How to progress pull-ups? (F25)

[notmyname]

Hi all,

I have a longterm goal of being able to do a single set of 10 clean pull-ups. So far, I've been able to get to a max of 5 reps on my own, by training them once a week (three sets max bodyweight, no assistance). However, as soon as I miss a week, my progress plummets again.

I've been doing a bunch of reading online and see three recurring strategies for gaining (pull-up) strength:

• Train pull-ups once a week, 3 sets of max reps (stop one rep before failure) -> what I've been doing
• Grease the groove: do a lot of pull-ups throughout the week, 3-5 days per week (Marine program by Misty Posey)
• Train pull-ups three times a week, 3 sets of max reps (stop one rep before failure)

I was wondering if any of these strategies are better than the other? It seems obvious that I would progress faster by training pull-ups three times a week, rather than just once, but I'm worried that I might burn out too fast if I do that for three weeks straight. Maybe I'm lacking some foundational strength and I should go back to an earlier pull-up progression? (e.g. negatives)

Some stats: Female, 25 y/o, 1.75m (5.7"), 69kg (152 lbs). My pull-up PR was 5, but right now I can do about 2-3 max.

Any help/insights will be greatly appreciated!

EDIT: Seems like training more at a lower rep range is the way to go. Thanks a lot to everyone who replied! I'll go put this into practice now

EDIT 2: wow, I really didn't expect this to blow up like it did! Many many thanks for all your insightful replies and tips. There are too many to reply personally, but I've been reading them all. Love this community

 

[tery]

@notmyname You don't see gymnasts training once a week . You need to accumulate enough volume somehow.

 

[simonssen]

@tery How often do gymnasts train the same muscle group, out of interest?

 

[carollcsw]

@simonssen They hardly isolate. I used to do mainly parallel bars 4x a week, rings 2x week, bar 2x, floor 2x, etc. There was overlap in the training days. But I was not competitive just recreational. In gymnastics a lot of the muscle training comes from learning the excercise routines. Rings in particular were quite taxing but felt the safest at times. I still remember hitting my knee on the parallel bars doing a routine... damn it hurt for weeks

 

[uncharted]

@tery I also recommend some weighted pull-ups. Even in sets of 1-3 reps. Negatives might be helpful too. But yeah once a week isn’t good enough.

 

[tery]

@uncharted I wouldn't recommend weighted pull-ups to someone that does barely 5, but that's just me, I'm already constantly injured.

 

[uncharted]

@tery I hear that.

 

[milenaj]

@tery Weighted NEGATIVES! You would be surprised how effective those are

 

[taha]

@uncharted I dont think weighted pull ups are a good idea for a 5reps person, this might actually do more harm then good. I think you only need to add weight to an exercise when you are able to do like 3x15 reps

 

[pennypule]

@notmyname I think you need to train more frequently, at less than your max. At the moment you're maxing out once a week, every week, which isn't great for getting your muscles working (aka time under tension).

I'd either do more smaller sets, and on at least one more day per week, or like you said get some volume in doing negatives. You could try some really slow eccentrics, again to get more time under tension.

 

[marija321]

@notmyname Do 2, every minute, for 5 minutes. At least 3x per week. When you succeed, go to 3 every minute, etc.. Build up to doing day 5x5 or 5x6... Then you should be well on your way to 10 in a row.

 

[hearforonequestion]

@marija321 That’s what I did. I set a goal for 100 pullups a day, which usually takes me about 20-25 minutes. 5 pullups (not chinups) every minute on the minute. During the first week and a half I struggled hitting 5 every minute, but now, after 2 months, I feel like I’m flying. I can even do muscle-ups without any rehearsing. Do take care do, because I did not start doing this out of the blue; I’ve had experience training for strength before, so pay attention to how your wrists and elbows react.

 

[johnbastion]

@hearforonequestion Why not chin-ups? I thought they were roughly the same exercise.

 

[hearforonequestion]

@johnbastion They are not. There are differences in muscles involved; as I see it, if I want to train for power (which could transfer to muscleups) I would do pullups, which are, of course, harder. I would not necessarily train pullups for hypertrophy, because they make it a hard task to achieve my desired level of time under tension. Now, I have seen some gains with pullups, but my main goal is to use them for strength gains; I figure you’re better off doing lat pulldowns for muscle. Chinups involve more biceps than pullups and, being easier to do, could be used for hypertrophy more efficiently. Moreover, pullups can help with real life scenarios, because they mimic the exact movement you would do for climbing.

 

[johnbastion]

@hearforonequestion I enjoyed reading this. Very informative. Thank you.

 

[hearforonequestion]

@johnbastion No, the pleasure is mine! I like explaining things like this because it helps with checking if I got all the info in the right place, and improves further consolidation.

 

[eddieseven]

@hearforonequestion The best way it was explained to me if I'm running for my life and I have to climb a wall or something what direction would your hands be facing when you grab on.

 

[carollcsw]

@eddieseven What if you have to carry an injured person? Your hands will be facing the chin up position

 

[petroula]

@carollcsw Totally different action from a chinup. Also https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fireman's_carry

 

[carollcsw]

@petroula True if you're a fireman but my old boxer dog and my girlfriend would kill me if I ever carry them like that... think more carrying a bride over the threshold type of excercise