Exercises. Food. Diets. Workout. Sport

Pulling up from scratch program. Program to increase the number of pull-ups on the horizontal bar

The 50 Pull Up Program is a training program that will help you develop your strength and physique. Most people can't do ten pull-ups, and few can do more than 15 pull-ups. This training program is designed to help you pull up at least 30 times.

So is it 30 or 50?

This program is written up to 50 pull-ups. This is a lot and very difficult to achieve. To be honest, when you reach 30 pull-ups, it will already be an impressive achievement. And 30 pull-ups will be absolutely enough to maintain a healthy, developed musculature and you don't have to do more. However, if you want to do more, we have 50 pull-ups for you :)

Program Rules

  1. Test. Before starting the program, do as many pull-ups as you can. Don't try to embellish your results or you won't be able to run the program. The test will help determine your level of preparation.
  2. Choose a training cycle depending on the results. For example, if you have completed 7 pull-ups, then you should start with a cycle of 6-8 pull-ups.
  3. Continue with the cycle program. Remember to rest at least one day between workouts. And after every third workout - at least 2 days. If you do not give your muscles a rest, your results will only fall. Some people find that taking longer rests between workouts improves their performance.
  4. Rest 120 seconds or more between sets.
  5. If during your workout you couldn't complete all the sets, don't worry about it. Rest two days and try again.
  6. At the end of the cycle, rest for at least two days and test again. It will show you which cycle to do next. If you find yourself in the same cycle that you were in, then it is better to repeat it than to start the next one when you are not ready yet.
  7. Follow these instructions until you reach your last cycle (40+ pullups). After passing it, you will be in excellent physical shape and you can try to perform 50 pull-ups. But remember, 30 is already very good.

How to pull up correctly

Training cycles

Less than 4 pull-ups

If in the test you performed 0-5 pull-ups, then it is best to start with negative pull-ups. This will strengthen your muscles and prepare you for the rest of the cycles. They are performed as follows:

  1. Instead of pulling your body up, use a chair to hang onto a bar (with your chin just above the bar).
  2. Move your chair to the side and slowly descend until you are hanging with your arms completely straight.
  3. Try to descend as slowly as possible (at least 3 seconds).
Day Approaches Total
1 2 7 5 5 7 26
2 3 8 6 6 8 31
3 4 9 6 6 8 33
4 5 9 7 7 9 37
5 5 10 8 8 10 41
6 6 10 8 8 12 44

4-5 pull-ups

Here, as in the previous cycle, you need to perform negative pull-ups.

Day Approaches Total
1 4 9 6 6 9 34
2 5 9 7 7 9 37
3 6 10 8 8 10 42
4 6 11 8 8 11 44
5 7 12 10 10 12 51
6 8 14 11 11 14 58

6-8 pull-ups

Day Approaches Total
1 2 3 2 2 3 12
2 2 3 2 2 4 13
3 3 4 2 2 4 15
4 3 4 3 3 4 17
5 3 5 3 3 5 19
6 4 5 4 4 6 23

9-11 pull-ups

Day Approaches Total
1 3 5 3 3 5 19
2 4 6 4 4 6 24
3 5 7 5 5 6 28
4 5 8 5 5 8 31
5 6 9 6 6 8 35
6 6 9 6 6 10 37

12-15 pull ups

Day Approaches Total
1 6 8 6 6 8 34
2 6 9 6 6 9 36
3 7 10 6 6 9 38
4 7 10 7 7 10 41
5 8 11 8 8 10 45
6 9 11 9 9 11 49

16-20 pull ups

Day Approaches Total
1 8 11 8 8 10 45
2 9 12 9 9 11 50
3 9 13 9 9 12 52
4 10 14 10 10 13 57
5 11 15 10 10 13 59
6 11 15 11 11 13 61
7 12 16 11 11 15 65
8 12 16 12 12 16 68
9 13 17 13 13 16 72

