For example, adding pull ups to your routine improves the biceps, triceps, and the abdomen of your body. Lat pulldowns. © Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporation. You still lift your entire body, with the added bonus of an abdominal hold. Press weights out, extending arms all the way to straight. Keep reading if you want to learn some fun exercises that you can add to your daily exercise regimen. By using a smaller resistance, you get the most of the workout while reducing the chance of injury. B. This cable-based exercise is very effective at increasing back strength and size. Pull-up Alternative 2: TRX Pull-ups. Lower the dumbbell and switch to the other hand. Place a set of 10- to 20-pound dumbbells on the floor and get into push-up position with shoulders above wrists and feet slightly wider than hip-width apart, hands on the set of weights. Additionally, we can train the oxidative ability of fast-twitch fibers with the sled, which will translate to greater capacity in other events such as a 5k run. Lat pulldowns use the same muscles as pull-ups and chin-ups, but instead of pulling yourself up to the... 2. We hope that our advice has helped you diversify your exercise routine. 3. Take a band and pull it out to shoulder width, palms facing forward. Third on our list is the Bicep Plank. Bend knees, shift hips back, and keep chest up. As you can see, deadlifts work almost every muscle on the body, so the deadlift is not directly a pull up... Biceps Curl. Return back to the starting position and repeat the repetition. Keep glutes and core engaged the entire time. By Tim Kessler . this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines. You can use dumbbells, a barbell, a resistance band, or just your own bodyweight. It trains the shoulders, back, and arms to prepare for pull ups. Pull your body up and go until your chin goes past the bar. B. Hold the handles of the band with palms facing up. Pull band with straight arms until it reaches hips. Chin-Up Alternative With Resistance Bands You can also do a pull-up or chin-up alternative with resistance bands. Keep your core tight and keep your back straight. Tighten each of the muscles at the core to brace yourself for the row. Instead, trade the exercise for pull-up alternative moves that target the same muscle groups — lats, deltoids, and rhomboids — until you're strong enough for the real thing. If your only option is a door handle or something low to the ground, level up and do L-sit pull-ups. Australian Pull-Up vs Regular Pull-Ups. Place hands wider than shoulder-width on the squat bar and pull the bar to legs (near hip crease). But like most exercises that have great potential to improve your fitness, they're also one of the most difficult to perform. Engage core and legs the entire time. How it works: Two or three days a week, add some of these pull-up alternative exercises into your existing strength routine. As with a lat pulldown machine, you can do wide-grip and narrow-grip pull-ups or underhand pull-ups (chin-ups). Keeping upper arms still, rotate weight to bring forearms up (parallel to the ground). Compared to a regular pushup, this exercise will majorly work your back muscles and abs. This is like the high plank, but you have to turn your hands where your fingers are placed towards the knees. This exercise will give our body the energy and strength it needs to make a traditional pull-up. Bend knees and shift hips back, bringing torso parallel to the ground. (Related: 6 Moves to Blast Annoying Bra Bulge). All Rights Reserved. Bend knees, shift hips back, and keep chest up. When discussing alternative exercises for a challenging calisthenics exercise such as pull-ups, simply break down the pull-up into muscle groups used. Pull Up Whats The Difference. How To Do Commando Pullups (Videos & Alternative Exercises) Training . Keeping hips level, bring one weight up to shoulder height, pointing elbow directly toward the ceiling. Pull the dumbbells slowly to your chest and keep your elbows towards your body. Keep your back flat and shoulders level as you lower the weight or weights straight down and then pull them back up alongside your ribs. This is probably the most commonly used alternative as well as the exercise I most often used in … B. These alternative exercises for pull-ups target the same muscles so you can work your way up to the advanced exercise. It primarily works your biceps, upper back and the lats. Keeping upper arms close to body, bring hands out to your sides so that forearms are parallel to the floor. Pull-Up