UFC rocks

hi guys i have a quick question about pullups and chinups. when you guys do them do you go all the way down untill you are at a dead hang, or do you stop just before you are at a dead hang. the reason i ask is because when i do wide grip pullups i find it quiet hard to get the initial bend in the elbow to start the pullup and so if i go to a dead hang ever time its hard to start the next rep again, its hard to start the movement and get a bend in the elbow, but once i have started it the rest is easy i just pull my self up. its mainly with wide grip pullups, and only really happens with close grip chinups on the last few reps, so i am not too worry about that as i think that is normal.

i know there is advantages to both, with a dead hang on ever rep you are getting a full range of motion, but if you dont go to a dead hang ever time then you are keeping constant pressure on the muscles which is also good.

so i have two questions:

1 - how do you guys personally do them, (and please be clear wever you are talking about pullups or chinups).

2 - how do you think i should do them.

wow after looking at what i just wrote, i guess the question wasnt that quick after all, sorry and thanks in advance for any replys.

Triple Threat

I do them (both pull-ups and chin-ups) from a dead hang on each rep.

Nate K

Dead hang chins and pullups each time. Don't do the wide grip pullups so wide, it will probably feel more comfortabe and be is a more natural position

Metallibanger

Dead hang each time

UFC rocks

hey thanks for the replys everone. do you think that the reason i find it hard to get the initial bend in the elbows is because at the moment i am not to good at them. i do the pullups about 1 foot wider than soulder width on each side, and well on my last pull day i did them first thing and it went as followed:

set 1 - 8 reps
set 2 - 7 reps
set 3 - 6 resp
set 4 - 5 reps

i then went onto other exercises. my point is as you can see i am not too good at them i and cant do too many, so this could be the reason i find the first part of the movement differcult.

because you know when people go on the pulldown machines and used to much weight, they always swing back with there body to start the movement, because the weight is too much for them. so it could just be that my weight is too much for me and as i get better at them i will find it easlier to do them from a dead hang.

its like when people who are really good at pullups are doing them and lets say they get 13 reps easy, and then on the 14th reps its starts to get hard to pull them self up because there weight is getting heavy and so the rep is not as smooth but still they make it, and then they go for the 15th rep and again its getting even harder to do it and the rep is even less smooth. the differenc with me is that all the reps are not as smooth because my weight is too heavy for me to begin with, so in order to make the reps smooth i stop just short of a dead hang. so i think that as i get better at them i will be able to get each reps to a dead hang.

well thats my theory anyway, what do you guys think, is it just that my weght is too heavy for me at the moment.

biggfly

I do dead hang pull ups and chins, but I too suck at them. I am very similar in reps as you, I always fade out each set and the reps decrease. I have never been to good at pull ups and would like to improve them as they are a great pull. I am strong everywhere else in the gym, stronger than lifting partners and others, then when pullups come due, I get my ass kicked and they all look at me like I am sandbagging, but truthfully I just am not good at them. If anyone on here has excercises(I know lat pulls help) that would strengthen my pullups, please advise. Pretty sure I just need to keep at them and keep working hard at what I can do, and they will improve.

Triple Threat

I don't go that wide. Try a little bit narrower grip, maybe 6 or so inches wider than shoulder width. See if that helps.

Triple Threat

I don't get all that much carry-over from lat pulldowns to pull-ups. Does your gym have an assisted dip/pull-up station? If so, that would be better than lat pulldowns. A

lso, you could try human-assisted pull-ups. They require a spotter. As you start to pull up, the spotter helps by grabbing you at the waist/hips, and gently tries to lift you. Of course, you're supposed to do most of the lifting.

UFC rocks

it probably would help as far as reps go. but it would be working the biceps more and when i am doing pullups i mainly want to work the back and a wider grips works the lats much better. but is it ture that a closer grip works the middle part of the back more, i know that parallel grip pullups do.

biggfly

I will do more on the assisted dip station with minimal help to see if I can make strides. Thanks.

clayu86

It all depends on how you want to target your back. The most common method is going to a full hang. Don't be afraid to use a chair or bench under you to assist if it gets to hard. You are there to workout for you and you only and it is important that you finish your sets even if it takes assisting. Good luck.

