P90X: Do you need pull up bar.

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rachie590
rachie590 Posts: 107 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I don't have a good door way to put a pull up bar on in my house. Are there other exercises you can do in place of pull ups/assisted pull ups? Is it worth it to purchase p90x if I don't have access to this equipment?

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  • brian90
    brian90 Posts: 285 Member
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    you can use bands. Place them through a rafter or something like that. Would you be able to do that?
  • lilyinlove
    lilyinlove Posts: 441 Member
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    If you have a door you can shut then get yourself some resistance bands instead. I did that at the beginning and it works just fine.
  • LilLolo22
    LilLolo22 Posts: 229 Member
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    You actually don't have to buy a pull up bar. You can use resistance bands, but you'll need the attachment that goes along with it in order to set it up.
  • Mike523
    Mike523 Posts: 393 Member
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    If you have a door that closes securely, you can use a resistance band with a door attachment and do pull downs instead of pull ups. Works the same muscles (lats) and is demonstrated in the videos.
  • ChitownFoodie
    ChitownFoodie Posts: 1,562 Member
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    I've got resistance bands. I have a pull up bar but my doorway is way too tall and I am short. Even with a chair its a far reach
  • Romans624
    Romans624 Posts: 822
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    Everything I've read says you need one. Something like this might work:

    http://denver.craigslist.org/spo/2617056355.html
  • mishmash73
    mishmash73 Posts: 166 Member
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    do you have a weight bench so you can lay on the floor angled underneath to pull yourself up? yes you can use resistance bands but for the record, it is nothing like doing an assisted pullup. and i think one of the segments is mainly pullups...
  • MarybethAltizer
    MarybethAltizer Posts: 226 Member
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    I LOVED the pull up bar, but you can use bands. And yes, it is worth it. With so many different ways to work your body, you can find alternate exercises to work whatever you can't with equipment. It is by far the best dvd program I have ever used. :)
  • Kalrez
    Kalrez Posts: 655 Member
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    I don't use a pullup bar. I have a set of bands that I got off eBay for like $20-$30. There's a strap with a big ball in it. I close that strap in the top of the door, the ball keeps the strap from slipping out. Bands go through the loop. For "pullups" I sit on the floor, lean toward the door, and pull down on the straps.

    In the video, they show you how to use the bands for pull ups. I don't have a rafter, so I just use the door.

    Edit:

    You should probably get one eventually. But bands will work in the beginning. I actually have a bar, but I don't use it. 1.) I need two longer screws to finish putting it together. 2.) I'm seriously lacking in the upper body strength to the point where I can't do pullups. I get a better work out using the bands and actually doing something as opposed to just hanging from the bar struggling. I'll get to the point where I can use the bar, I know I will. But the bands work fine for now.
  • rachie590
    rachie590 Posts: 107 Member
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    Thanks for all the advice! I think I will do the resistance bands. I've only been running and doing light body weight only exercises for several months, so I think I will do Jillian Michael's ripped in 30 first to acclimate my body to resistance training again. I've been an on and off gym goer for several years and I know I have built a lot of muscle, but I am ready to try something new (more intense) and focus on my eating so that I can actually see my muscles. I hope p90x will help me achieve results.
  • KyleGA
    KyleGA Posts: 309 Member
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    I don't have a good door way to put a pull up bar on in my house. Are there other exercises you can do in place of pull ups/assisted pull ups? Is it worth it to purchase p90x if I don't have access to this equipment?

    You do not need a pullup bar. You can use bands. Mens Health/Womens Health have a device called a Power Strip, this actually goes around a door, then you close it and has 2 bands which you can "pull" down in replace of a pullup bar.

    http://www.amazon.com/MENS-HEALTH-POWER-STRIP-MH5688RE/dp/B004IV7528 <--- the device I'm referring to.
  • butler879
    butler879 Posts: 64 Member
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    Ditto to everyones comments about the bands.. However, I would try to find a way to make the pull up bar work. Its one of those great measuring sticks durning P90X. I couldnt do 1 when I started and I can 15+ now.
  • exercisesucks
    exercisesucks Posts: 102
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    Everything I've read says you need one. Something like this might work:

    http://denver.craigslist.org/spo/2617056355.html

    You DO NOT need a pull up bar. Just take a resistance band, wrap a sock around the middle, knot the sock, and then use the sock at the top of a closed door to hold the band securely.
  • HOSED49
    HOSED49 Posts: 665 Member
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    i made my own pullup bar hung in my garage for like 15.00 from metal pipe from lowes...
  • JamesBurkes
    JamesBurkes Posts: 382 Member
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    If you have dumbbells you could possibly get by with (heavy!) dumbbell rows.

    But a chin up bar would be better.....
  • JamesBurkes
    JamesBurkes Posts: 382 Member
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    Also, I suppose it depends why you can't fit a pull up bar. I can't use the P90X style bar as all of my doorframes are tight to the walls, so they won't fit. I have however managed to fit a bar that goes IN the doorframe. The ones that just tighten in the doorframe aren't great as they slip, but mine has two metal cups screwed into the frame and the bar tightens into those. I'd prefer a P90x / Iron Gym bar but the in-door ones are better than nothing.
  • Ekrusznis
    Ekrusznis Posts: 1
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    Heres my question. My apartment has no doors and no door jams. I cant close the bands in to anything nor can I attach the pullup bar. Any other suggestions to work the pullups?
  • Chupitulaga
    Chupitulaga Posts: 1
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    To Ekrusznis: So your "...apartment has no doors and no door jams..." Goodness, that's a challenge to the imagination! So your apartment does not come with a front door, nor a door to the bathroom?

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