Pull-ups: Working for results

Your best result: 0-1

Problem: You are not strong enough to lift your body weight.

Solution: Turn your weakness into an advantage by using “negative pull-ups.” Perform only pull-ups, using a heavier weight than you can lift: this is the fastest way to gain strength.

How to do it: First, a little terminology.

Medium Reverse Grip Pull-Ups: This is a lighter version of the traditional pull-up. You place your hands shoulder-width apart and use an underhand grip (palms facing you). This way, you engage your biceps more and it’s a little easier than the traditional pull-up.

Neutral Grip Pull-Ups: This is the same basic movement, but you hold onto parallel bars on a machine with your palms facing each other. This is harder than a medium-grip pull-up, but not as hard as a traditional medium-grip pull-up.

Now follow the below routine to perform negative pull-ups: Place a bench under the bar and use it to push your body up until your chin is above the bar. Then take the required amount of time – 5-6 or 8-10 seconds – to lower your body. When your arms are straight, push back up to the top position and repeat. Rest for 60 seconds after each set.

• Week 1: Medium Reverse Grip Pull-Ups: 3 sets: 5-6 reps: 5-6 seconds
• Week 2: Neutral Grip Pull-Ups: 3 sets: 5-6 reps: 5-6 seconds
• Week 3: Neutral Grip Pull-Ups: 2 sets: 5-6 reps: 8-10 seconds
• Week 4: Pull-ups with a medium straight grip: 2 sets: 5-6 reps: 8-10 seconds

Your best result: 2-4

Problem: You can't perform enough reps to fully develop the mind-muscle connection, which limits your ability to increase your strength.

Solution: Do more sets with fewer reps. Reason: The first one or two reps are the “highest quality,” meaning that the greatest number of muscle fibers are recruited at that point. By doing multiple sets of 2-3 reps, you activate more muscle tissue and develop communication channels between your brain and muscles—fast increasing your strength.

How to do it: Take your max reps of traditional pull-ups and divide it by two. That's how many reps you should do in each set. (If your best is three reps, cut it down to one.) Follow the workout routine below, doing the required number of reps and resting the required amount of time each time. Notice that after 2 weeks, you'll increase the number of reps in each set.

• Week 1: 8 sets: 50% of your best: 90 seconds rest
• Week 2: 8 sets: 50% of your best: 60 seconds rest
• Week 3: 8 sets: max result: 90 seconds rest
• Week 4: 8 sets: max result: 60 seconds rest

Your best result: 5-7

Problem: You are strong enough, but you lack muscular endurance.

Solution: Focus on doing more reps than you normally would, regardless of the number of sets. For example, instead of doing 3 sets of 6 reps, which is 18 reps total, do 30 reps, even if that means you only do three, two, or one set. This will quickly improve your muscular endurance.

How to do it: Perform as many reps as possible, then rest for 60 seconds. You should do 30 reps in total. Try to achieve your goal in the fewest possible sets.

Your best result: 8-12

Problem: You are too strong for your body weight.

Solution: Increase your weight by doing weighted pull-ups. You'll improve your absolute strength, which will increase the number of reps you can do with just your bodyweight.

How to do it: Attach a weight plate to a dip belt and wrap it around your waist. (If your gym doesn't have one, you can clamp a dumbbell between your ankles.) Use a weight that's 5 to 10 percent heavier than your body weight, enough so that you're only doing 2 to 3 reps less than your best. Do 4 to 5 sets, resting 60 seconds between each.