Today we will be sharing about working towards your first pull-up!

If you’ve been training for a while now but can’t seem to perform your first pull-up, this fitness article is for you.

Doing a pull-up is possibly one of the most difficult bodyweight movements for women to learn, and although achieving a pull-up may not be one of your fitness goals, they are actually an amazing exercise for upper back strength and endurance. Furthermore, it can improve your posture, shoulder health, muscular development, and help you move more weight safely.

However, many of us get intimidated by the thought of attempting a pull-up and failing, and as a result we avoid the exercise completely. Well, I’m going to share some amazing tips that can help you gain confidence and achieve your first pull-up!

1. Reduce Your Bodyweight

This may seem like a no-brainer, but a reduction in body weight will also mean that you will be pulling a lesser weight. Similarly, if you’ve just accomplished 1 pull-up, you may notice that even a 1kg weight gain will make that pull-up much harder. Be sure to get your body composition analysis to find out more about your body composition!

2. Work on Different Parts of Your Back Muscles

Doing a pull-up requires a bunch of different muscles in your upper body, so the best way to achieve that pull-up is to strengthen each individual muscle instead of just thinking of the back muscle as a whole. Just to list a few, a pull-up requires your middle and lower trapezius, rhomboids, pectoralis major and minor, deltoids, infraspinatus, latissimus dorsi, teres major and more.

Hence, incorporating different back and upper body exercises to target the different areas of your back is imperative if you are trying to get your pull-up. (Find out more about wrist pain here.)

3. Work on Pull-Up Progressions

Progressions are the key to building the strength and confidence you need for your first full pull-up. Start with the easiest variation and work your way up as you get stronger.

Dead Hangs / Hanging Shrugs

These require you to hang on the bar while keeping your core tight and shoulders retracted to minimize swinging on the bar. They build the grip strength and shoulder stability that every pull-up depends on.

Inclined Pull-Ups

Inclined pull-ups require your feet or heels to be on the ground while you pull your chest up to a low-positioned bar, using your lower body strength to assist you. This is a great first step because it lets you practice the pulling motion with less of your bodyweight.

Resistance Band Pull-Ups

Once your inclined pull-ups start to become easy, you then want to try working on resistance band pull-ups. Start off with a heavier resistance band and slowly work your way towards the lighter bands as you get stronger. These will help you to train the muscles needed to perform a pull-up without you having to pull your full body weight.

Negative Pull-Ups

Perform this by starting at the top range of the pull-up and slowly lowering yourself downwards. You can do this by stepping on a high box or jumping up into position. Try to slowly lower yourself down in 10 to 15 seconds, and repeat as many times as you can while conserving proper execution form.

Try Working on a Chin-Up First

Most people find doing a chin-up easier than a pull-up. The difference between these is the way you grip the bar. With the chin-up you use more biceps, making it easier than a pull-up which requires more back. Performing a chin-up first will also give you more confidence that you can actually pull yourself up.

Train with a Plan That Gets You There

There’s no one in this world who knows your body better than you. But if you ever need some guidance, RAW has your back. If you’re ready to revamp your lifestyle to focus on fat loss instead of weight loss, our personal training program can help you build the right workout regimens and nutrition plans.

To help you track your progress and measure your body fat percentage, our InBody 120 body composition test is also at your service.

You can change your life with just a click. Book a free consultation with us today and kickstart your workout sessions with the most competent personal trainers in Singapore.