21-25 pull ups

Day Approaches Total
1 12 16 12 12 15 67
2 13 16 12 12 16 69
3 13 17 13 13 16 72
4 14 19 13 13 18 77
5 14 19 14 14 19 80
6 15 20 14 14 20 83
7 16 20 16 16 20 88
8 16 21 16 16 20 89
9 17 22 16 16 21 92

26-30 pull-ups

Day Approaches Total
1 16 18 15 15 17 81
2 16 20 16 16 19 87
3 17 21 16 16 20 90
4 17 22 17 17 22 95
5 18 23 18 18 22 99
6 19 25 18 18 24 104
7 19 26 18 18 25 106
8 19 27 19 19 26 110
9 20 28 20 20 28 116

31-35 pull-ups

Day Approaches Total
1 20 25 19 19 23 106
2 22 25 21 21 25 114
3 23 26 23 23 25 120
4 24 27 24 24 26 125
5 25 28 24 24 27 128
6 25 29 25 25 28 132
7 26 29 25 25 29 134
8 26 30 26 26 30 138
9 26 32 26 26 32 142

36-40 pull-ups

Day Approaches Total
1 23 27 22 22 26 120
2 24 28 24 24 28 128
3 25 29 24 24 29 131
4 26 30 25 25 30 136
5 26 31 25 25 31 138
6 26 31 26 26 26 135
7 27 31 26 26 32 142
8 28 32 26 26 32 144
9 28 34 27 27 34 150

Over 40 pull ups

Day Approaches Total
1 25 28 24 24 27 128
2 25 29 25 25 28 132
3 25 30 25 25 29 134
4 26 31 25 25 31 138
5 26 32 26 26 31 141
6 27 32 26 26 26 137
7 27 34 26 26 33 146
8 28 34 26 26 34 148
9 29 35 27 27 35 153

If you love training on the horizontal bar in the fresh air, and at the same time want to develop not only strength and endurance, but also pump up muscles, this article is for you. Let's see if there are pull-ups for mass, thanks to which you can significantly increase the muscle frame.

Is it possible to pump up on the horizontal bar?

To achieve muscle growth, you need to work hard. And yes, it is quite possible to achieve such a result on the horizontal bar if the training scheme is appropriate. The only thing that is important to understand right away is which muscle groups the horizontal bar will help pump up.

When you pull up, the biceps, shoulders, back muscles, and abs work. Grip strength is also well trained - that is, the muscles of the forearm. Feet rest like they are in a resort. You can even imitate walking in the hang - all the same, the legs will not swing. But the press is well strained at such moments, especially its lower part.

From the side of the back, the latissimus dorsi, trapezius, round and diamond-shaped sway.

In addition, pull-ups, as well as just hanging on the horizontal bar, are considered very healthy. This position allows you to naturally straighten the spine. As you hang, gravity pulls your body down. The whole back is stretched, the vertebrae are in the correct position.

Being engaged on the horizontal bar, you can both pump up the muscles of the back, abs and arms, and improve your own spine.

How to gain mass with a horizontal bar?

The answer to this question is very simple, and, in fact, no different from gaining mass in the gym - you need to work with weights. How to do this, what weights to work with - we will analyze in detail in the next paragraph using specific examples. To achieve a good result, a well-thought-out training scheme is needed.

As in the gym, the horizontal bar needs to be done correctly. It is desirable that the program be compiled by a qualified specialist, and not by an unnamed trainer from the nearest basement "rocking chair". An inexperienced coach "pokes a finger at the sky." His program may be effective, or it may be a failure. The optimal result will bring an individual training scheme, selected just for you.

Of course, there are general principles of weight gain that will be useful to everyone:

  • In order to increase muscle mass on the horizontal bar, you need to perform 4–6 sets of exercises, for 6–8 repetitions. The last repetition should be almost failure. If you can easily do more, add weight. Do not do 10 or more repetitions. A high-rep program will help you build endurance and lose weight, but not gain mass.
  • - as much as your body requires, as you work "to failure". But no more than 3 minutes. Between exercises - exactly the same.

