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groundhawg
Posts: 121 Member
Week two of THE CHALLENGE- I fell 8 moves short of the 10 pullup- 12 pushup goal I had set for myself but did a total of 25 more moves than I had the previous week. It was also the first week that I used the chinup max (still could only do 2 kind of ugly and had to get the chair, but I'll get there!) and power bars to help my wrists on push-ups, which also meant way deeper movements. It was hard, but I didn't decrease my goal.
Tomorrow will be my third week of THE CHALLENGE, I'm going to keep the same goal and see how many more I can do without the chair, meet my goal, and crank it again!
In the other videos I can do the moves much better, a lot more rhythm to it. My lunges are deeper than ever, and I really enjoy the Chair Lunges, or whatever they are called. I'm more flexible, and my husband can finally touch his toes! Balance is still an issue for me. I actually have a disorder of the inner ear, called Labrynthitis, which naturally throws my balance off. It makes these workouts more of a challenge, but something to overcome! My right leg is much more stable, but I can really see improvement in the left leg already.
So I want to hear it, where are you improving? How are you improving? Do your best, and forget the rest.
Tomorrow will be my third week of THE CHALLENGE, I'm going to keep the same goal and see how many more I can do without the chair, meet my goal, and crank it again!
In the other videos I can do the moves much better, a lot more rhythm to it. My lunges are deeper than ever, and I really enjoy the Chair Lunges, or whatever they are called. I'm more flexible, and my husband can finally touch his toes! Balance is still an issue for me. I actually have a disorder of the inner ear, called Labrynthitis, which naturally throws my balance off. It makes these workouts more of a challenge, but something to overcome! My right leg is much more stable, but I can really see improvement in the left leg already.
So I want to hear it, where are you improving? How are you improving? Do your best, and forget the rest.
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Replies
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Good for you! I did The Challenge the day before yesterday, and my back is seriously week .
I couldn't do a single pull-ups. I bought a pull-up assist from a local fitness store, but it is not working for me. It some copycat thing and had no instruction manual and it looks a bit flimsy and I do not think it is strong enough for me. I ended up using some resistant band moves, which is too little, and I used a chair to assist, but I think I rely too much on my leg when I do that./
I am thinking to invest into the real deal. Does the chin up max had some manual or something stating how much it is actually helps given in lb? I have seen an other one called the LifeLine Pull up revolution, and it looks exactly like the chin-up max, except you can buy extra cables with different level of help .0 -
I just bought a knockoff too, I have three bands in it for maximum help. I'm still not strong enough to hardly pull myself up with it. I think it will definitely help improve my form. I don't think its really supposed to support you, so much as just give you a little boost. I still use the chair for most of the moves, I just really concentrate on arm/back form and slow, methodical movement. When I did P90X rounds the first time I really learned how to use the chair minimally, but it to practice and tinkering. You'll get there. I started basically standing up on the chair, and now I have the chair far enough away that my toe rests on it for minimal support.
I have to admit I kind of hated crawling in and out of the chin up max. Balancing and looping my one foot it, then having to readjust for the chair. I was pressed for time since the videos move so fast.0 -
Maybe I expect too much from this pull up assist thing. I kind of expected to have the same effect as the gym pull-up assist machines. In the gym pull-up assist machines you can choose any weight level and it takes off exactly that much of you. For example I choose 120 lb, and I am 200 lb, then I end up doing pull-ups with 80 lb of weight. Slowly you can reduce the amount of weight the machine assist and that is how you reach to the point when you actually can do pull-up s with your entire body weight. Of course if you are 120 lb , you may chose only to use 30-40 lb of assistance, and progress to full pull-ups much faster. In the old times , when I had money/ time to go to the gym, I used those machines and I really liked it and it worked for me.I just bought a knockoff too, I have three bands in it for maximum help. I'm still not strong enough to hardly pull myself up with it. I think it will definitely help improve my form. I don't think its really supposed to support you, so much as just give you a little boost. I still use the chair for most of the moves, I just really concentrate on arm/back form and slow, methodical movement. When I did P90X rounds the first time I really learned how to use the chair minimally, but it to practice and tinkering. You'll get there. I started basically standing up on the chair, and now I have the chair far enough away that my toe rests on it for minimal support.
