Buzz
I've been following the pull-up program we posted two weeks ago, and you won't believe it—it's actually working! I started off barely managing half a pull-up, but now I can get my nose up to the bar. Plus, I’ve more than doubled the amount of time I can hang from the bar with my arms engaged. Here’s how I made it happen.
The plan recommends completing a specific workout two to three times a week. I opted for three sessions, so I did the full routine six times. You can find the complete details on the workout via the link above, but here’s a quick overview of the exercises:
Wall slides to ensure you're activating your shoulder muscles properly.
Scap pull-ups to target the lower part of the pull-up movement.
Plank saws with your feet on sliders.
Chair-assisted pull-ups: the real deal, but with one foot on a chair for support. You can adjust how much of your weight you support this way.
Kroc rows, where you bend over and pull a heavy dumbbell up to ribcage level.
Band pulldowns, using a resistance band looped around the pull-up bar.
I did these workouts at home because I already had the essential piece of equipment: a pull-up bar mounted in my door frame. If you don’t have one, this type of bar can be hung on a door frame without needing any special setup; alternatively, you could check out a playground bar or head to the gym.
The workout also requires a few extra pieces of equipment: a resistance band, a pair of sliders for your feet, and a heavy dumbbell or kettlebell (I used a 30-pound weight). If you're used to working out at home, you likely already have these items. If not, you’ll need to make a trip to the store. Each piece is affordable, but expect to spend $50 or more, not including the bar.
By the end of the first week, I started to worry that the exercises were irritating an old shoulder injury. So, I modified the wall slides to be performed in the air rather than against the wall, which seemed to help. I also became more mindful of my form during the plank saws and swapped out the explosive Kroc rows for steady-paced dumbbell rows.
The only downside to this workout was that it took quite a bit of time. To fully rest between sets of rows or assisted pull-ups, I needed a solid three to five minutes. Altogether, this straightforward workout took around 30 minutes.
The Results
Don't expect to go from 'hanging like a sack of meat' to a perfect pull-up in just two weeks. Since you can't track your reps if you can't even do a pull-up, the workout’s creators offer three ways to measure your strength. You’ll repeat the test at the end of the program. Have someone time you or, better yet, record yourself doing whichever of these tests you can manage:
Dead hang: Simply hang from the bar for as long as you can.
Hollow-body hang: Grip the bar with your 'shoulder blades pulled down in your back pockets' and keep your abs engaged.
Flexed-arm hang: Begin in a pull-up position (you can jump up to it or use a chair to assist) and hold that position as long as possible.
Before starting the program, I tested the flexed-arm hang and lasted 8.4 seconds. For comparison, I could do about half a pull-up, bringing my arms to a 90-degree angle, and I almost reached chin-up height (which is easier than a pull-up because your palms face toward you in chin-ups, and away from you in pull-ups).
After two weeks of following the program, I took a rest day and retested myself. My flexed-arm hang more than doubled, from 8.4 seconds to 20.7 seconds (and my form had improved as well). I attempted a pull-up, and though I couldn't complete a full rep, I was incredibly close—my nose reached the bar. But the real success came with my chin-up:
Yes, that’s a full, chest-to-bar chin-up. This workout truly delivers, folks.