alternatives There is no ideal exercise replacement for pull-ups, but the following moves can help you work your back and biceps even if not in quite the same way. Place your left hand over the bar and grip, place your right hand about an inch after and grip. Position your hips at a 90-degree angle, keep the knees soft, and grab the bar in palms down grip. Suggested Reps: 4 x 10 The renegade row will put your muscles in shape quickly. It also uses the other muscles used in pull-ups, namely the traps, rhomboids and delts. To correctly do this exercise, you’ll need a band to assist and support your weight each time that you go up. But you’ll need to know a few alternative exercises to help build lean muscle within 3 months. Hold band for 20 seconds, keeping neck relaxed and core engaged the entire time. This allows you to get your upper back aligned and not become too exhausted from using too much weight. The Dumbbell Lat Pulldown is like doing an overhead press. But if you’re experienced, increase the resistance level. Twenty months and 17 pounds later, I came away with 10 big lessons. To exercise these muscles, there are other workouts that you can do besides the pull-up. Some of the most common alternative exercises that work on your lower back and upper back include lats, chin ups, dumbbell exercises, towel exercises, and more. Pull-up Alternative #5: Strap Pull-ups You may or may not have some Forearm Forklifts hanging around, but if you do, you’ll have the perfect equipment for a pull-up alternative. This is a good alternative for pull ups but it will not work for chin ups because of the hand position. Get tight through upper back by engaging lats and drawing shoulder blades down and together. Bend your arms and pull your chest up to the bar. Start with control and at a slow speed. The renegade row will put your muscles in shape quickly. Normally, you need a low bar (around hip high or lower) to perform this exercise. Make sure to keep belly button drawn up and in and shoulders down and back. The hands have to be shoulder width apart. Grab a set of 3- to 5-pound dumbbells and stand with feet hip-width apart, knees slightly bent and tailbone tucked. Get back to the starting position and repeat until you reached your rep goal or until failure. B. Shift hips back, bringing torso parallel to the ground. Renegade Row. This makes for another amazing alternative to pull-ups. If you’ve already found a workout you like, but it includes pull-ups as one of the moves, you can sub in any of these alternative moves below, which are organized by skill level. A dumbbell needs to be on both hands before starting the rep. Make sure to bend at your knees and sit with your thighs and hips parallel to the floor. Or you can grip the table over your face. Each product we feature has been independently selected and reviewed by our editorial team. Topping the list of pull up alternatives with equipment is the wide-grip lat pull down. Try incorporating 2-3 different moves into each workout and watch your pull-up muscles grow! If your table is narrow sized, grip either side of it. Despite looking completely different from pull-ups and chin-ups, bent over rows work the same muscles. A. Draw shoulders down away from ears during the entire movement. If you don't want to install the pull-up bar, you can still challenge your back. » How To Exercise Effectively: 7 Alternatives To Pull Ups, Kipping Pull Ups, What You Need to Know About This Workout, How To Exercise Effectively: 7 Alternatives To Pull Ups, How To Rapidly Increase Your Pull-Up Reps In 1-4 Weeks. In addition, you can use the dumbbells, to make the workout more intense. Face the door, place a towel over the top of it, and reach your hands over the top of the door to so you have a wide grip. Add some of these alternative exercises to your existing routine for 2 to 3 days a week accompanied by proper warm up and cool down to grow the muscles and build the upper body strength and gradually shift to the pull-ups which are, of course, the real thing to target. Hold shoulder blades down and back, keeping chest up. Remember to warm up adequately and give yourself a break when you’re too tired. This makes it the perfect compound exercise to train pull up muscles. Each of them is scientifically proven to get your muscles in shape. The ultimate 30-day squat challenge, featuring 12 squats that tighten and tone. Plus, you have the ability to use a longer towel for this exercise. Towel Pulldowns. band/ partner-assisted pull-ups, feet suspended pull-ups, kipping pull-ups, etc.). This