When it comes to doing pull-ups, dips, and other calisthenics workouts, there is no better piece of equipment than a stamina power tower. Power towers have many different variations and attachments. However, stamina power towers seem to be the simplest of the bunch. But how do you use a stamina power tower to do calisthenics?

When you are using a stamina power tower, there is a vast array of exercises that you can do. Of course, depending on the power tower you have, you can change up what you can do a little bit. However, below is a shortlist of exercises that you can do on a stamina power tower regardless of what type you have.

• Dips
• Pull-Ups
• Knee Raises
• Leg Raises
• Push-Ups
• Front Lever Pulls
• Muscle-Ups
• Chin-Ups
• Crunches

These are just a few of the exercises that you can do on a stamina power tower. Just as long as your tower is stable, you can do just about anything on it. The sky’s the limit when it comes to exercising on a stamina power tower.

As you continue to read this article, we will discuss each of the previously mentioned exercises, what they do, and how to do them.

How To Use A Stamina Power Tower

Power towers are truly a fantastic piece of equipment. Stamina power towers are amongst the cheapest power towers on the market. Not only that, but they are the perfect piece of equipment to start building a home gym.

When working out on a power tower of any kind, you will use your body weight to build muscle. However, you can get additional equipment to enhance your workout further, like getting weighted clothes, a dip belt, or even a pull-up band.

A stamina power tower is jam-packed with different exercise opportunities. Below will be a list of exercises that you can do on your stamina power tower to get a full-body workout.

Dips

Dips are possibly the most common exercise people get power towers for. They are simple yet effective. Dips are mostly used to work out your tricep muscles and your chest. When doing dips, you must keep your back straight at all times of not getting as good of a workout.

To do dips on a stamina power tower, climb up on the extended arms of your tower. Your arms are going to be doing all of the moving. Start with your arms in a locked position where your elbows are at a 90-degree angle. Once you are ready, fully extend your arms to lift yourself higher into the air. Finally, relax your arms until your elbows form that same 90-degree angle to complete your rep.

You can further increase the difficulty of this workout in a few different ways. Firstly, the most common way to do so is called a negative. To do a negative workout, do it very slow whenever you are finishing a rep (usually over 5 seconds). For instance, when relaxing your arms and returning to the starting position, do so over 5 seconds.

Furthermore, you can add a dip belt to your routine. A dip belt will allow you to add additional weight to your body when you are working out. Put the belt around your waist and add a weighted plate.

Pull-Ups

To do pull-ups on a stamina power tower, all you have to do is look at the top of the tower. At the top of every stamina power tower are a pull-up and chin-up station. These high bars allow you to do these workouts if you can manage to grab them.

Pull-ups are a fantastic exercise when you want to work on your back. However, when doing pull-ups, you are also working on your arms and your shoulders. Therefore, doing pull-ups will significantly increase the strength of your upper body and improve your grip strength. Not only that, but pull-ups also broaden and define your shoulders.

When doing pull-ups, how you position your hands is essential. If you want to do pull-ups, the palms of your hand must always be facing away from you. Otherwise, you are not going to be working out the right muscle groups.

With that said, when you are ready to start doing pull-ups, grab the top bar in whatever way you can. Once you are ready, start by engaging the muscles in your upper back. Pinch your shoulder blades together and use your arms and shoulders to lift you up. Once the top of your chest has touched the bar, you are in the clear to start coming down.

You can increase the difficulty of this workout in the same ways you would do so with dips, by doing negative pull-ups and adding additional weight with a dip belt or some weighted clothing.

Furthermore, there is a myriad of different grips and ways to do a pull-up. For instance, the hammer grip is another option where your palms are facing each other. Hammer grips will need your power tower to have two other bars that extend out slightly from the high bar. Of course, you can do the classic narrow or wide grip as well. The only difference is the spacing in between your hands.

