Everyone who is serious about training does pull ups. Pull ups are one of the best exercises for developing functional upper body strength. You never know when you can use this skill and strength in a real life situation. What if you lock yourself out of the house and the only way you could get in was to climb up on balcony? It’s great to want your body to look good, but pull ups will deliver functional strength as well, and a tighter, leaner and stronger body is what you should be aiming for. I think you would be thankful that you have incorporated pull ups into your training.
Frequent training on a daily basis will bring you maximum results. Vary the amount of sets from day to day and remember that frequency is above intensity. 1 set every day will make you much stronger than 3 sets twice a week. In order to avoid overtraining and to get stronger, you should never train to failure. So even tho I can do 8 pull ups, I do only 3-6 reps per set in my daily training. Your strength will gradually increase and you will be able to add and extra rep every 2 weeks or so.
How to train with pull ups if you can’t even do 1…
1. Negatives – start at the top of the pull up and lower yourself slowly down until your arms are fully extended.
2. If negatives are still too challenging for you, than start practicing hanging knee/leg raises. By practicing hanging leg raises, you won’t only develop hard and strong abs, but you will also improve your upper body strength necessary for pull ups. I will be adding a video on this exercise soon.
Best,
Zuzana.
These are something I did not think where possible but seeing that you can, even if it is just 8 makes me want to try!
May I ask what your height, weight and body fat % is? Sorry if its too much of a personal question! I am 56kg @ 5″5 with a body fat % of 23.6% and I love your figure! I would like to compare lol
Thanks so much for all this free info on your site! I will be using it for sure!
Maxine xx
You are very good. I can do about 18 when I sleep well. Sorry for my poor english I am from Moravia.
Excellent form, perfect Zuzana! Thank you for an awesome video. You might consider trying your hand at chinups (reverse grip) as well, to see if you can do more or less that way. You could then talk about the differences between chinups and pullups and how they use different muscle groups.
Regards,
Mark
awesome form Z, you are wicked disciplined. great reminder to those of us who want your physique that our bodies must actually function, not just look good, or they will do neither when we’re 80.
R
” 1 set every day will make you much stronger than 3 sets twice a week. In order to avoid overtraining and to get stronger, you should never train to failure.”
Wow, this shakes up conventional thinking! Your results are better than mine so I should listen to you.
Can you please tell me your source for this approach; your experience, Pavel, or your training certification courses?
Thank you.
Z,
Less becomes more with pull-ups.
Fewer reps during training is the way to go.
regards,
johnarmguam
Hey Zuzana,
Lovely! I am working my way up to 2 consecutive pull ups. I have a question on nutrition. All the articles I read in fitness magazines stress the importance of eating a protein packed meal no later than 30 minutes after a workout. Personally after a workout I am not hungry and I usually end up eating about an hour after. What is your take on this subject? Thank you for sharing your knowledge and most of all for inspiring so many people globally.
What happened to the 6-pack abs that Fredrick was doing? He posted that video about loosing his intensity over Christmas, but then no further updates for months. Now the series is gone altogether? What happened?
It is good to hear Zuzana better with the new microphone!
Hi Andrew, I guess you missed the last update of the six pack challenge :(
I’m so excited to see this post on Pull ups! I just installed a pull up bar and am ready to get serious! ;)
Hi Zuzana my name is José (Joe) and i Wrote from México City.
My question is.
When we sweat we sweat water and fat or just water.
Because I sweat a lot but my fat level its the same.
haha! this is one of my goal. I can’t even do 1 pull-up!!!! gosh..
here’s a video that inspired me to do pull-ups :D
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePDLGZrn5tM&feature=channel_page
That’s pretty impressive, especially since you’re doing them perfectly : all the way up, and all the way down, with a steady pace, and full control in the “down” phase… Most of the men I see at the gym do only upper-half pull-ups, as quick as they can.
I’m a girl, and i can do about 4 chin-ups, but pull-ups… nope. So I do include them in my routines, but must use the pull-up machine at the gym !
