By Coach Amelia.

When you start Crossfit one of the first things you want to master is the kipping pull-up, not only does it look cool, but when it comes to wods that have multiple pull-ups in it, it makes the pull ups in the wod easier and faster.

So what is a Kipping pull-up?

A kipping pull up is a dynamic full body movement, using not only your arms but also your hips and core to help you get your chin over the bar. Here is a good tutorial on the main steps you need to help get yourself that kipping pull up.

Some of the main points to take away from this video are;

Body control: you can see that when the guy is doing his pull-ups he is tight through his core, his feet are together and he has strong active shoulders.  The tighter and more controlled your body, the more power you can produce.

The speed of the movement: a kipping pull-up requires an explosive hip movement in order to help get your chin above the bar. When watching the video take note on how fast he moves his hips therefore making the movement itself fast.

Hips before arms: One of the most common mistakes people do when start doing kipping pull-ups is that they start pulling to early with the arms. The sequence of movement in a kipping pull-ups is hips first then the arms complete the final movement to the bar.

Now that you know how to do a kipping pull up, here are some tips to help you make the kipping pull up stronger.

1. Build your strict pull-up strength.

This is massively important, the stronger you are with your strict pull up the better you will be with your kipping pull up. I would suggest that you start using a number of methods to improve your strict pullup strength. Some effective ones include:

• Negatives – get to the top of your pullup position by jumping or using a box then lower slowly to the bottom. Do 5×5 (5 sets of 5 reps) Resting 2 minutes between sets.
• Ring rows – Use strict ring rows to increase your pulling strength. Make sure they are done slow and controlled squeezing your back and keeping your midline tight.  Ring rows can be used in a range of rep ranges to add some strength and stabilisation.
• Banded pull ups – Using bands have pros and cons but when used correctly bands can be very effective in building pull-up strength. The main thing to keep in mind is thinking about maintaining body control, full lock out at the bottom of movement and chin above the bar. Keep them slow and controlled and don’t allow the band to bounce you up.  Use these once a week, preferably on a day where there is no kipping pull ups in the wod.  Do 5×5 (5 sets of 5 reps),. Resting 2 minutes between sets.

2. Strengthen the midline.

Work on your dish (hollow) holds and arch holds: both of these are extremely important for not only your kipping pull ups but all your gymnastics moves and Olympic lifting moves believe it or not. The stronger your core the stronger your gymnastics moves.

Dish holds, when doing a dish hold you want to make sure that your back is flat against the ground and that your rib cage is pulled down, giving your torso a ‘hollow’ look. Your feet are together and slightly raised off the ground and your have raised up through the shoulders with your arms above your head. If you find that you are having problems keeping your back flat against the ground then raise your legs higher. You also want feel tight from the tips of your fingers to your toes, you will probably find that your body is shaking from the moment you get into your dish.

Arch holds, when doing the arch holds your on your stomach and you raise your arms and feet in the air, putting your body into an ‘arch’ position. So pretty much your body is the in opposite position to a dish holds; however everything else is the same. You want to maintain tightness from the tips of your fingers to your toes and you want to keep your feet together by squeezing your glutes.

I would suggest you do 3x 15-30 sec holds for both 2-3 times a week with a 1:1 rest.

3. Work on your Shoulder stabilisation and strength.

This a big one especially if you are doing kipping chins before being able to execute a strict pull up. One of my favorite ways to hit both of these is an upside down kettle bell press, starting with a light kettle bell hold onto the handle with the body of the kettlebell facing upwards. Lock your shoulders back and down and press the bell above your head, the bell will wobble as your pressing it above your head and there is where the stablisation comes in. I would suggest you do 5×5, 2 times a week before a class.

Once you get a kipping pull up it’s one of the funniest and coolest moves you can do!  I know for many people the first kipping pull up is such an exciting moment in your crossfit training.  If you have any more questions we can arrange a personal training session on the kipping pull up to help you reach your goals faster!  Please contact me at the gym to arrange a session.

Coach Amelia Thomsett: 9417 4907

NEWS

Party!!

Don’t forget our Christmas breakup party is on the 13th of December, festivities start at 12pm and will go late!

Wear something Christmassy (thats a word for sure)  Prizes for best dressed on the day!

There will be a grading day before hand from 9am so get down to cheer everyone on!  I expect PB’s galore!!

T-shirts

New T’s and tanks will be in just in time for Christmas.  We have something other than black coming : )

Blue and pink T’s and tanks in female sizing and T’s in grey marle and blue for male.

Christmas Special

Know someone who you think would benefit from CrossFit training?

Give the Gift of Gainz this Christmas.  Buy your family or friends our Elements Course valued at $150 for just $50!