm's length from you. You can see what this looks like in practice at the pole park near the main university (University of Innsbruck), for example. The Muscle Inn, as the well-frequented area is called, is a popular meeting place for Calisthenicsenthusiasts of all ages. What is not immediately obvious from the outside is that there is a well-connected community here. For some, Calisthenics has become much more than just a hobby - people like Tobias Gruber, for example. He is one of the chairmen of Gravity Breaker, the Innsbruck-based Calisthenicsassociation, which is one of the largest of its kind in Austria.

Tobias is a good example of where a passion for a sport can take people. When he saw the first videos of Calisthenicscompetitions online in 2017, exercise was still more of a marginal phenomenon in his everyday life. The moves shown left a lasting impression on him and awakened the desire to be able to perform such feats himself. "I just started trying things out," he recalls of the early days, when there were hardly any structures around Calisthenics in Tyrol. There were loose groups that trained together, but nothing more.

While training in Innsbruck, he finally found a like-minded person, Patrick Pisch, who, independently of Tobias, was also toying with the idea of founding a club and had access to the athletics hall. In 2018, the two of them finally set up Gravity Breaker, the club that started with four members and now brings together around one hundred people who share a passion for Calisthenics. And Tobias? He made it to national champion in 2022 and competed for Austria at the World Championships in Riga.

What he says about his competitive experience is indicative of what Calisthenics is all about. An individual sport without aids, yes. But: "These are events and meetings that you don't forget." Through sport, he has made many contacts, acquaintances, close friends and people who are important to him. He traveled to competitions in Carinthia, Styria and Riga to win, but in retrospect, it is the sense of community that defines the memory. "It's unique that you cheer each other on so much in competitions where you compete in the same group," he says. The championship title in 2022 was followed by the runner-up title in 2023, since then he has been active as a competition judge at events in Austria and has built up another mainstay around calisthenics.

Apart from social cohesion, what sets calisthenics apart from the classic workout in the gym? The aesthetics are the most obvious component: "It looks like you're defying gravity and floating." Learning things that only a few people can do through their own hard work is another incentive. Tobias particularly emphasizes the self-efficacy - there are occasionally talented people, but for most, the complex movements remain something that they have to put a lot of time and effort into achieving. In Tobias' case, getting out of his home valley and opening up economic opportunities through the expertise he has gained is complemented by the enormous influence of sport on personal development: "Without sport, I would be a completely different person."

The scene is currently growing steadily, as you can see from the number of members at Gravity Breaker. Within just a few years, the project has blossomed into Austria's largest Calisthenicsassociation, with enthusiasts flocking to the public spots. Muscle Inn is the hotspot in the city, and there is another outdoor facility near the skate park at USI (= University Sports Institute) in the west. The scaffolding at the Hasenstall playground is aimed at hybrid parkour and Calisthenics, a small facility at Kranebitten should also be mentioned. Given the large crowds and the rising level - there are people training in Innsbruck who are involved in international competitions - the city would definitely benefit from a specialized spot with bars and large poles from the athlete's point of view. His wish: "A decent outdoor facility so that every Calisthenicsathlete at every level has everything they need at their disposal."

Innsbruck can confidently be described as a city dominated by winter sports. So where does a strength sport on the upswing find its connection to this environment? "Winter sports or skiing have a lot of components that can benefit from good basic strength," Tobias is convinced. Basic strength, body tension and body awareness are enormously helpful for other sports, even if you are just learning them. What's more, muscles, ligaments and tendons are also strengthened under load at Calisthenics: "If you have good support structures, it improves your quality of life and you are less likely to injure yourself in everyday life." A fall can happen quickly on slippery surfaces or on the slopes. If your limbs go flying, it's a huge advantage to be able to hold up strongly and to have already trained your joints, even in extreme positions. "To summarize: You have better motor skills, you have more strength, you can adapt more easily to stimuli in the sport and you are much more resilient to injuries."

If you want to start with Calisthenics, you are well advised to master a few basic exercises and use them to build up your initial strength and control. In the area of Push, i.e. pushing, these are the classic push-ups and dips on the bar, where you lower yourself from the support and push yourself back up again. At Pull, i.e. pulling, pull-ups and rows are the ticket to numerous spectacular movements that Calisthenics has to offer.

And there are lots of them. A lot. The pro's top 3:

The Full Planche. In this position, you hold yourself in a horizontal position above the ground with your arms outstretched, lean forward until your centre of gravity is above your wrist and lift off the ground - hovering in miniature.
Then there is the Touch Front Lever. This skill puts a lot of strain on the pulling muscles. You hang under a pole parallel to the floor, pull yourself towards the pole with your hips and are back in a hovering position.
Last but not least: The one-armed handstand. This wobble reliably turns the world upside down aesthetically.