Are body weight exercises best? In a short answer, yes, body weight exercises are best. Body weight exercises are superior for strength, muscle size and cardio fitness. They also enhance stability, coordination, athletic performance, injury prevention, tendon and bone strength more than non-body weight exercises. What exercises classify as bodyweight exercises?  Bodyweight exercises  require movement of the body through space, with or without an external load. Weighted pull ups, weighted push ups, and barbell squats are closed chain bodyweight exercises. You are lifting a portion of your body weight through space, plus the load on the bar or on your back. For our practical purposes, bodyweight exercises are really closed…

Pull ups versus chin ups versus rows: Should you do pull ups, chin ups or rows? These exercises are each a little bit different. Depending on your goals, injury history, and muscular development, you may want to focus more on one of these than the others. First, let’s start with a more detailed analysis of each exercise, before diving into which might be most suitable for you The Pull up Muscles Involved in the Pull up: Latissimus Dorsi Biceps Rhomboids Teres Major Levator Scapulae Trapezius (primarily mid and lower traps) Abdominals Internal and External Obliques Spinal Erectors Classification The pull up is a compound closed kinetic chain exercise. Compound: Compound…

The pull up test is a non-negotiable requirement of the United States Military’s Physical Fitness requirements. To pass the Semi-Annual Physical Test as a Marine, men across all age groups have to do at least three pull ups. Women in each age division have to be able to three pull ups to pass, and eight to receive a perfect score (the pull up-for-women requirement was added in 2014). The Army Ranger Physical Fitness Test includes three phases after a preliminary fitness test. Before attending Ranger School, candidates should be able to do a minimum of 6 pull ups (but should strive to be able to do 12 or more). Of…

Do pull ups build muscle? Yes, pull ups build muscle! While some people may believe that body weight pull ups may be an inferior exercise for muscle growth, the truth is that everyone can gain muscle and strength with pull ups. If you don’t believe me, go Google some Olympic Male Gymnasts. These guys have phenomenal lat and arm development despite the fact that very few of them train with weights. Gymnasts do a huge volume of pullups and rope climbs, among other upper body pulling exercises and routine work.  Huge training volumes with these exercises account for their jacked upper bodies. Do Pull ups Build Muscle, and if so, which ones? Pull ups…

Should you train Pull ups to Failure? Should you train pull ups to failure? If you want results you have to work your hardest! This means squeezing out each and every rep your body is capable of, every single set. Right? Or wrong? While most people believe that they must take all their sets to failure in order to grow and get stronger, they are sorely mistaken.   While training to failure can occasionally be used to push through strength and size plateaus, going to failure comes at a big cost. Most of your pull up sets should not be taken to failure, at least if maximum strength is your goal. Should you…