Tip Increase Pull-Up Power With This Simple Plan Search Skip to content Menu Menu follow us Store Articles Community Loyal-T Club Loyal-T Points Rewards Subscribe to Save Search Search The World s Trusted Source & Community for Elite Fitness Training Tip Increase Pull-Up Power With This Simple Plan This workout strategy combines high frequency with very low reps to get you doing double-digit pull-ups Take a look by Christian Thibaudeau July 22, 2016February 17, 2022 Tags Tips, Training Mini-Sets for Maximum Gains Suck at pull-ups? You need to work them with frequent training. Start every workout with a total of 20 pull-ups done in as little time as possible using "mini-sets" of half your current max effort. Use a clock to track how long it takes and try to beat that time each session. The best strategy is to NOT hit failure on any of the mini-sets since it would require too much rest between sets and thus would take longer to complete. Let's say your current max is 4 or 5 pull-ups. Start with mini-sets of 2, resting as little as possible between each set – about 20 seconds rest is plenty. When doing the second rep becomes a grind, extend the rest to 30 seconds. When the second rep becomes tough again even with the longer rest, move down to doing sets of 1 with 15-20 seconds of rest until you hit your total (20 reps) for the day. As you get stronger, you'll be able to use more than two reps for your mini-sets, but be very gradual about increasing them. Monitor the time it takes you to complete 20 reps to gauge if your strategy is adequate. When you increase the reps per set, your total time should continue decreasing. Ideally, in 8 to 10 weeks you'd end up hitting the 20 reps in just two sets of 10 with about 20 seconds of rest. When that happens, you'll likely be able to hit 15 good pull-ups in a row. Once you can complete 20 total reps in just two mini-sets with no more than 30 seconds rest, increase the target total to 30 reps and resume the progression. Eventually, when you can hit the 30 reps in just two sets with less than 20 seconds of rest, go back down to 20 total reps, but here's the killer... add 15 pounds to your waist and resume the progression all over again. Get The T Nation Newsletters Don' t Miss Out Expert Insights To Get Stronger, Gain Muscle Faster, And Take Your Lifting To The Next Level related posts Training Question of Strength 46 Q & A with one of the world's premier strength coaches. Bodybuilding, Diet Strategy, Powerlifting & Strength, Question of Strength, Training Charles Poliquin October 8 Training Tip Do Crunches But Follow This Rule Many experts consider the crunch unsafe, but it can still be a good ab exercise if you follow a simple rule. Check it out. Tips, Training Joseph Brigley February 25 Training Exercises You ve Never Tried 17 Nine challenging exercises that you probably haven't tried before. Give 'em a shot this week in the gym. Bodybuilding, Powerlifting & Strength, Training T Nation March 16 Training Tip The Mixed-Grip Deadlift Sucks Sure, it'll help you pull more weight, but unless you're a competitive powerlifter and have to use it, it's best avoided. Here's why. Deadlift, Exercise Coaching, Powerlifting & Strength, Tips Dr John Rusin April 21