Are you considering starting resistance training but unsure whether to perform bodyweight exercises or bodybuilding?

This is a common choice many new lifters face. Should you invest time into building a strong, muscular physique or an athletic, functional body? 

In this article, we discuss calisthenics vs bodybuilding. We cover the criteria that set them apart, including primary exercises, equipment, and goals.

Calisthenics Vs. Bodybuilding: Which Is Better?

To compare calisthenic vs bodybuilding, we need to explore the forms of exercise. Below, we each style and compare key areas, including primary exercises, equipment, goals, and progression.

Definition

Calisthenics and bodybuilding share many similarities, including increased muscle mass and strength. Because of this, they are often programmed together to achieve these goals. Below, we discuss the definition of each to illustrate how they differ.

So, what is calisthenics? Calisthenics utilizes body weight and minimal equipment to overload muscles to increase muscle mass and strength. Because of this, many of the exercises used are compound movements that engage multiple muscle groups, including the core.  

For example, exercises such as push-ups, pull-ups, and dips are upper-body compound movements targeting the chest, back, and arms. However, they also require the core to stabilize the torso and spine. Making them full-body movements, 

Furthermore, engaging many joints and muscle groups allows us to apply greater resistance. This helps to promote muscle hypertrophy (muscle growth) and increase strength. For more information check out these calisthenics benefits.

On the other hand, bodybuilding uses external resistance and body weight to overload muscles to promote growth and develop symmetry. This is achieved by performing a combination of compound and isolation exercises. 

As mentioned, compound exercise engages multiple muscle groups and joints allows for increased resistance, and promotes muscle growth and strength. Isolation exercises enable us to apply direct stimulus to specific muscles to increase growth and symmetry. 

Like calisthenics, bodybuilding utilizes movements such as squats, lunges, presses, and pull exercises. However, bodybuilding applies external resistance with barbells, dumbbells, machines, cables, and resistance bands. This creates greater overload, which promotes muscle hypertrophy and strength.

Primary Exercises

Calisthenics and bodybuilding use similar movement patterns to stimulate muscle tissue. Calisthenics utilizes compound movements. Meanwhile, bodybuilding uses compound and isolation exercises. Below is a list of primary exercises for each training style.

Calisthenics

Calisthenics uses compound bodyweight exercises to overload muscle tissue. 

• Squats.
• Lunges.
• Push-ups.
• Pull-ups.
• Dips.
• Plank.
• Sit-ups.
• Calf Raises.

Bodybuilding

Bodybuilding uses compound and isolation exercises to increase muscle mass and strength.

• Barbell Back Squat.
• Barbell Deadlift.
• Bench Press.
• Dumbbell Lunges.
• Machine Press.
• Dumbbell Shoulder Press.
• Barbell Bicep Curls 
• Tricep Pushdown.
• Dumbbell Lateral Raises

Equipment

One of the major ways these forms of exercise differ is their use of body weight and external resistance. Calisthenics uses body weight to stimulate muscle growth. To progressively overload, we can increase the number of sets, repetition, and intensity. 

Bodybuilding, on the other hand, uses external resistance in the form of dumbbells, barbells, machines, cables, and bands. These allow us to apply resistance to various planes of movement, enabling us to target specific fibers. This is great for bodybuilding and developing symmetry. 

Goals

Calisthenics and bodybuilding have similar overarching goals of developing lean muscle and increasing strength. However, their result differs, which makes them separate training styles.

Calisthenics’ use of bodyweight compound movements makes it suitable for developing coordination, endurance, and function. This is because greater variations in movement are required to progress and continue challenging the body. 

For example, calisthenics must use several push-up variations to overload the chest. These include incline push-ups, decline push-ups, and pike push-ups. These variations alter the body’s position, challenging and developing balance and coordination.  

Bodybuilding, on the other hand, focuses less on alternative movement patterns and more on directly applying load. It uses compound movements such as squats, bench presses, and deadlifts designed to engage large groups of muscles to promote growth. Meanwhile, isolation exercises such as bicep curls, tricep extensions, and calf raises increase training volume for specific muscles.

These elements combine with manipulating calorie intake to decrease body fat and reveal a toned, lean physique.

Therefore, if you want to improve balance, coordination, muscle mass, and strength, consider performing calisthenics. However, if your focus is increasing muscle size, strength, and aesthetic appeal, then bodybuilding is for you.

Progression

Calisthenics and bodybuilding have different types of progression. As mentioned, bodybuilding directly loads muscle groups. This means that we increase the weight, sets, repetitions, and intensity to progress. 

Calisthenics follows a similar pattern, increasing sets, repetitions, and intensity. However, the use of body weight limits the resistance we can add. This means that to progress the exercise, we must try more advanced variations.

For example, beginners may begin performing tricep dips on a chair or bench with their feet on the ground. Once they have established the proper technique, they can elevate the feet with a chair or use dip bars. This will increase resistance, allowing them to continually progressively overload continued progress.  

Comparing Calisthenics And Bodybuilding For Different Fitness Goals

Calisthenics and bodybuilding are excellent forms of exercise that can increase muscle mass and strength and improve function. However, their different applications and benefits make each suitable for different training goals. 

Below, we compare how calisthenics and bodybuilding can be beneficial sports, muscle building, and weight loss. 

Calisthenics Vs. Bodybuilding For Sports

Sports-specific training requires an increase in strength, power, and endurance. This can be achieved by performing resistance training exercises, which increase maximum strength, force development, and endurance. These improvements can increase athletic performance, such as vertical jump, sprinting, change of direction, and distance running.

