I've look through A lot of workout routines and was curious as to why I rarely see pull ups but often see pull downs. Do you guys not feel that pull ups are effective?
Member
I've look through A lot of workout routines and was curious as to why I rarely see pull ups but often see pull downs. Do you guys not feel that pull ups are effective?
Associate Member
I like many others used to think that pull-downs created more mass. That is until I went over 250 and could feel every extra pound of weight I put on my body. I now realize that the pull-up and chin can never be replaced by the lat pull down.
"AR's Vanilla Gorilla"
it is virtually the same exercise if done properly.. You just have more flexibility wth the weight if doing it on a lat pulldown machine
Nothing to it, but to do it
I love pull ups. They've put more width on my back than any other exercise. I do 5 sets of ten to lockout to start every back workout. I don't do chins tho.
Member
What is the difference between these two?Originally Posted by stack_it
Member
I do pull ups every back workout but I switch grips from chins to pulls and close and wide grip. I believe the difference is which way your palms face, Aways is a pull up and towards you is a chin up... I think.
Last edited by RaZr; 01-24-2011 at 08:56 PM.
Senior Member
Pull ups IMO are the best workout to get a wide back (if done correct) the reason why you don't see many people doing em is because they are hard. Something about pulling your own weight.
Member
Pull ups and dips are probably my two favorite exercises, that an incline DB press.
Associate Member
Pull ups are king.
I skinny as, but my back width is by far my best asset. I put this down to deads and pullups. Ive just worked up to 3 x 10 with 15kg added.
Make sure if you do pull ups you should take a wide grip and chin must pass the bar, and try not to swing all around the place.
Pull ups - palms away from you - wide grip.
Chins - palms to you - narrow grip.
Men do pull ups.
Senior Member
"men do pull ups" i like that. I do mine first because if i try and do em after my back routine i can barley do 8 man are they hard.
Member
Haha I start my workout and try to finish with them also during back and I feel like my body is chained to the ground at that point I usually only get 3 at the end, 3x3 feels awesome.
Associate Member
I train a few blokes out of my home gym and alot of them cant do many pull ups.
I use power bands and negatives to help them out untill they can preform sets of 8 solo.
In most gyms, the exercises you dont see anybody doing, are the ones you SHOULD be doing. Dead, squats, pullups ect......
Member
Ok, I did not know what they were called, but I kind of do both. My squat rack has a pull up bar on it, shaped kind of like an EZ Curl bar. I do wide grip pull up sets, and then I do close grip - kind of chin ups, but it is on two little welded bars facing away from me, perpendicular to the bar and parallel to the ground, they put my hands close together facing each other kind of like the close grip pulley rows, but hanging with body weight instead of pulling on a cable.
Associate Member
Tep, My cage is the same. I just stick to the WG pull ups though.
Productive Member
I can do pullups but it never really felt that great to me, i dont get the same pump and sworeness i get from lat pulldown.
Its been a while, ill give it another go one day.
Member
For me lat pull downs are just a way to burnout the muscle after I cant lift my body weight with a weight anymore.
VET
are you using weights locked between your knees ?? are you using proper form and not one of those guys who throws his lower body up and then pulls up with that swinging motion ?
i feel a great pump from pullups.
for those of you who like to mix things up, try a mixed grip - one hand on the wide grip pull up and the other on the close-grip. kinda tricks your muscles / body balance. of course you gotta do a couple sets or either half a set one way and half a set the other.
Not Retired
quite effective.
Pullups are one of the primary exercises of my back training.
IMHO
People my not use them because they lack proper form or strength and fear ridicule in the gym.
Nothing to it, but to do it
Chins focus more on your bi's and pull ups focus more on your lats
VET
in a sense, i agree. but, depending on how you perform the chin-ups you can really target your lats almost as a high row. key is to not get too small of an angle between your forearm and bicep - basically try to keep it at a 90 degree angle as long as possible on your way up. your legs might tend to swing forward a little bit, so if you feel they're going too far forward, have someone hold them back
Transformation Challenge Trainer
Pull ups are hell on people with lower back problems like myself, I spent a lot of time on the lat pull machine to get the strenght to do a 3 sets of pull ups. My gym has a machine that has a buch of different pull up handles for different grip, I usually only do the pull ups (wide grip) and what i would refer to as a high lat row where there are two pegs and your palms face eachother. The combination of both gives me a great back pump
"Who wants to be Clark Kent, when you can be Superman."
I end every back day with pull-ups to failure both assisted and unassisted. Feels phenominal afterwards.