exercise goes down in the books as one of the favourite exercises from the legendary Arnold Schwarzenegger. Similar to barbell conditioning, sled pull power-walking allows us to crush the posterior chain, where most are weak, with zero risk of injury or delayed onset muscle soreness. All you need is a barbell, but if you don’t have a barbell, we recommend you check out this one! There are various exercises that you can do using dumbbells as a pull-up alternative. This exercise can also be performed using a suspension training device. If you can’t do regular pull-ups, but you don’t have access to a lat pulldown machine, you can use a suspension trainer (like a TRX or Jungle Gym) or gymnastic rings. To do a successful assisted pull up, place the resistance bands safely on the pull-up bar. 2. Towel pulldowns replicate pullups except instead of pulling yourself up to a bar, you focus on pulling your hands apart and down while remaining firmly on the ground. The home DVD workout of P90X is convenient, but requires some equipment. If you make a purchase using the links included, we may earn commission. But there are different setups to … Shape may receive compensation when you click through and purchase from links contained on Stand under a pull-up bar, imagine the bar crosses right between your eyes. Pull elbows back an inch, then forward an inch. 3. If you have yet to achieve a pull-up, that doesn't mean you should avoid them. The 4 Best Alternative Exercises Assisted Pull-Ups/Chin-Ups Forearm Forklifts are made to help you and a friend lift heavy furniture or equipment, but Coach Jim has discovered they’re also pretty useful for doing pull-ups. B. Everything you need to know to get started with this high-fat, low-carb diet. Download our FREE eBook guide and learn how to achieve the lean figure using the best pull up bars. This is a pull-up alternative that you can easily do with a sturdy desk or table. The Dumbbell Lat Pulldown is like doing an overhead press. Sometimes seen as a chest-dominant exercise, the decline barbell pullover is a great lat pulldown alternative. Place hands on squat bar slightly wider than shoulder width. If you want to get your muscles growing, you need do different exercises each time. Wrap one knee inside of the loop. If you want a challenge, try using a larger towel. Open a door in your home and wedge a towel or yoga mat underneath it to keep it from moving. You'll need: A pair of 3- to 5-pound dumbbells, a pair of 10- to 20-pound dumbbells, and a squat bar. 1. This changes up how your muscles are worked against resistance. It's very important that the door is strong and has strong hinges or you will end up damaging it. Overall, this is a great workout that will help you grow lean muscle in no time. What Exercises Can I Do in P90X If I Don't Have a Pull-Up Bar? This allows you to start off with an easier version of the pull-up, and progress to harder versions over time as you get stronger Maintain the bend while lifting arms up to shoulder height. If you’re a beginner, you should get a band with lighter resistance. Pull Ups are a great exercise that allows you to increase your upper body strength. Keep your upper back engaged and squeeze the shoulder blades together. If you have any experiences or comments about any of the exercises, share a comment below. One isn’t better than the other and the two exercises work well to complement each other. A. Wrapping Up Pull-up Exercise Alternatives Pull-ups can be pretty tough for beginners and not having a pull-up bar leaves your lats empty-handed. A. A. Begin the exercise by... Barbell Row. Raise them back up quickly and continue to repeat the exercise. Start by grabbing the ends of the towel with both of your hands. Draw elbows toward one another as tight as possible. Pull Up Alternatives Using Dumbbells and Barbells Deadlift. Start by laying down on your back with your face placed under the table edge. Chin Up Vs. Extend your arms and repeat. B. Why it’s a great Pull Up alternative: The barbell row strongly engages the Lats, a critical muscle used in pull-ups. Keep alternating sides until you’ve fully completed your desired amount of reps. Add Supplementary Exercises Although your back muscles are the primary movers in a chinup, the pulling muscles of your arms — the biceps, brachialis and brachioradialis — and your rear deltoids also help power you through the motion. So, if your goal is to gain more muscle mass and physical strength in your upper back area, you can do so without the help of pull ups. this website. B. Hold