I don't know - but it's kind of my goal for 2025. I am starting with dead hangs. I have a bar on my closet door and every time I walk by I stretch and twice a day I hang as long as I can. I also added bent rows to my weight lifting because I believe it's as much about back and shoulder strength as arms. To do a pullup, when you hold on to the bar, you try to bend the bar in half downward, you can feel your lats working.

There are lots of tutorials on using assisted ones with rubber bands or gym equipment where you're on the floor, but I don't have access to anything like that. I might have to try something like that as I progress.

It would be cool to do one, but I have no idea if that will happen for me. But just working on my dead hang and grip strength is helpful. And I can tell all the stretching is helping my posture.

@legomom23

It sounds like we are at the same place. I am also starting with dead hangs. I have previously been doing kettlebell workouts and am adding this to it. I will link the guy I am following on YT. Good luck to both of us this year!

https://youtube.com/shorts/ZTsuNUzq3e4?si=iLsfQ_mUKwYq-BZx

Nicole

I don't know...but that's an awesome goal! I applaude you! Would love to hear of your progress...🪇

How many push ups can you do? Real push ups not knees on the floor push ups: that should give you some indication of how long it will take.

Pal

I feel like push ups are easier and use different muscle groups than pull ups and chin ups. Maybe I am wrong. I can do real push ups, though I do have a shoulder injury I am also dealing with at the moment. I can still perform the exercise but my shoulder does slow me down. Push ups are part of my shoulder rehab.

Jennifer

I cannot imagine having to go through all of that. Cancer, major heart attack, fractured vertebrae. Too much! I am sorry you have had to endure it all. I think it is great that you are exercising with pilates and bands this year. I have never tried pilates but have been told it is a great workout.

I am 54yo and am allergic to the gym. I hate going but don't mind exercising at home. I try to workout at home mainly with a row machine, sissy squats, kettlebells, and one of those over the door pull up bars. As I age my focus is strength.

I don't think I've ever done one...or if I did, certainly pre-teen!

I have a torn rotator cuff, and it isn't healing well. No shoulder strength here, sadly.

Jennifer, I hear you sister. I ran 3-5 miles a day, played soccer, played tennis - and then life laughed in my face. When I start counting the body parts which no longer work as designed...well, I get sad.

I used to love feeling the burn of pushing my body. Those of you who can still do that, enjoy it for me too please. 😊

They were part of my regular gym routine for many years and I would do 3 sets of 10. Haven't done them in many years, but should be able to do one, maybe two, if I tried.

Chispa

3 sets of 10. Wow. That is incredible.

I have never done a pull up or chin up, but I had to look up this particular torture device, which is similar. It is apparently called a pull up station/dip bar. (Boy, a dip bar sounds good, doesn't it?)

In my 30s I worked out with a trainer who was fond of this particular exercise, as shown (not me pictured). I was never athletic or particularly fit, and even when I was working with this guy I was still a bit overweight. I thought he was out.of.his.mind to suggest I could use my arms to pull up my lower body. IIRC within 6 mos. these were a regular part of my work out. Even so I only did maybe 6 reps; it was never easy for me. So maybe shoot for 6 months? Good luck! Inspiring.

Mtn

I have a dip bar! Perhaps I should start torturing myself with it. My kid, who is very athletic, started doing pull ups and chin ups about five years ago. Now they are a real piece of cake for him. Teenage hormones really helped to jump start the process!

6 months would be a dream!

It does sound like we are in the same place - and the same age, so let's see how we progress!

I looked at your link and some Reddit threads, and it seems people make pretty fast progress once they can do the negative drop down kind. I might try to add a version of that in. I'm pretty sure I can do 10 reps of the other things he recommended, and I don't really have the setup to do those at home.

I added some habit stacking when I'm working at home - every time I need to use the restroom, I use the one upstairs - walk up steps, and that's where my bar is. So I hang or stretch several times a day.

I danced from a young age, so I have a decent amount of lower body strength, but I could never climb a rope or a tree or anything like that, so this would be very cool! I'm rooting for you!

habit stacking

New term for me! I like it!

I used to have one of those dip/pull up devices in my house too. Dips were also part of my routine when I used to do the chin ups.

