I suck on pull-ups

[kentucky]

I can't do but about 3-good form ones. I suck. What should I do?

should I still do as many as I can 3 sets... AND/OR do lat pull downs.



also, is it better to pull the lat bar down in front of you, or behind your neck?

 

[kentucky]

how should me hands be placed? facing the bar or not?

when I spread my arms out, with my hand facing the bar, I really can't even do 1 of them... Is that the proper way of doing them...

 

[overhead]

I built up my pull ups by doing as many as I can in one set, then resting for 20-30 seconds and doing another, than resting and doing a third. After that I would put a chair under the pull up bar (I did this at home of course), prop my legs on it and do 15 or twenty assited pull ups. When I started I could do 2, now I am up to 10.
I do pull downs to the front due to a screwed up rotator cuff. Behind the head seems to cause me shoulder pain.

 

[overhead]

I do both, hands facing the bar (pull up), hands facing back toward me (chin up). They are two different exercises. If you can not do one good form pull up, I would either use a weight assited pull up machine, or if you do not have access to one use a chair to help . I would think pull downs would help also, but I found that using the chair to help improved my pull ups faster. For me, the wider I spread my hands the harder it is. Right now I think I am a couple of inches outside my shoulders and I am working on getting them wider.

 

[louden_swain]

practice makes perfect.

 

[Backlash]

Just keep doing pullups - the strength will come. If you do decide to do some pulldowns (after you've finished your pullups of course), pull the bar in front of your head to avoid shoulder injury (and to mimic a normal pullup).

 

[SofaGeorge]

Do 10 sets... give yourself a full 3 minutes rest between sets. Your numbers will come up quickly.

 

[Maccer101]

Try setting a goal of doing 20 pull ups per session, it doesn't matter how many sets you need to do just get to 20, then when you improve aim to do 30 every workout, it will take 3-6 months before you can do a set of 10 but you will get there.

good luck

 

[c3bodybuilding]

Don't give up just yet. Keep at it. Do as many as you can, until you build strength in this movement. Also try working on the negative portion of the movement. Are there any assited chin machines at your gym? Those help as well. Within time, you will be doing these like they are nothing. Good luck, and keep with it!

 

[XbdawggX]

Like everyone said, you just gotta stick with it. The weight-assisted machines work well if you have access to them... I know they helped me a lot.