Stuck at 4-6 pull-ups for months

[jermyn]

@pawel Well, there's an easy way they can find out. Try it out and if those changes work, we know frequency was a problem!

 

[confusedinchrist]

@jermyn My pull-ups were stuck somewhere around 7-10 for a long time… a year or two. I’m now occasionally hitting 20. That was by changing pull-ups frequency from 3 times a week to everyday. I’m not exactly greasing the groove either, full effort, but sets spread throughout the day.

 

[jermyn]

@confusedinchrist

I’m not exactly greasing the groove either, full effort, but sets spread throughout the day.

By full effort, you mean going to failure in each set?

 

[confusedinchrist]

@jermyn Likely not failure. If I HAD to do another rep, I mostly probably could. Maintain good form and not excessively squirming or anything.

 

[jermyn]

@confusedinchrist That makes sense since you were not going to failure and using frequency. That approach works too! Which is why one of the biggest parts of my advice to OP was to stay away from failure. It adds so much recovery cost for not much extra benefit.

 

[jabba1495]

@jermyn Thanks!

 

[jermyn]

@jabba1495 You're welcome!

 

[arrowoftimemindreading]

@jermyn ^ this definitely over training.

When I come back from a workout break I usually can only do 5 pull ups. First week 3 sets of 5 reps but still leave one in the tank then the following weeks add weight slowly.

I just do 5x5 rep scheme of weighted pull-ups pyramiding up once or twice a week and by week 8 I can hit 45lbs weighted for 5 and when I drop set I can hit 10 easily. I just never train to failure.

 

[jermyn]

@arrowoftimemindreading Thank you for writing that! I love that experience! Making sure to avoid overtraining and avoid failure are two simple things that can break so many plateaus so easily! What I like about those tips is how simple they are. So cool that you experienced the same thing!

 

[gomer51]

@jabba1495 I know this is a bodyweight sub but I only managed to increase my max pull-ups by adding weight (a belt). After training with weight and then removing it, my max increased.

 

[via_sacra]

@gomer51 imho adding weight is part of the bodyweight training, since every training needs to increase difficulty so youre doing everything perfectly right!

 

[layt]

@gomer51 That's how I learned explosive pull-ups

 

[tabinek]

@gomer51 I think 5 pull-ups are not enough to work with weights yet

 

[jessica50]

@tabinek I have gone from 5 bw pull up plateau to 10 bw pull ups after adding 5kg, dropping reps to 3 per set, working my way back up to 5 with the weight. Taking the weight off makes you feel weightless.

 

[greg67]

@jessica50 How many sets of 3 reps did you do? Like, how do you accumulate enough volume?

 

[jessica50]

@greg67 This was many years ago so I can’t remember.. but I think it may have been 5 sets ? I mean I’m not saying it’s the best or fastest way to grow in strength, just saying I did use this method at these numbers and it worked for me. It took roughly 2-3 weeks of working out every other day to get to sets of 5 weighted reps, and so 10 bw pull ups after taking weight off.

 

[greg67]

@jessica50 Thanks I‘m doing 5x3 weighted rn, too, but only twice a week, so I guess, I‘m gonna be much slower.

 

[arrowoftimemindreading]

@jessica50 +1 I do the same.

 

[via_sacra]

@tabinek in the end, whatever helps you increase strength/muscle mass is good (at least unless you injure yourself or do exercises in a way that they very likely injure you)

 

[payshi]

@tabinek Doesn't have to be a lot of weight. Sometimes getting +1 rep like OP can be difficult, basically because your muscle stimulus is stagnant. Adding 3-5lbs every week for the same reps can help you get stronger and progress to the next unweighted set faster.