How to pull up on the horizontal bar?
pull up on the horizontal barPulling up on the bar is an extremely beneficial exercise that develops almost all of the muscles in the upper body. Depending on the width of the grip, a person can accentuate the load on the pectoral muscles, latissimus dorsi, or arm muscles. Hidden in this exercise is tremendous scope for improvement. First, you can increase the number of pull-ups, then improve the technique, then pull up with additional weights.
Let's start with "0"
Let's start with those people who can never pull themselves up. If you belong to this category, then you will have to start with negative repetitions. The essence of this technique is as follows: you place the chair next to the crossbar so that your chin is above the crossbar, grab the crossbar from above (with a straight grip) shoulder-width apart and take, figuratively speaking, a step forward. After hanging, try to descend as slowly as possible. Having descended, you again climb the dais. Don't overdo it - it's not recommended to do more than five to seven reps. After a short rest, the next approach. Then - the third. This number of approaches at the initial stage is more than enough.
Another way for people who can't pull up even once is pull-ups with the help of another person. Your partner is positioned behind you to help you pull up. Keep in mind that he should help you as little as possible, and you should try as much as possible. The frequency of training is once every two to three days. If more often, then the muscles will not have time to recover. In the event that the muscles begin to hurt a lot, it is allowed to take a break for a week. No longer recommended.
For those who can do 4-5 times
In this case, you need to pull up with a straight grip (again in three approaches). The first time you need to pull yourself up "to the maximum", and the next two times "finish off" to the same number with negative repetitions. Too many negative repetitions do not need to be done - this will end with overtraining, and, as a result, the cessation of progress and a complete reluctance to approach the horizontal bar. You also need to train every two to three days.
For those who can do more than 7 times
If you are able to do more than seven chin-ups, then for the same reason, you shouldn't pay too much attention to negative repetitions. In addition, you do not need to pull up even to the maximum. The fact is that exercises that a person can do up to seven repetitions, basically, develop strength. With a lot of repetitions, endurance develops predominantly, and the effects of overtraining become even stronger. The number of repetitions is approximately 70% of the maximum number of pull-ups you can do. The approaches can be increased first to four, and then to five. In addition, at this stage, the pull-up technique must begin to vary.
Pull-up techniques
Pull-up techniquesLet's consider in more detail the pull-up techniques. In addition to the mentioned direct grip, a reverse grip is used (in this case, the person is taken from below by the crossbar), as well as a combined one. In the latter case, one hand must be placed with a direct grip, and the other with a reverse grip. The body in this case is along the bar.
As for the reverse grip, here the load is focused on the flexor muscles, and not on the broadest dorsal muscles and on the shoulder muscles, as, in the first place, occurs with the straight one. It should be emphasized that the straight grip trains a lot more muscles, so it should be the dominant type of pull-up. The rest should be used solely for variety.
In addition, the load on different muscle groups must be varied by changing the width of the grip. As you know, the wider the grip, the more stress the back muscles function. However, an overly wide grip reduces the amplitude of the musculature, which impairs its development. Also, do not use a wide grip when pulling up with a reverse grip, as this is dangerous for the ligaments. However, if you really want to pull up like this, try to do it slowly, carefully, without dropping to the end.
Move the emphasis on the chest muscles, while loading the press additionally, you can pull up the "corner". In this case, you pull yourself up with your legs raised to chest level. If in the early stages it is difficult for you, then it is allowed to raise your legs, which are bent at the knees. And gradually (along with strengthening the abdominal muscles), you need to straighten them more and more.
If you are able to pull up more than 15 times (for a healthy man, 15 times is the minimum that you need to strive for), then it's time to use weights. If you don't, then progress may slow down and even stop altogether. Instead of weights, a special belt with weights is usually used, a pound weight tied to the belt, or, in extreme cases, a backpack with books.
Remember that the most important thing in training (and not only on the horizontal bar) is consistency. If for some reason you cannot do the workout (got sick, did not get enough sleep, overtrained last time), then you need to take a break, but it should not last for weeks, as soon as you feel that you are ready, you need to continue. You cannot be satisfied with what has already been achieved.
Good luck in your training!