THE LAZY GIRL’S GUIDE

Team ELLE Fit tests the latest workouts and gives you their honest verdict. This month: calisthenics

WHAT IS IT? Strength and power training using your body as the weight. Yup, that’s right: you are a human dumbbell.

HOW MUCH DOES IT COST? £13 for a 60-minute class at Stretch London.

HOW DOES IT WORK? Unlike gym machines or weights, which target and isolate individual muscle groups, calisthenics works your body as a whole. Exercises include L-shapes (where you sit on the ground with your legs out in front of you, then use the power of your arms and core to hold your legs off the floor), pushand pull-ups, and leg raises.

WHAT DOES IT DO? Because all the movements originate from your core, calisthenics creates functional strength that boosts any other training you do. It targets muscle groups that can get weak from sitting at a desk all day too, such as hips and shoulders, so it’s great for office workers.

DO YOU NEED TO BE SUPER FIT TO DO IT?

No – it’s all about quality over quantity. Classes offer options for all levels.

IS IT ACTUALLY ENJOYABLE? Once you get over your quads burning and your arms begging for mercy, hanging around on gymnastic rings is actually quite fun.

ON A SCALE OF ONE TO 10, HOW HARD IS IT? The basics: 5. If you want to advance, be prepared to put in the hours.

BEST THING ABOUT IT? Learning new tricks to show off to your friends. Levitating is cool. AND THE WORST? You will ache in places you didn’t think possible for days. WOULD YOU DO IT AGAIN? Definitely. Sign me up. ELLE tried calisthenics with Bodyweight Dan at Stretch London. For more information, go to bodyweightd.com and stretch-london.com