Zuzana, you just rock ;-)
That 8 is really good! I’ll bust out about 21 w/o kipping after a nice cardio warm-up “Z”
Zuzana
I am getting back in shape after several years of not working out, other than my daily bike rides to work and walks. I was a dancer for 17 years and used to lift weights. Its amazing how the muscle remembers as things are taking shape quickly. However, strength wise, my shoulders have always been very weak and I have NEVER been able to to a single pull up. I would really like to. Where do I start? At the moment, I am lifting weights for my upper body etc. Next year, I will be 40 and I want to look and feel great!
Hi Jen,
start with hanging knee raises or leg raises, those exercises will get you strong to do pull ups. You can also start with a simple dead hang and hold it for as long as you can. If you keep practicing often you will get stronger really fast. I was surprised myself when I became strong enough for my first dead hand pull up and it was incredible feeling.
I have never been able to do pull ups,my husband and kids just laugh at my sad attempts..i will start practicing. My 12 year old son is a goalkeeper for a local team,he is playing against boys that are older and much stronger. My son is tall for his age,very skinny and eats like a horse,what sort of strength training can i get him to do..
Hi Luise, in his young age he should be focused on cardio and endurance more then lifting weights. Body weight exercises would be very beneficial to your son as long as the focus will remain on proper form rather then the number of reps. The first thing he should strengthen is his core = abs, lower back, butt, thighs, hips.
very enjoyable site, make sure you keep up the great work
“…you should never train to failure.”
I did not know this. Is this a generally applicable rule too ALL weight lifting? Is there a risk to doing this?
I had always understood that to keep developing muscle beyond a certain point we must work a muscle to beyond a certain point – that point always progressing as our strength increases – as cell “damage” repairs itself by adding cells/bulk. So a day of workout routine weight lifting is followed by a day of rest when cardio is done instead to let one muscle group repair itself.
Is this wrong? I would appreciate any thoughts. Thanks!
Hi Dominic,
I can’t really take the time now to write a long comment response, but I will eventually explain this in my Fitness F.A.Q.’s. This type of training came from bodybuilders who are building muscles only for show, but yet they don’t have any strength. If you work to failure, then that’s what you will get. I was a witness of such a failure, when I visited my friends who were stunts at their training. These guys didn’t look big at all, but they had more strength then body builders. There were two bodybuilders who were looking for a job and the trainer told them to lift me up above their head. These guys are lifting heavy weights at the gym but they isolate their muscles and they work to failure. So first of all they had a really hard time to lift me up above their head and when that finally happened, they started to shake and lost their power. So two big bodybuilders couldn’t even lift a girl up above their head. Then this small stunt guy grabbed me, lifted me up above his head like I was a feather, hold me there longer then these two guys and then through me with such a power at the big gym mat – it was quite a distance. So if you want muscles that are not just for show, don’t train to failure.
Thank you Zuzana,
As I was reading your reply I was thinking of male figure skaters who compete in pairs events. They generally lack the Schwarzenegger physique, but seem to have no problems twirling their partner around above their head while skating backwards on one foot…
Perhaps a great part of the problem those body builders had in lifting you was technique? Lifting a flexible human is trickier than a steel bar with steel weights attached. The old saying “heavier than a dead preacher” comes to mind. The stunt men were skilled in how to lift you. Still, you may be right in that they were steroid induced musclemen… when I was in High School our weight lifting coach told us that he could always tell the guys who were on steroids – they looked huge, but when you felt them, it was like the Pillsbury Dough Boy, fake muscles… whereas natural bodybuilders were slower to bulk, but it was very dense hard mass.
I’m the 6′ 145lb beanpole who never seems to be able to really bulk up, although I’m very strong. The last few months I’ve been back at the weight machine, eating right, and slurping those disgusting whey protein shakes… it seems to be helping at weight gain where I want it.
Hi Dominic,
I can recommend your to read Power to the people and Beyond bodybuilding from Pavel Tsatsouline. It’s really easy and fun to read and this guy gives the best explanation on how to increase your strength without bulking up and in Beyond bodybuilding he teaches you how to get big muscles and get strong at the same time. He explains why athletes or anyone who trains to be faster and stronger should never train to failure. Many athletes and fitness pros would tell you the same thing. Working out to failure is only a bad technique of not so smart bodybuilders. Strength is a skill. Bodybuilders do not train the skill they build muscles.
