Do Pull-ups for Power

Pull-ups are one of the best exercises for building upper-body power. They work the upper back, arms and shoulders. They are essential for functional strength, as shown by their importance for people in active occupations such as the military and police. People in these professions need to be able to lift themselves up and out of holes and trenches, or over walls.

To do pull-ups, you need to be at a pull-up station or bar at the gym, or have a pull-up bar at home. Your local park might have exercise stations that allow you to do pull-ups on them. Some enterprising and fearless individuals have even used the horizontal bars on construction scaffolding and the handrails in subway cars to do pull-ups.

Start by grabbing the bar with your palms facing away from you, and then use your arms to pull yourself up so that your chin is at least level with the bar. Now lower yourself back down. You can lower yourself all the way down so that your arms are fully extended, or if you’re a beginner and don’t have that much strength, lower yourself halfway down and then come back up.

You can do pull-ups by gripping the bar with your palms facing towards you, which will work your biceps more (and are technically called chin-ups). Many people find this easier than doing a true pull-up, but you should practice both grips.

Do as many as you can per set. Never swing your legs or kick when doing a pull-up – that’d be cheating. Focus on good form, even if it means doing only one or two pull-ups. You will eventually get stronger.

If you’re really struggling with pull-ups, try placing one foot on a chair while doing them. This will lessen your bodyweight, allowing you do to the full range of motion. When you get stronger, ditch the chair and start doing real pull-ups without the assist.

Don’t beat yourself up if you can only do one or two pull-ups. Most people struggle with doing pull-ups. Just keep practicing them, and you’ll get better.