If you adhere to strict time limits, you will not be able to fully complete the second and subsequent sets. For example, 1 minute is too short a period to restore strength and muscles after a full set.

Technical points

Pull-ups must be performed in the correct form. Let's recap what it is:

  1. If you hung on the horizontal bar, it is advisable not to sway from side to side.
  2. All movements occur due to the muscles, and not due to inertia or jerks. Even if you decide to work “in the negative”, it makes no sense to rise above the crossbar due to a jerk.
  3. You should breathe in such a way that the rise is on the exhale, and on the inhale you go down. It is physiologically correct to make an effort on exhalation.
  4. If you start to sway during the exercise, which happens, do not continue pulling up until your body stops swaying.
  5. Each position of the hands on the horizontal bar is designed to load a specific muscle group. Therefore, your task is to understand well what exactly you are pumping and try to work with the right muscles during the exercise. For example, on the horizontal bar you can swing your biceps, or you can swing your back. By training the biceps, your total mass will not increase significantly. It's just a pretty small muscle. But due to the buildup of the large muscles of the back, this can be achieved. Therefore, focus on the latissimus dorsi. Biceps should be loaded last (that is, at the end of the workout).

Mass training program

To begin with, we will analyze the exercises that will need to be performed in order to achieve significant muscle growth.

Wide grip pull-ups

This exercise is aimed at developing the latissimus dorsi:

  1. Find the nearest horizontal bar. It is desirable that it be high enough. The scheme of working with weights implies not too high, but not low horizontal bar. It is important that your feet do not touch the ground, but that you can easily descend without jumping.
  2. Grasp the bar with a wide straight grip.
  3. With the strength of the muscles of the back, pull the elbows to the body, bringing the chin over the crossbar. Hold at the top for 1 second, slowly lower back down.

Aim to do 4 sets of 5-6 reps after warming up. To warm up, you can pull yourself up without weight 5-10 times, depending on your physical fitness.

Pull-ups with a narrow reverse grip

This is an important exercise for the middle back and biceps. If you pay attention, then pulling up is much easier than in the previous case:

  1. Grasp the bar with a narrow reverse grip.
  2. With the strength of your back and arms, lift yourself up so that your chin is above the bar. It makes no sense to linger at the top, since in this position there is no maximum muscle tension.
  3. Slowly lower yourself to the starting position.

You need to perform 3-4 sets of 6-8 times with weight.

Pull-ups with a parallel grip

To do this, you will need a horizontal ladder or a special horizontal bar with parallel handles. This is a very convenient option for pumping the lower part of the latissimus dorsi.

  1. Grasp the crossbeams of a horizontal ladder. To do this, you need to sit facing her side so that your head freely goes above the crossbars.
  2. Pull up 4 sets of 6-8 times, pulling the crossbars to your chest.

How to combine exercises for muscle growth

In order to properly pump the back muscles, it is advisable to exercise twice a week with weights.

This is convenient for classes with additional weights: pull-ups and push-ups on the uneven bars. However, with a weak lower back, it is better to replace the belt with a special weighted vest.

Weight gain strategy

So the workout is over. What to do next?

The scheme is as follows: you need to increase weight every 2 weeks. Ideally, you can add 1-1.5 kg.

Over time, you can buy at least one combined dumbbell weighing up to 25 kg. It can be put in a backpack, laying out extra pancakes. You can use weights that are hung on the belt for weighting.

The only problem is how to carry the weight to the place of training? It’s good if you have everything you need, including a horizontal bar, at home. In extreme cases, a car will do. Or carry everything on yourself to the nearest sports ground. But, we all know, if there is a desire, there will be a solution!

