StrongFirst style pullups are notorious for being the hardest. Whether you are repping out at the TSC or taking a shot at the Iron Maiden or Beast Tamer title with a heavy weighted pullup, you must complete your super strict reps by touching the bar with your upper chest or neck.
The following drill from the StrongFirst Bodyweight (SFB) Certified Instructor Manual—a “lock-off”—will rapidly strengthen this most difficult part of the tactical pullup.
The lock-off comes from the rock climbers’ training arsenal. It looks like simply holding the top position of a pullup for time—but there is a lot more going on behind the curtains. Hanging like a ripe fruit is not enough.
Drive your elbows back hard, attempt to pull the bar through your chest, or at least to leave a bruise! This is called an “active static.”
Come down in a normal, not exaggeratedly slow, negative when the bar pressure against your neck or chest starts decreasing. Do not go to failure!
Adjust the resistance—add weight or get help from your training partner—to enable a strong 6-8sec hold.
If you need help, insist that your training partner gives it correctly: by pushing you up and forward into the bar, his or her hands below your shoulder blades. Holding the ankles is for amateurs.
Perform 3 sets in this manner, with a minimum of 3min of rest. Do this twice a week and carry on your normal pullup training.
A subtlety: for lock-offs use a grip wider than your shoulders to limit the elbow flexion and reduce the stress on the elbows. “Clear” the elbows afterwards with a handstand or another counter-stretch.
Like all isometric exercises, the above works exceptionally well for up to six weeks.
The next TSC is in May of next year, which gives you plenty of time to get ready and clean the clock.
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