The Fit Blog

The pull-up is a fantastic exercise. It has a simplicity like few other exercises yet it does wonders for your upper body. Unfortunately, it is often overlooked and skipped out on. Few people at the gym will actually do pull-ups as part of their workout. Perhaps this is partly because many people can only do one or two consecutively and figure it isn’t worth the bother. Well I beg to differ - pull-ups are definitely worth the effort. You just have to work at them.

When I started doing pull-ups regularly at the gym, I was terrible. Without assistance, I’d attempt to wiggle my way up to the bar, legs spasming with a grimace on my face. Within a period of about 4 months, however, I was able to do 3 sets of 10 unassisted pull-ups without a problem. What was my secret?

First of all, I incorporated pull-ups into nearly every workout I did. Mostly, I’d work at 30 pull-ups as a warm up. Initially I did them on the gravitron. I was able to begin with the gravitron set to 40lbs. This was enough of an offset weight to let me do 10 reps in a row, albeit still struggling.

After several weeks, they started getting easier. I moved down to a 20lb offset on the gravitron. At this point, I also started doing 2 sets of assisted pull-ups, followed by a single set of unassisted pull-ups. The unassisted pull-ups were really broken and I was probably only doing one at a time, but I was finally doing them. It was a good feeling. Some workouts, I’d also attempt 100 jumping pull-ups - that is, hold the bar with feet on the ground or box and jump into the pull-up. In these instances, I’d work primarily on the negative, or jump up and then slowly lower myself.

Eventually, I moved completely away from the gravitron and I haven’t used it again since. To this day, I still include 30 pull-ups into my warmup or add them into a circuit of some sort.

Some people suggest lat pull-downs to prepare yourself for pull-ups, but I disagree. The key to increasing your pull-up numbers is to just keep at it. Work at them as much as possible. The more you do it, the stronger you get and the easier they will become.

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Yep, another youtube video showcasing a guy with some crazy upper body strength and control.

His name is b-boy junior. and he’s incredibly good at break dancing. These break dancing guys all seem to have some serious upper body strength. And it’s needed too, in order to pull off those fantastic moves.

2 Comments | In: feats of strength | | #

Watching a bit of the Tour de France, when the riders seem to effortlessly climb up massive mountain sides, there’s no question in our minds - those guys are in good shape. When a new 100m sprinting record is set, nobody questions the sprinter’s fitness level. A marathon runner? Yep - definitely fit. How about one of the cast on “Dancing with the Stars”? See their abs? They’re as lean as lean can be. And what about bodybuilders, gymnasts, weight lifters, firefighters, action heroes, golf players and pole vaulters? Would we classify all of these individuals as being fit? Probably. But what does that really mean?

At first, it seems a simple question. Everyone knows what fitness is. Or do we? We can easily peg a person who is fit and in shape, but are they really fit? What does it mean to be fit? Is it a low body fat percentage? Is it an abundance of muscle mass? Is it speed and agility? Is it strength? Or is it simply the ability to perform well at whatever you do?

For practical purposes, being functionally good at the day to day tasks that require some form of physical exertion may be the essence of what being fit is. The dancer is fit because she can dance well. The gymnast is fit because he possesses a significant amount of strength. But a computer programmer (like myself) wouldn’t be classified as being fit because he is good at rolling out of bed and getting to the office on time. Being fit requires additional attributes besides being able to exceed at one’s own work. In order to be fit, one must be able to do well at a variety of physical activities.

The dancer and gymnast each exceed in numerous physical abilities that contribute to their ability to perform. Strength, endurance and flexibility are just a few of these attributes. By exceeding in these multiple areas, they are also likely to do well in physical tasks outside of their domain. The computer programmer, on the other hand, may not possess enough additional abilities, outside of the scope of his or her job, to be classified as fit. While the programmer may exceed at specific tasks, he or she may not exceed in other areas. Therefore, they must work in extra curricular physical activities in order to achieve a higher fitness level.

The definition of being fit, therefore, is to not only be functionally able, but being functionally able across multiple domains. For most of us, who aren’t gymnasts or dancers, this requires going to the gym, getting out for runs and possibly taking up Yoga or Tennis or a joining a rec league of some sort.

The benefits of truly being fit, then, are significant. Many of us strive to be fit simply to be healthy and look good, but besides helping us maintain a good body weight, fitness enables individuals.

Being fit allows us to lift heavier items without injury. It lets us pick up our children or grandchildren to give them a bear hug. It helps us balance when on the roof, putting up our Christmas lights. Fitness lets us play soccer with our kids after school. It helps us run up 5 flights of stairs when we’re late for class. Whether hiking or biking, being fit helps us enjoy our environments. We can take pleasure in canoing a river or exploring the wilderness. The long walking tours when traveling abroad are easier. Shoveling snow or mowing the lawn are less taxing.

No matter who we are, what we do or what our age is, striving to be fit should be an important part of every one’s life. For being fit gives us the means to do the things that need to get done and live our lives as we wish.

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