Pull-ups are a basic exercise in most muscle building training programs. Many athletes, both beginners and professionals, are wondering how to increase the number of pull-ups, since a value of 20 or 30 times seems unattractive to them. To do this, there is a program of pull-ups on the horizontal bar "from 0 to 82 in 30 weeks." It is quite effective and the result is proven. Let's look into its subtleties and scheme.

Before proceeding to the consideration of the program, you should understand what methods and types of pull-ups are.

Ways to do pull-ups

Performing this exercise, the study of various muscle groups is carried out. Well loaded:

  • dorsal backs;
  • biceps;
  • shoulder muscles;
  • trapezoidal;
  • pair round.

There are several ways to perform the exercise - pull-ups, each of which distributes the load on the muscles in a different way. Let's look into this issue.

The main ones are:

  • if you do pull-ups, placing your hands with an average direct grip, the work of the following muscles is affected: back, shoulder, and biceps. Hands in this case should be at a shoulder-width distance from each other, palms turned away from the face;

Correct execution technique is the key to the effectiveness of the exercise. Medium straight grip - excellent pumping of the muscles of the arms, back, shoulders

Among them:

  • professionals know by heart that before performing any set of exercises, you should do a warm-up. It is simply necessary, as it allows you to avoid injuries and warm up the muscles;
  • After the end of any workout, you should always stretch. After the load, the muscles should relax;
  • you should believe in yourself and strive for your cherished dream, namely a large number of pull-ups. The complex, of course, will help in this, but if there is no desire, but laziness arises, then it will not be possible to achieve a result;
  • if, according to personal well-being, there is no confidence in the full restoration of strength, it is better to slow down the pace when pulling up or take a little more breaks between sets, but you should not skip days;
  • music will help to tone;
  • you can arrange something like a competition with friends, but the exercise should be performed the number of times indicated in the above table in the figure.

Pull-ups are one of the most common exercises used by athletes to increase muscle mass. But this way of keeping the body in good shape is popular not only among the pros. Any person who cares about health and beauty has the opportunity to master this type of physical activity. This will help you pull-ups on the horizontal bar.

Not only professional athletes want to look attractive with strong muscles. Any man at least once thought about more developed muscles, but not everyone has the opportunity to visit a sports club or fitness center. And pulling up on the horizontal bar is available even for beginner bodybuilders.

Grip Varieties

Of all the types of physical activity, pulling up on the horizontal bar stands out in that it trains six types of muscles at once:

  • pectoral muscles;
  • biceps;
  • abdominal muscles;
  • latissimus dorsi;
  • forearm muscles;
  • brachialis (shoulder muscle).

Moreover, the grip method affects which particular muscle group you want to increase.

The farther apart the hands are on the crossbar, the better the group of the latissimus dorsi develops. The close arrangement of the brushes gives a load on the biceps and triceps. And the ideal grip for developing all six types of muscles is 10 cm further from shoulder width.

The high efficiency of these exercises allows you to achieve the same results in 30 days as in three months of intensive training in the gym. Another plus is the benefit for the spine. Thanks to sagging and stretching, in 10-15 sessions, sharp pains in osteochondrosis and other diseases can be eliminated.

How to do it right?

In modern cities, there are many sports grounds and stadiums equipped with a variety of exercise equipment. They are available to everyone who has the desire to devote 10-15 minutes a day to their body. And the horizontal bar is the most common device. In addition, it can be easily installed in an apartment or house. To do this, you must either buy a crossbar, or make it yourself, if you have the necessary skills.

But finding a horizontal bar is half the battle. What matters is how you train. For beginner athletes, it will be useful to learn how to perform the exercises correctly in order to get the best result. In any sport, technique is important, and we will talk about it later.

There are three types of pull-ups:

  • Classic- the grip of the crossbar is made with the palms on top. Hands are 10 cm beyond shoulder width.
  • Reverse- grip from below, palms turned to the body. Hands shoulder width apart or 10 cm narrower.
  • Neutral- are performed on a special horizontal bar, which has bars at the ends with a distance of 30-40 cm from each other.

