The Journey To Your First Pull Up

The Journey To Your First Pull Up
I titled this a journey, because achieving that elusive first pull up can feel just like that. Don’t be put off though, if your aim is to nail a pull up by the end of 2017, you’re in the right place, hopefully this post will enable your chin to cross that finishing line in no time.
 
First off, it’s a bodyweight movement, so naturally the less you weigh, the less weight you will have to pull up towards the bar. I know some super strong people that struggle when it comes to pull ups, purely because of their heavy body weight. If you’re looking to achieve that elusive pull up, it might be a way of making the journey slightly easier.

When it comes to training for the pull up, there’s two things you need to keep in mind. The specificity of the movement and strengthening the major muscles responsible for that movement.

Training specifically for the movement, means replicating it as closely as possible. Depending on where you’re at with your pull up journey this can be done in different ways. The simplest is using the assisted pull up machine. The assisted pull up machine is a great place to start, it allows you to change the amount of weight it’s assisting you with, making it a smart way to track your progress in the early stages. The slight downside is that because you’re kneeling/standing on a platform, your core isn’t having to stabilise the rest of your body while you ascend and descend.

The next progression is the resistance band pull up, I’d recommend starting off with a thicker band and progressing onto a thinner one as you get stronger. Take one end and throw it over the bar, then get the bottom end and loop it through the middle. Pull down the band and loop it round one foot/two feet using it as an assist, concentrate on trying to bring your chest to the bar, rather than your chin. Once you can do 5 reps on the thicker band progress to a medium, then thin band. Once you can do 3 sets of 5 with the thinner band you should ready to tackle the next step.

The Eccentric pull up, another great way to train the specific movement pattern. It involves jumping up, so that your chin clears the bar, and slowly lowering yourself to the starting position. Aim to lower as slowly as possible in a controlled manner, if you’re unable to control the lowering for at least 3 seconds, you’re probably not ready for this stage yet. The eccentric pull up is a fantastic way to build strength. During the eccentric (lengthening phase) of a contraction, you’re significantly stronger, making it easier to work with your body weight.
When you’re able to do 3 sets of 5 eccentric pull ups for 4-5 seconds, you're ready to try your first pull up.
 
Strengthening the major muscles involved – the lats (back muscles) and biceps (the ones you’ve been flexing in the mirror) - are a great way to supplement the specific movement training. Bent over rows, Lat pulldowns with a straight bar and my personal favourite, the inverted row with either the TRX, rings or just a barbell. The inverted row is great because to keep proper form you’re forced to keep your body locked in position, similar to during the pull up. You can also adjust the height of the apparatus to make it harder (lower position) or easier (higher position) so it’s suitable for your capabilities.

I’d recommend doing these exercises 2/3x a week if you want to make consistent progress, I find rocking up for one session a week to practice is rarely enough.

Make sure you listen to your body, and be patient.

Feel free to message me any questions you may have.

James
TheBeardedPT