Not sure if this is the proper place to ask, and I've done some searching and didn't come up with much, so here it goes..

I need to work on a few things:

- Pull-ups (palms facing away)
- Push ups
- Sit-ups


I'm trying out for Special Forces, and I have some concerns as to what I'm doing, if it's really helping out. Normally, I've just been doing push-ups until failure, stretch, wait a little while, do some more, and then keep going, but the numbers aren't really going up. As for sit-ups, I haven't really been practicing them, but have been doing leg lifts, crunches, and suspended leg lifts. Are there any tips on that?

As for pull-ups. I need to be able to do a minimum of 6 in 2 minutes, but ideally, I'd like to be aiming for 14-20 in 20 minutes. I have about 3-4 months to accomplish this, along with my running regimen that I've been doing..


Any tips on what I may be doing wrong?? Additional exercises to help out?? I don't so much care about physique as the ability to have the stamina and strength to carry me through...


TIA



JT

6 pullups in 2 mins should be easy for most people. How close to it are you now? Do you have to stay hanging the whole time?

Well, currently, I can only do about 3-4 "proper form," pull-ups, being that you remain hanging, and that your hands don't come off of the bar at all. As soon as they do, then you're done. You do have to remain hanging, and you can't use any additional body movement to boost yourself; essentially it's got to be all upper body strength. I used to be able to do about 20, but I've gained a good amount of weight over the past few years, and found it's tough to counter it.

I was wondering if pull-downs would help with this? If I used my body weight, or weight relatively close to it, and see how many I can do?

And I should've proof-read my last post. I'm aiming for 14-20 in 2 minutes, not 20...





JT

I would venture to say that less than 10% of the population can do 6 pullups. I don't think they are easy at all. But, that said, I would have thought that Special Forces would require more like 16.

As for improving, what have you accomplished so far? You can do 3 - 4 pullups now, how many could you do a month ago? What are the requirements for pushups and have you improved there?

Pulldowns aren't going to be much help. Eccentric training with pull-ups would be your best bet. I've used this method successfully myself. Follow the protocols outlined in this article.

In regards to your pull-ups, what are you having most difficulty with? Does your grip give out? Or you just can not pull yourself back up?

Also, if you have gained a substantial amount of weight, I would also try to lose this extra weight. This in and of itself will help your pull ups.