How to train pull-ups ?

Hey @Jodo Kus,

I followed this program: http://www.artofmanliness.com/2008/07/08/pull-ups-fitness-routine/

 

Strip set is the way to go. Do your max like you normally would, then once you cannot do anymore with proper form, grab a chair and use that eke out a few more. The added leverage will minimize your own body-weight, ensuring that you surpass your max. Alternatively, you could do some body weight rows to work up your back muscles. If you incorporate these into your back routine (I try to work my back during legs day too), you'll be pumping out a bunch in no time.

Here's a great resource:
https://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/04/25/do-a-pull-up/

 

You don't need to space your workouts out that much. 48 hours of rest (i.e. working out again after 2 days) is sufficient. The reason some workout programs have longer breaks between you hitting your arms again for example is because it might have you working out other body parts on those days.

For example, a full body split you might work all of your muscles on: Monday, Wednesday, Friday, so 3x in 5 days.
An upper lower split you might work: Arms/upper body on Monday, Legs/lower body on Tuesday, Arms/upper body on Thursday, Legs/lower body on Friday, etc

If you're a beginner, a full body program is probably going to be your best bet. Later on when you're more advanced, splits will eventually become necessary to get enough volume in for each muscle.. but as a beginner even 2-3 sets per muscle per week would get you growth - so frequency is more important than crazy volume. Work out one day everything: Shoulders, Chest, Triceps, Back, Biceps, Abs, Legs, Calves, then rest the next day, then workout the next, rest the next, and so on.

The key to improving your strength in any exercise is progressive overload. Progressive overload means you are increasing the volume (weight, reps, or sets, or some combination of all three) each week.

A great way to do this with pullups is to fill some 2L bottles with water, put a backpack on, and put one bottle inside. That 2L bottle will weigh about ~2.3kg or ~5lbs. Each week add another 2L bottle to the backpack, and use it when doing the pullups. Your strength will increase.

Ideally you will then eventually buy weights and put them in the backpack or use a weighted vest or weighted chains etc - but filled water bottles works good initially.

If you find yourself hitting a limit where you can no longer add more weight to the backpack (it won't hold more weight) and you can't afford anything else to weigh you down, then go to increasing reps/sets. First try to increase your reps each week. So if you do 3 sets of 6 pullups, try and force yourself to do 7 pullups in each set next week, then 8 the next week, and so on.

If you find you can't do 7 pullups after the week ends, then instead of adding reps, add another set. So instead of say 3x6, do 4x6. Then after a week of this, again try to increase reps.

As for your program, I recommend finding a beginner calisthenics program and following it completely. It's very easy to make a poor program when you're a beginner and then get poor results or muscular imbalances/posture problems, etc etc. So it's better to use the tried and tested programs.

The beginner routine from /r/bodyweightfitness/ on Reddit is supposed to be a really good beginner bodyweight/calisthenics routine:

https://www.reddit.com/r/bodyweightfitness/wiki/kb/recommended_routine

 

What is keeping you from doing more pull-ups? Do your hands slip off the bar? Do your biceps cramp up? Do your lats feel exhausted?

You need to work your weak-point. I suggest trying a variety of pull-up grips, so that you work different parts of the back and hit your biceps at different angles. With regard to form, I recommend avoiding wrapping your thumb around the bar, as it will prevent you from pulling your chest to the bar, which should be your goal. Have someone help you or use some support method to jump up to the bar, then lower yourself as slowly as possible while squeezing your lats, and eventually feel your entire lat stretch at the bottom. Try varying the duration of your rest period in between sets. Or, you may vary your rep schemes (i.e. sets of 6 or sets of 3 with added weight, etc.)

 

Little background on me: I've been bodybuilding for over 3 years and plan to compete in the next 4. I study the body and am currently pursuing a Physical Therapy degree.

Analyzing the movement you'll realize that there is a eccentric and concentric contractions. If you are unable to lift yourself enough you should develop the other half of the movement. In order to do so do this:
Step 1: Get a pullup bar.
Step 2: Hoist yourself up using a jump or some type of assistance.
Step 3: Control the movement down. Try to resist gravity and you will feel extremely uncomfortable.

These are called negatives. Negatives will help you in your fitness goals. If you are a beginner learn about mind muscle connection and train your muscles with light weights to develop it. But always progress in some way.

Good luck

 

I personally found that pull ups are most effective to building thicker lats when I pull my chest up to the bar. If you have your thumb wrapped around the bar, you will pull yourself up more vertically (i.e. your torso will be more perpendicular to the ground). However, if you don't use your thumb at all, you will be more capable of pulling your chest to the bar, as the angle of your torso will no longer be perpendicular to the ground. It is difficult to explain, but if you try both methods (with and without the thumb), while pulling your chest to the bar, you will find that one method is more difficult (i.e. thumbless grip).

 

there is a nice machine at the gym, that assist you, depending on the wight adjustment...you can reduce the amount of assist until you can do it without. This isgradual and very helpful...

 

I'm such a mom. I read the title and thought, someone is asking nofappers advice on potty training a toddler? (Get it, pull ups?) Hahaha

 

Yes, a variety of pull-ups is ideal if your goal is to perform more conventional pull-ups.

Yes, it is fine to train your arms afterwards?

Yes, 2 minutes of rest is fine. I personally rest only 90 seconds for pull-ups. Some folks may be able to get away with 45 seconds of rest time. What is most important though is that you rest sufficiently so that you may perform those 4 reps of pull-ups. You may not feel 100% energized, but you also don't want to feel exhausted before you perform your next set.

 

Do sets. If you do your max amount of pull ups in one day with only one set, it will be as if you have gained no strength the next time. Your sets can be as far away apart as you like. When I first started doing push ups, I just did 10 push ups every time I felt like I had more strength. If I did only 10 push ups every day, I would remain at 10. By doing push ups whenever I could, I eventually could do 100+ 1 armed push ups. Waiting for your muscles to recover and try a new personal best doesn't really work. Do your max amount of reps, take a break and do them as frequently as possible. That's the absolute fastest way to get strong at pull ups.

One of your muscles might be lacking too. Look for forearm/grip strength exercising if holding the bar is the problem. You could target a bunch of individual muscles to make pull ups easier, but nothing is better for getting stronger at pull ups than... well, lots of pull ups. As many as possible through out the day. Pull ups are something you should be able to do daily, so don't worry about needing a lot of recovery time. Even if some of your muscles are still sore, keep on doing them. Waiting for all your muscles to recover to 100% before doing the exercise again means that there isn't enough stress in the muscle, which means it will not feel the need to strengthen and grow. Of course, this only applies to body weight exercises. Using this method on weights will be dangerous.