Simple Response

Pulls are a very challenging exercise in resistance training that can take years of training. This is because it involves lifting your entire bodyweight, unlike in other bodyweight exercises like press ups. The vast majority of the population, both male and female, will be unable to perform a single pull up.

Why Pulls Ups Are So Hard

The in the US average female bodyweight is 77kg and the average male weight is 90kg. This means that for the average person, doing a pull up, or said differently performing a vertical pull movement, involves either lifting 77kg or 90kg. That is a lot of weight to lift for the majority of the population. Most people cannot come close to deadlifting their own bodyweight, which is so much easier than performing a vertical pull movement.

This means that pull ups are really, really hard for the majority of people. Pull ups can take years of training, especially if the training is not well structured or organised. Do not be disappointed if you are unable to perform pull ups at the beginning of your training journey, or even if you are well into it.

Pull Ups vs Press Ups

These two exercises are not at all comparable, the press involves performing a horizontal press with the feet on the floor. This means that the press up is a bodyweight exercise, but the feet are on the floor, which means you are not lifting the entirety of your bodyweight. For a pull up, the inverse is true, you will be lifting your entire bodyweight, making it so much harder than a press up. If your bodyweight is that of an average male in the US, meaning you weight 90kg, a better equivalent to a pull up would be a 90kg bench press. A 90kg bench press is no easy feet and a great deal of individuals who train on a regular basis are unable to perform it.

How to Approach Pull Ups for Beginners

The pull up therefore needs to be approached like any other movement pattern, it needs to be treated like a vertical pull. If you are a very long way from being able to perform a pull up, try and think about how strong your vertical pull movement pattern is, rather than the binary question of if you are able to perform a pull up. or not As a beginner you might be able to perform a 5 repetition max of 30kg on a lat pull down. If over the next year you can move this to 50kg, this is huge progress but you will still be a long way off performing a pull up if you are of average weight. So many people get frustrated on their road to a pull up even when they are making amazing progress.

Beginner Pull Up Variations

Lat Pull Down

The lat pull down is the most effective variation for beginners to build strength in the vertical pull movement pattern. It is very effective for both strength and hypertrophy training of the muscles that are involved in performing the pull up, most notable the lats and the biceps. As stated above, it allows beginners to see their progress and it also allows them to start with extremely light weights.

Eccentric Pull Up

The eccentric pull up is also very effective for beginners. However it may be far too challenging for some beginners, so only attempt it if you feel comfortable taking your own bodyweight. For more intermediate individuals, it can be performed with a slight load. For strong individuals trying to get their first pull up this can be a great addition to their pull up training programme.