Mid Life Fitness

Today I have a guest post from Jason Ferruggia. I think that most people will do pull ups or chins at some time, and perhaps like me you will learn better technique from this post.

To quote Julie Morgenstern, the New York Times best selling time management guru, “confident people embrace the learning opportunity a mistake or failure presents”, and I will admit to learning that I was not following the best form despite all I know about pull ups.

So, here is Jason:

1) Don’t go to failure- This is the biggest problem I see with pull
ups. Everyone goes to failure on every set. That’s because it’s so
easy to do. As soon as a single rep does not look exactly like the
previous one and you can’t get as high, the set is over. If your
speed slows down noticeably the set is over. You
would never continue a set of squats if you could no longer lock
out the weight. If you got all the way up on rep five but were only
able to get up half of the way on rep six you wouldn’t proceed to do
four more reps of partials until the set ended with the weight
crashing down on you and crippling you. But that’s exactly how
people finish their sets of pull ups. The form gets worse and worse
and worse, and they keep going and going and going, climbing up the
invisible ladder, swinging and kipping. When you do this you get no
stronger. And most of the time you get weaker. The negative effect
of training to failure is seen more on chin ups than any other
exercise. No one knows why this is, but trust me, that’s how it is.

2) Lose excess body fat- If you are carrying excess body fat your
ability to do pull ups will be greatly reduced. Extra body fat is
good for lifting more weight in certain exercises that require
greater leverage like the squat and deadlift. But that’s all it’s
good for. Other than that it’s unhealthy and unsightly.

3) Start in the proper position- All too often people start in the
dead hang position with their scapula elevated and their shoulders
touching their ears. This is dangerous and incorrect. When you do
“this all of the tension is placed on your tendons and ligaments
instead of your muscles. When you get on the bar you want to pull
your shoulder blades down and lock your shoulders into their
sockets. This is a far safer position and ensures that the stress
will be placed directly on the muscles and not the tendons and
ligaments.

4) Maintain a slight elbow bend throughout the set- This goes hand
in hand with the above tip. Before starting your set you want to
bend your elbows ever so slightly. This bend should barely be
noticeable, but it will have a huge impact on your elbow health. Do
not start with your elbows completely locked. This, again, places
all of the stress on the tendons and ligaments instead of on the
muscles. On each successive rep you should lower yourself until your
arms are nearly straight, stopping just shy of lockout. But don’t
use this as an excuse to cheat. Just shy of lockout means that your
elbows are “99% locked out;” you just don’t want that complete
extension.

5) Initiate with the lats- When you start to pull, be sure that you
fire your lats first; not your biceps. If you have trouble feeling
your lats, as many newbies do, have someone poke or slap your lats a
few times before you start pulling. Even having a partner keep his
hands in contact with your lats throughout the set may help. It may
also look a little strange to other members of your gym.

6) Drive your elbows down- To get the most out of your lats when you
chin you should think about driving your elbows down and back. Don’t
simply pull with your biceps.

7) Pull your chin to the bar- I used to be a stickler for having
people pull their chest to the bar. I still instruct beginners to do
that, knowing full well that they won’t be able to, but that it will
at least instill the importance of getting high. You only need your
chin to clear the bar. That last few inches does very little for you
lats and instead focuses the stress on the smaller, weaker muscles
of your upper/middle back. The pull up should be used to target the
lats, first and foremost. Don’t waste energy struggling with that
last few inches at the top. Get your chin over while keeping your
back arched and then lower yourself. Use other rowing exercises to
target those smaller upper back muscles and use the pul up to smoke
your lats completely.

8 ) Use a variety of grips- There are countless ways to pull your
body up. You can do chin ups with your palms facing you at a number
of different grip widths. You can also do chin ups with your palms
facing each other, or pull ups with your palms facing away at
multiple grip widths. You can pull up on bars, rings, fat bars,
ropes, towels, suspension straps, beams, Eagle Loops, and even
baseballs or softballs hanging from a chain. The variations are
endless. Use as many different chin ups as possible to avoid burnout
or overuse injuries.

9) Use a variety of rep ranges- To do a lot of pull ups you need
strength and you need endurance. Strength is built with low reps.
You can do low reps with a weighted vest or dip belt or you can
simply perform more difficult variations of pull ups. Endurance is
built with high reps. This is where the use of bands comes in handy.
Having a few different levels of band tension will allow you to vary
your rep range greatly. This will help you boost your chin up
numbers a lot faster. Some days you train in the range of 1-5 reps
for maximal strength. Some day you train in the range of 6-12, and
others you train in the range of 15-30, with a band, to improve your
endurance.

10) Strengthen your grip- The stronger your grip is the easier pull
ups will feel. I suggest getting a Captains of Crush Gripper and
using it a few times per week. You can also add in some more
specific grip work at the gym like fat bar holds, hexagon dumbbell
holds, as well as various pinching and crushing exercises.

For more great training tips and workouts pick up your copy of
Muscle Gaining Secrets today at:
http://www.TheHardGainer.com/

Train hard,
Jason Ferruggia
Strength & Conditioning Specialist
Chief Training Adviser to Men’s Fitness Magazine

Renegade Strength & Conditioning, LLC, 453 Watchung Ave, Watchung , NJ 07960, USA