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Joseph V
08-10-10, 6:41 pm
i learned over time that alot of bodybuilders especially the light heavies and up believe to be strong, and everything inbetween...but..in my opinion pullups are extremely underated atleast where i come from, and i believe its the bread and butter to building a great back if done properly..

noend
08-10-10, 6:50 pm
i'll disagree, great athletic movement, but not a must for great back development. I'd argue that rows are a must movement for back development rather than pull ups.

PORTERHOUSE
08-10-10, 6:54 pm
weighted pull ups maybe. But i agree with ^, a standard pull up is not really essential for great back development... heavy rows/deads are the real "bread and butter".

Joseph V
08-10-10, 7:17 pm
i forgot about that=)..let me add weighted to it



but basically its a move where not only its good for your back but it can accelrate the fat burning furnace you have going already aswell

BamBam
08-10-10, 8:11 pm
Pullups have significantly increased my pulling volume... and my back is bigger

Deathride
08-10-10, 9:12 pm
A good way to change up a back workout.

If you are used to HEAVY rows on your back (whether barbell or on a machine), try high rep pullups with varying grips (wide, close, chinup). I switch between high rep pulls and weighted pullups as my assistance for 5/3/1/

Joseph V
08-10-10, 9:57 pm
yeah exactly..pullups, chinups..are kinda like a refresher for things and in a way it resembles a person switching from animal pump to shock therapy ,..

Deathride
08-11-10, 2:24 am
Not quite sure what that means, but yeah I suppose! Going from heavy weight low reps, to high reps low weight will always change things.

Legacy
08-11-10, 10:02 am
i learned over time that alot of bodybuilders especially the light heavies and up believe to be strong, and everything inbetween...but..in my opinion pullups are extremely underated atleast where i come from, and i believe its the bread and butter to building a great back if done properly..

The ability to handle your own weight is very important, especially from an athletic standpoint. Does it build great thickness in the back, no, however I agree with you it is a very important exercise.

PORTERHOUSE
08-11-10, 11:54 am
yeah exactly..pullups, chinups..are kinda like a refresher for things and in a way it resembles a person switching from animal pump to shock therapy ,..

I think it more closely resembles switching from shock therapy to pump haha.

Aggression
08-11-10, 11:58 am
I get a different feeling when doing body weight chins compared to doing any other back exercise. There's something about pulling your own body weight up into the air that a seated lat pulldown simply cannot mimic 100%. I think its a great movement to keep in the mix. For about 6-8 weeks straight, I started off my back workout with 50 chins, as many sets as it took. The first week it took me 8 sets. By the end of my run, I was doing it in 4. I feel it will provide a different kind of stimulus for the back, which can translate to a greater overall back development.

ontheEDGE
08-11-10, 1:45 pm
The ability to handle your own weight is very important, especially from an athletic standpoint. Does it build great thickness in the back, no, however I agree with you it is a very important exercise.

Pull ups (palms forward) I thought worked your lats and back. Wouldn't sets of these, especially weighted be good for putting thickness onto your back?
Ps not attacking just throwing a question out there.

Kain81
08-11-10, 2:13 pm
i think they def should be in the mix. i put a pull up bar at home and at my work, which i use daily. But i never use the one at the gym. i'd rather be doing rows or DL's. But i say, in a pinch , when you can't get to the gym, spend 20$ and hang one at the house.

Legacy
08-11-10, 3:04 pm
Pull ups (palms forward) I thought worked your lats and back. Wouldn't sets of these, especially weighted be good for putting thickness onto your back?
Ps not attacking just throwing a question out there.

There is no doubt they will help in your development of your back, however what I meant was that you can create so much thickness from doing other exercises, particularly rows. I am a big believer in pull ups; controlling your own bodyweight is something that a lot people don't have and should work on doing. However, the way you are suspended in the air does not directly recruit the most muscle fibers you can stimulate with something like a t-bar row or seated row. The contraction is a lot different, which is the benefit to training bodyparts from different angles.

Don't get me wrong with this reply. Like I said I am a big believer in pull ups, however from all the experiences I have had, great density comes from peak contractions with rows. That being said pull ups have their place in a lot of routines. I always do mine at the end of my workout when I am shot.

G Diesel
08-11-10, 3:11 pm
A great exercise. I'm not good at them, especially at my bodyweight. But they are extremely effective nonetheless, even in sets of 6 or so.

Doing pullups and chins on a regular basis is a big investment in back growth.

Peace, G

ontheEDGE
08-11-10, 4:06 pm
There is no doubt they will help in your development of your back, however what I meant was that you can create so much thickness from doing other exercises, particularly rows. I am a big believer in pull ups; controlling your own bodyweight is something that a lot people don't have and should work on doing. However, the way you are suspended in the air does not directly recruit the most muscle fibers you can stimulate with something like a t-bar row or seated row. The contraction is a lot different, which is the benefit to training bodyparts from different angles.

Don't get me wrong with this reply. Like I said I am a big believer in pull ups, however from all the experiences I have had, great density comes from peak contractions with rows. That being said pull ups have their place in a lot of routines. I always do mine at the end of my workout when I am shot.

Good point on th muscle fibers though, I don't do t rows a lot but the last time I did notice a lot of little things going on back there I don't usually feel while working back with only dead lifts, pull ups and dumbbell rows. ( I work out at home so slightly limited)

SpankyC
08-11-10, 4:06 pm
You can do all the pullups you want, as long as your doing bent over rows, deadlifts, shrugs and stretching your lats during, after training your going to have a massive back.

Jzepp
08-11-10, 5:06 pm
If you are talking about back width, aren't chinups and pullups the way to go? Bentover rows give you more thickness than width, don't they?

