Building muscle as a dancer#1302

Hey guys first off thank you for the amazing rate of response on here, I’ve made an account just because of a really helpful response already.

I’m a dancer (not ballet, more street styles) and I want to become really strong without gaining a lot of bulk muscle so that I can stay agile. Background info: I’m 18F, 5’10, used to be a competitive swimmer, and have a minor issue with my IT band- and I’m starting on wall-pushups.

My question is- would following the Hybrid routine from zero be the best way of going about this? I have strength in specific movements but when it comes to pushups etc. I’m pretty weak. My ultimate goal is to have a really minimalist routine that focuses on full exertion compound movements like one armed pushups and dragon squats. I love the hybrid routine because its so simple, but as it’s geared towards muscle building as well as strength and endurance, am I better off following a pure strength routine, or would that hurt me long-term because there’s less room/time for joints and muscles to grow? Cause I’m tall I worry that I’ll become muscle-bound but that might be because I’ve never followed a serious calisthenics routine so idk what to expect.

My only other exercise except dance is calisthenics and the occasional swim and I plan to keep it that way for life!! I dance a few hours a week and also study full time so I want to prioritise strength in the time I have, but without causing an injury from being overambitious. Have you guys got any advice for this (sorry it’s so long!)? Should I modify the routine so that the rep numbers are lower, or stick with it until I get through the first stages like 3 x 50 wall pushups. Funny enough I also would like to gain lean muscle mass because I have a slightly higher body fat percentage right now. I guess a final question is- if I stick to the normal hybrid routine, how long would it take before I start to see strength progress; will it take a year before I can do full pushups? I eat really well thanks to my mum and I sleep a lot. I hope all of that makes sense. Sorry for the long message!!

Hey there Ames :) Happy to hear you feel well taken care of here!

I think you’d quite enjoy this thread here for your interests: https://hybridcalisthenics.nolt.io/849

I’d say using the hybrid routine for your goals is okay - if your diet is in the “right place” then you won’t be gaining much/any size to begin with :) some more info on that here -> https://hybridcalisthenics.nolt.io/1130

In terms of if you should start with the easiest movement: I don’t think you need to/nor that it really makes much sense to with your strength oriented goals (the necessary muscular endurance you care for will likely just be a by-product from that really!)

But yes there is the aspect of injury prevention, and there staying/starting with higher reps is definitely a worthwhile consideration -> so for the sake of that let’s say you try out the different progressions and start with one that you can do ~15-25 reps with (with good form, no joint pain) and then go from there - I’ll include a screenshot of something I wrote that’s relatively related for you to have :)

It’s awesome you’re already eating and sleeping well - sweet comment to your mum there :b You should start seeing strength improvements within a few weeks really, things start off rapidly and then slow down a bit - in terms of how long it’ll take you to get to full pushups is hard to say given that I don’t exactly know where you’re starting and just the fact that people progress at different rates - a year is definitely a generous expectation, it could very well be quicker! <- but hey, no rushing things unnecessarily

And regarding your IT Band, there’s a good chance that just following the routine will help with that, but have this for some more info and options

Hope that helps, lemme know if you have questions!

Wow thank you so much!! I really appreciate all the info! I’ll be sure to follow your recommendations!!

happy to help! <3