Wow. You have the finest body I’ve ever seen. I’d be interested to know your diet, since all the reps in the world won’t reduce fat. And do you post your stats somewhere? Body fat percentage, weight, height, etc? (I’m not looking for your measurements) My point is, I doubt you weigh 105 or something. By the look of your muscularity, I’ll bet your pretty heavy and can still pump out 8 good reps. Don’t take that the wrong way! :O
As for the pull ups, I must have weak back muscles because I have a really hard time with them. I can do dips and push ups with no problem, but pull ups… I’m going to try one set per day, everyday like you recommend, throughout September.
Thanx!
Dear Zuzana,
I have to admit I first came upon your videos when searching for workout ideas. I watched a few of your videos I got very inspired to work out and found many of your different workouts to be interesting and innovative. I am a martial artist/fighter and I’m always looking for ways to innovate my training routines. I also like that you focus on functional training in your videos, which is very important to my training. In any case, keep up the good work and thank you for the inspiration.
Thanx Zuzana I really appreciate the help on this topic. I’ll start training right away
hey zuzana
i have lost around 12kgs but i cant seem to do even a single pull up…i shall try learning the way you have explained….so i should do everyday right?? like first learn to hang as long as i can…eventually start with 1 rep….isn’t it?? my hubby does around 10 reps in a go…slow execution….i feel very disheartened that i cant do it..i shall keep you updated because starting from today i am going to hang till i get it!!!! thanks for your encouragement..appreciate it..;)
luv all the way from India..
..genie..
Hey zuzana I can do 12 pull-ups but i’ve been stuck at that number for 6 months. i’ve been doing 5 sets to failure every morning. is there any better way to increase my pull-up count? thanks!
Keep working ,great job!
Hi there,
Was just wondering what pull up bar that is as I would like something like that for myself!
Thanks :)
8 Pullups! Pretty damn good for a lassie!
Awsome girl keep it up, Thanks for all your doing
I thank you and your husband for giving good sound advice. Do you have on your site recommended reading on health and exercise?
Hi Zuzana,
When i was younger i was a bad kid and i was in a juvenile facility and while i was there i was taught to lift to failure and was told that is is very important for building strength. the man who taught me was very strong. he could grab a pole with both hands and hold himself straight out like a frozen flag without shaking. but if what u said about failure is true then i need to train differently then what i learned. i havent worked out in a long time and i wanted to get back into it so i guess this time i will try it without failure. i also wanted to suggest to u that on this website u should have a section about daily workouts and how many reps and sets are done for each workout each day as a quick reference guide to look at. thanks
I have to agree with Zuzana – the current world Free Running champ can do a flagpole and walk up imaginary steps from that position. He’s muscular, but not huge, so I think examples such as these corroberate that working to failure is wrong.
Hi Zuzana,
I do 9 sets of 10 and between them one minute break. first 3 shoulder length, afterwords 3 vary and the last 3 i do wide. i do it every other day. how can i do it better? and also is it ok to add weight?
thank you
I find the the best way to start doing pull ups is to do negative reps. Jump up to the bar then lower yourself down as slow and as controlled as possible. A few sets of this a day will help. It allows your muscles to get used to the motion and weight of your body. In time, this will help you do the full range pullups.
This method can be used for advanced training, like adding weights.
Love your videos Zuzana, keep up the good work!
Zuzana,
Many sports med guys now warn against going to elbow lock with chin ups or pull ups as there has been a great deal of study that suggests stress of the rotor cuff/joint in the shoulders over time. I teach fitness and running to 8-20 year olds and tell them they should go to 110 degrees not an all out 180.
Otherwise, keep up the great work inspiring others and when in Israel look me up.
HI Jay,
thanks for the advice :) I will keep that in mind.
I am so in love with you Zuzana! You are the perfect woman! Thank you so much for all of the tips. I’m in a fitness rut now and your videos have motivated me to get back into it. I usually try intervals (running) to burn fat and lift free weights for muscle toning. I’ve never done the type of workouts your suggesting. The proof is in the pudding though, obviously your workouts work! I’ll give them a try.
