Fitness can be measured in many ways, no exercise gauges ones fitness level more than pull ups. Pull ups are difficult – if you can do one full pull up, your strength to weight is better than most. If you can complete the 20 pull up challenge welcome to the small percentile of those who can bang out 20 reps or more. You Pull ups are a brilliant form of exercise and have many benefits, they require you’re ‘pulling muscles’ to be strong – these include your biceps, triceps and your back. To achieve pull ups, you need to practice. To maintain your pull up strength you have to continue your pull up program. If you can’t do a pull up here’s how you get there.
Pull up strength building
There are some basic exercises that you can do that will help you improve the strength of your pulling muscles. The Bent over Dumbbell Row, Body Weight Rows and Assisted Pull Ups using a pull up assist band. Jumping pull ups only require a chair or stool. Use your legs to thrust your bodyweight upwards while using your arms to pull yourself upwards to the pull up bar. Then slowly lower yourself downward. This negative lower builds strength and conditions your muscles for pull ups. Just dead hanging from the pull up bar until failure also strengthens the pull up muscles. The more you use these muscles, the quicker you’ll achieve your first full pull up.
Diet and weight power to strength
The more weight you carry the the more mass you have to ‘pull up’. So consider your weight. Of course, muscle weighs more than fat, but with muscle comes strength. So rather than focusing on weight loss – focus on fat loss. The worst way to achieve fat loss is through fad diets – and there are endless to choose from. Healthy living and clean eating will give you the best results – it’s not a fad – it’s a lifestyle. Paleo is a natural diet that you can follow easily and consistently. It is also known as the caveman diet because it consists of eating what would be available to you if you were a cave man. Our ancestors didn’t have fast food restaurants. They hunted and foraged naturally occurring food. Our modern interpretation of hunting and foraging consists of pushing a shopping cart. Keep your shopping cart along the outer perimeter of the grocery store. Interior isles are manufactured products high in salt, sugar, negative carbohydrates that a caveman didn’t eat nor should we. Keep your diet clean and eat as natural as possible. This will help you lose any excess fat that will slow you down on your quest to achieve the perfect pull up. Another tip is to eat less and often. By eating five or six smaller meals a day that are high in protein but are also balanced, you will keep your metabolism ticking nicely.
As with any goal practice and commitment are key. Commit to your training your diet and other aspects of your lifestyle too. Eating well and ensuring that you have enough sleep and recovery time are vital to achieving your fitness goals. Properly fueling your body is essential. You get out what you put in. Nutrition is a big part of strength and fitness and yet it is often overlooked. The right diet will aid your sleep as well as your performance in the gym. Diet, exercise and sleep are the fundamentals which you need to balance. There are also other ways to maximize your performance whilst training – these include various pre-work out formulas and supplements to improve your stamina in the gym. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle will also see improvements in other areas of your life.
Maintain your pull up power
The quest to achieve ultimate, or even good levels of health and fitness is an ongoing mission. It is a way of life and it is important to combine the key cornerstones – fitness (both cardiovascular and strength training), nutrition and rest and recovery. Do not cut corners on any of these. Of course you can allow yourself a cheat meal once a week, or a late night here and there, but ultimately you need to balance the fundamentals. It won’t take long before you start seeing improvements – not just in your pull ups but in your overall fitness level, your health, your sleeping pattern, your general mood and your day-to-day energy levels. What’s not to love about improving your strength and fitness? A pull up bar is a small investment that offers big rewards.