Parallettes: Exercises, Which Height to Buy, and a Full Workout
Parallettes unlock deep push-ups, L-sits, dips, handstand practice and planche work in about half a metre of floor, and for most people the right buy is a medium-height pair around 25 to 40 cm. They are also the most physio-friendly item in the sport, because a good share of the wrist pain I see from calisthenics disappears the moment someone stops bending their wrist back against the floor. Here is the exercise list, the buying decision and a workout that uses them properly.
What parallettes are used for
Parallettes are a pair of small parallel bars, effectively mini gymnastics p-bars from ankle to knee height, used for floor-based calisthenics. They give you two things:
- A neutral wrist. You grip a bar instead of extending the wrist to 90 degrees against the floor, which removes the position most wrists find difficult under bodyweight.
- Height. Extra clearance adds range to pressing movements and lets your legs hang clear in holds, which is what makes L-sits achievable for beginners.
Twelve parallettes exercises
Pressing
- Deep push-up. Chest travels below hand level at the bottom, a range the floor cannot offer. Rung 8 of the push-up ladder.
- Pike push-up. Hips high, pressing overhead. Feet on a chair makes it considerably harder.
- Pseudo-planche push-up. Hands beside the hips, leaning forward. The neutral grip makes this far more tolerable than on the floor.
- Dip. On taller parallettes, with feet on the floor for assistance if needed.
- Tuck planche push-up. An advanced combination of press and hold.
Holds
- Support hold. Arms locked, shoulders pressed down, body still. The foundation for everything else.
- Tucked and full L-sit. The height gives beginners the clearance the floor denies them. Full progression in the L-sit guide.
- Planche lean and tuck planche. Neutral wrists tolerate the forward lean dramatically better, which is where parallettes stop being optional for planche work.
- Handstand hold. A grip position many wrists prefer, and the standard route towards press handstands.
- Tuck hold to shoulder stand. A gentle introduction to inverted balance on the bars.
Trunk and legs
- Knee raises and leg raises from the support position, with the trunk braced.
- Elevated split squat or step-through, using the bars for balance support on single-leg work.
A parallettes workout
Three rounds, twice a week, alongside your pulling work. Skill holds go first while you are fresh.
| Exercise | Sets | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Support hold | 3 x 20-30 s | Shoulders down, arms locked |
| L-sit progression | 5 x 10-20 s | Tucked, then one leg, then full |
| Deep push-up | 3 x 8-10 | Add depth over weeks rather than at once |
| Pike push-up, feet raised | 3 x 6-10 | The best overhead press available at home |
| Planche lean | 3 x 20-30 s | Elbows locked, shoulders in front of the hands |
| Leg raises from support | 3 x 8-12 | Slow, no swinging |
Which parallettes to buy
| Type | Height | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Low, usually wooden | 10-15 cm | Handstand and planche work and push-ups. Closest to floor mechanics, most stable, easiest to store |
| Medium | 25-40 cm | The all-rounder: L-sits, dips, deep push-ups, elevated pike work. My default recommendation |
| Tall, mini p-bars | 50-90 cm | Dips, easier L-sit learning, band-assisted work. Needs more storage than most people expect |
Buying checklist: non-slip feet that will not mark your floor, a bar diameter of roughly 30 to 40 mm so your grip is not the limiting factor, a stated load rating comfortably above your bodyweight, and no wobble at all under a hard sideways shove. Wood grips better than powder-coated steel with sweaty hands, while steel is more rigid and usually cheaper for the same stability. UK brands including Gravity Fitness cover all three heights.
A note on do-it-yourself pairs: the common design of PVC pipe with elbow joints is fine for low-height push-up work and genuinely cheap. It is not something I would trust for handstand or planche work, where a joint separating puts your full weight onto a wrist from height. If you want to build rather than buy, use timber with proper fixings and test it hard before inverting on it.
The physio's case for parallettes
- Wrist extension is the hidden tax of floor calisthenics. Push-ups, planks and handstands all park the wrist at end-range extension under bodyweight. Most wrists adapt, and the ones in my clinic did not. A neutral grip removes that tax while training everything else identically.
- They are a rehabilitation tool in sports kit. I use parallette push-ups clinically for patients whose wrists will not yet accept the floor. Same muscles, kinder joint angle, straight swap.
- Extra range cuts both ways. The bottom of a deep push-up is also the shoulder's most vulnerable position. Enter it gradually, with partial depth first and full depth over several weeks. New range is earned in the same way as new load.
- Beginners benefit most. The advanced athletes would survive without them. Newcomers with cranky wrists often will not stay pain-free without them, which is the opposite of how parallettes are usually marketed.
FAQ: parallettes
What height parallettes should I get?
Medium, 25 to 40 cm, for one pair that does everything. Choose low wooden ones if handstand and planche work is your main goal, and tall ones only if dips are the priority and you have storage.
Are parallettes worth it for beginners?
If your wrists complain during push-ups or planks, emphatically yes, and before anything else on the equipment list except a pull-up bar. Comfortable wrists can wait until L-sit or handstand ambitions arrive.
Are parallettes the same as push-up handles?
They give the same wrist benefit for push-ups, but handles are too short for L-sits and too unstable for handstand work. Parallettes are handles with a future.
Parallettes or gymnastic rings?
They serve different halves of the sport. Parallettes cover pushing and holds on the floor, rings cover pulling and support work in the air. Pick by goal, and most enthusiasts own both within a year.
Can you build muscle with parallettes?
Yes. Deep push-ups and dips are mechanically harder than their floor versions, and the L-sit family is serious trunk training. The tool extends bodyweight training while the progression rules stay the same.
Can you do handstands on parallettes?
Yes, and many people find the neutral grip more comfortable. Learn the handstand against a wall on the floor first, since bailing from bars takes more thought than bailing from the ground.