Sharing tips on how to do a complete, practical step-by-step pull-up to strengthen the muscles you need to do it safely.
Hi friends! how are you? Hope you are enjoying the week so far! The girls are back in school and I’m just a ball of feelings this week. I can’t believe they are finally in the same school at the same time. I feel like I’ve been waiting for this moment to pick up and hand my stream, but like so many parents out there, my heart feels heavy. I am trying to get a positive outlook and they are so happy to be back with their teachers and friends, but I just feel this bittersweet sweetness in everything. I have no idea how P is in kindergarten. She is a little girl. How did this happen?!
For today, let’s talk about things related to fitness. I wanted to share some tips for my friends who have the goal of doing a full checkout. This is a fitness milestone, but once you get it, it’s very satisfying. I feel like the focus can be inadvertently on the wrong thing when you first start out. For example, it is normal to want to use the biceps to stretch yourself but this makes it more difficult. (The biceps are a smaller muscle group and you’ll try to use them to lift the weight of your entire body!) Instead, the power comes from your back. You need to pull your shoulder blades and engage your back muscles to help pull yourself in. Strong exhale on the way, heart taut, and you’re GTG.
If you’re working on the pull-up, here are some strength-building tips and resources to get there!
Building strength in appropriate muscle groups:
– Some of my favorite exercises to combine are Curved rows, seated rows, crossbar pulldowns, pullovers for pull direction, pull-up assist (with machine). Make sure to focus on pulling your shoulder blades for all of these things. Do these exercises as part of your weekly routine, and challenge yourself with the weights of your choice.
– Another exercise to practice is hollow knot. This is the position you will hold for most of the movement. Engage your core, keeping your booty taut, and pull your shoulder blades down and back.
– also Works on slumped my shoulder. Hold this for 5-10 seconds and relax. Repeat until you feel comfortable performing this procedure.
– Try some Hanging to focus on your grip strength. Jump into a pull-up position or lift the chin, and hold it while making sure to breathe. Try to work up to 30 seconds.
Movement training:
– Try Negative withdrawals. In this exercise, you focus on the eccentric part of the movement. You’ll jump up in a drag position (using a plyo box or a bench) and then go down sloooowwwwwlllyyyy with control. As you get stronger, you will be able to decline more slowly, and get stronger the more you work on this skill.
– Pull-up exercise with the help of the band Great way to progress to body weight only. Use a strap for extra support to help lift you. Over time, you can reduce the intensity of the bracelet until you no longer need it from anyone.
So, my friend, tell me, can you do a pull up? If so, any tips I missed above??
What fitness goal are you working towards right now?
xoxo
Jenna
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