Training without weigths

Hi all,
Just a little section to find out what are the favorite body weight exercises in the forum. My personal favorites are push-ups on a basketball or a Swiss ball to exercise the abs as well , pull-ups (BTW, does anyone know how to train to do a single hand one), capoeira jingas (these are like deep split squats with an upper torso twist), and handstands (or attempts to achieve them). Thoughts? I'd love to add some variety to my repertoire as I will be visiting family w/o access to a gym.

Thanks!

I tend to both pull-ups, dips & even push-ups with added resistance.
The easiest way to work towards a one arm pull-up is to:
Practice the one arm hang (or switching from arm to arm - something like 'monkey swings' or eve just swapping your arms 'First put your left arm by your side while you hang with the right, then bring the left up & hang from that while the right goes down by your side') so your grip improves enough & you get used to the unique stress of hanging one arm.
Next say you're aiming at a right hand one arm chin (work on both equally!). Grab the right wrist with the left hand then do a set of pull-ups, once you can do a set ok move the hand an inch or so up the right forearm, again stay there until you can do a set, finally once the left hand nears the right elbow you should be able to do a pull-up with one hand.
A few people find that just adding in a few negative one arm pull-ups helps them get the movement & muscles necessary sorted out in their minds, so as you get more confident with the wrist gripping version you might want to bung a few of those in just to engage the mind/ muscle link necessary to do it.

When I did trapeze I could get a left hand one arm chin, never right (I'm left handed). Wished I'd actually worked on that then as it would have been easy to add reps I reckon with some focus.

I've always meant to learn how to do a free standing hand stand & walk on my hands - it's been pretty hard as I never learnt anything like that as a child.

So ok my favourite bodyweight would be trying to handstand I suppose as it's something I dabble in now & again & always return to.

Hi Pete,
Thanks for the pointers on the one arm pull-up. I will get going on these.

Here are some things I have learned on my way to learning a free hand-stand. Admitedly, I have achieved only some limited success (last week I was able to hold one for 40 seconds).

- I spread the fingers wide and apply pressure with the outer edge of the palm and finger tips (as if holding a tray). I focus on keeping the index fingers pointing straigth ahead

- I found it works best when I keep the body straigth and push through the shoulders the whole time. One needs to "stack" the elbows precisely on top of the wrists, the shoulders on top of the elbows, the hips on top of the shoulders, and the knees on top of the hips

- The best drill for me is "walking-back" on a wall (facing the wall) until only my nose and toes are touching the wall. Once there I hold for as long as I can

- If my shoulders get too tired I practice head-stands. That way the shoulders recover while I still develop the sense of balance (for added safety I rested the knees on top of the elbows when I first started practicing headstands)

- I avoid practicing walking (on the hands) until I can do a good free handstand. "Walking" is easier (almost natural) as it is a way to break the fall. I have noticed that holding a free handstand requires a lot more concentration

All the best,
Porco_espinho