How do I do a pull-up?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m a woman and can do lots of pull ups but I couldn’t always. This is what helped me:
Best training is the pull up assist. Pulling up and lowering down are similar but not the same. Don’t try to start from a dead hang. If you must use an over the door or stationary bar, jump up to a full chin up, then lower down two inches and back up, then four inches and back up, each getting progressively lower until you can’t anymore and that’s your starting point. Eventually your arms and back and lats will get stronger and you’ll be able to more fully extend. Good luck.

Also start with a narrow grip pull up which allows you to use biceps - most people understand how to fire those more than the lats that need to kick in for a wide grip pull up. I’ve found that trick to mastering a good pull up is more about coordination - learning how to fire the specific muscles you need - than strength. If you work out, I’ll bet you’re plenty strong. You just need to organize your body better, if that makes sense.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are you tightening your whole body when you lift? Everything needs to be tight. You can even cross at your ankles and lock things up. Shoulders down. Traps engaged. 360 core engaged. Glutes firm.

Sorry. Meant to say, “traps and lats.” …not just traps!

[Anonymous]

This is my 2024 goal as well.

I think it’s really finding the right form for you that will activate the muscles needed to get you up. It might not be the correct form you use for ever, but it breaks that mental barrier and you can refine from there.

I practice with bands, low bars, and jumping up. A little bit of each every week (I do CrossFit so it’s all in the programming)

Hoping I’ll have one before April.

[Anonymous]

The USMC has a ton of training guides and videos for pull ups. My DH said that when he was young and they were all learning to do them, the marines would physically help hold/hoist each other up until they could do unassisted pull ups. Even for the females.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 2024 goal is to do one single pull-up. I’ve been lifting for a year, have a pretty jacked back (if I don’t say so myself) and can lift pretty heavy. So why the hell can I not do a pull-up? Is there some secret I don’t know about?

Yes, I’ve been doing reverse pull-ups for months (where you slowly lower yourself) and I can hang there for days. But I can not f’in pull myself up!

Please, any advice? Videos? Tips?

It's a complex move. Buy pull up bands and work your way to less and less support.

I’ve been doing this with the assisted pull-up machine for a year. I just can’t do it unassisted. What could I be doing wrong? Nobody can tell me. It’s like I’m a mutant!

The bands are actually progress from the machine, so get the bands. The next step from there is eccentrics: jump up, then lower yourself under control.

The issue is probably not "strength" per se; it's neurological. This is a combination of nerve and muscle activity that your body just hasn't done in...maybe forever. It takes steady effort to grease the groove that lets you do them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 2024 goal is to do one single pull-up. I’ve been lifting for a year, have a pretty jacked back (if I don’t say so myself) and can lift pretty heavy. So why the hell can I not do a pull-up? Is there some secret I don’t know about?

Yes, I’ve been doing reverse pull-ups for months (where you slowly lower yourself) and I can hang there for days. But I can not f’in pull myself up!

Please, any advice? Videos? Tips?

It's a complex move. Buy pull up bands and work your way to less and less support.

I’ve been doing this with the assisted pull-up machine for a year. I just can’t do it unassisted. What could I be doing wrong? Nobody can tell me. It’s like I’m a mutant!

The bands are actually progress from the machine, so get the bands. The next step from there is eccentrics: jump up, then lower yourself under control.

The issue is probably not "strength" per se; it's neurological. This is a combination of nerve and muscle activity that your body just hasn't done in...maybe forever. It takes steady effort to grease the groove that lets you do them.

Also: start with chin-ups. Grip rotated towards you rather than away. It lets you recruit your biceps more, and--particularly in women--this tends to help.

(Female, 50, been doing chins and pulls regularly since I was about 25 after a life history including no prior ability to do either, or even the "flexed arm hang" in the Presidential PT test. This is how I learned.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am middle aged and never exercise however I can do a pull-up. You might want to think some more.

I doubt you can, if you never exercise.

Starting from a complete dead hang, elbows straight. and get your chin above the bar?

Yes easily. Maybe some of you have a physical condition?

I bet you can do 6-8 "pull-ups"

But I bet you jump up to the bar. And don't come to a dead hang. And just barely get your eyebrows over the bar.

I'm sure most of your pull-ups would actually be no-reps

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am middle aged and never exercise however I can do a pull-up. You might want to think some more.

I doubt you can, if you never exercise.

Starting from a complete dead hang, elbows straight. and get your chin above the bar?

Yes easily. Maybe some of you have a physical condition?

I bet you can do 6-8 "pull-ups"

But I bet you jump up to the bar. And don't come to a dead hang. And just barely get your eyebrows over the bar.

I'm sure most of your pull-ups would actually be no-reps

I’d bet this person and a lot of people on this thread are talking about chin ups. I can do a bunch of chin ups but not a single pull up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am middle aged and never exercise however I can do a pull-up. You might want to think some more.

I doubt you can, if you never exercise.

Starting from a complete dead hang, elbows straight. and get your chin above the bar?

Yes easily. Maybe some of you have a physical condition?

I bet you can do 6-8 "pull-ups"

But I bet you jump up to the bar. And don't come to a dead hang. And just barely get your eyebrows over the bar.

I'm sure most of your pull-ups would actually be no-reps

I’d bet this person and a lot of people on this thread are talking about chin ups. I can do a bunch of chin ups but not a single pull up.

Which suggests you are using a lot of biceps and not much back which is fairly common. I am a female in my 40s and can do both fairly easily, but it took me a while to learn to pull with my back rather than my arms. I never made it past 10 reps though regardless of how much I train them.

[Anonymous]

How much can you dead OP?

[Anonymous]

Male here 50s who lifts heavy. Deadlift for single rep is 550. Bench is 225 for 13 reps and best one rep is 305. I can’t do a pull up. I have been working with the bands (and trainer) for a while. Getting better I think. I can also hang for up to 60 seconds. Had trouble when in college also. Hang in there OP.

[Anonymous]

Just do the cable lat pulldowns and assisted pullups until you're strong enough to do a single pullup.

You can also do hammer curls to strengthen secondary muscles required for pullups.

No offense, but if you can't do a single pull-up you don't have a jacked back. Pullups are a core back exercise for stength that are one of the fundamentals.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just do the cable lat pulldowns and assisted pullups until you're strong enough to do a single pullup.

You can also do hammer curls to strengthen secondary muscles required for pullups.

No offense, but if you can't do a single pull-up you don't have a jacked back. Pullups are a core back exercise for stength that are one of the fundamentals.

She might be jacked just by being lean but she can also be quite built and just not know how to use those muscles in a pull up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Male here 50s who lifts heavy. Deadlift for single rep is 550. Bench is 225 for 13 reps and best one rep is 305. I can’t do a pull up. I have been working with the bands (and trainer) for a while. Getting better I think. I can also hang for up to 60 seconds. Had trouble when in college also. Hang in there OP.

How much do you weigh? Many otherwise very strong people can’t do pull-ups just because they are too heavy. I feel a noticeable difference when I gain even just 10 pounds.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you tightening your whole body when you lift? Everything needs to be tight. You can even cross at your ankles and lock things up. Shoulders down. Traps engaged. 360 core engaged. Glutes firm.

Exactly this. Take a deep breath and hold it. Squeeze the bar as hard as you can.

Try a neutral close-grip pull-up - hands are shoulder width apart and palms facing each other. I find it easier than wide grip.

https://mirafit.co.uk/blog/neutral-grip-pull-ups/

This is good advice for lots of lifts, but I don’t do any of this when doing pull ups. I just… do pull ups. Interesting how differently this works for different people.