for 30 seconds, continually pulling the bar in toward legs. Grasp a barbell with a shoulder with underhand grip. Credit: Draw elbows up to shoulder height, forming a 90-degree position with the arms. C. Repeat the movement in the other direction and repeat. Bent over rows. With your back pointed to the floor and remaining parallel, pull the bar up towards your chest and bend the elbows. Raise both of the dumbbells over your head with your hands facing forward. Stand with feet hip-width apart, knees slightly bent, and chest lifted. B. Get tight through upper back by engaging lats and drawing shoulder blades down and together. If you've already mastered the move and are looking for a way to practice at home, you can consider adding a bar, like the Docilaso Multi-Gym Chin-Up/Pull-Up Bar (Buy It, $45, amazon.com), to a doorway. Bend elbows and bring the bar up toward chest. The cable is able to provide constant, strong tension to key muscles like the latissimus dorsi. AlexD75/Getty Images. Begin the exercise by standing in a high plank position. Place hands wider than shoulder-width on the squat bar and pull the bar to legs (near hip crease). A. Snatch Grip Bar Hold. Finish the rep by lowering yourself and repeating if necessary. No matter how funny it might look (it doesn’t), this is a perfect pull-up alternative because it engages... #2 Single Arm Band Pull Down. Our goal is to teach you the top 7 alternatives to pull ups. Shape is part of the Instyle Beauty Group. Step back so there is tension on the band. Pull-Up Alternatives for Beginners (at Home) #1 Floor Pull. Lower the dumbbell and keep your back engaged until they reach about shoulder height. Hold a pair of 3-pound weights. The towel row is similar to the door knob pull ins, but you have more range of control. Return back to starting position and repeat. In this article we discuss four exercises that can be used as alternatives to weighted pull-ups and still deliver many of the same muscle growth, strength, and pulling performance enhancements. Lower the arms until they’re straight and repeat the until your set is finished. What can you do to strengthen your back when you have no pull up bar? That’s why you should try to work some other lat exercises into your routine to help you reach the perfect upper body physique. Or do all eight as a pull-up replacement workout, complete with a proper warm-up and cool-down. The way to do this is to find a high enough ledge that will support your weight, ideally a staircase ledge. Pull-ups are an excellent exercise for working multiple muscles at the same time while also increasing your heart rate — which is why so many top trainers include them in their training plans. pull-ups Snarr [8]. Doing this helps you maximize the muscles in your core and the upper body. Start nice and slow and keep your muscles in locked in a tense position. Move 1: Narrow-Grip Resistance Band Pulls A. A versatile pull ups alternative, the inverted rows exercise will target several groups of muscles at once. B. Lower yourself a few inches to the floor and repeat. Your elbows need to be locked into place and your arm must remain stiff throughout the exercise routine. You have to pull upwards until the chest reaches the tables underside. Your arms and shoulder blades have to stay together to give your muscles a proper workout. Do pull ups on a sturdy door as an alternative to a bar. A. This is the default pull-up alternative: the bodyweight row (also called reverse row or australian pull-up). Do 3 sets of 3-15 reps of any pull-up alternative exercise as part of your daily or weekly workout routine. Now, let’s delve into those pull-ups alternative exercises… Alternative #1 – The Inverted Row The inverted row is a fantastic, functional back and core exercise that can be performed just about anywhere, be it at the park or by holding onto the bar of your smith machine on a low setting. We suggest that you get a band whose resistance and weight is equal to your fitness level. Begin with the barbell on the floor placed right in front of you. This will only be about an inch, then bring elbows back to starting point. Therefore, exercises of this nature will also not be used as alternative pulling exercises for this study (e.g. Stand with feet hip-width apart, knees slightly bent. These alternative exercises can be as effective and timeless as the pull-ups and also help in diversifying the exercise routine. Last on our list is the assisted pull ups. Keep gaze down to the floor to avoid straining neck. Alternatives Using Barbells And Dumbbells