I have just started your workouts and am really enjoying them. I was in a bit of a rut with my routines but this has given me more enthusiasm. I am 53 years old and have always tried to keep fit but you have inspired me to do more!! Thank you.
Hi Liz – welcome to the site :)
To jméno a ten přízvuk, nejsi ty Češka? Určitě by mě zajímala spoustac informací a rozhodně s víc jak jendou by jsi mi byla schopná poradit, otázkou je jestli tu je ta možnost. Vše se týká cvičení a pravděpodobně něco i diet.
If you don’t understand it, ignore this message.
Bye George.
Hi George,
I do understand, but I would prefer if you could write me in English so that everyone can understand. It is not very polite to use a language that others don’t speak :) Ale samozrejme jsem rada za maly cesky komentar ;)
Sorry for this, its not about training. No ta to si ale moc nepokecáme, psaná angličtina není moje silná stránka. Kdžy tady chceš zachovat angličtinu, nešlo by to pře maila?
You are the best kept secret on the internet! I have referred your site to a few friends. I personally have been in a plateau for years, never seem to break out, even though I change routines quite a bit. You are very knowledgable and pleasant to learn from. Your workouts ARE challenging but fun. Keep it coming, Thank you!!!
Very nice, are you russian by any chance? ( I’m new to the site ) love your physique. I’m at 34 pull ups personal best
Hi Zuzana – I really like your site and your workouts.
Given that you said frequent workouts while not training to failure is the way to build strength, do you do conditioning type workouts followed by strenght workouts everyday?
I want to use your conditioning workouts for cardiovascular and muscle toning fitness, but I also want to work on strength for pushing, pulling, and squating motions.
What would you suggest?
Thanks very much for your time.
JJ
To nešlo udělat těch shybů více? Kdyby jsi trochu zrychlila, uděláš jich 12. Toč znova! :-D
Vymyslel jsem pro tebe novou challenge, zkus shyby na jedné ruce! :-D Vis jak to trenuju ja? Stoupnu si na vahu chytnu se hrazdy a tahám co to da a divam se, kolik kilo to jeste ukazuje, tedy kolik kilo jeste zbýva, nez budu bez pomoci viset. Zkus to. :-D Kdyztak pak napis, kolik ti to ukazuje. :-)
Ahoj Paulie,
to je dobrej napad, ja doma nemam vahu. Az si ji poridim tak to urcite zkusim. Dik.
jo, neni zac :-) a nezapomen tu napsat vysledek :-)
Hi Zuzana, Fredrick.
Great video.
If ever you do an update of this video it would be great if we can see more of Zuzana’s upper back muscles, between the shoulder blades. I bet they really pop and twitch.
Thanks for informing us and keeping us inspired.
tk
Zdravo Suzana,
Ja sam iz Srbije i mnogo mi se sviđa tvoj sajt.Interesuje me kako da postnem član(member)?
Hi, I thought this was a great video! Pull ups are the one exercise people try not to do at all! You can’t get away with no pull ups. It’s so hard for me to do pull ups since I am 295lbs! I can do about 4 or 5 in a row. Before I could even do any pull ups I practiced with my friends by having someone push me up by my legs or back. They have machines at gyms to negate some of your weight. I liked using this method more than doing negatives. I felt that I achieved faster results.
I think that negatives are overrated. I’ve found that for me at least, the first part of the motion from a dead hang with fully extended arms was the hardest to accomplish as a beginner.
So it was enough to jump up the bar and use a TINY bit of momentum from the jump to get up. That way you can train 90% of the exercise realistically! Likewise, if you can reach the bar with your feet on the ground, then you can also bypass the hardest part of the exercise.
Additionally, attempt the dead hang pull up a lot as well. At the point where you can’t get higher, hold yourself up for a while.
Train every day (but don’t overdo it – even just 1 or 2 minutes are enough because this is a really intense exercise) and don’t worry if it takes you weeks or months to get the first rep nailed down.
Be aware that every pound of weight in your body and clothes makes a difference. Yesterday’s workout may have seemed more successful than today’s because you are wearing a heavy jacket now.