I know exactly what I would need to do to be able to do these again ... just not motivated to go to the gym 6 days per week and build back all those individual muscles!

My working out at the gym goes through cycles ... a few years on and then a few years off. I'm in an off cycle at the moment!

Have been dealing with shoulder impingement for about two years. It is a lot better, but I have been scared of setting it off again. I have plans to go visit a local medical group/PT gym in the next week to make an appointment for training on what arm/shoulder excercises will work for me. My strength and muscle tone has become a problem. On my own I have figured out pushing weight is not good but still nervous. Look forward to getting professional advice.

Nicole

I used the dip bar today. I haven't tried a chin up or pull up.....

I usually walk/run & Bicycle 90 minutes every other day. Then get in the hot tub for 15 minutes.

My husband is really strong, has been training for 12 years and still cannot do one. I'm just a weakling no point in me ever trying.

I am 72. I joined Alloy Personal Fitness which has been amazing. I started because I was diagnosed with osteopenia and wanted to improve my bone mass and strength. They work with people over 40, so you don't feel like an idiot working out with people in their 20s. They have small groups (the max for the ones I usually attend have six and we really enjoy each other). The coaches are terrific-they will modify workouts if that is what you need and push you if you need that (I fit into both categories with my knee which will never be quite as flexible as before my TKR, but my shoulder has really benefited and I am free of pain). There are Alloy franchises in lots of places. I work out three times a week and each session lasts an hour. This is the first time I have ever stuck to an exercise routine. I am so pleased and definitely stronger than I was last spring when I joined. I can do ten pull-ups/chin-ups and hold at the top for 35 seconds now. That is a huge change for me. The amount of weight I can lift depends on the exercise-overhead arm raises are harder for me, so I use a lighter weight. Working on that, too!

Mtn, muscle weighs more than fat, so you may not lose weight (not that I suspect you need to), but your body will change. Yay for that!

Here is the link:

Alloy

ETA: I just watched the video on the website. That is a little different than what we did here. I think our Alloy is smaller than the one shown. We did a measure of my body fat, weight, visceral fat, etc. with a very cool machine. They do repeted measurements to see if muscle mass is improving, visceral fat is going down, etc. when ever you want to do it. Mine has improved, but I haven't done one in a while. I think I will do one in February. The director did take me through some movements and exercises to measure where I was before I started the program. There is a screen every day with the six exercises for the day, so you can refer to it as you go through the program. Of course, the coach demonstrates each exercise and is always watching to correct form or encourage/offer praise. Number of reps (usually between 10 and 20) and sets changes-today two exercises required five sets and four required only three.

Darn, Cyn! That's impressive. Good for you!

I've never tried a chin up or pull up, although I consider myself pretty strong. My gym has one of those things Mtn posted, but I've not used it. I use mostly free weights and kettlebells, and maybe 2 machines. On my list this year is to ask the gym owner to show me how to use more machines.

Keep us posted, Ilikefriday! I bet you progress faster than you initially believe you will.

When I first did palates I went from a size 12 to a size 4 in a year. (Also stopped prednisone that I had been taking for 3 and a half years).

The woman who was my coach had rhumatoid arthritis and things got so bad that she was wheelchair bound when her husband left her with two children under 5. She feared losing her kids and made the decision that she would do everything in her power to walk again. She couldn't even lift her legs off the ground while lying down, but she kept trying and working at strengthening her muscles and slowly regained her ability to walk. By the time I met her she was a spokesperson for the arthritis foundation and ran in marathons. She didn't come in first, she had to wear leg braces, but she would finish each race.

When she told me I could do it I couldn't look her in the face and whine or say "it's too hard" or "I can't". I tried and I got stronger and I got in better and better condition.

I often wish I wouldn't have gotten lazy and stopped the daily workouts, but I know I can get back to better health. For me palates was the best answer, low impact, includes a lot of stretching and I am not naturally flexible, and focused on core strength. No fancy equipment needed, just a floor mat.

Feathers, my coaches are great and the one I have most of the time is just amazing. Mostly though, we use free weights and kettlebells, too.

