I’m 23F, 5’4 to 5’5 about 210lbs. I’m currently in corrections and I want to train for CERT. A specialized corrections group that usually is made up of only men and military history. I need to pass a fitness test and one of the challenges is doing 7 pull-ups. Let’s be honest, I can’t even do one right now. But I have a whole year to train. I’m making lifestyle changes right now to get fit, such as letting go of sugary drinks, making homemade foods instead of eating out, drinking more water, visiting a trainer casually, seeing a therapist to be more emotionally healthy, etc. I know I need to start running too! What do you recommend I start doing to prepare?
The easiest way to progress is to attempt to do one pull-up. If you manage to lift yourself by an inch, hold that for as long as possible. Repeat this process over the course of a month, and you should be able to complete a single pull-up with ease. Then it’s just a case of repeating this process.
I’m working on doing one pull-up also. Some stuff to try is just hanging from the bar for time or until failure, and stepping on something to get you into the up position and slowly (5sec or so) lower yourself down for a few reps per set. This works on relevant muscles for a pull-up.
Oli said: @Ray
Negative pull-ups also helped me out.
What are negative pull-ups?
What the above person described. You use a stool or block to help you get started from the top of the pull-up position with your chin above the bar, and you slowly, in a controlled manner, bring yourself down to the bottom position of a pull-up. Get back up on the block and start at the top again and repeat.
The key here is to do it slowly so you work on the same muscle that helps you do the actual pull-up eventually. Even after I was able to do 1-3 pull-ups, I would use this method right after doing those 3 pull-ups for a few reps to continue working a bit more on those back muscles.
Hey man, good to hear it. I don’t know what your level of strength is now … but here’s my story: TL;DR is that losing weight will help you the most.
I have done bodyweight fitness and kettlebells for 10+ years. Lots of strength in my chest, back, and core. For most of that time, I was 5’10”, 200-220 lbs.
My highest rep count for pull-ups was 7 (strict form, hang bottom to chin over bar). I did everything to improve — bands, negatives, GTG… it was so hard to make steady progress. In the last year, I have dropped 35 pounds, and pull-ups are much easier. Without regular training (even as low as one workout a week), I’m at 7 reps, and gains are more steady.
@Jai
Weight loss has been something I’ve struggled with for years. But I’m ready to be more serious about it! Is there a workout you recommend or is it kind of find what works for you? I know I need to try some endurance things.
@Jai
I usually managed my weight through exercise… running mostly and kettlebells when I had an injury, but I never changed my diet. I felt fit and was comfortable with my weight around 200. Ate big meals, desserts, drank a lot of beer… but burned enough calories through exercise.
My partner started doing Noom and I joined in… turns out it was right for me. The first 20 pounds melted away. Then I plateaued for like 4 months… really felt like that was all I was going to lose… but when you carry excess weight for many years, your body thinks that’s the norm and your resting calorie burn actually decreases after weight loss.
Now, in the last 3 months, another 15 pounds have slowly come off. I should also note I had a serious injury and could not exercise at all for about 6 months right after I started Noom.
Anything cardio will help… running is inexpensive and there’s lots of support around Reddit for things like “couch to 5K.”
My friend, you have the time, but you must stick to it. Resistance bands for pull-ups can help you, but at your height and weight, your first focus should be losing fifty pounds. Do that with walking uphill on a treadmill, lifting weights, and absolutely eliminating the things you mention. Seven pull-ups is doable. But it takes 14 weeks for army infantry basic trainees to get there in the more extreme cases. They start out, respectfully, at a level ahead of you. So focus on diet, walking (uphill/stair stepper with a vest), and some strength training. Do bodyweight push-ups and squats. When you drop twenty to thirty pounds, start pull-up training. Resistance bands as upward leverage can help. But don’t start there. I was army infantry, SF, and have a degree in exercise science. You can do this. Right now it’s mostly diet. Good luck. Thanks for what you do!!
Start by building the daily habit. Walking before running. Walking is great exercise. You don’t want to burn out from starting too hard.
FYI you’ll lose weight much faster with a balanced calorie deficit diet. Without that, you will struggle immensely to lose weight/won’t lose weight at all.
In my own case, I cut out breakfast and essentially do a 2MAD (2 meals a day), lunch at noon being my biggest and having a lighter dinner early, around 5-6. Sometimes just a Huel drink with a banana. It takes a while to get used to, but the weight will fall off by itself with a calorie deficit.
I tried r/OMAD, but it wasn’t for me as I was too hungry. But it might be something worth looking into.
I’m glad you’re making healthy lifestyle changes, and I hope you can stick with it! I hear resistance bands help a ton. The way I got good at pull-ups was taking up bouldering as a new hobby. It took me about a month until I got my first pull-up in, but I was also very weak. Three months in and I can get 10 clean pull-ups. All I say is, you have to do pull-ups to get good at it, and if you’re consistent enough, and you give your body what it needs to build muscle, you’ll see results.