~AR-Elite-Hall of Famer~
Pull ups are hard,
Lat pull downs are easy,
That is why you see lat pull downs more than pull ups.
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I can do 13 reps now on wide grip pull ups. I do not yet own one of those chain belts to add hanging weight. I saw a suggestion above to hold weight between one's knees. (1) Is this technique feasible? (2) At 13 reps, is it time to add weight?
Associate Member
i do pullups. i love them, and i do 5 sets of 10 with weight..... amazing
VET
yes it's feasible and easy. i don't find the weight slipping at all. put a dumbbell between your legs and put your knees together and cross your feet. i have big legs so it kinda wedges itself in there.
how many sets of 13 reps are you able to do ?
Member
Oh, I wish, that is just the first set (to failure). Only ten or so on the second set, depending upon rest period, and of course it only goes down from there. I train to failure rather than setting a number and stopping there.
Associate Member
My first pull up goal was 1 x 15.
Once I got that I went to 3x8 then 3x10
Add 5kg, 3x8 then 3x10
Add 5kg .............
My lats just grew while I did this. I also think it was beneficial to my 1rm on the bench.
The WG pull up has been referee to as "the squat of the upper body". That's how good they are.
I use rope to hang the weight from the waist. I dont see the point of those fancy belts - unless your hanging 50kg off you....
Senior Member
I've been doing pull ups for the past few months and I have a better shape now than before when doing most other weighted excersizes. I change them from front wide, close grip, chin ups, etc. I use a power band for a little help to keep my form as straight as possible so I can knock out around 15 for each set so by the end of the workout Im shot!
Member
Ok, please forgive the stupid question, but I want to try out what you did (maybe once I can do 15 instead of 13!), since you say it made your lats "just grow." Are you saying that you could do 15, and then, one day, you were doing pull ups and just stopped about halfway through your set, doing only 8 reps? Then you rested, did 8 more, then rested, then 8 more? And so on to 10 reps once you got stronger? Then added the weight (10.4 pounds)?
It just seems weird to me not to train to failure and to stop halfway through a set. But this actually helped you grow your lats???
Associate Member
No, Im not sure you understand what I said correctly.
When I first started doing pullups, I wanted to get 1x15. So at the end of my work outs Id give it a go. It started off like 5,3,3. Then over the coming few months I reached my goal 15,12,10. Done.
After that I stopped going to failure, and started working towards reps and sets.
the first was 3 x 8 with just my body weight. I did that, so the next workout was 3 x 10.
Once I got that, I added weight.
bodyweight + 5kg 3x8. When I did that I moved to bodyweight +5kg 3 x 10
Once I got that, I added more weight.
Bodyweight +10kg 3x8. When I did that, I moved to +10kg 3x10
My new goal Is +25kg 3 x 12.
Member
That is a lot of weight to hold between your knees. I took yesterday and today off of lifting weights because of a terrible head pain when I was lifting (posted a thread in workouts), but I wanted to try your suggestion out this morning, so I selected 6 reps (about half of my 13, like 8 was about half of your fifteen). I did 6, then 6, then on the third one went ahead and did 9 (failure). Felt weird to stop before failure on the first two, but at least my head was not hurting.
Should I try 8, 8, and 8 next time?
I wonder how many bodyweight pull ups you can do now after building up your strength by adding weight? Have you tried?
I am still not sure I understand the reason for not training to failure on every set.
Associate Member
It is to failure though.
When I moved up to 15kg, all I could manage was 7,5,5.
I use rope around my waist to hold the plates too.
VET
soon you'll be holding 50s between your legs like me
btw, i'm 205ish...decently lean, so that's good enough for me. ha
Associate Member
Lb's or kg? Either way, good work man.
VET
i live in america....it's English system - lb's....
Junior Member
you can always find a hot chick at the gym and ask for a spot on them lol
"AR's Vanilla Gorilla"
this is the best advice i have read all day
Member
Added a 5 pound dumbell for 10, 9, and 8 this morning.No, Im not sure you understand what I said correctly
When I first started doing pullups, I wanted to get 1x15. So at the end of my work outs Id give it a go. It started off like 5,3,3. Then over the coming few months I reached my goal 15,12,10. Done.
After that I stopped going to failure, and started working towards reps and sets.
the first was 3 x 8 with just my body weight. I did that, so the next workout was 3 x 10.
Once I got that, I added weight.
bodyweight + 5kg 3x8. When I did that I moved to bodyweight +5kg 3 x 10
Once I got that, I added more weight.
Bodyweight +10kg 3x8. When I did that, I moved to +10kg 3x10
My new goal Is +25kg 3 x 12.
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