Aim for 25 to 50 total pullups, three days a week (25 reps if you're a beginner). If you don't go to the gym, you can put a pullup bar in a door frame and pay a toll of a couple reps to walk through the door.
Perform weighted pull-ups 2x/week (on one day, use a pull-up variation) for 3-4 sets of 6-10 reps. Start with 2.5-5lbs additional weight, then continue adding 2.5-5lbs more once you can successfully complete 3-4 sets of 10 reps with previous weight. Take a pull-ups “deload” or “easy” week after every 4 weeks.
Pull-Up Sets and Reps
For Muscle Mass: Do 4 sets of 10 reps. Leave 1-2 reps in the tank for each set. For Strength: Perform 5 sets of 5 weighted reps. For Endurance: Use every minute, on the minute (EMOM) training here.
While this meta-analysis does say more research is needed, the overall conclusion was that across multiple studies, a frequency of training two times per week using three standard sets of 7–9 repetitions was optimal for gaining muscle strength ( 2 ).
Pull-ups are so hard because they require you to lift your entire body up with just your arms and shoulder muscles. If you don't already have significant strength here, this can be quite a challenge. Because a pull-up uses so many muscles, you need to have the holistic upper-body strength to perform them.
If you do pullups like I just described, 20 in a row is a great standard to aim for. The vast majority of guys can't do that. If you get to 20 reps, it tends to be a game changer for your upper body strength.
Fit and active women should be able to do at least 1 to 3 pull-ups in one set. Any number above 8 for men and 3 for women is very good. You are in the highest percentile if you can do 12 to 15 pull-ups or more with good form.
Pull-ups are an effective way to strengthen your grip while also building up the bigger muscle groups.
Thirteen-year-old males are expected to perform three pullups. Fourteen-year-olds are expected to perform 2 more reps for a total of 5 reps for meeting the 50th percentile. Fifteen-year-olds are expected to complete 6 reps; while 16-year-olds typically do 7 reps, and 18-year-olds do 8 reps.
And if you can't do pull-ups, this may be why: Not being able to hold onto the bar through lack of grip strength. A lack of latissimus dorsi (large back muscle), spinal erector (lower back stabilizer muscles), abdominal muscle, and biceps strength. A lack of “mind-to-muscle” connection.
There are no definitive guidelines, but the number of pull-ups that are generally considered strong is 12+ for men and 8+ for women. If you can do this many, you're considered an advanced athlete. However, you are still considered an above-average athlete if you can do more than 8 (for men) or more than 3 (for women).
When you commit to doing pull ups every day, your muscular endurance will skyrocket. This will also be helpful in other areas of your workouts, such as cardio and high intensity training. Your hard earned endurance will help you power through almost any other workout, which is super helpful.
Many increased their pull-ups to 10-20 in two weeks. Here is what you need to try for a two-week period: -- Do your regular workout program, but for 10 straight days, do an additional 25-50 pull-ups. -- If you are only able to do fewer than five pull-ups: do 25 pull-ups for your daily plan below.
3. Keeps weight down: As you increase your body weight over the years, you will find your ability to do pull-ups more difficult. This is where most men fail in the pull-up exercise. They likely could do a pull-up if they were not 20-30 pounds overweight.
Men need to complete between 18 and 23 pull-ups on their PFT, depending on their age, to get full marks. Women need between four and 12 pull-ups on their PFT, also depending on age, to get the full 100 points on that event.
Pull-ups strengthen your chest, shoulders, arms, and core
When properly performed, they also engage your abs, including your deep transverse abdominis, making them a great exercise for targeting many of the major muscles in the body.
Of the 142 people asked, 68.3% of people answered that they were able to perform a pull-up.
How long does it take to learn how to do a pull-up? It typically takes someone four to 12 weeks to train to do an unassisted pull-up. However, it depends heavily on starting fitness level and strength, as well as how often you train the movement.
Train to do an unassisted pull-up in four to 12 weeks. Depending on the individual and how often you train for it, you can achieve your first unassisted pull-up in anything from four to 12 weeks. According to Dr Oluwajana, one of the most important things to remember is that you need to be consistent.
Beginners should start with assisted pull-ups once a week for three to four weeks, aiming for 10reps to build up muscle endurance and to get used to the movement.