Enhancing the body weight training program.

[imported_admin]

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[Wongie]

I just tried this horizontal pull up. I can do 40 push ups, but only 3-4 horizontal pull ups. Speaking of not having the opposing muscle balance.
:roll:

[kungfu]

You get what you train for. Most people only do push ups in their training. Horizontal pull ups is a good exercise to do with the push ups. I totally feel it, when I punch after bodyweight pushing and pulling as my warm up.

[KLMBest]

I just tried this horizontal pull up. I can do 40 push ups, but only 3-4 horizontal pull ups. Speaking of not having the opposing muscle balance.
:roll:
If you do only 3-4 horizontal pull ups, than I am wondering how many regular can you do?

[kungfu]

I just tried this horizontal pull up. I can do 40 push ups, but only 3-4 horizontal pull ups. Speaking of not having the opposing muscle balance.
:roll:
If you do only 3-4 horizontal pull ups, than I am wondering how many regular can you do?
Regulars have more resistance, but different mucles are used. It's like like comparing the push ups and hand stand push ups.

[Wongie]

May be one, if I am lucky. Since I tried the horizontal version, I like them more, cause I don't have to find a high bar that can support my weight, and balancing the developed chest and triceps is good for me.

[Justdoit]

Does anyone have their feet sliding back and forth or is that just me?

[shidoshi]

Well, after rummaging around the house for 1/2 hour (and a broken broom handle to boot :) ), I couldn't find a metal bar to use. So I am yet to try these. However, I am curious as to how they work as is, and if a variation would work. I'll explain:

In the above pictures, the starting position is laying flat on the ground with arms at a 90 degree angle. Now if these exercises are to be a reverse or inverted form of a push up, I am thinking this starting position is the reverse of a normal pushup, but with your feet placed at a higher elevation (e.g. on a chair), so that your body is parallel to the ground.

So I was thinking, what if the above exercises were done with the feet elevated on said chair? That is, you set up the bar on 2 chairs and lay under it, then have a third chair at your feet. Place your feet on this chair & keep your body straight, so that your shoulders only are resting on the ground. This is your starting position. Now commence to do the exercise.

I am asking if those who are experienced with the shown examples above can try this other method & tell us if there is any difference. I am hoping someone with knowledge in body mechanics can tell us which method is the inverted exercise for a standard pushup & if the other is indeed the reverse of a standard elevated pushup.

Sorry for the long explanation, I was going to draw stick figures to demonstrate, but I don't have any drawing talent at all. :)

[KLMBest]

I thought that starting position should be with arms straight, and you pull till the stick hits the chest.
I know what you are talking about, when you say legs on chair.
It depends how high the legs go. IF they go too far you will be working upper traps. In the pic above you are working the back of the shoulder, middle traps and some lats. I think the table at the end of the book gives exactly the muscles work, prime movers, stabilizers etc.
If you are trying to do the exact opposite movement of push ups, than legs on the chair may be closer than legs on the floor. I think the book gives suggest that as one of the variations.

[cockneyblue]

Simple physics means that if you lift the feet more weight is being lifted by the arms. I do these in the gym hanging on a smith rack with my feet on a medicine ball. I also add weight to my chest (plates from the free weights). It`s a great excercise.

[kungfu]

Once you elevate your feet, the traps get more load and lats get less.
I am going for one-armed one. So far I can go up about 1/4 of the way.
Can anyone do a full one armed horizontal pull up?

[Tigerclaw]

I can do 2 or 3 of them. One of the exercise in the GA book helps allow with that. Weaving pull ups I think it's called. Do that till you get to about 20 or so. After that go heavy on bend single arm hold and negative.
That's how I got mine.

[cockneyblue]

I can do quite a few with 2 arms, will have to try one arm. It is actually one excercise that I find quite easy (much easier for me than pushups)

[Wongie]

I read somewhere that a normal (untrained) person has 1to1 one ratio of push to pull.
Most people who did regular pull ups will find horizontal pull ups easy. Than people who did push ups for a long time and no pulling movement at all, will have low number of H.P.U.
I am wondering does lifting one leg straight up, and keeping the other down, will make the H.P.U more difficult.
Speaking of single arm H.P.U do you keep the elbow in or out?

[vwgirl]

I work at a gym. For those of you who use a gym, do this exercise on the smith machine.

[TKD Schweiz]

In training I have started teaching these exercises with a partner to be the 'bar'. Since we don't have any sticks in one of our training locations we simply hold forearms. This is also a great grip exercise. Try it out.

As for the feet on the ground or on the floor, it makes a slight different- feet on the chair is a bit more weight on the arms and you need better core stability to keep the chair from tipping over.