Best 5 Gymnastic Rings Workouts: Build More Muscle and Strength

Gymnastic rings are an excellent tool for building strength and muscle quickly.

Unlike weights, gymnastics rings allow you to perform a much wider variety of exercises that are more efficient than those performed with traditional weight lifting equipment.

This blog will discuss how to use gymnastic rings in your workout routine, as well as provide a few routines that you can try at home!

Ring Pull-up

You probably have done pull-up in normal static bar, but doing it on a unstable gymnastic rings is another game!

You will need more engagement from your core to stabilize your body from the free-hanging rings. Or you will find yourself swinging back and forth due to the pulling motion.

After setting up the gym rings, adjust the rings to a height that is reachable when you are standing with your arms fully extending to the sky.

That way, you are making sure you have full room to extend your legs at the bottom.

• Start by hanging from gymnastic rings with a pronated grip, thumbs around the gymnastics ring and palms facing away from you.
• Pull yourself up to get your chest as close as possible to the gymnasts ring in front of you then hold for a second to stop the momentum.
• Lower down slowly to return to start position. The rings should turn out when your body reaches the lowest point.

The key is to keep your shoulder blade and core engaged all the time in the process so you can do the movement in clean manner.

Ring Archer Pull-up

Archer pull up is a great workout that challenge your one arm stability and strength. You should be able to perform at least 5 ring pull-up before trying this.

• First, hang from the ring with retracted shoulder
• Pull your body up as if you are performing a normal pull up
• Once you are at the top, keep the most tension at one hand and extend the other hand until the elbow is straight out
• Then, keep the extended arm and hand back to pull-up position in controlled manner
• Lower your body to initial dead hang position
• Repeat by performing another set of archers pull-up with another arm.

Try to keep your chest up and back straight. Don't releasing tension from the gymnastics rings until you are done with the set.

Ring Dip

Want to get your arms fired up in no time? Do dip on the rings!

This gymnastic ring exercise will work your shoulders, chest and triceps. And it’s a great way to build more upper-body muscle and strength in general (especially if you use the rings for pull ups as well).

You can also do dips on parallettes or push up bars. Gymnastics rings is superior because they force you to engage your core muscles too.

• To start with gymnastic ring dip: place the gymnastics rings about shoulder width apart from each other (you may need to experiment with different distances). Wider distance is harder but your arm don't get to rub against the straps which can be a little bit irritating.
• Grab onto both gymnastics rings and lean back until both the rings are beside your torso. Straighten your legs so they are supporting some of your weight but remain bent slightly if this feels comfortable.
• Lower your body slowly until your chest are touching the rings. Hold for a second.
• Push back up to the start position.
• Once you at the top, straighten your elbows and turn out the rings

If this feels too hard, you can also bring gymnastics rings close together for a easier workout. The closer gymnasts ring is easier as it requires less effort.

Ring L-sit Dip

L-sit dip is essentially a more advanced version of dips on gymnastic rings. Here's what it looks like:

Start seated about shoulder width apart from your gymnastics ring. Like normal dip with gym rings, start with holding on top of the rings with straight elbows. Turn the rings out so they're perpendicular to your body with palms facing out.

Keep your legs straight and toe pointing down, raise them up until parallel to the ground. You can bent the knee to make this part easier. Your hip should naturally move backward to compensate the leverage of legs in front of you.

Now, lower yourself down as slowly as possible until a 90-degree angle is made in your arm joints. You will find your leg cannot maintain the parallel position to the ground while lowering down your body, and it is fine.

Push yourself up by extending at the elbows for one repetition.

Ring Push-up

Push-up on rings is the best way to level up this fundamental workout in a fun an efficient way. You get to challenge your arms and shoulder stability a lot more than doing push-up on the floor. You can also stimulate your chest more by going pass the rings level when lowering down.

• Firstly, set the gymnastic rings at a level that is close to the ground. To make this workout accommodate to beginner, just shorten the straps and make the gymnastic rings higher.
• Secondly, grab the rings and get into plank position. Keep the core engaged and straight at all time.
• Thirdly, lower yourself with controlled motion. Stop and hold at the lowest point.
• Fourthly, when you get back to plank position, go pass the gymnastics ring level and pull down with your hands in a slow motion for an intense stretch on pectoral muscles. That’s one rep of pushup on gymnastic rings! Repeat this sequence again by going through step three until you have done ten reps each side.