pull up assistants

redheadmommy

Hi Ladies,
I hope I can find more women using these equipments. I started P90x3 and I can not do even a single pull-up. I tried to use a chair to assist, but I think I rely on it too much, and get barely any work on my back. I
I bought a pull-up assist from a local fitness store called Korflex, but it has no manual and it must be some low quality crap, because not much I could find about it online.

Beachbody sells another one called Chin-up Max. Did anybody used that one? What is your experience? The problem is that I am still quite heavy (200 lb) and I need significant amount of weight to hold . Also it is a fairly new product, so there is not much review on it yet.

I have seen online the LifeLine pull- up revolution brand, and you can buy different rubber cables for it , with different weight level help. Have anybody used that brand? This one has quite a bit of only reviews and videos, but usually the testers/reviewers are man who can do a couple of pull-ups using it to able to many more. I want to know if it is any good for women who can not do any yet.

Also I have seen some extremely strong rubber bands called "body bandz" used for this. Anybody experiences?

UpperBodyLowerBody

I can't tell you experience on any particular brand because I don't remember what I used... it was a set of different color bands for different weights, that is all. Probably only like $10 bucks on Amazon.

Anyway, it is great to use, and you will see a lot of progress very quickly.

Before I could do a pull-up on my own, I would use a heavier band and go to failure for 5 sets (prob 10-15 reps each). Once I felt good about that, a few workouts later, I would lower the weight of the band and do 5 sets to failure. I did this until I could do a pull-up on my own. Then I would do sets of 1 over and over and then end with a long hang with arms bent. Then I could do 2 reps in a set, then do a ton of 1 rep sets and then hang for as long as I could at the end.

I just recommend that once you can do a pull-up without assistance, lose the bands completely and work from there since it is much harder work than with the bands.

Do lots of assistance work too like lat pulldowns.

cecsav1

I like the band method as well, or you can use suspension straps and sub inverted rows until you gain enough strength to do a full pull up

modmom1

I use a resistance band for myself and the ladies I train. I hang it off my squat rack, but you could also hang it off a chin up bar. I'm taller than most of my ladies, so I have them start on a riser, step one foot into the strap to lower themselves to the ground, then start the pullups.

jmayerovitch

I second the bands. You can get a couple different thicknesses which makes it easy to step down resistance as you get better (or step up if you want to do a lot of reps.) Resistance bands helped me get to being able to do pull-ups on my own for the first time (which I never got to using pull-up machines and other assistance methods.)

The other option is to use a bar set somewhere between your stomach and chest. Keep your feet on the ground in front of you, but tilt back so that you're supporting a portion of your weight with your arms. Then do a pull-up. The more tilted you go, the harder it is. If you have access to a gym, the smith machine is great for this because you can set the bar to whatever height you want.

gmallan

Yep I agree with jmayerovitch. Inverted rows are a good option if you are a long way off doing a pullup. Bands are good for when you get closer. As you lose weight it will become easier

VegasFit

The bands are what my gym uses. They definitely help. I have a pull up bar at home too but I take a class where we do a lot of body weight exercises and I started on the thickest band and worked my the least resistance to not using one at all unless we're in a circuit workout where there is no choice. I also started out at your weight and as you lose it will definitely get easier. But with the bands it's really a good idea to have assistance in my opinion to avoid a snap back to the face.

EPICUREASIAN

I use bands as well, and I find that the more frequently I add pullups to my workouts, the better I get. Search the web for pull up progressions for starter tips. Most will advocate starting with rows and negatives to build up to strict pullups.