Brag Post: Two Pull-ups!

[fitfool]

Thanks to all of you who offered advice and tips on how to work up to doing pull-ups. I work from home and the pull-up bar is in the doorway of my home office. So I kept trying stuff on the bar whenever I walked by it. I tried a mishmash of the various suggestions I could do. Lots of bent-arm hangs, slow negatives (jump up and then lower myself from bar) and assisted pull-ups whenever my boyfriend was around to help push me up over the bar. At the gym, I focused on the Gravitron (for assisted pull-ups and dips), lat pull-downs, and any machines that said they helped make my back stronger.

And especially thanks to all you women who posted that you could do a pull-up (and even several of them!). It made it seem that much more possible with enough work. (http://community.livejournal.com/gymrats/1831348.html)

Questions:
1. My body just folds up when I try to lift myself up. Is it trying to doggy-paddle its way towards a kipping pull-up?

2. Does it make it easier to do a pull-up when my legs come up too? I need to concentrate to try to keep my waist straight and if I do so, I can only do one at a time so far. My boyfriend's legs come up naturally straight so he ends up in an L-shape when his chin is above the bar.

OK...maybe it's not a big deal for some of you but I've never been able to do two pull-ups in my life. I was so happy about it that I called up my sister to boast. Her husband picked up the phone.

Me: Oh Hi! I was calling to brag to my sister but I can brag to you too.
Sister's husband: Ok...Go ahead. Let's hear it.
Sister (noticing the anticipating-big-news tone in his voice): She's getting marrried?!

My sister got on the phone afterwards to congratulate me for the pull-ups too (though I don't think she was as excited as if I had gotten engaged)

Cross-posted to gymrats

Comments

[fixnwrtr.livejournal.com]

Good for you, but using your legs like that means your arms aren't taking all the weight. If you want to strengthen your back, Pilates is the answer. That will do it because it works all the girdle muscles.

[fitfool.livejournal.com]

oh interesting. Thanks for that explanation of why it feels easier to do with raising my legs. I've been curious about Pilates but those classes charge an extra fee at my gym so I've never tried it. Which ones are the girdle muscles? I'll try other exercise to try targeting those muscles.

[(Anonymous)]

The girdle muscles are the abdominals, obliques, and spinal erecti muscles. Abdominals are easy, the six pack in the front. The obliques are the muscles are your sides that help with twisting motions. The erecti are the muscles on either side of your spine in the back that support the vertebrae. Targeting each of those muscles leaves out the others and leaves you open to injury. Pilates works the girdle muscles as a unit, thus strengthening your ability to stand and sit erect and supporting the spine. Borrow a good DVD on Pilates at the library and pay for at least one or two sessions of Pilates at the gym to make sure you're doing the movements correctly (that's the key to getting the most benefit out of any exercise) and then practice with the DVD at home.

Doing the movements of any exercise correctly is the key to strengthening the muscles and lessening your chances of injury. I'll shut up now.

[fitfool.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the explanation and tips. Those are good suggestions.