I have to admit I kind of hated crawling in and out of the chin up max. Balancing and looping my one foot it, then having to readjust for the chair. I was pressed for time since the videos move so fast.
I can not really tell this pull-up assist is not working for me, because I am to heavy and the assistance it gives me is not enough, or I am doing it wrong or what.0 -
Well its not too complicated of a machine, its probably that its just not giving you the level of support that you need at this time. Nothing wrong with that. I mean, the bands on the assist are about the size and strength of my husbands medium sized resistance bands, and I couldn't lift myself up with those, so I wont be able to with this. I'm guessing at most its about 60 pounds of resistance, that still leaves me with about 100 to pull up on my own, give or take. That's kind of the downside to the home gym.
If you have questions about using it correctly however, I would watch some of the youtube videos on it. They'll give you a better idea of how to use it. They all seemed to be designed exactly the same way to me. No sense in paying for a different one it seems to me.0 -
I agree that youtube is an excellent resource for figuring out how to use equipment or do certain exercises. My sister did p90x with resistance bands and had great results!! She was ripped!! You can use those. Just make sure the resistance is high enough so that it's pretty challenging.0
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I have watched a few you tube videos on those pull-up assist , but I just can not do it. I just hang there and I can not pull up even half way with the assisst, I do not even feel any help from it. I tried to put it at different height, but it doesn't change a thing. This knockoff I bough had no manual, so I have no idea what the approximately weight it supposed to help.I agree that youtube is an excellent resource for figuring out how to use equipment or do certain exercises. My sister did p90x with resistance bands and had great results!! She was ripped!! You can use those. Just make sure the resistance is high enough so that it's pretty challenging.
I have 3 resistance bands( light , medium, heavy) ,but even the hardest doesn't give me the level of back workout I want/expect. I think I have passed the resistance band level, but due to my weight I am not at the level to able to do pullups. kwim?
My triceps,shoulder, biceps , and chest are extremely sore from The Challenge workpout 2 days ago, but I feel nothing in my back/lat area.0 -
You can increase the resistance be moving farther away. Have you tried that?
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Maybe I expect too much from this pull up assist thing. I kind of expected to have the same effect as the gym pull-up assist machines. In the gym pull-up assist machines you can choose any weight level and it takes off exactly that much of you. For example I choose 120 lb, and I am 200 lb, then I end up doing pull-ups with 80 lb of weight. Slowly you can reduce the amount of weight the machine assist and that is how you reach to the point when you actually can do pull-up s with your entire body weight. Of course if you are 120 lb , you may chose only to use 30-40 lb of assistance, and progress to full pull-ups much faster. In the old times , when I had money/ time to go to the gym, I used those machines and I really liked it and it worked for me.
I can not really tell this pull-up assist is not working for me, because I am to heavy and the assistance it gives me is not enough, or I am doing it wrong or what.
I think the resistance of all three bands adds up to either 125-lbs, which means if you weigh 200-lbs you will still have to lift 75-lbs when you do a chin up. You can always try negatives until you build enough upper body strength. Pull yourself over the bar using a chair to stand on, then carefully step off the chari and slowly lower yourself down from the bar. Or, see how long you can hold your chin above the bar without the chair. These negatives will help you until you have enough upper body strength to do an ordinary pull up.
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I just got the pull up assist and even raised to the highest recommended height, with only two bands, I could barely get through Eccentric Upper the other day. Not because I feel like it's not helping, but because I am that weak!
I did all of block 1 with a chair and found pull ups hard but doable. This is on a whole different level! In a good way.0 -
I just find the info on the beach body website their pull-up assistant is equivalent to 100 lb help. The basic lifeline revolution ois also equivalent to 100 lb. I have no idea my knock off , but probably around the same. No wonder I couldn't do a pull- up with it. Because i am so heavy, the 100 lb help still required to pull 100 lb up. I just ordered some additional cables that equivalent with 150 lb help. I hope this will do the trick. Until it gets here, I just the chair.0
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I am doing the lean version so the challenge isn't in my setup right now, but I noticed I could keep up much better this week with Agility X than I could last week and my Balance has increased 10 fold.0
