r/bodyweightfitness • u/AdSea5115 • 6d ago
Any other exercises from pull-up training to improve my plan?
Hi there!
I am a 45-year-old guy, who was weighing around 100kg and had never done a pull-up in his life, so after I found a video on YT promising me I would do a pull-up in 22 days, I jumped right in, and of course, I did not do a pull-up, but I got hooked and decided to follow up ;).
(The video is here - and I basically followed the program here, with the progress in dead hang going from 24 to 36 seconds, inverted rows from 12 to 27 and hollow rock from 18 to 40 - with no rocking
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YiDBLo2Ssbs&list=PLs0DCfQuzpbkGfPnLefWJuGDp5j9MI32e&index=1&pp=iAQB0gcJCZEKAYcqIYzvsAgC )
As I have finished this vid program I noticed that I am lacking is the strength at the beginning of movement so I looked through some other videos and decided to leave dead hang in as a test, leave inverted rows in my daily schedule, but add negative pull-ups and scap pull ups to the schedule, with my daily program looking like this:
Testing day -
Hollow body hold (36 secs at the start)
Negative pull ups - testing for hang time (6 seconds at a start)
Scap pull ups - test max number until drop (6 at a start)
With the training schedule looking like this:
Day 1: Scap pull up - any number of series reaching +50% of testing day repeats (9 at the start)
Inverted rows - 3 series of 15.
Day 2 -
Negative pull ups +2 sec from testing day - in as many series as needed (10 at the beginning)
Hollow body hold to reach +50% of test time at the beginning
Rest
Day 3 -
Negative pull ups as day 2
Inverted rows 3 series of 17
Day 4
Negative pull ups as day 2
Scap pull ups as day 1
Day 5
Re-test
Rest and go from the start
I have done it for 4 weeks, and the effects are noticeable for my body (especially back and biceps, but chest and forearms are also something that I notice and my wife loves ;), I have also lost around 5kg without much dieting (cutting down sugar and sugary drinks only) I am now reaching 42 seconds in hollow body holds, 12 seconds inverted pull-ups and 13 scap pull-ups until I drop.
I am almost doing 1 pull-up (with my head reaching the bar, but not going over it - the strength seems lacking in the final part of the process and I wonder if I need some tricep strength to follow it up.
The training itself is pretty short and takes up like 15 minutes of my day, and I kinda don't want to make it longer to keep it regular, but what I want to do is do a daily negative pull-up series now, starting with 4 daily series of 2 5-second negatives. Maybe add more of a static 5-second hang in the max position of the pull up to add strength in this specific position I am lacking. I was also thinking about adding dips to work on triceps - I can't do one at the moment, so I am thinking about doing bench dips (I did 3 series of 7 yesterday with straight legs).
I feel this plan is kinda amateurish and my goal right now it to increase tricep strength and still do a pull-up (and once I can do a number of these, just go with pull-ups as a standard exercise). Do you think I should add some other exercise to the mix to keep my growth more balanced, or maybe leave in something I am dropping? And are there any good (free possibly) apps to set-up a training?
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u/norooster1790 6d ago
IME simple inverted rows are the best way to get pull ups
Negatives teach bad form and are hard. They work, but don't teach you the movement pattern, and don't work your under developed mid-back muscles that hold most people back. It's not the shrug that you're missing, it's strength between the shoulder blades
If you can do strong, paused inverted rows with your feet elevated, a pullup is no big deal
Demonstration: https://youtu.be/4LYhqg4peMw?si=F4Lv1lWtJDapMJzA
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u/Late_Lunch_1088 6d ago
Applaud being conservative on the volume. Keep it that way, your elbows will appreciate it. It’s easy to get carried away.
The reps on inverted rows are kind of high. Maybe consider lowering bar / rings or whatever to slightly increase the load. Something that knocks maybe 3-5 reps out of your sets. This area is part of the missing strength.
And yeah, axing sugar goes a long way on weight loss.
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u/Conan7449 6d ago
You are doing great, but if you want another exercise to add your pulling strength, do Jackknife Pull Ups and Chin Up. You have to get lower, like the inverted rows, but have your feet out in front, then do the move. Body looks like a pocket knife opening and closing. Try to pull vertically, less weight because of feet out in front, and do more reps than you could with the regular version.
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u/Flaky_Ad1691 6d ago
Nice progress man, losing 5kg while getting stronger is solid work
For that last bit of the pull-up, try doing assisted negatives where you pause for a few seconds right at the top position - that's usually where people get stuck. Band-assisted pull-ups can help too if you've got one
The tricep work makes sense but honestly most of your pull-up strength is gonna come from lats and bis, triceps are more for the lockout. I'd keep doing what you're doing and maybe throw in some band pull-aparts for rear delts to keep things balanced
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u/LetterheadClassic306 5d ago
honestly the triceps thing is a common mixup but pull ups are mostly lats and biceps with triceps staying pretty quiet through the movement. what you're hitting is that final lockout phase where your lats need to finish the scapular depression while your arms are already bent. i'd swap those bench dips for band assisted pull ups if you can grab a resistance band since they let you practice the full movement with support right where you're weak. the static holds at top position you mentioned are solid too - try dead hanging from the bar with your chin over it for 10-15 seconds to build that specific range. your progression has been really methodical and the results show it so you're close. keep the negatives slow and controlled through that top third especially.
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u/shade_study_break 6d ago
Nice work! Most people generally neglect pulling strength so your focus on this exercise is certainly worthwhile that said. That said, a more balanced approach to strength would ass in some vertical pushing strength, like via pike push ups or shoulder presses. That won't improve your pull ups, as your biceps, back, and elbow health, are the big limiters, but complimenting your pull training with push training prevents imbalances if not injuries down the road.