Nowadays, people are so fascinated with new equipment in the gym that they have forgotten the old ways of working out. Before, people had limited weights in the gym and almost no machines and equipment.
Still, people trained themselves by lifting their own body weight. One of those exercises was pull ups. Pull ups are considered to be one of the most difficult exercises, especially if you are a beginner. If you are someone who can perform 3-5 reps, you can read along to know more about it.
Let’s start with the benefits of pull ups:
Improved posture
Doing pull ups regularly will help you get an improved posture giving you a strengthened core and a strong back.
Reduced back pain
Today’s lifestyle involves driving in traffic and sitting in front of a computer screen for hours at stretch which leads to severe back pain. Doing pull ups will definitely reduce it.
‘V’ shape
If you crave for that ‘V’ shape, nothing but pull ups will help you achieve it, which will also attract everyone’s eyes towards you.
Great strength
As you keep pulling your own body weight against gravity, you will eventually develop great strength within you to pull and push stuff.
Now that you know the benefits of pull ups, you are already performing them in your mind and imagining all the body goals you will be able to achieve. Now I don’t’ want to be the bad guy, but I am going to give you a reality check anyway. Performing pull ups is not going to be an easy task you can perform this exercise properly only when you are fully prepared for it.
So, read along to know how to prepare yourself for a session of pull ups:
Lose weight
This will be the first thing that you will need to get done in order to perform a pull up all by yourself. Your ability to do pull ups depends upon the amount of body fat you have. So, lesser the body fat, the faster you will be able to perform this exercise.
Gain strength
If you think you can perform a set after losing excess body weight, then let me tell you that you are absolutely wrong. To perform pull ups you will need to build strength in your arms and back to lift your entire body weight.
Eating right
To build the strength required for performing pull ups will not be that simple. You will have to consume food rich in nutrition as it will help build lean muscle. I suggest that you eat lean protein, healthy fats, fresh fruits, leafy green veggies coupled with supplements which will provide your body with an unparalleled power and strength.
Stretches
Irrespective of the efforts you put into sculpting your body, your muscles are bound to get stiff and sore if you don’t stretch properly before and after each workout. Make sure that your back and arms are thoroughly stretched before you work on those pull ups.
Warm up
Warming up after stretching will help increase the blood flow within your body. Raise your arms and swing them in circular motion or perform a two minute jog on the spot which will warm up your body.
After you take in stride the tips listed above, follow the step-by-step guide given below to perform a complete pull up.
Grab onto a bar with your arms stretched slightly wider than your shoulder width.
With your arms facing away, lower your body all the way down.
Pull yourself up until your chin is above the bar.
Hold that position for one or two seconds depending on your strength.
Slowly lower your body all the way down till your arms are fully stretched.
Repeat the above given procedure until you can.
After performing a pull up, do take note of the muscles that are more activated.If you feel the pull in your arms, then you are using too much of them and not your back. Since a pull up is a compound exercise, it should be performed with a combination of both arms and back and not just a single body part.
If you find the above procedures and steps are too difficult to perform, you can hire a personal trainer in London who will guide you on how to work out properly and safely.
