OMG Pull ups are hard- STS prep

H

happy mom of 3

Cathlete
I just purchased a pull up bar to prep myself for STS and OMG- I can't believe how hard pull ups are- I could only complete 4 regular grip reps. Any ideas what I need to do to try to increase my reps besides doing more pull ups?
 
If you can do 4 reps, you rock! I can't do one! I do know there is a special band you can buy just for this purpose. I recall seeing in a recent Runnersworld (?? could have been oxygen or muscle fitness mag too - not sure). The band fits under one knee and loops over the top of your pull up bar some how and gives you enough assistance to do pull ups in proper form and thus build up strength. It wasn't too expensive either. You could probably find one in a sports store.

:)
 
Thanks for the info. I'll definitely look it up. I know Cathe is going to have way more than 4 reps with the new STS, so want to be ready for the challenge! :)
 
I just got back from the park where I attempted "one" pull up on their pull-up bar! OMG! Good luck to us all!:eek: ;-)
 
Pull ups are much harder than I thought. I looked up some info on the net and stumbled across the following:

How to Do More Pull Ups
By rippedup


InstructionsDifficulty: Moderately Challenging
Step 1:
Start by taking an initial assessment of your max number of pull ups. Many argue over the difference between pull ups and chin ups but for this article we will call pull ups hands facing away at a little past shoulder width from full lockout position to chin above hands. I say chin above hands because the bar may slant down at the sides or not have a middle so saying chin over the bar is too limiting.

Step 2:
This is a fairly simple pull up program that uses progression and progressive overload training to increase the number of pull ups you can do in 8 weeks. At the end of 8 weeks, it is easy to retest for a max number of pull ups and start the program over.

Step 3:
Rest is incorporated after every workout to allow the muscles of the lats, rear delts and biceps time to recover before the next workout. These muscles are the primary movers of the pull up and need time after a strenuous workout to recover. It is recommended that at least 3-5 days is taken off at the end of the 8 weeks before starting the program over.

Step 4:
Day 1 Do 5 sets of 50% of max reps. Day 2 Off Day 3 Do 5 sets at 75% max reps Day 4 Off Day 5 Do 3 sets at 95% max reps Day 6 Off Day 7 Retest max reps Continue this pattern for 4 weeks.

Step 5:
For the next four weeks, do this program. Day 1 Do 5 sets of 70-75% max reps Day 2 Off Day 3 Do 5 sets of 3-4 reps with weight. This weight should make 3-4 reps your max. Day 4 Off Day 5 Do 5 sets of 70-75% max reps Day 6 Off Day 7 Retest max reps
 
OMG, I can do 2, 3 on a good day. They are hard! My DD who is 17 can do 13 on a good day(I want arms like her!)I hope we don't have to do too many in STS:) Kay
 
4 is great!! I'm doing pullups/ chinups now and a year ago I could seriously NOT lift myself an inch. I started doing negatives, which is basically using a chair to assist myself over the bar & then SLOWLY (at least a 4 count) lowering myself back down. I would do as many as I could. And now I do *pulse-ups* which is basically when you get back all the way down, then do kind of a very slight movement up (kind of like Cathe's low-ends }( ) until I can't do anymore. There are different variations- wide grip, close grip, switch grip, chinup, etc.

Just keep at it, most women can't do 1 so you're way ahead of the game! HTH!
 
Happy mom of 3: My DD is 5'4" and 101 lbs. She was 2 lb. 15 oz. at birth(8 weeks early) She gets mad when people say she's too thin(which I tell her she's not) I like to say she's small but mighty. She has Cathe's Stretch Max and loves it. My other DD is 15 and can do 3 pull-ups. 2 weeks ago she could only do 1. My goal is 5 w/ no struggle(we'll see) All I know is when I do 3, my arms feel like jello for awhile:) Kay
 
When I was at the Arnold Sports Festival awhile back the vendor with the most stopped foot traffic was the Marine Corps Recruiting booth. They had a chin up bar and everyone was stopped to watch because everyone knows how hard pullups are and envies people who can do them. The only woman who tried struggled to do ONE. I gave her points for b*lls. No way would I try that in front of a huge crowd of pumped men (and women). I think those of us attempting STS will be facing challenges we never dreamed we'd attempt ever in our lives. I'm in pain just looking at the BLOG photos! I think a woman who's never tried pullups and can "only do four (!)" is rare. I know I'm impressed.
 
Every day now, after picking my daughter up from school, we go to the playground. She plays around and I try to do pull/chin ups. I have really strong legs and really weak arms!! Those little weak arms need to do some serious catching up. I'm going to keep working at it. Part of the problem is I feel I need gloves b/c it hurts my hand so much. Well, that is a very small part of the problem . . . :)
 
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