Professional athletes use them all, alternating approaches: one set is a classic grip, the second is a reverse grip, the third is neutral. For beginners, schemes have also been developed that include alternating types, but if it is convenient for you to use any one, it's okay, you can only train in this way.

So, we have considered the grip method, we will discuss the position of the body during the exercise. It is necessary to hang on the crossbar, arms are straight, muscles are relaxed. After inhaling, pull your hands up to the bar so that your chin goes over it. The body should bend back. It is better to go down slowly, exhaling.

Many beginners are embarrassed to practice in front of others, preferring solo workouts. But in this way there is one significant disadvantage - you will not see how to properly implement the technique. Yes, at first you will stand out, but after a few weeks, your performance will improve by observing and imitating the movements of more experienced guys.

In the first workouts, a person with poor physical development will need a person who will support and help. Although the first function can be replaced by a special tourniquet, which is sold in a sports store.

Where to begin?

For muscle growth, pulling up on the horizontal bar is one of the available exercises. In order to do this type of training, special training is not required, you can start almost from scratch. The most common is the pull-up scheme, which involves increasing the total number of exercises to 30 or more times in 30 weeks.

This scheme is popular among beginners, but is quite complex in terms of loads. If you have poor endurance, it is better to resort to a more gentle way of training the muscles, since this one is designed for one day off a week. Not every person is able to withstand such loads, but the ability to increase muscle volume in 30 weeks motivates many to choose this particular method.

As can be seen from the table, the exercises are designed to increase every day by one pull-up per approach. In total, five approaches are provided, a respite between them should be 2-3 minutes. If you feel that you can do more, then increase the amount, but without much sacrifice. And vice versa, if there is no strength, then it is better not to overwork (in order to avoid injuries) and it is even permissible to rest for one or two days.

Stop exercising if you are sick or injured. It is better to miss 10-15 days than to go to bed for a month or more from the results of your own negligence. After a long break, it is better to start training again. If the break was short, then we start from the place in the scheme where we stopped.

In this way, you will pull yourself up 15 times in one set after 15 weeks. And this, admit, is a serious achievement. Within a month, the result of muscle growth will be evident. And in 30 weeks, with enhanced training, you can achieve 80 pull-ups in five sets. And this is not the limit, each person is unique and your personal result may be greater. By devoting 15-20 minutes a day to training, you can not only increase the volume of the muscles of the back and arms, but become more confident.

For the more experienced

Do you have good athletic training, but the back muscle group is not very developed? The so-called army method will do. If you are already pulling up 10-15 times, then the essence of training is to set records: with each next lesson, increase the total number of pull-ups.

And it doesn’t matter how many sets there will be, and in what way you do it, every day is a new figure. But without fanaticism, calculate your strength correctly. After a month, you will feel a clear result. In addition to excellent muscles, endurance will increase, you will pull yourself up 30 times or more.

But the most experienced bodybuilders use a system that alternates between different types of grip. For several weeks, only one, then another, then a third. The interval should be the same, ideally from 10-15 days to a month. After the cycle, there is a month of mixed training - every day a new grip. But this is for experienced athletes, it is better for beginners not to use this method.

As we can see, pull-ups on the horizontal bar are a universal way to increase muscle mass and improve the body for both beginners and masters of their craft. If you choose the right load and strictly follow the technical side, you can achieve results in a short time.


This program was used by USMC Major Charles Lewis Armstrong to prepare for an attempt to set the world record for the number of pull-ups per set. The program provides everything you need for physical improvement: variety, overload and regularity. Those involved in the program have achieved remarkable results in 6-8 weeks. Most, if not all, at the end of the program could complete at least 20 pull-ups in one set.

