Yesterday I was reading one of my favorite blogs Run For The Pizza by Emmeline. She came up with a super duper idea to have a contest: All you have to do is to train to do as many push-ups and pull-ups as possible. Now, it really works out perfectly for me! Why? Because I literally SUCK at doing both of these exercises!!!
Oh well, at least I’m not alone…
*Okay there, Justin Bieber’s fans, calm down! This picture IS funny! Haha!*
However, in all seriousness *hmmm… not sure if I could really be serious after that picture…*, I could really benefit from this challenge, since I have to strengthen my arms and core big time to successfully complete the Spartan Trifecta this year.
I actually was really good at doing pull ups when I was 10-11 years old. I remember how impressed some older boys looked at me when I would go for a set of pull ups or ‘walk’ the entire curved monkey bars back and forth. *Ah, good old days!* Imagine my shock, when I asked my hubby to put up his chin up bar and tried to do a couple of them… It was a BIG FAIL!
*Believe me, this what your reaction would look like if you saw me doing them! I SWEAR!*
I must admit though, Justin was very supportive and even told me I was doing great… *Yup! I guess that’s what they call a great husband. LOL!*
Anyhow, back to the subject. There are many benefits of pull ups:
- Strengthen fingers, arms, shoulders, back, and core;
- Can be done pretty much anywhere;
- There are many variations of pull ups; thus, the intensity of the exercise can be adjusted easily;
- Get your heart rate up = make that fat sweat!
*LITERALLY!*
My commitments is to be able to do at least 30+ push ups and 15 pull ups in a row by summer. I think, it’s doable. What do you think? In any case, I’ll have to videotape it, so now my pride is on the line too! Haha!
I was trying to look online for some guidance on how to get this thing started and came across this great post by another blog that I love, The Art Of Manliness. Here is what Brett suggests.
“So if you’re ready to start cranking out pull-ups, here’s your routine.
If you currently can only do one pull-up, start out by doing 12 sets of 1 pull-up with a 45 second break between sets. Do the routine two times a week. Once you can do two pull-ups, begin this routine:
Week 1: 6 sets of 2 reps. 45 second break in between sets. Twice a week.
Week 2: 5 sets of 3 reps. Twice a week.
Week 3: 4 Sets of 4 reps. Twice a week.
Week 4: 3 Sets of 6 reps. Twice a week. If you’re able to do more, go ahead. Like I said, by this time I was able to increase my reps to 10.
When you get to the point that you’re able to do more than 12, it’s time to start adding weight to your pull-up routine.”
In my opinion, it sounds like a reasonable plan. Does it?
Need some motivation? According to the Guinness World Records, here are some EXTRAORDINARY achievements:
- Most pull ups in 1 minute: 41
- Most pull ups in 1 hour: 1,009
- Most pull ups in 6 hours: 3,288
- Most pull ups in 12 hours: 4,020
- Most pull ups in 24 hours: 4,030
Anyone dares to compete with any of these? Haha! Well, let’s start from a baby pull up first!
What are you focusing on right now? Are there any exercises you’d like to improve on?
xoxo
Olena
candies & crunches 