That Tricky First Pull Up - One Possible Way To Achieve It!
Welcome to the weekly warble where this week we're talking about...
THAT TRICKY FIRST PULL UP!
Pull ups are one of those benchmark movements that many people want, but which can prove a little tricky to actually achieve.
There's an argument to be made that the best way to get better at pull ups is to do pull ups. This isn't entirely true, but there is a lot of truth there.
So what do you do if you can't yet do a pull up?
You need to break it down into easier chunks, that are similar enough to doing a pull up that they help you with that goal, while also being close enough to each other in difficulty, that once you master one step, it lays a strong enough foundation that you can start working on the next.
That's what this video demonstrates. This isn't the only way you can build up to doing a pull up, but it's a decent way. And importantly, it demonstrates this principle of breaking the movement down into easier but related steps and then progressing through those steps.
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The other main thing to know when getting your first pull up is that being controlled and showing attention to detail matters. You'll probably find that you can already do the first couple of steps in this video...
But can you do them with control and great technique?
Perhaps not right away.
You need to resist the urge to skip forward (I've made that mistake many times myself) and instead spend time really mastering each step.
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And that leaves a final question. What does "mastering each step" mean? How good should I be at it before I move on?
There's no single answer to this, but here's some general rules of thumb to help...
If it's a movement done for repetitions (as most of these are) then we should be aiming to be able to do 4 sets of at least 5 repetitions (more for the earlier steps) with great technique, with about 2 minutes rest between each set. That is, I do at least 5 repetitions with great technique, then rest for 2 minutes, and repeat 3 more times.
If it's a movement held for time then we aim for 4 sets of 20 seconds with great technique with about 2 minutes rest between each set.
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And one final bonus thought. You will sometimes see people recommend 'pull up negatives' in a progression like this. They are a great option, but they come with some risk if you do too many of them. So we have left them out here.
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That's it for today's warble. If you'd like help achieving your first pull up, reach out to us, we're more than happy to help!