I pay special attention to the regularity of the program- the effectiveness of training and the result depends on it. Doing the exercises listed below daily is the key to reaching a maximum of 20 pull-ups per set. You must train at least 5 days in a row every week!

morning workout

Do it every morning three sets of push-ups to the maximum. Push-ups are one of the best exercises for strengthening all the muscles of the shoulder girdle. Major Armstrong described his morning workout as follows:

“After getting up, I did the first set of push-ups on deck. Then I went to the bathroom and cleaned myself up. Then he returned to the deck again and performed the second set of push-ups, after which he again went to the bathroom to shave. After shaving, he returned to the cabin and performed the third set of push-ups there. Finally waking up after completing all the approaches, I took a relaxing shower. ”

This workout should be done daily in the morning. Since it takes at least 4 weeks for most of us to reach our goal, during this time you will see that this morning workout is easy enough to become a habit, or at least you will start to appreciate the morning shower more.

Training program

Now let's move on to the main part of the training program. I recommend that you start pulling up at least 3-4 hours after your morning push-ups. The program is conditionally divided into 5 training days (from Monday to Friday). On weekends (Saturday, Sunday), be sure to take a break from training. During the week, it is very important not to miss training days. Finally, doing pull-ups is more important than doing push-ups (if you still need to skip part of the day for whatever reason).

The program is designed specifically to improve performance in a particular exercise - pull-ups on the horizontal bar. Also, this program can be used for pull-ups with different grips. Efficiency depends on the quality of the exercises, the number of repetitions does not matter. You should aim for perfect technique on every rep. Don't deceive yourself.

Day 1

Five sets of max pull-ups. Breaks between sets 90 seconds. Don't worry about the number of reps, do your best on each set. You will see that in the last two sets you will be able to do more repetitions.

Day 2

"Pyramid". Start with one rep and work your way up to the point where you can't do the required number of pull-ups on your next set. After that, rest for 60 seconds and do another set to the maximum. The rest time after each approach is 10 seconds for each repetition performed in the approach. That is, if there were 2 pull-ups in the approach, then after it the rest is 20 seconds, and if 3 - 30 and so on.

Day 3

From this day forward, you will be training with so-called "training sets".

Training Sets:>

In order to determine your "training set", you'll have to experiment a bit. "Training set" - a certain fixed number of repetitions. One person may have 5 reps in a training set, another may have more or less, and so on.

The number of repetitions in your "training set" should be such that you can complete 9 sets with this number. Let's say you can do 9 sets of 5 reps. So in your "training set" - 5 repetitions. If you can do more, then increase the amount, if in the last approaches you cannot complete the required amount, decrease it. The idea is to do the same number of reps on all sets.

The best indicator of the number of repetitions in the “training set” is Day 4. If you successfully completed Day 3, try adding 1 rep to the “training set” on Day 4. Now, if you manage to complete more than 9 sets on Day 4, add another rep .

Important do not change the number of repetitions in the "training set" throughout the day. If it becomes very difficult for you, still do not reduce the number of repetitions.


Your 9 sets will be divided into 3 types of pull-ups: 3 sets of wide grips, 3 sets of medium grips, and 3 sets of close grips. Rest after each set - no more than 60 seconds.

Day 4

Do as many "training sets" as possible. That is, if on the previous day you did 9 sets, now you should do the maximum number of sets, changing the grip every 3 sets. Rest between sets - 60 seconds.

You should do sets as long as you have the strength to complete a full-fledged "training set". Get ready for the longest training day of the week.

If you do more than 9 "training sets" today, then next week add 1 rep to all "training sets" you do.

Day 5

Repeat the day that you found the most difficult of the previous four.

Finally

This program works great for those who have a desire to increase the number of pull-ups per set. If you want to achieve the effect - do it regularly. In the first few weeks, you may find that you can do fewer reps. This is a normal reaction of the body, overtraining. Continue in the same spirit and the number of repetitions will go up.

If you do 12-15 max pull-ups per set, it will take you about 4 weeks to complete the program, at the end you can pull up 20 times per set.

And for clarity, a small video with Armstrong training.

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