A different type of pull-up that you can do is called the typewriter pull-up or the around the world pull-up. This is an advanced exercise and uses a lot of energy. Start with the traditional wide grip stance. However, instead of going straight up, go up at an angle until your chest is in front of one of your arms. Next, instead of going down, what you will want to do is stay up but glide your chest across to your other hand. Finally, you can return to the starting position.

Leg and Knee Raises

Once again, all power towers will have a leg raise station. This station is usually in the same spot where the dip bars are. Some power towers even have added padding for your arms and back when doing leg raises.

Leg and knee raises work on your core muscles. When ready to do this exercise, get into position on the extended arms with your back to the device. Hoist yourself off of the ground on the extended arms. Keep your legs together and lift them using only your abdominal region. Lift them as high as you can before relaxing your core and lowering your legs.

For knee raises, you will do the same. However, instead of raising outstretched legs, you will curl your legs at the knees and raise your legs like that. Once again, raise them as high as you can before relaxing your core and lowering your legs.

Some stamina power towers come with slings that you can attach to the high bar at the top of the equipment. These slings are used to add an arm workout to your core workout when doing leg or knee raises. You can also do hanging leg and knee raises where you hold onto the high bar itself and do your workout from there.

Like the previous exercises, you can further increase the difficulty of these exercises with weighted clothing. Furthermore, after you have lifted your legs, you can draw shapes like a circle or triangle before lowering them.

Push-Ups

While it is true that you do not need a power tower to do push-ups, you can utilize parts of the tower to add an incline or decline to your push-ups. For example, most stamina power towers come with grips at the bottom of the tower where you can comfortably do incline push-ups.

Even some stamina power towers come with a bench where you can put your feet to do decline push-ups for a more challenging workout. If you are strong enough, you can even put your feet where your back would go when doing leg raises, which will drastically increase the difficulty of your push-up.

Front Lever Pulls

Front lever pulls are an advanced workout that some people will not be able to do. A front lever pull combines the muscle groups used in rowing, pull-ups, and static strength exercises all in one.

If you want to do front lever pulls, you will need some space, so pull your stamina power tower where there is plenty of space around it.

Begin at the top of a pull-up with your chin over the bar to do a front lever pull. The arms will be bent, with the body dangling and the legs rigidly stretched. As you elevate your hips horizontally, try to press your shoulders far back behind your hands. The head should be neutral and the back flat while the body raises up in front, with no bend in the hips. Each time the elbows are in the horizontal position, they must be locked.

Return the chin over the bar from the front lever position by lowering the hips and pushing back up with the arms. Make sure to finish each rep by bringing your feet back straight under you; do not allow your feet to remain forward when your chin is over the bar. It is beneficial for individuals looking to optimize this action to drag the feet slightly behind you at the end of each rep.

Muscle-Ups

Muscle-ups are just an advanced form of the pull-up. Where they differ is after your chest touches the bar, you lift your upper body over the high bar before returning down to the starting position. The technique to do a muscle-up is the same as a pull-up.

When wanting to increase the difficulty of a muscle-up, change your grip or add additional weight with a dip belt or weighted clothing.

Chin-Ups

Chins-ups are like pull-ups but easier. Chin-ups work on your arms and a small portion of your back. The main difference between a chin-up and a pull-up is your grip. When doing pull-ups, your palms are always facing away from you. However, with chin-ups, it is the complete opposite, and your palms are always facing you.

Other than the grip orientation, everything else is the same, from the motions to how you increase the difficulty. You can even do typewriter and negative chin-ups as well.

Crunches

Last but not least is the classic crunch. Crunches are like push-ups in the sense that you do not need a power tower to do them. However, stamina power towers come with foot grips at the bottom of the tower. Here you can slide your feet under them and lay down on the ground with your knees bent and your arms across your chest.

Once lying down, use your core muscles to lift your upper body into a sitting position before returning to the floor. Crunches are a simple and effective workout to build abdominal strength. However, weighted clothing and hugging a weight plate can increase the difficulty of this exercise.

Final Thoughts

Stamina power towers are among the most straightforward power towers on the market. However, that should not dissuade you from purchasing one. As you can see above, they are very effective at keeping your body in shape.