Back un the 90’s I worked with an excellent personal trainer. He worked with me for many months to the point i could do a one-armed pushup and could do a few pullups eventually. Plus a few other things i cannot do today. Our gym had a machine that was weight-assisted adjustable for pullups. I started out with that using assistance with the pullups and gradually reduced the weight assistance until I could pull up all my body weight. Now I am just happy to be able to get back to Pilates and use my right leg again.

from a size 12 to a size 4

WOW

I am pretty sure my skeletal system alone is not a size 4

This is something that I want to accomplish too. I don't know if the idea first came to mind before or after I saw this account on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/homebodytrainer/?hl=en

I commented on one of her posts and asked about a training program, but the one that she recommended, Pullup Revolution, is pricey. It seems that there should be a good training program on YouTube.

Good to know, Cyn. I pick up and return the free weights and kettlebells to/from their storage places, and this alone helps with my grip strength and balance. That's an overlooked benefit, for sure.

Terezosa

I can't imagine hanging from a bar while undressing down to my bikini and letting it all hang out for the world to view. You all would vomit. Lol. I love her confidence and her body is amazing.

Size 12 to 4 in less than a year. It's time for me to ditch the kettlebells and try pilates.

Besides the importance of keeping every body part moving, I have created new mental notes with keywords pilates, Alloy Personal Fitness, and habit stacking.

I know a group of men who play on a baseball team where the minimum age requirement is 80yo. The oldest current player is 93yo. These men practice once a week and travel all over the country to play in tournaments. They are very serious about their sport. I want to be them in a few decades. It sounds like a couple of you might be headed for that same level of activity as you age. I think it is fabulous .😍

I can’t take credit for the habit stacking idea 😀

https://jamesclear.com/habit-stacking

I think I could probably do a few. I can definitely do pushups and planks. Six years of Pilates has made me strong. When one of my sons was a teen, he had one of those bars which he used to do pullups. Now I wish it was still here so I could give it a try.

That's interesting, Jennifer. I have not lost weight from doing Pilates which makes sense as it is not considered aerobic exercise (except for jumpboard). It would be my guess that it was stopping the Prednisone that caused your weight loss. I had to take it once for about six weeks, and I gained weight even during that short period on it.

Honestly, I'm not entirely certain as I haven't attempted a normal pull-up for years probaby. I did take an aerial silks trial class with two other ladies. Out of the three of us, I was the only one able to pull myself up on the silks by my arms. The other two simply could not do it. I swim regularly and have done so for years, so I suspect there are shared muscles. I do have a pull up bar that fits over a doorway but I haven't used it for years because it won't fit on the door of my weight lifting room in this house due to a soffit. I should find another place to put it and try it again. You can always start with a little "help" with a chair/stool and then work you way up to pulling up your dead weight. Be careful if you have a shoulder injury though. I imagine you'd want that to heal fully first.

I have not done any chin ups for many years, although I do work out at a gym (about 5 days a week currently) so I was curious as to how many I could do given that I have done dips and hands far apart pull ups on an assist machine, in alternating sets.

I did eight.

If I were not going to do the rest of my work out and if I weren't afraid of pulling a muscle because it's not an exercise I do, I may have been able to squeeze out 9-10, I dunno.

Eight apparently puts me at "advanced" for a man my age, (just turned 63) and I don't even consider myself incredibly fit. I mean I am not jacked or anything. We do walk everywhere, which helps, we did 29,000 steps in one day the last time we were in Manhattan.

So the plan is to try and do some chin ups before every workout, not pushing myself much and see if I can build up.

The problem is that I am too short to jump up and reach the bar, and I really only jump using one leg because of peripheral nerve damage in my left leg and foot so I have to climb up the machine to get on the bar.

Pal, pull up one of the lighter benches near the rack and use it to step up on. I've done that before, since I'm 5'3" and too short to reach the bars. Wipe the bench when you are done.

Pal, I use a step/block to reach the the bar (actually at Alloy, they are more like split bars-two wide-set and two closer together with the latter slightly angled. Sometimes I also use a small step next to the higher cube which makes it easier to get down). Here is a photo showing the large cubes being used for other exercises and a shorter one off to the right.

My gym does not have any step up blocks or platforms and the weight benches are in another part of the gym about 50 feet away separated by pony walls with relatively narrow openings to walk through. It is a very inexpensive gym. So for right now climb it is.

I did ten today because I think my form was a little better. I am not sure how many I could do within a workout but if I start with them I should be good.