Thread: Building Strength for Chinups

(1.) Pullup/Chinup negatives -- cheat on the concentric in some way to get yourself in the top position and then slowly lower.

(2.) Assisted Pullup/Chinup machines (I'd opt for negatives, though, as you'll develop the balance skills needed)

(3.) Lat-Pulldowns, variety of grips

(4.) Arm Curls and straight-arm pulldowns maybe?

(5.) Rope Pulls and Pullovers.

(6.) ** this one isn't necessary but I think planks would help too, as proper pullups/chinups require great core strength to stabalize your torso, hips, and legs and prevent you from swinging around or using momentum.

If you can afford it, buy a doorjam pull up bar and do negatives at home. If not, do negatives at the playground.
If you have any weights at home do some kind of rows.
If your playgroud has any low to the ground bars or something equivalent, try inverted rows.

Yea, I seem to be doing all of this. Rows, regular and inverted, chinup negatives, planks. I guess I am just feeling impatient about my progress.. sigh.

Dips are also a huge issue currently, I am just lacking that arm/back strength.

Originally Posted by Muscle_Girl

Yea, I seem to be doing all of this. Rows, regular and inverted, chinup negatives, planks. I guess I am just feeling impatient about my progress.. sigh.

Dips are also a huge issue currently, I am just lacking that arm/back strength.

They're just hard exercises that take some time to get good at. But they are worth the wait

Dead hangs help as well. Poor stabilization when you're hanging can make doing chins very difficult.

Originally Posted by PushAndPull

They're just hard exercises that take some time to get good at. But they are worth the wait

PushAndPull is right, don't worry about having a hard time with chinups. Kudos to you for doing them! Most people stay away from them because they're one of the hardest exercises you can do. Bodyweight exercises are very difficult because, while you can add weight, you can't subtract weight like you can comfortably, easily do on a machine. It's all or nothing, and that's something a lot of people can't stomach. It takes time and patience to be able to lift your own bodyweight, let alone control it during the reps.

When you do, all the hard work will have been worth it, because they are one of the most productive exercises for your body. There's a reason they're classified as one of the "big four".

Would you mind posting your program?

Originally Posted by gtbmed

Dead hangs help as well. Poor stabilization when you're hanging can make doing chins very difficult.

Agreed.

I also found that as my deadlifts and cleans went up so did my pullups. The grip element from those lifts really helps with pullups, as (for me at least) half the battle was always landing a solid grip on the bar, especialy if you use a traditional flat, smooth pullup bar. Many people use the angled, gripped pullup bars, which are way easier.

So to sum up, strengthening your grip will help, too.

Good suggestions from Phineas (actually all suggestions were good). Set some realistic goals for your chin ups and be patient, it'll come around. Remember, everyone here had to start from the same place.

Women often struggle with these because there's no way to do a lighter version of a chin-up while you become strong. Hanging helps but isn't the full ROM, so you're still stuck with that one.

What you CAN do, however, has been mentioned: cheat the concentric while you work the eccentric.

I did this by standing on an aerobics step at the smith machine, with the bar set at eye level. Stand to "up", lower under control to a count of five. Do five sets of five of these twice a week.

Eventually, you'll give yourself less and less of a self-assist from your toes on the negatives, then gradually you'll be able to self-assist to "up", and then, over time, to a full chin-up.

I started doing these at 38. It took me until I was 41 (and forty pounds lighter, LOL!) to do 'em but I did my first chin-up at 41 and used the same technique to add weight to my chins, using a dipping belt and again, that step to self-assist on the way up.

Of all the exercises, the one with the largest mind game attached to it is the PULLUP. One thing I have learned is that women AND men CANNOT do pull-ups IF they do not PRACTICE pull-ups. On the flip side, the common denominator among those men AND women who can do dead-hang pull-ups, are those who practice pull-ups.

Personally, one of the worst things we ever developed in physical fitness classes were the "girl pullup" or flexed arm hang. At an early age, we have been telling young girls, that they cannot do regular pull-ups because they will never be as strong as boys. Well, part of that statement is true -- the strongest woman will NEVER be stronger than the strongest man -- but I have seen 40-50 year old mothers of three do 10 pullups. How is that? They practice pull-ups as well as the auxiliary exercises that work the muscles of the back, biceps, and forearms - the PULLUP muscles! Anybody can do pull-ups, but it helps to not be 40-50 lbs. overweight and to follow a program that places pull-ups and the following exercises in your workouts at least 3 times a week.
good luck

Thanks for all the advice guys. I will try and add dead hangs into my routine, I sorta do them once in a while, but not frequently enough and not for long enough (more of a fun thing).

I haven't quite set my routine in stone, so I won't post it. I downloaded the p90x videos to see if I can get a few more ideas/ways to work certain muscles. I am unsure if I will bother with the actual program it follows. Its going to be a pain until I can get some actual equipment/gym membership, all I am working with are objects and body weight for the most part. I expect to get into an actual gym when I start school in September.

you can build a tremendous body using bodyweight only movements...... look at a gymnast. just train very hard.
good luck

Originally Posted by Muscle_Girl

I downloaded the p90x videos

Originally Posted by Phineas

Everyone here hates on workout dvd's. It all depends on your goals ,but they can do the trick. Also combining a dvd with a solid workout video can be tremendously successful also.

Originally Posted by Phineas

Lol, I know, I expected people to not like me saying that. I really only downloaded them for ideas on movements. Its easier to understand certain exercises when you can see them in motion.

