Why can I do 6 pull ups but barley can do 20 push ups? Any tips to improve

[itsjustmerae]

@curiouschristian101 I’m 5’9 I’m pretty sure

 

[saith]

@itsjustmerae

 

[saith]

Stick to this and you'll be fine.

 

[theocrooks]

@itsjustmerae I would prioritize increasing maximal strength for a while (bench press is pretty good for this if you have access to the gym) and then use that new strength to increase strength endurance. It is pretty common to plateau on higher rep ranges as you’re not really increasing your maximal strength anymore, which works as a base for higher reps.

 

[khensu9]

@theocrooks I would agree with you except for one thing: OP says he's too heavy for the marine recruit weight limit. In this case, I think it would make sense to drop some pounds and see how much that helps. In my experience, it's much easier to gain strength if you are allowing yourself to gain a bit of weight too, rather than trying to lose weight while increasing maximal strength.

IMO, OP should try shed pounds to clear the weight limit by a few pounds first while maintaining strength. This would naturally increase the rep count for body weight exercises. Then once he's got a few pounds to grow, start pushing heavy to gain strength. Cut, bulk, rinse, repeat.

 

[theocrooks]

@khensu9 Agreed, good point.

 

[stevenmcg2005]

@itsjustmerae I wouldn't worry about pushups as much in the Marines. You only do pushups when you're getting punished in Boot Camp.(Incentive Training/IT) Plus you'll naturally be able to do more over time in Boot Camp because of this.

However that won't be true for pull ups. Almost no one improved on their pull up numbers in boot camp. Many actually did fewer pull ups at the end of boot camp or some weren't even able to do enough to pass the initial test and had to get dropped to the Physical Conditioning Platoon(PCP) until they passed which extended their stay in boot camp by several weeks. You're barely passing at 6. I would continue to work on pull ups and try to get as close as you can to 23 pull ups so you can get as high as a score on the Physical Fitness Test(PFT) as possible because it will help with getting promoted and getting treated better in general.

Lat pull down machine and row machine at the gym is one of the best ways to improve pull up numbers because it works out your lats. Also, just doing lots of pull ups frequently will get your numbers up. Get a pull up bar to hang in your door. They're only like $20. Then just do like half your max or less whenever you walk by. It's called Greasing the Groove. It will improve your pull up numbers really quickly.

 

[itsjustmerae]

@stevenmcg2005 I’m just worried If we did a PT that focuses on push ups I’ll hold back my team. But I have as gym member ship and been going almost every day, thank you for the advice

 

[zazzy]

@itsjustmerae If you can do 6 pull-ups but not 20 push-ups I have a feeling your pull-ups form isn’t right.

 

[blessingposter23]

@chosen44 Different muscle groups but u have to be realistic here. A strict Pull up requires an enormous amount of strength. U are moving much more weight than u are with a push up. It would be very odd that his pull strength is that much more greater than his push strength.

 

[godschild4ever1989]

@blessingposter23

It would be very odd that his pull strength is that much more greater than his push strength.

I feel like this is only the case in individuals who are into fitness/weightlifting/bwf etc. I think in most real world cases of utilizing strength you're pulling strength is used significantly more and is generally going to be stronger. Upper back and shoulders are used heaps when lifting heavy shit, and being able to maneuver heavy shit carefully feels pretty dependent on your upper back.

Even shit like digging is grip/shoulder focused. Chest is probably the biggest meme upper body muscle that's usually pretty underdeveloped if you just do shit with your hands.

 

[fabford]

@godschild4ever1989 I agree. Especially if you’re fairly active but not a lifter. Climbing, swimming, running, carrying things—most activity uses core, legs, back, and pull muscles way more than push muscles. Our football coaches got on our ass if we were hitting the bench too often. It’s a fairly non-functional muscle group in comparison. Dips and presses are definitely important, but in daily life, most dip and press motions are accompanied by, and greatly supported by, momentum or stability from different muscles.

 

[khensu9]

@blessingposter23 There was some guy here last week that was saying he could do 27 pull-ups but barely make 25 pushups. I don't know what to believe anymore.

 

[mally1992]

@blessingposter23 I had this same issue when I started training, so I believe him.

But it was also my fault because I would do pull-ups almost daily as it was fun to do it, and push-ups I would just do 2x a week + sometimes skipping initially before I got the consistency down

I did strict pull-ups too -- overhand grip, full stretch at the bottom, driving elbows back and going up in a vertical line

 

[blessingposter23]

@mally1992 That’s definitely interesting I know people who can do 30 push ups but can’t manage 2 pull ups.

 

[fabford]

@blessingposter23 This is way more common imo, but happens for largely the same reason. One motion is easier for someone than the other when they start out, and it’s much more fun to work at something that you’re already good at lol.

 

[zazzy]

@chosen44 Your body doesn’t work in isolation. When one muscle starts to fatigue or fail others kick in to help. If you can do pull-ups w proper form you can do a push-up w proper form.

 

[margarite]

@zazzy idk man. i can do 10 pullups fairly easily with perfect form but doing 20 pushups is torture

 

[tdstaats]

@zazzy If he’s doing strict form 6/20 ratio is pretty close to what I had when I first started doing proper form push ups. I went from doing 100 terrible push ups to 30 with strict form and 15-20 with elevated push ups. My max was 7-8 at the time.

 

[chase33]

@itsjustmerae Hey congrats on enlisting! I got out of the Marine Corps in June and am still very involved in the lifestyle.

Don’t focus on your push-ups too much. Practice them every day, but don’t neglect your pull-ups. Pull-ups are what you’ll be graded on. It’s better to get screamed at for only doing 20 push-ups than it is to get a low PFT score for not doing a lot of pull-ups.

Make sure you have STRICT form with your pull-ups. Go to every PT your recruiters host and ask them to help your form.

Good luck!