Joseph V
08-11-10, 5:21 pm
If you are talking about back width, aren't chinups and pullups the way to go? Bentover rows give you more thickness than width, don't they?



i believe for thickness as ronnie coleman said the best exercise or the one exericse he WILL NEVER leave behind is the "BARBELL ROWS"..as its an all around thickness, strength, width ..you name it has it ..


but i think DEADLIFTS should be part of everyback workout...aswell as pullups

SpankyC
08-11-10, 6:01 pm
If you are talking about back width, aren't chinups and pullups the way to go? Bentover rows give you more thickness than width, don't they?

Stimulating the lats with bent over rows will stimulate more muscle fibers in your overall back development than a chip up or pulldown thus giving more width, but chins and pulldowns do have their place, they do a great job isolating and stretching the lats so its def a good idea to have them as your secondary movements.

Sprint
08-13-10, 7:32 pm
The ability to handle your own weight is very important, especially from an athletic standpoint. Does it build great thickness in the back, no, however I agree with you it is a very important exercise.


There is no doubt they will help in your development of your back, however what I meant was that you can create so much thickness from doing other exercises, particularly rows. I am a big believer in pull ups; controlling your own bodyweight is something that a lot people don't have and should work on doing. However, the way you are suspended in the air does not directly recruit the most muscle fibers you can stimulate with something like a t-bar row or seated row. The contraction is a lot different, which is the benefit to training bodyparts from different angles.

Don't get me wrong with this reply. Like I said I am a big believer in pull ups, however from all the experiences I have had, great density comes from peak contractions with rows. That being said pull ups have their place in a lot of routines. I always do mine at the end of my workout when I am shot.


Back in my days working out in my garage with very, very limited equipment and knowledge I used to do a whole load of pull ups from the rafters. I didn't really know what I was doing but all those pull ups helped build a nice wide back which was for a long time my best feature until my shoulders came through.

Agreed that it's a very important exercise & there's something about moving your entire bodyweight off the floor under control. Does wonders for your grip too, which has been the subject of many a post & thread on here. Even if you can't hoist up, a dangle at full stretch will still be giving your grip strength a good working through. I credit all those pull ups from the rafters with developing my grip strength without my having to consciously focus on doing so.

Even though they helped develop my grip, my frame is relatively light so I find bodyweight pull ups fairly easy. I always start a back session with them, and sometimes pyramid up with weight for working sets, sometimes move on to other back exercises.

I also find there seems to be a 'whole lot more going on back there' when I do them, as opposed to other exercises. I find, with the added control required, that it tests the body in many more ways than a lat pulldown.

jrh0341
08-13-10, 11:11 pm
agreed. Pullups add nice width to your back. I've been doing pullups since the beginning. In my teens I jsut didn't always have access to weights and would use rafter or door frames too. Then the Marines which make pullups part of your fitness test.

Thing is, to really get something out of pullups, you have to do them differently.
EX: For the PFT you have to knowck out 20 dead hang pullups for a max score. The technique and form you use when your just trying to rack up a high score like that is TOTALLY different than the form you use when you want to get a good contraction and trigger some growth.

I lie a slightly wide, overhand grip, back arched, chest up, pulling with the elbows. The same angle, form and slow squeeze you would use on a lat pulldown, do that for pullups and you'll grow like its cool. Pullups > lat pulldowns, IMO.

FITGYM
08-14-10, 12:41 pm
Pull Ups are a great way to stretch the back out and get the blood pumping. It's not a serious mass building exercise but it is one you should be doing when training back.

BamBam
08-14-10, 12:43 pm
I hit some yesterday after squats and deads and noticed the stretch felt really good.

B. Rowe
08-14-10, 12:56 pm
I would hit 300 bodyweight pull ups in 45 min every 2-3 weeks. 100 wide, 100 neutral, 100 close grip. Kick ass pump and cardio.

Fearless Rabbit
08-14-10, 1:42 pm
I`ve been doing pull ups even before I`ve hit the gym. I`ve been told it`s the best upper body exercise, and I still believe it. I just seem to react nicely to them, they always give me great pump, and spread my lats completely. In the beginning, my lats were so developed compared to other muscles, that I keep chasing them even today.

I always begin my back workout with them, warms me up, gives me nice pump, and makes blood pumping. When I finish with 6-8 sets of pull ups, 10 reps in each set, I go on to rows and deadlifts. I`m not a fan of fancy movements when back is concerned; just pure core exercises.

Form and pace is the key. No bouncing up and down; controlled movement, and slowly descending is the way to go. I never go all the way down, keeping lats always flexed.

Here`s a nice tip: first sets you start with wider grip, which hits lats with more intensity. You`re still fresh. Than, as you progress through sets, and feel more and more tired, go with a narrower grip, slightly wider than shoulder width. It works for me, and keeps me blasting them.

Ph3n0m
08-15-10, 2:47 pm
A great exercise. I'm not good at them, especially at my bodyweight. But they are extremely effective nonetheless, even in sets of 6 or so.

Doing pullups and chins on a regular basis is a big investment in back growth.

Peace, G

Agreed with G, also, try and throwing a chain belt around your waist and load up a 45lb plate or two while pulling from dead hang. Pretty killer for back development IMO

B. Rowe
08-15-10, 3:42 pm
No reason you cant make pull ups a powermovement, i would also add a few plates or a dumbell and do low rep heavy pull ups. Nice to have a spotter while doing these though.

SpankyC
08-15-10, 3:44 pm
You can do rack chins in a power rack or smith machine, you can go alot heavier with better range of motion, try it out.

strivin for more
08-15-10, 3:52 pm
A good way to change up a back workout.

If you are used to HEAVY rows on your back (whether barbell or on a machine), try high rep pullups with varying grips (wide, close, chinup). I switch between high rep pulls and weighted pullups as my assistance for 5/3/1/

me too. just did them today, actually.