Originally Posted by Muscle_Girl

Lol, I know, I expected people to not like me saying that. I really only downloaded them for ideas on movements. Its easier to understand certain exercises when you can see them in motion.

Good idea, YouTube is also good for this.

Yea, thats where I started. Came across a guy with a few good core strengthening routines and that had me excited and wanting more. There are quite a few exercises that I will google, such as the dead hang, but not all are easy to find

Originally Posted by Muscle_Girl

Yea, thats where I started. Came across a guy with a few good core strengthening routines and that had me excited and wanting more. There are quite a few exercises that I will google, such as the dead hang, but not all are easy to find

Here is a good site to check out

Weight Training, Exercise Instruction & Kinesiology

i understand musclegirl, i can do alot of weight on pulldowns but can only do a few good reps of pullups. i would think i could do alot more, but i guess i dont know the proper way or watever.

Originally Posted by Muscle_Girl

Lol, I know, I expected people to not like me saying that. I really only downloaded them for ideas on movements. Its easier to understand certain exercises when you can see them in motion.

Ya, I was just being a jerk, don't worry, lol. For how you used it there's nothing wrong with that. I'm just very unfriendly towards the P90X system. I don't like mainstream, pre-determined fitness programs.

Originally Posted by unclem

i understand musclegirl, i can do alot of weight on pulldowns but can only do a few good reps of pullups. i would think i could do alot more, but i guess i dont know the proper way or watever.

It's very normal to have a major discrepancy between pulldowns and pullups. They involve the same target muscles, yes, but pullups involve so much more. The stabalization and grip factor in pullups is, in my opinion, half the battle. Pulling your own bodyweight from deadweight is the hardest thing, especially for those of us heavier individuals. Well, I'm not that heavy, but I'm 195-200, and my legs are a bit denser than my upper body, so that's a lot of dead weight not contributing to the lift that I have to pullup.

Also, let's be honest, pullups are so easy to screw up since there's no backing to rest against so you can get better leverage, plus your legs are locked in. You get leverage in pulldowns that you don't get in pullups.

I recall you saying your weight was somewhere around 250-260? If so, I can't even begin to fathom how hard pullups would be for you. To be able to handle 5 strict bodyweight pullups would to me make you a total champ, lol. I used to always assume that as we get more muscular and strong that our pullup numbers should just keep improving. While our performance will improve, we have to remember that only a maybe 1/5 of our muscle mass is contributing to that pullup, so when you weight strength increases of those muscles against your net weight gain you can see that they actually become harder.

^^god no, no where near 5 reps 2 thats giving me props, lol. my back is very wide but i think i would be even fuller in the width dept. like built said dont take a wider than shoulder grip which i dont on any pull movement. but would like to get eventually 5-8 reps one day. but at 245 now i dont want to tear anything. i dont know if it would help in more width but i would like to learn a good tech to get more than 1.5 reps.

Originally Posted by unclem

^^god no, no where near 5 reps 2 thats giving me props, lol. my back is very wide but i think i would be even fuller in the width dept. like built said dont take a wider than shoulder grip which i dont on any pull movement. but would like to get eventually 5-8 reps one day. but at 245 now i dont want to tear anything. i dont know if it would help in more width but i would like to learn a good tech to get more than 1.5 reps.

Are you talking about conventional pullups, or chinups? Because you know that close-grip variations with neutral or supinated grip typically yield greater numbers? I can do way more chinups than I can pullups. Supinated grip or even neutral is much easier because your grip is pulling in the opposite direction of your centre of gravity, so when you're hanging from the bar it locks you in position better and gives you a smoother pull. Pronated grip is hard because your hands are more vulnerable. Also, close-grip gives you a greater ROM. My favourite pullup variation is close-grip chins with a V-Bar (the attachment used on the seated row machine).

Originally Posted by PushAndPull

They're just hard exercises that take some time to get good at. But they are worth the wait

thnx for your post its encouraging.

Originally Posted by Built

Women often struggle with these because there's no way to do a lighter version of a chin-up while you become strong. Hanging helps but isn't the full ROM, so you're still stuck with that one.

What you CAN do, however, has been mentioned: cheat the concentric while you work the eccentric.

I did this by standing on an aerobics step at the smith machine, with the bar set at eye level. Stand to "up", lower under control to a count of five. Do five sets of five of these twice a week.

Eventually, you'll give yourself less and less of a self-assist from your toes on the negatives, then gradually you'll be able to self-assist to "up", and then, over time, to a full chin-up.

I started doing these at 38. It took me until I was 41 (and forty pounds lighter, LOL!) to do 'em but I did my first chin-up at 41 and used the same technique to add weight to my chins, using a dipping belt and again, that step to self-assist on the way up.

built more or less negatives starting at top and lower slowly? yes?

Originally Posted by unclem

built more or less negatives starting at top and lower slowly? yes?

Bingo.

Cheat your way to the top of the concentric, then slowly lower back to the starting point, and repeat.

Originally Posted by unclem

thnx for your post its encouraging.

Yeah i'm a real fucking sweeheart.
You should also try different grips for pull-ups: overhand, underhand, and neutral.

Originally Posted by PushAndPull

Yeah i'm a real fucking sweeheart.
You should also try different grips for pull-ups: overhand, underhand, and neutral.

ill try well both you and pherase said the same thing ill try it next back dayand use the lowering tech until i get strong enough to use those grips. but ill try them all, and the v bar sounds like a great idea. thnx guys. ib think i fucked up phrease spelling but hell no wat i mean.