Calisthenics Reading Answers

Jan 2, 2026

Calisthenics Reading Answers is an academic reading answers topic. Calisthenics Reading Answers has a total of 13 IELTS questions

Which of the following statements is true according to the Passage? Write A, B, C, or D in the box
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the text for each answer.

The IELTS Reading section is an essential part of the test that evaluates a candidate's comprehension and analysis of various passage types. You will work through a number of IELTS reading practice problems in this section that resemble actual test situations. These questions are designed to help you improve your ability to recognise essential concepts, extract particular facts, and make inferences. Practising these IELTS reading problems can help you get comfortable with the structure and increase your confidence for the exam, regardless of whether you are studying for the Academic or General Training module.

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Section 1

CALISTHENICS

The world's oldest form of resistance training

A.From the very first caveman to scale a tree or hang from a cliff face, to the mighty armies of the Greco-Roman empires and the gymnasiums of modern American high schools, calisthenics has endured and thrived because of its simplicity and utility. Unlike strength training, which involves weights, machines, or resistance bands, calisthenics uses only the body's own weight for physical development.

B.Calisthenics enters the historical record at around 480 B.C., with Herodotus' account of the Battle of Thermopolylae. Herodotus reported that, prior to the battle, the god-king Xerxes sent a scout party to spy on his Spartan enemies. The scouts informed Xerxes that the Spartans, under the leadership of King Leonidas, were practicing some kind of bizarre synchronized movements akin to a tribal dance. Xerxes was greatly amused. His own army was comprised of over 120,060 men, while the Spartans had just 300. Leonidas was informed that he must retreat or face annihilation. The Spartans did not retreat, however, and in the ensuing battle, they managed to hold Xerxes' enormous army at bay for some time until reinforcements arrived. It turns out their tribal dance was not a superstitious ritual but a form of calisthenics by which they were building only as a form of military discipline and strength, but also as an artistic expression of movement and an aesthetically ideal physique.

C.Indeed, the term calisthenics itself is derived from the Greek words for beauty and strength. We know from historical records and images from pottery, mosaics, and sculptures of the period that the ancient Olympians took calisthenics training seriously. They were greatly admired - and still are, today — for their combination of athleticism and physical beauty. You may have heard a friend whimsically sigh and mention that

someone 'has the body of a Greek god'. This expression has travelled through centuries and continents, and the source of this envy and admiration is the calisthenics method.

D.Calisthenics experienced its second golden age in the 1800s. This century saw the birth of gymnastics, an organised sport that uses a range of bars, rings, vaulting horses, and balancing beams to display physical prowess. This period is also when the phenomenon of strongmen developed. These were people of astounding physical strength and development who forged nomadic careers by demonstrating outlandish feats of strength to stunned populations. Most of these men trained using hand balancing and horizontal bars, as modern weight machines had not yet been invented.

E.In the 1950s, Angelo Siciliano - who went by the stage name Charles Atlas — was crowned "The World's Most Perfectly Developed Man". Atlas's own approach stemmed from traditional calisthenics, and through a series of mail-order comic books, he taught these methods to hundreds of thousands of children and young adults through the 1960s and 1970s. But Atlas was the last of a dying breed. The tides were turning, fitness methods were drifting away from calisthenics, and no widely-regarded proponent of the method would ever succeed him.

F.In the 1960s and 1970s, calisthenics and the goal of functional strength combined with physical beauty were replaced by an emphasis on huge muscles at any cost. This became the sport of bodybuilding. Although bodybuilding's pioneers were drawn from the calisthenics tradition, the sole goal soon became an increase in muscle size. Bodybuilding icons people such as Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sergio Oliva, were called mass monsters because of their imposing physiques. Scale development of this nature was only attainable through the use of anabolic steroids, synthetic hormones which boosted muscle development while harming overall health. These bodybuilders also relied on free weights and machines, which allowed them to target and bloat the size of individual muscles rather than develop a naturally proportioned body.

Calisthenics, with its emphasis on physical beauty and a balance in proportions, had little to offer the mass monsters.

G.In this "bigger is better" climate, calisthenics was relegated to groups perceived to be vulnerable. such as women. People recuperating from injuries and school students. Although some of the strongest and most physically developed human beings ever to have lived acquired their abilities through the use of sophisticated calisthenics, a great deal of this knowledge was discarded, and the method was reduced to nothing more than an easily accessible and readily available activity. Those who mastered the rudimentary skills of calisthenics could expect to graduate to weight training rather than advanced calisthenics.

H.In recent years, however, fitness trends have been shifting back toward the use of calisthenics. Bodybuilding approaches that promote excessive muscle development frequently lead to joint pain, injuries, unbalanced physiques, and weak cardiovascular health. As a result, many of the newest and most popular gyms and programs emphasize calisthenics-based methods instead. Modern practices often combine elements from a number of related traditions such as yoga, Pilates. Kettle-ball training, gymnastics, and traditional Greco-Roman calisthenics. Many people are keen to recover the original Greek vision of physical beauty and strength and harmony of the mind-body connection.

Questions 28

Which of the following statements is true according to the Passage? Write A, B, C, or D in the box 28 on your answer sheet.

28. Calisthenics is -

A. the world's oldest form of sports training

B.a strength training

C. a battle technique

D. being emphasized by many popular gyms

Answer: D

Supporting statement: As a result, many of the newest and most popular gyms and programs emphasize calisthenics-based methods instead

Keywords: popular gyms, emphasize, calisthenics-based

Keyword Location: Para H, Line 4

Explanation: While the text mentions that calisthenics is ancient, it calls it "resistance training" rather than the oldest "sports training", and it distinguishes it from "strength training", which uses weights.

