A pull-up bar is a compact and simple exercise tool used to develop back muscles and strength. It can be used to perform several exercises and to strengthen your entire upper body and core muscles.
Pull-up bar exercises help tone the pectoral muscles, back, arms and shoulders. These exercises are especially beneficial for women, as they prevent breast sagging and improve overall body posture. These exercise tools are incredibly beneficial, and no matter how you use them, they're sure to offer you great muscular strength and power.
Pull-up Bar Exercises for Women
If you're looking to incorporate the pull-up bar in your workout routine, there are a few exercises you might want to start with.
These exercises may sound a bit challenging at first, but once you get the basics right, they can immensely benefit your upper body. On that note, here's a look at the six pull-up bar exercises for women:
1) Dead Hang
The Dead Hang is one of the simplest exercises you can do using a pull-up bar. It's a great beginner-level exercise that develops your grip strength and strengthens your biceps.
Here's how to do it:
- Hold the bar tightly with an overhand grip with your palms facing away.
- Holding on to the bar as long as you can, make sure not to move your legs, and keep your shoulders away from your ears.
- You can also raise yourself slightly so that your arms aren’t locked out.
2) Pull-up
The Pull-up is a compound and staple exercise that can be done with a pull-up bar. This exercise targets the major areas of your upper body and also helps develop a stronger and more muscular back.
Here's how to do it:
- Hold the bar with your palms facing outward, and keep your hands wider than your shoulder width.
- Slowly start to pull yourself up, and lower yourself to the starting position.
- Repeat.
3) Chin-up
Chin-ups are a full-body exercise that largely targets your lats (latissimus dorsi) and biceps. However, they also engage your entire body to work together so that you can pull yourself above the bar.
Here's how to do it:
- Take a dead hang position, and keep your elbows straight with your palms facing towards your body.
- Keeping your chest muscles up and your shoulders back, engage your core to pull yourself up till your chest reaches the bar.
- Lower down, and repeat.
4) Hanging Knee Raise
The Hanging knee raise is another great pull-up bar exercise that strengthens your core muscles and prepares your body for other challenging exercises.
Here's how to do it:
- Jump and hold the pull up bar with your palms facing outward. Keep your hands at shoulder width.
- Pull your shoulders down and back while keeping your entire body straight.
- Positioning your legs together, bring your knees up to your chest, and lower them down to the starting position.
- Repeat.
5) Negative Pull-up
Negative pull-ups are an effective grip strength exercise and are also great for your entire body.
Here's how to do it:
- Position your hands in a close underhand grip, or place them in a wide overhand grip.
- Hold the bar, and pull yourself up so that your chin is at the same height as the bar.
- Slowly and with full control, lower your body till your arms get fully extended.
- Return to the initial position, and repeat.
6) Burpee Pull-up
Burpee pull-ups are a challenging exercise that improve your pull-up strength and also get your heart rate elevated quickly.
Here's how to do it:
- Stand straight in front of a pull-up bar, and lower down into a squat position.
- Kick your feet straight behind you into a push-up position, and lower your body to the floor.
- Perform a full push-up, and jump back to the squat position.
- Jump as high as you can, and hold the bar to perform a pull-up.
Takeway
Pull-up bar exercises develop your core strength and are one of the best gym tools to use to build chest, back, arm and shoulder muscles. Initially, these exercises can drain most of your energy and might seem difficult. However, once you’ve mastered the correct form, the exercises will become much simpler and more interesting to perform.