UFC rocks

yeh thanks for the replys everone, it think i will just keep at it and eventually i will get better at them. i have been improveing on them, because a am alot better than when i first started doing them, i guess it will just take time. but i will stick with them because after all the best way to get good at something is to do it.

Doublebase

Dead hang all the way.

buening

I do both. Dead hang is good to stretch out the lats between each rep, but it is also allowing the lats to relax between reps. Going down to near dead hang will keep constant tension on the lats, but you will not be able to do as many this way.

carlito cool

dead hang all the way

wouldnt wanna cheat yourself and your body ^_^

SHUT UP AND LIFT

clayu86

always remember to throw your pride out the door when you work out...dont try to impress, workout for you and thats all your worried about while youre there. People who let their pride get in the way while lifting will try to do more than they are capable of or will struggle because they are afraid of what people will think....just mentally prepare yourself and doit...good luck.

oneovercabin

Does anyone know a good way to maintain a good body position if you're doing them from a dead hang? I like doing the reps with a full ROM, but sometimes I feel my body starts to swing when I go down too far.

k-lock

your probably doing them to fast...
keep them slow and controlled!
also, focus on good form...i am having a vision of you trying to kick your legs and worm up to the top when the goin gets hard...don't do that! your just cheating yourself because all your doing is using momentum to get u up. yes, cheating can be good every once in a while to get that extra "umph"-but at the end of a set only when you are not able to do anymore while using good form, and even then, having a spotter to help u pull em out is better.

I was in the marine corps and pull ups was almost a daily thing for us, I would find myself having the same problems with swinging and kicking at first, but we always had someone there to smack us around a little if we did that! after a while you WILL get better at them and be able to crank out more and more...just keep at it and don't get discouraged.

anyways, just keep your movement controlled and flowing, it may seem harder and slower, but you will reap great rewards from it, and soon they will become second nature. I suck at them now, cause i have been injured and in and out of the gym for the last year, but at one point i was doing 29 of them at my best. They are Great for building your back as well!

oneovercabin

I'm not struggling to do them at all, not trying to kick up my legs, but my body still ends up swinging when I go too far. I don't find pullups to be overly difficult, and I definitely concentrate on good form, but I can't seem to get the full ROM without having my body swing a bit.

Metallibanger

It takes me about 4 seconds to go all the way down

Learner

I started doing chins with a full range of motion. But once I started adding extra weight my left elbow began to get sore. And my left wrist. I find that, with a straight bar, the arms want to turn slightly to a position where the palms are almost facing each other. As the bar doesn't allow the hands to move thus, the strain causes pain. One day I will acquire or make a bar that is angled to allow a more natural (for me) hand position. Until then, I will stop just before my arms are completely straight.

Perhaps your leverages put you at a disadvantage. Long arms would be more difficult to bend from a dead hang. Although I have long arms and can start from a dead hang. I think it might also have something to do with the way my arms naturally hang at my sides when they are relaxed - not quite straight. So, when I am hanging at full arm stretch, there will be a teensy-weensy bit of an angle at the elbow. Notice how people's arms are when they are relaxed at their sides - men usually have more of a bend at the elbow - as if they are beginning a curl. Women's arms often bend the other way. I think that could be why women have difficulty with pull ups and chins - as well as less muscle mass. Men whose arms are more straight could have more difficulty than men whose arms are bent. The bent-arm men might have tight or stronger biceps in relation to their triceps. Or it might have something to do with the elbow structure.

I could be wrong. I often am.

NFOMan

Yo, I do the full hang, but with great effort (its a bitch).

I also add a stretch, while I'm hanging, and I do ab crunches (vertical leg raises? ) while I'm in the lat exhaustion stage (still hanging). I can feel the pump!

Try it.

IMHO

buening

Look into doing pullups on rings if a fixed bar hurts your elbows. See the one on the bottom of this page POWER RACKS

Not exactly rings, but you get the idea. There are rings with basically ratchet straps attached to them online at various places. A bit more flexibility as you have to have a rack to mount the ones in the link above. The rings are typically around $80, but you aren't limited to only pullups on them.

Ringtraining.com