The Laziest Way to Do More Pull-Ups (That Works)

Want to do more pull-ups without having to do pull-ups? Us too. This program is as close as you can get to making gains for free.

The Program
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Pull-Up Tips

As a gymgoer on the heavier side of 200 pounds, I’ve always hated pull-ups. Don’t get me wrong — pull-ups are one of the best back exercises out there and provide some of the highest return on investment of any bodyweight exercise.

That doesn’t make pull-ups fun, or for those like me, easy; I could do two, maybe three at a time, but not many more.

In the past, I’ve simmered with jealousy at lighter, more athletic individuals who can blow past 10 clean reps without breaking a sweat.

Since I love having my cake and eating it too, I came up with a simple plan to improve how many pull-ups I can do without dedicating a minute more to the movement than is necessary.

Here’s how to improve your pull-up game as efficiently (read; lazily) as possible.

About the Author

Jake Dickson is BarBend‘s Senior Writer. Dickson holds a NASM personal training certificate, a Bachelor of Science degree in Exercise Science, and has been an avid fitness enthusiast for over 10 years.

How To Do More Pull-Ups, the Lazy Way

Before we dive in, know that this protocol won’t work for everybody. If you’re still working on your first pull-up, you’ll need something better suited to your needs. This pull-up program is tailored to those who:

Want to improve their pull-up count, but don’t have a lot of free time to spare
Can perform between 3 and 6 full-range-of-motion pull-ups already
Have convenient access to a pull-up bar

Woman in green tank performs wide-grip pull-up — Credit: Gorynvd / Shutterstock

[Op-Ed: Never Start Back Workouts With Pull-Ups]

Here’s how I took my pull-up AMRAP (that’s “as many repetitions as possible”) from 6 to 15+ in two months and in less than 20 minutes a week.

Phase 1: AMRAPs Only

Pull-ups are a type of bodyweight training. Calisthenics exercises don’t obey the same “rules” as traditional strength training; there’s no external load, so you can perform pull-ups much more often than, say, rows or pulldowns.

Day 1: 1 x AMRAP
Day 2: 1 x AMRAP

AMRAP: Perform as many repetitions as possible in a single set with consistent form. For pull-ups, you need to fully extend your elbows at the bottom and get your head higher than the bar at the top.

Do one set to failure at any time on any non-consecutive days of the week — I’d recommend not doing this the day after a standard back workout, but one set of pull-ups on a rest day won’t harm your recovery.

Phase 2: AMRAPs + Back-Offs

Two AMRAP sets per week should move the needle and get you a few extra reps, but it won’t work forever. If it did, we’d all be doing sets of 25.

Once you’ve failed three times in row to add a rep to your AMRAPs, it’s time to move on and start accumulating volume.

Day 1: 1 x AMRAP, then match your AMRAP count via as many sets as needed.
Day 2: 5 x 50% of Day 1 AMRAP

How It Works: On the first pull-up day of the week, perform an AMRAP to establish a benchmark. Rest for 3 to 5 minutes, then match the number of reps you AMRAP’d over the course of as many sets as you need.

If you AMRAP’d 10 pull-ups, you could do additional sets of 5, 3, and 2 to match. Or 3, 3, 3, and 1.

On the second day, perform half as many reps as you AMRAP’d on Day 1 for five sets with 1-2 minutes’ rest. Continuing this example, if you did 10 on Day 1, do 5 x 5 on Day 2.

What if my AMRAP is an odd number?: Round down. When it comes to bodyweight training, it pays to leave reps in the tank rather than take yourself to the brink.

Pull-Up Form Tips

A person performing the wide grip pull-up exercise.

The pull-up is both simple and complex; you learn it in gym class, and before that, on the monkey bars at your childhood playground. But weighted pull-ups are also a competition event in sports like streetlifting or CrossFit, so there’s definitely more to them than meets the eye.

Grip the bar in the middle of your palm. If you set the bar too deep in your hand, it can pinch the skin where your palm meets your fingers and distract you.
Keep your grip consistent from day to day. Pull-up variations are all well and good, but we’re working on developing a skill here, so consistency matters.
Limit swaying by keeping one toe in contact with the floor (talking to you, tall people) or gently against a stable surface while you set your hands. If you’re swaying back and forth before you even begin, it’ll only make your reps worse.
No kicking your legs as the reps get hard. Extra momentum isn’t cheating, but you aren’t earning your strength by trying to make the pull-up into a leg exercise.
Don’t lower down too slowly during AMRAPs. The eccentric phase is what builds most of your strength and muscle, but lowering for 3 or 4 seconds will sap your energy during an AMRAP. Demonstrate control, but save the time under tension for back-off sets.

That’s all there is to it. Is this the best pull-up program out there? No. Is it guaranteed to work long-term? Also no. But if you enjoy pull-ups, can do a few, and want to do a few more without compromising another part of your workout plan, a simple two-set protocol like this will get you moving in the right direction.