@numenorian This all the way. I'm fairly small (5'4 and 118...but much smaller when I started lifting). I swam competitively for 12+ years. I never tried assisted pull ups. Just tried a pull up out of curiosity and did 6. That's not to say that didn't take a lot of effort to get from 6 to where I'm at now (12 weighted with 30 lbs). Swimming is a heavily upper body sport so my upper body was naturally strong while my lower body was...sad. Ultimately, it comes more down to your upper body strength than your size. If you want to be good at pull ups, work on lat strength. Lots of lat pull downs!!!
How long b/f you could do a pull-up
- Thread starter ambitiouspoetry
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@numenorian Would close grip vs wider grip vary in difficulty? (besides longer distance to travel for close grip). I randomly did a close grip on the other day and was pretty shocked (the bar wasn't very wide) since I feel like I've been working on it for a while. Will try a wider grip tonight
numenorian
New member
@ciemar99 Play around with it. That is also probably pretty dependent on which muscle groups are dominant, and what movement pattern you're most comfortable with. I can do both, but find a closer grip is easier, despite being more distance to the bar. A wide grip seems to put more strain on my shoulders. What works for me might not work for you though.
differentviews
New member
@numenorian @numenorian always has the best answers.
Also, I am 5'5", about 157lbs and I can do 2 pull-ups. My best guess at my bf% is around 23%. Took me awhile to be able to do them. I really made sure to focus on lat pull downs and assisted pullups. Negatives helped too. Then one day I could just do a pull-up. You'll get there, OP!
Also, I am 5'5", about 157lbs and I can do 2 pull-ups. My best guess at my bf% is around 23%. Took me awhile to be able to do them. I really made sure to focus on lat pull downs and assisted pullups. Negatives helped too. Then one day I could just do a pull-up. You'll get there, OP!
numenorian
New member
@differentviews I'm glad someone thinks so. Apparently, bringing up that pull-ups are a body weight exercise, and it's the amount of muscle per lb of body weight, arm length, and training that is going to matter more; not your actual scale weight, so not to think it was impossible for a larger person (and therefore not even try), got taken very poorly below. Oh well. Can't please everyone.
@ambitiouspoetry I was unable to do a pull-up or more than a few chin-ups. I found that hanging a light 5-10 lbs (2.26-4.53 kg) resistance band on the bar, putting my foot through it, and doing normal sets of pull ups/chin ups that way REALLY helped. Once I was able to do more reps I'd do as many as I could without it, then add it for the remaining sets/reps. 5'5, 106.
@ambitiouspoetry A pull up isn't exactly, but is close to, overhead-rowing your entire bodyweight.
I weigh 165 lbs, and I got my first pull up within weeks of the first time I bench pressed my bodyweight. To me, they're totally different exercises, but comparable in terms of difficulty. I worked my way up to it with a combination of gradually decreasing assisted pull-ups, and slow negatives (where you jump up to the bar and slowly lower yourself down.)
I weigh 165 lbs, and I got my first pull up within weeks of the first time I bench pressed my bodyweight. To me, they're totally different exercises, but comparable in terms of difficulty. I worked my way up to it with a combination of gradually decreasing assisted pull-ups, and slow negatives (where you jump up to the bar and slowly lower yourself down.)
geldastriz
New member
@ambitiouspoetry It took me a couple months of concentrated lifting. I did a bunch of negatives, and general upper body stuff.
arisemydarling
New member
@ambitiouspoetry I spun my wheels for about six years before I got my first one. I did a lot of training with bands, negatives, static holds, jumping pull ups, assisted machine and got nowhere. When I switched to a really focused powerlifting routine and started training my back a lot more -- high volume heavy deadlifts and bench press especially -- I got my first pull up within a few months. I can't emphasize lat activation enough. I'm not sure I ever knew how to do it for those first six years (even though prior to getting a pull up I was deadlifting over 200 lb, benching over 100 lb, etc).
I wasn't overweight by BMI when I got my first pull up but I have been since then and maintained my ability to rep chin ups and pull ups. All things being equal it's obviously easier to do a pull up if you weigh less, but there's no reason that you have to be shredded or even mildly lean to do one. Strength is all.