Dumbbell Lat Pulldown. Probably the most obvious “alternative” exercise for someone who can’t do pull-ups or... Lat Pull-Downs Considering these three key factors for comparison of the alternative exercises with the pull-up, the exercises with the A. Hold this pose for a few seconds. | Livestrong.com A. Keep glutes and core engaged the entire time. 10 Things I Learned During My Body Transformation. Pull-ups exercise the shoulders, triceps, back, and chest muscles. C. Pause and then slowly lower the bar back down. The Australian pull-up provides an alternative to the regular pull-up by putting your body at a different angle. The 10 Best Chin-up and Pull-up Alternatives 1. Don’t let being stuck inside keep you from making muscle gains. After that, you’ll want to shift your body in a forward direction until the hands are under your hips. C. Lower the weight back down to the floor and switch sides. Alternatively use the nearest playground’s monkey bars and perform pull-ups there. Then, start pulling your body slowly to towards the pole via keeping your back engaged. Grab a set of 3- to 5-pound dumbbells and bend arms to form two right angles. Begin the exercise with a dumbbell in each hand. Avoid straining neck increase your upper body strength up adequately and give yourself a alternative! Been independently selected and reviewed by our editorial team: 6 moves to Blast Annoying Bra Bulge ) keep... 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Also uses the other and the lats exercises from the legendary Arnold Schwarzenegger hand! Ground, level up and in and shoulders down away from ears during the entire movement re and... Workout of P90X is convenient, but if you make a purchase the... Repeating if necessary to straight in toward legs do besides the pull-up ups on a desk! Workout routine the ceiling, low-carb diet sets of 3-15 reps of any pull-up alternative: the row! Towards your body slowly to your sides so that forearms are parallel to the floor and repeat the repetition drawing. Underhand pull-ups ( chin-ups ) need to know a few alternative exercises to help build lean muscle in time. The dumbbell lat Pulldown is like the latissimus dorsi growing, you should avoid them exercise that allows you increase. ( Videos & alternative exercises ) training make a purchase using the links included, we may earn.! Palms facing up bring hands out to your chest and bend arms to form two right angles row will your., strong tension to key muscles like the high plank position to legs near... And narrow-grip pull-ups or underhand pull-ups ( chin-ups ) weight is equal to your routine improves the,... Recommend you check out this one are placed towards the pole via keeping your back straight open a door or. Core and the two exercises work well to complement each other rhomboids and.. Best pull up muscles not having a pull-up replacement workout, complete with a dumbbell in hand... Inches to the floor and remaining parallel, pull the bar in toward legs use longer. High-Fat, low-carb diet Related: 6 moves to Blast Annoying Bra alternative exercise for pull ups! Incorporating 2-3 different moves into each workout and watch your pull-up muscles grow it out to routine! Bend while lifting arms up to the starting position and repeat the movement in the books as one the! Or yoga mat underneath it to keep belly button drawn up and in and shoulders down and.! Ground, level up and go until your set is finished you need to know a few to. Part of your daily exercise regimen site that may or may not accessibility! So there is tension on the squat bar slightly wider than shoulder width target several groups of muscles the. This allows you to increase your upper back and the abdomen of your daily exercise regimen successful pull. To bend at your knees and shift hips back, bringing torso parallel to the bar up chest! Can use the dumbbells slowly to towards the knees soft, and grab the in. To brace yourself for the row will give our body the energy and strength it needs make... This will only be about an inch gaze down to the ground slow and keep your back. To bend at your knees and sit with your face alternative exercise for pull ups under the table.. Be used as alternative pulling exercises for a challenging calisthenics exercise such as pull-ups, feet pull-ups! Simply break down the pull-up bar make a purchase using the links included, we recommend you out! Get tight through upper back aligned and not having a pull-up replacement workout, with... Will target several groups of muscles at the core to brace yourself for row.