Questions 29-35

The text has eight paragraphs, A—H. Which paragraph contains the following information?

Write the correct letter, A—H, in boxes 29-35 on your answer sheet.

29. The origin of the word 'calisthenics'.

Answer: C

Supporting statement: Indeed, the term calisthenics itself is derived from the Greek words for beauty and strength.

Keywords: term, derived, Greek words

Keyword Location: Para C, Lines 2-3

Explanation: Paragraph C explains the etymology (linguistic origin) of the word from the Greek words kallos (beauty) and sthenos (strength)

30. The last popular supporter of calisthenics.

Answer: E

Supporting statement: But Atlas was the last of a dying breed... no widely-regarded proponent of the method would ever succeed him

Keywords: last, proponent, Charles Atlas

Keyword Location: Para E, Lines 5-6

Explanation: This paragraph identifies Charles Atlas (Angelo Siciliano) as the final major figure to promote the method before the rise of bodybuilding.

31. The first use of calisthenics as a training method.

Answer: B

Supporting statement: calisthenics enters the historical record at around 480 B.C., with Herodotus' account of the Battle of Thermopolylae.

Keywords: enters historical record, 480 B.C

Keyword Location: Para B, Line 1

Explanation: Paragraph B describes the earliest recorded instance of calisthenics being used by the Spartans to prepare for battle.

32. A multidisciplinary approach to all-around health and strength

Answer: H

Supporting statement: Modern practices often combine elements from a number of related traditions such as yoga, Pilates, Kettle-ball training, gymnastics, and traditional Greco-Roman calisthenics.

Keywords: combine, related traditions, yoga, Pilates

Keyword Location: Para H, Lines 5-6

Explanation: Paragraph H describes the modern trend of mixing various disciplines (multidisciplinary) to achieve a balanced mind-body connection.

33. Reasons for the survival of calisthenics throughout the ages.

Answer: A

Supporting statement: calisthenics has endured and thrived because of its simplicity and utility

Keywords: endured, thrived, simplicity, utility

Keyword Location: Para A, Line 3

Explanation: The very first paragraph explains why the practice has survived from cavemen to the modern era: it is simple and useful.

34. The use of a medical substance to increase muscle mass and strength.

Answer: F

Supporting statement: Scale development of this nature was only attainable through the use of anabolic steroids

Keywords: anabolic steroids, synthetic hormones

Keyword Location: Para F, Line 6

Explanation: Paragraph F discusses the "mass monsters" of bodybuilding and their reliance on steroids to boost muscle growth.

35. A reference to travelling showmen who displayed their) strength for audiences,

Answer: D

Supporting statement: These were people of astounding physical strength... who forged nomadic careers by demonstrating outlandish feats of strength to stunned populations.

Keywords: nomadic careers, demonstrating, feats of strength

Keyword Location: Para D, Line 5

Explanation: Paragraph D describes the "strongmen" of the 1800s who traveled (nomadic) to perform for crowds.

Questions 36-40

Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the text for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 36-40 on your answer sheet.

During the sixties and seventies, attaining huge muscles became more important than (36)........... or having an attractive-looking body.

Answer: FUNCTIONAL STRENGTH

Supporting statement: In the 1960s and 1970s, calisthenics and the goal of functional strength combined with physical beauty were replaced by an emphasis on huge muscles at any cost.

Keywords: 1960s, 1970s, replaced, huge muscles

Keyword Location: Para F, Lines 1-2

Explanation: The text states that functional strength and beauty were set aside in favor of muscle size during this era.

The first people to take up this new sport of bodybuilding had a background in calisthenics, but the most famous practitioners became known as (37)....................on account of the impressive size of their muscles.

Answer: MASS MONSTERS

Supporting statement: Bodybuilding icons people such as Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sergio Oliva, were called mass monsters because of their imposing physiques.

Keywords: icons, called, imposing physiques

Keyword Location: Para F, Lines 4-5

Explanation: The text specifically uses the term "mass monsters" to describe the famous bodybuilders of that time

Drugs and mechanical devices were used to develop individual muscles to a monstrous size. Calisthenics then became the domain of 'weaker' people: females, children, and those recovering from (38).................. Much of the advanced knowledge about calisthenics was lost, and the method was subsequently downgraded to the status of a simple, user-friendly activity.

Answer: INJURIES

Supporting statement: In this "bigger is better" climate, calisthenics was relegated to groups perceived to be vulnerable. such as women. People recuperating from injuries and school students.

Keywords: relegated, recuperating, vulnerable

Keyword Location: Para G, Lines 1-2

Explanation: The word "recuperating" in the text is a synonym for "recovering," making "injuries" the correct fit.

Once a person became skilled at this, he would progress to (39)............... Currently, a revival of calisthenics is underway as extreme muscle building can harm the body, leaving it sore, out of (40)....................... balance, and in poor

(39)...............

Answer: WEIGHT TRAINING

Supporting statement: Those who mastered the rudimentary skills of calisthenics could expect to graduate to weight training rather than advanced calisthenics.

Keywords: mastered, graduate, rather than

Keyword Location: Para G, Lines 6-7

Explanation: "Graduate to" is the textual equivalent of "progress to," indicating that people moved from calisthenics to weight training.

(40).......................

Answer: CARDIOVASCULAR HEALTH

Supporting statement: Bodybuilding approaches that promote excessive muscle development frequently lead to joint pain, injuries, unbalanced physiques, and weak cardiovascular health.

Keywords: excessive muscle, unbalanced, weak

Keyword Location: Para H, Lines 2-3

Explanation: The summary uses "poor" as a synonym for "weak," making "cardiovascular health" the missing information.

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