Both calisthenics and bodybuilding are both forms of resistance training that can be beneficial for improving sports performance. Calisthenics use of compound movements can improve muscle endurance and strength. 

Furthermore, calisthenics exercises are functional movements. They utilize multi-directional movements, which can improve speed, muscular strength, power, balance, and agility, making them great for improving performance.

Bodybuilding, on the other hand, directly targets muscle groups and specific muscle groups with a focus on increasing muscle mass. However, compound exercises such as squats, bench presses, and deadlifts are phenomenal for developing mass and strength. This makes them great for sport.

Additionally, bodybuilding focuses on developing muscle mass that can improve joint function. They strengthen the muscles surrounding joints, providing support and improving function.  

Calisthenics Vs. Bodybuilding For Muscle Building

Building muscle mass requires mechanical tension on muscle tissue at moderate to high intensity. This can be accomplished by performing compound and isolation exercises. As mentioned, compound exercises target multiple muscle groups. Isolation exercises target specific muscle groups, allowing us to increase volume.

Calisthenics and bodybuilding can both be used to create muscle. Calisthenics uses compound movements, enabling us to engage multiple muscle groups using our entire body weight. This overloads muscle tissue, promoting growth.

However, while calisthenics can build muscle, they are limited to compound movements and body weight resistance. This makes it more difficult to overload muscle tissue for growth.  

Meanwhile, bodybuilding uses compound and isolation exercises with external resistance. This allows us to apply significant load using compound exercises and target specific muscles to increase volume. 

Furthermore, bodybuilding prioritizes building mass. Each exercise stimulates muscle groups to promote growth, making it ideal for muscle building.

Calisthenics Vs. Bodybuilding For Weight Loss

Weight loss requires a calorie deficit, which means consuming fewer calories than we burn to lose fat. This is combined with exercise and prioritizing protein intake to increase energy expenditure and preserve muscle mass. 

Calisthenics and bodybuilding are excellent forms of exercise for expending energy. They both overload muscle tissue at moderate to high intensities, which can increase metabolic rate for between 12-72 hours. This, combined with a calorie deficit, makes them both excellent for weight loss. 

Who Should Do Bodybuilding?

Bodybuilding focuses on targeting contraction to promote growth. This makes it suitable for individuals who want to develop a symmetrical physique for aesthetic appeal.

It is also great for individuals who want to lose weight. Its ability to preserve muscle mass is vital to retaining strength, function, and bone mass. Meanwhile, its capacity to increase energy expenditure post-workout makes it a key component of the weight loss process.

Furthermore, bodybuilding or hypertrophy exercises are beneficial for anyone recovering from injury. As mentioned, hypertrophy training can strengthen muscles that surround joints. It has been shown to improve pain and physical function, enhancing quality of life.  

If you are currently nursing an injury, please consult your physical therapist. They can prescribe exercises and a treatment plan to help you return to training.  

Who Should Do Calisthenics?

Calisthenics focuses on bodyweight compound movements. This makes it suitable for people looking to promote muscle growth and function, while the higher repetitions can build endurance.

Meanwhile, the different exercise variations, such as side lunges, jump lunges, and clap push-ups, can develop balance and coordination. This can help improve athletic performance in sports, including football, basketball, and combat while enhancing muscle mass and movement quality.

Additionally, calisthenics uses body weight and minimal equipment. This makes it great for individuals who don’t have limited time to train or access to a gym. 

For individuals with tight schedules, it breaks up sedentary time, such as long hours in the seated position. This can increase energy expenditure and improve the ability to stay within a calorie deficit for weight loss.

For people with no gym access, it provides a means of developing muscle mass, strength, and function. This enables them to train without investing in expensive equipment.

Should You Combine Calisthenics And Bodybuilding?

Calisthenics and bodybuilding can and should be combined. This is because they share many benefits, such as increasing muscle mass and strength. However, their differences make them an incredible combination, enabling us to create a more complete training session.

For example, calisthenics requires full-body engagement, balance, and coordination. Meanwhile, bodybuilding is better for increasing mass and strength due to the great application of loads. By combining the two, we can improve function and coordination while increasing muscle mass and strength. 

To combine calisthenics and weight training, we recommend splitting them into muscle groups or movement patterns. Bodybuilding push-day workouts can combine bench presses with decline push-ups and dips. Pull-day workouts can combine barbell deadlifts with pull-ups and inverted rows.

Combining the two training styles increases exercise variety and provides different ways to target muscle fiber. This increases total training volume, which can stimulate muscle hypertrophy. Furthermore, increasing training variety can help keep your training fresh, improving adherence to your workout routine.

Conclusion

Calisthenics vs bodybuilding is often compared due to their similarities, as they are viable for increasing muscle mass and strength. However, their differences make them valuable additions to our workout routines.

Calisthenics use of body weight requires full-body activation, which is great for developing coordination, balance, and endurance. Meanwhile, bodybuilding directly targets muscle groups using equipment with significant load, which is better for muscle hypertrophy and growth. 

Whether you want to develop function and coordination or mass and strength, we recommend combining the two. This will provide you with a complete workout.

The choice between calisthenics and bodybuilding comes down to your personal preferences. The best form of exercise is the one you enjoy. Choosing based on these criteria will help you stick to your training plan, which ensures greater results. 

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