Learn skin the cat in 4 stages: rotate the legs back in a controlled way from the hang, only as deep as pain-free, without swing and with a mat.
The honest answer: skin the cat is a rotation out of the hang in which you take the legs between the arms backward into the German hang and rotate back — and depth is never the goal, because your shoulder is in an extension that rarely occurs in daily life. Skin the cat is the bridge to the back lever, but it is safety-critical.
Why this is serious: in gymnasts the shoulder on bar and rings is a known weak point. In a case series of 26 elite gymnasts (30 operated shoulders), in 27 of 30 shoulders the mechanism was traction on the arm in forced flexion and rotation with fixed hands. Some gymnasts with labral tears could not remember a dislocation; the labrum is the cartilage rim of the shoulder socket [1]. The study also describes that in these gymnasts, deliberate downward slipping of the joint is part of training — which makes real instability hard to recognise. That is a transfer: elite men, severe cases, different load.
For a controlled skin the cat, if you can hang actively, you need weeks to months (experience value). I found no study on skin the cat itself; everything else is build-up logic.
This skill rewards patience, not courage.
In the hang, pull the knees to the chest and rotate the body slightly back so that the hips tip under the bar. No depth yet.
Milestone (practice): 3 × 5 calm reps.
Hold the body in the head-down hang, knees to chest, arms straight. This gets you used to the position.
Milestone (practice): 3 × 10 seconds.
Rotate the legs between the arms backward, as deep as is comfortable without traction or pressure in the shoulder. Rotate back in a controlled way.
Milestone (practice): 3 × 3, pain-free, without swinging.
When the movement runs calmly, hold the deepest pain-free position for 2 seconds and return. Depth results from mobility and strength, not from force.
Milestone (practice): 3 × 3 with a 2-second hold — then move on to the tuck back lever.
How to measure progress (practice): Judge not the depth but the calm. If you manage the rotation there and back in 6 seconds without a jerk and feel no pull in the shoulder afterward, the stage is done.
Skin the cat is safety-critical. In elite gymnasts, traction on the arm with fixed hands was the most common mechanism of operated injuries, and some labral tears went unnoticed for a long time [1]. In street workout, 62.4 percent of 93 respondents reported at least one injury in twelve months, with the shoulder leading at 23.0 percent [2]. A review of swing and kip elements on rings (37 studies) states that such elements and their preparatory drills require a high training load [3].
That means: never build depth on pain, practise only with a mat and ideally a spotter, and take the exercise out as soon as the shoulder pulls at the front, clicks or feels loose. With earlier shoulder injuries or instability: have it checked medically or by a qualified coach first. This guide explains and motivates, it does not replace supervised training.
Set the shoulder blades consciously down and back before you tilt the body backward, and keep them there. The shoulder blade carries you, not the joint rim. A practice cue, not a measurement — but it is the most important safeguard you control yourself.
If you feel a dull pull at the front of the shoulder after practising, it was too deep or too much. Reduce the sets and stay with stages 2 and 3.
Plan skin the cat in 2 short sessions per week and never directly after a heavy pulling day. If the shoulder is stiff the next day, reduce sets or pause (practice).
It loads the shoulder in an unfamiliar extension. In elite gymnasts, traction on the arm with fixed hands was the most common mechanism of operated injuries [1]. With build-up, mat and a pain limit the risk is smaller, but not zero.
With an active hang and knee raise, weeks to months (experience value). There is no study on learning time.
No. Depth is not a goal. Go only as deep as is pain-free and controlled.
For the first attempts yes: mat and a second person. That is a practice recommendation.
Learning the Elbow Lever: Horizontal on Your Elbows Without Your Wrists Striking