Home » Healthy Living » Family Health » Other General Health Topics

Learn to do a Pull Up!

4 Comments

34 Like

Like 34

Pin It

Ranked #2,434 in Healthy Living, #45,889 overall

Increase Upper Body Strength with Pull Ups!

One of the best, and hardest basic body weight exercises is the pull ups! Pull ups mainly target the upper body muscles, the back and the arms. However, it is a great compound exercise and can serve as a nice addition to your work out routines because it also engages the core and shoulder muscles. And, you can do pull ups without even going to the gym!

Body weight workouts mainly use the body as the main "weight" of exercises. Pull ups are generally harder than push ups because you lift your entire body with your arms in pull ups (push ups are accompanied by feet on the ground). However, expect to gain greater benefits in strength, health and fitness if you regularly perform pull up routines.

When I was starting out, I was not able to perform a single pull up. I was too weak. However, as I did easier progressions of the exercise, I was able to slowly learn this body weight exercise and improve my strength over time. Read on to learn more about doing pull ups, from the basic ones to the advanced exercises.

For more body weight work out information, check out my workout lens

The Pull Up Exercise Defined

The standard pull up is a compound exercise where you, suspended by your arms and gripping into something (like a bar), pull yourself up and over the bar and down again. Pull ups require and enhance strength from your back muscles, to your arms, grip strength, and even your core/ab muscles.

Pull Ups and Chin Ups

Difference of the two exercises

You might have heard or seen the term "chin ups" somewhere in the internet. The main difference of the chin up from the pull up is the hand placement and grip.

In chin ups, palms are facing you. This works out more of your biceps, and is easier than the pull up.
In pul ups, palms are facing away. This works out less of your biceps, but more of your back muscles. Harder than chin ups.

For more in depth information, this workout article will show you detailed differences of the two exercises.

Other Work Out Lenses

More Body Weight Work Out Information

Check my other work out lenses on how to apply body weight workouts in your exercise routine!

Easiest Way to Pull Ups

Follow these easy body weight exercises

STEP 1. INVERTED ROW. Do a pull up with your feet on the ground in a slanting position. Try to "touch" the bar as you lift yourself up. If this is too hard for you, try to raise the bar so that your feet will give your more support and the weight that you will lift will decrease. if you can do this for 10 straight reps then proceed to Step 2.

STEP 2. NEGATIVE PULL UP. Negatives will slowly help develop the strength that you need in a normal pull up. What you should do is to try to jump (don't pull yet) and get your chin over the bar. Then SLOWLY bring yourself down. Repeat as many times as possible. If you cannot get your chin over the bar, then try to jump and hold at the highest point possible. If you can already do 10 straight negatives, then you can now proceed to the basic pull up

Great Body Weight Exercise Book

Highly Recommended!

I highly recommend Convict Conditioning because it offers you step-by-step procedures on how to progress in different body weight exercises! Check it out!

Convict Conditioning: How to Bust Free of All Weakness Using the Lost Secrets of Supreme Survival Strength

by: Paul Wade

Amazon Price: $39.95 (as of 05/30/2012)

This book covers information on how to progress from basic body weight exercises to advanced ones. Definitely a must for body weight enthusiasts like you!

Check my Body Weight Work Out Blog

More Work Out Routines

I post my daily work out routines in this blog! You might see workout routines that you can add or copy to your workouts so go check it out!

Body Weight Pull Up

Do the basic pull up!

After doing tons of negative exercises, your body is now ready to do the pull up exercise! The standard pull up is similar to the negatives. The main difference is the jumping part. Instead of jumping your way on top, you need to pull yourself up to the bar then down again. Follow these steps:

Hang on the bar. Tighten your grip (as if you are squeezing the bar) and do not let go

Flex your back and pull. It is equally important to chest-out, and flex your back so that the back muscles are activated in pulling your body up.

Slowly go down. Try to control your pull up and don't lose your grip on your way down.

Learn how to do Pull Ups

Body Weight How-to video

Here is a great video featuring a step-by-step procedure in doing a pull up for beginners. Try to watch and follow his form as well.

Intense Pull Up Variations

Difficult Body Weight Exercises

There are also a number of difficult variations for the pull up. Basically, the variations try to either increase your weight (weighted pull ups), decrease your overall strength to pull up (one-arm pull up), or add another body weight exercise to the pull up (muscle-ups).

Click this pull up link to see other variations of the exercise. Scroll down below for pictures of difficult progressions of the pull up

Difficult Body Weight Variations

Harder Pull Ups

This video will show you other stunts that you can do with pull ups. Try to poke around his channel to watch other difficult variations of the exercise.

Helpful tips on pull ups!

Building your upper body strength

Here are articles that I hand-picked on pull ups. These guides and tutorials will give you a different perspective in learning the pull up. These will also increase your knowledge in increasing your upper body strength with this simple bodyweight exercise

4 easy ways on learning pull ups: Brief and concise article on ways to do more pull ups
Easy tips on pull ups: Men's health's take on the pull up exercise
Guide on starting pull ups: Has some videos on performing basic progressions of the pull up
Photos and videos of pull ups: Easy guide due to the pictures and videos in doing pull up. Follow the form!
Detailed guide on the one-arm pull up: Doing the one-arm pull up/chin up is really though! Here's a guide that will show you how.

Comments

Questions and Suggestions

Post your comments about body weight work outs here!

Reply

WayneDave Jul 16, 2011 @ 10:44 am | delete

This is a great lens, with lots of great information. Really well put together as well. Nice work. I really believe in pull/chin ups. They are a great exercise that are easy to do in your own home.

Reply

skiesgreen May 3, 2011 @ 7:04 pm | delete

What a great lens on a unique subject. Very enjoyable and top marks

Reply

SereneSea Apr 28, 2011 @ 9:38 pm | delete

Easy steps for an extensive workout especially when one is just beginning.

Reply

Psycho-Gamer Apr 25, 2011 @ 6:41 am | delete

this is a really good lens for a beginner...well done...

i am trying to do the one hand pull up and the muscle up...it is so freaking hard.....i ll get there even if it kills me....