I wasn't overweight by BMI when I got my first pull up but I have been since then and maintained my ability to rep chin ups and pull ups. All things being equal it's obviously easier to do a pull up if you weigh less, but there's no reason that you have to be shredded or even mildly lean to do one. Strength is all.
@ambitiouspoetry It took me about 6 weeks to do a chin up then another 6 weeks to do a narrow grip pull up! I then worked up to a few chin ups then it went to the back burner for about 6 months..then took another month maybe to do a wide grip pull up. 
I started working on them last April and now I can do 5 chin ups and 2 wide pull ups. Whichever style I focused on didn't seem to translate to the other getting better unfortunately haha
I started working on them last April and now I can do 5 chin ups and 2 wide pull ups. Whichever style I focused on didn't seem to translate to the other getting better unfortunately haha@ambitiouspoetry I'm just under 5'2 and 110lbs. When I first started trying to do pullups, I was about 100-105lbs. I went to the gym a couple of times a week and did lat pull downs, gradually working up from pulling down 15kg to 35kg in 3 sets of 10 reps. I would also try to do a pullup every time I passed the bars in the park. After a few months I finally managed it. I can now do two full pullups, although when I try for the third I don't move at all.
I briefly played around with the assisted pullup machine at the gym (where you kneel on a platform that supports some of your weight and do pull ups), but the handles were uncomfortably far apart for me and having my knees resting on something allowed me to lean back in a really awkward way and do the pullup with bad form.
I briefly played around with the assisted pullup machine at the gym (where you kneel on a platform that supports some of your weight and do pull ups), but the handles were uncomfortably far apart for me and having my knees resting on something allowed me to lean back in a really awkward way and do the pullup with bad form.
connorbird
New member
@ambitiouspoetry I'm 5'0, 115 pounds.
I've always had an extremely weak upper body. I started by doing sets of negatives with no weight and, after some time, I'd do weighted negatives. I also do lat pulldown on my back days. Now, I can do pullups, so I'll do as many reps as I can in a set and do negatives to make up the rest (for example, if I still want 10 reps, but can only do 7 full pullups, I'll do 3 negatives). Took me about 2 months to be able to do several with really controlled form. I also climb 3-4 days a week, which helped. Honestly though, I contribute most of my progress from the negatives.
I've always had an extremely weak upper body. I started by doing sets of negatives with no weight and, after some time, I'd do weighted negatives. I also do lat pulldown on my back days. Now, I can do pullups, so I'll do as many reps as I can in a set and do negatives to make up the rest (for example, if I still want 10 reps, but can only do 7 full pullups, I'll do 3 negatives). Took me about 2 months to be able to do several with really controlled form. I also climb 3-4 days a week, which helped. Honestly though, I contribute most of my progress from the negatives.
@connorbird this! negatives and hanging shrugs were the jam for pull up progression
alisssabru
New member
@ambitiouspoetry My question is, would it take longer for a woman who weighs more to do one? I'm a bit scared to try really. (I'm not huge, 5'8 and 11st, but I imagine it'd be a lot to pull up)
@alisssabru Yes and no. Your difficulty is going to depend on your strength versus your weight. You have a certain amount of muscle that does all of the heavy lifting and the rest is basically fat and water. All of the muscle you have will be pulling its own weight plus fat and water. So it depends on your previous training essentially. But being heavier does not innately make you less likely to be able to do a pullup. You just likely dont have the muscle at the moment to successfully do it and you will likely have a hard time with it. Thats not to say you shouldnt try it, because why not? The worst that could happen is you flail around for a bit, realize you couldnt pull yourself up into a boat and have a giggle.
@alisssabru If you can, find a gym with an assisted pull up machine. The way they work is you select counter-balancing weight when doing them, and the weight you select is subtracted from your own weight. So, for example, if you're 11st, you peg 4st on the machine, and then you only have to pull up 7st because it "assists" you with the other 4st. Don't be scared to try!
tammyriggs
New member
@dawn16 The assisted pull up machine is something I've been unable to wrap my brain around for so long, haha. So selecting a lower weight is actually more difficult than selecting a heavier weight, am I understanding this correctly? If I weigh 115lb and select 115lb, that means it would be assisting me with my entire body weight, right? So I would want to work up to selecting lower weights on the machine rather than the other way around?
@tammyriggs Yes! It felt SO counterintuitive the first time I used one!