A BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO ACHIEVING YOUR FIRST PULL-UP
Whether you're new to fitness or have been working out for some time, the pull-up is one of the most challenging exercises and is often seen as a milestone. Achieving your first pull-up requires time, technique, and repetition. If you're aiming to conquer your first pull-up, this guide will take you through the steps to get there.
Why Pull-Ups?
Pull-ups are the ultimate compound exercise, meaning you will engage multiple large muscle groups. They primarily target the latissimus dorsi (lats), biceps, shoulders, and core. In addition, the legs and the glutes must be involved if you want to actually get up to the bar. Beyond building muscle, pull-ups improve your grip strength, posture, and overall athleticism. Mastering this exercise can give you a huge boost in confidence and serve as a foundation for other advanced movements.
Build Your Foundation
Before doing a pull-up, you need to build the foundation. Focus on strengthening your grip and core and learning to create full body tension. Try these exercises:
Hollow body hold: Lay on your back in a reverse table. Slowly extend the legs long and arms overhead. This should feel like you are hanging from a bar, just on your back. Push the low back into the ground and maintain core tension. Hold 20-30 seconds.
Active bar hang: Start by simply hanging from the pull-up bar. This builds grip strength and gets you comfortable with supporting your body weight. Focus on squeezing the legs, glutes, and core while pulling the shoulders down away from your ears. Staying engaged and active is key. Aim for 30-60 seconds.
Scapular pull-up: From a dead hang position, engage your shoulder blades by pulling them down and together. This is important for building grip and shoulder strength and mimics the start to pulling yourself up to the bar. Perform sets of 5-10 reps to get started.
Lat pulldowns: If you have access to a lat pulldown machine, use it to build more muscle through the same pull-up motion. Start with a weight you can handle for sets of 8-12 reps that leave you with ~1 rep left in the tank.
Pull-Up Progressions
Once your foundation feels strong, you can use the exercises from section one as your warm-up. Then, progress into the following pull-up variations to build more strength on the bar:
Feet-to-ground pull-up: Use a barbell or TRX strap. Sit on the ground and position yourself so that you can pull your torso up vertically to get the chin above the bar. Start with both feet on the ground, knees bent. To progress, straighten the legs.
Isometric hold on bar: use a bench or box and jump up to the bar. Find a hollow body hold position and hold for 10-30 seconds, then lower down to full extension in your arms. Rest 1 minute between sets.
Eccentric pull-up: use a bench or box and jump up to the bar. Hold your body at the bar to gain control and find your hollow hold position, then lower to full extension for 3-5 seconds. Complete 1-5 reps per set with 2 minutes of rest.
Achieving Your First Pull-Up
Once you’ve built a solid foundation, it’s time to move on to the pull-up itself. Remember, this will take longer than you expect to get to this point.
Grip the Bar: Start with an overhand grip (palms facing away from you) slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. A wider grip targets the lats more effectively.
Engage Your Core: Before pulling up, engage your core and your glutes by slightly tucking your pelvis, bracing your abs, and squeezing your butt. This will stabilize your body and prevent swinging.
Pull with Control: Initiate the movement by pulling your shoulder blades down and together. Then, drive your elbows down towards your ribs. Think about pulling the bar TO you.
Lower Slowly: After reaching the top, lower yourself back down with control. This eccentric phase is just as important as the pull-up itself for building strength.
Practice, Repetition, and Patience is Key
Consistency is important when working towards your first pull-up. Progress by practicing pull-up variations 2-4 times per week, allowing for rest days in between. Gradually increase the difficulty of your workouts by adding harder variations or reps and sets. Expect progress to be slow.
Troubleshooting Common Issues
Lack of grip strength: Incorporate exercises like farmer's walks, dead hangs, and forearm curls to strengthen your grip.
Swinging: Engage your core more and practice hollow body holds to minimize swinging.
Full body strength: be sure to train your lower body in addition to create greater overall strength.
Conclusion
Follow the steps outlined in this guide, build a solid foundation, and practice regularly, and you'll be well on your way to conquering your first pull-up. Progress will be slow, but stay consistent, stay motivated, and have some fun with it!