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Pullup Phase1- Zero to Chest to Bar

1. pullup and chinup progression​

i suggest using a band under your feet to reduce your bodyweight. with other exercises you start with a lighter weight and work up to your goal weight so pullups should be the same. generally the progression i would recommend is sets of 6 reps with a specific band and work on increasing the reps until you are around 10 reps and then starting over with a lighter band at 6 reps. you can use multiple bands to bridge the gap between bands as the assistance they give is big. when you progress past 6 reps with no bands it is a good time to start adding weight with a weight belt. chinup is easier and safer. it's good to do both and do pullups first when you're fresh until you reach your target fatigue and then do chinups. if you are not getting enough volume you can always use other rowing or pulldown movements after these sets. pullups are more difficult the heavier you are. a proportional physique may require adding more weight if your bodyweight is less compared to someone who weighs more.

2. form​

for pullup you want your hands to be shoulder width or slightly wider. this is the most well rounded grip and should be used for most of your training. hang in a deadhang softly at the bottom. it may take weeks or months to have the flexibility and strength to do this safely. when you come down, decelerate into a deadhang slowly and softly. grip hard and pull your scapula down and back and drive your elbows towards your ribcage and behind your body. your goal should be to touch your chest to the bar. lower into a deadhang. when you pull, you should squeeze your core and quads so that force transfers from the bar into your body with no delays. this both makes the pullup easier and prevents injury in a wide variety of movements.

elbows should stay tucked and not flare in pullups or chinups. you can do wider grip pullups but i can't recommend them because of lack of experience.

chinups use more biceps and can be done with a slightly narrower grip if that feels more comfortable.

3. breaking plateaus, injury management​

plateaus and injuries are similar in causes and solutions. the causes are

  • poor connective tissue condition
  • low strength
  • muscle imbalances

if strength is low for the weight then form will be compromised which is ok sometimes but eventually leads to injury. there is a narrow range of form deviation that you can consider progression but outside of that injury happens. if you are plateauing and/or up against an impending injury the only thing you can do is deload and increase volume. use significantly less weight, 40% is a good starting point, and start working in 12-20 rep sets. you may have to back down to a non-specific(to pullups) movement like lat pulldown. poor connective tissue condition is similar except that connective tissue takes even longer to grow. depending on the mechanics you may be able to incorporate some heavy sets or none at all. volume can also irritate healing connective tissue but you ALWAYS have to have some volume to heal and continue to grow. in this case continue to lower the weight until the soreness feels manageable. elbow tendonitis is an example of this kind of poor connective tissue conditioning (poor relative to the weight moved).

for muscle imbalances in pullups specifically i think they manifest in two ways

  • shoulder pain
  • sticking points in the pull, especially the top half

there are a lot of supporting muscles in the back that stabilize while the lats, biceps, forearms pull. strengthening these keeps your shoulder stable in the correct place to pull effectively. it also helps in the top 1/3 of the pull when the lats are maximally contracted and other muscles can assist in the pull.

extending your thorasic spine and opening your shoulders outward takes strength even though it is a minor movement and you will have to build the muscles to do that. these can mostly be done without any resistance just by standing/sitting "up straight" specifically from the ribcage up. leaning your head back can help cue this initially but you should start doing this with your chin tucked and head upright as soon as you can.

some resistance movements to build a strong and stable rotator cuff are

  • band external rotation (lightest, as much volume as you want)
  • band pullaparts (very light, as much volume as you want)
  • rear delt fly/reverse pec deck (as heavy as you can without pain, normal programming volume, 2-5 sets on pullup day)