Pull-ups, muscle-ups, chest-to-bar, toes-to-bar, strict, kipping, butterfly... Exercises in CrossFit are a headache when you start (and not just because you have to learn their names).
That's why we turned to an expert, Olympic gymnast and CrossFitter Javi Gómez, for advice on how to tackle pull-ups, whether strict or kipping.
Pull-up? Strict? Kipping?
Many rookies make strange faces when they see the phrase pull-up on the box board.
So this is the first question we will ask Javi Gómez.
"A pull-up is a movement that starts when you are hanging from a bar and you pull with your arms until you bring your chin over that bar. That is a minimum. We can also do a chest-to-bar, where you bring your chest to the bar".
We’ll go on solving mysteries by asking our expert the difference between a strict pull-up and a kipping pull-up.
"We do strict pull-ups through sheer strength; that is, from stationary position. We have to pull and reach the top without any other body movement or any help from your body. Just arm strength. This can be with a classic grip or gripping the bar with your hands turned towards you.
"With kipping, you would do a pull-up by swinging your body and pulling your chest forward and back, from the hollow position and the arching position, to make it easier to get to the top".
In addition to technique, Gomez stresses that strict pull-ups require much more strength than kipping, which works endurance and repetition.
Pull-ups for newbies
To achieve perfect pull-ups, whether strict or kipping, on a bar or on rings, what you need most is… Patience.
"You need to be ready to take it one step at a time. Seek technique: don’t use your body when you’re doing strict pull-ups and keep a good position when kipping. It’s important to add reps as you work on the correct technique," explains Gómez.
Each exercise requires its own skills that you have to work on in parallel in order to gain arm and shoulder strength for strict pull ups, on the one hand; and, on the other hand, grasp the body movement for kipping and butterfly pull-ups.
What’s important for pull-ups is strength and performing exercises to gain pull-up strength. That's the good thing about CrossFit because, with weightlifting, you gain strength in your arms to then do pull-ups and so on," says our expert.
He adds: "People often stop doing strict pull-ups because they can’t get them right. I recommend my athletes work on pull-ups by not going so far up, to gain strength, above all".
Rubber bands are a good ally in pull-up and muscle-up progression, but Javi Gómez recommends alternating the practice with and without rubber bands to avoid bad habits.
"It's good to get used to kipping or doing butterfly pull-ups without rubber bands to get stronger and feel how it's really done without any help. However, rubber bands are especially useful for feeling your way up and understanding the whole movement".
To sum up: "The important thing is to gain strength, understand your body position and not get frustrated".
Bars and rings: what’s the difference?
If we talk about rings, we have to talk about muscle-ups, which are the advanced version of pull-ups, where you need to bring your body over the bar.
"It's a very technical element. You get the pull through arm strength and body blocking strength. Then there's shoulder range of motion and body positioning".
According to Gómez, the most important thing is to go through the hollow phase with your shoulders behind you, and the arching phase with your shoulders in front. It’s also crucial to bring your body close to the bar. Your quadriceps must touch the bar.
"Patience, gaining strength, mobility, and always doing the muscle-up technique very close to the bar. And listening to your coach," he says with a smile.
Back to the rings and the bar.
The main difference between the two tools is that the rings move and the bar is fixed.
Therefore, the movement and strength you need are very different.
"Compared to the bar, you can move the rings toward your body, so it's a little easier to go up. The downside? Just that. If you don't bring the rings close to your body, they will slip, and you won’t be able to do the muscle-up," he stresses.
When asked whether the rings or the bar are easier, Javi answers that, if you are strong enough to bring the rings to your body, the bar is easier because it does not move.
"Stronger people usually find it less difficult to work with rings. When you’re not so strong, it's easier to learn the technique to work with the bar," he says.
Tips for dealing with gymnastics in a WOD
Let's take the example of a WOD with pull-ups or barbell muscle-ups, which is the most accessible exercise, whether scaled or RX.
As a CrossFitter who has participated in different CrossFit competitions in Spain, Javi Gómez has the following recommendation:
If you are doing a short WOD with few reps, you need to perform a short movement. It is better to do pull-ups with kipping and less amplitude, because your movements need to be short and fast.
For long WODs with many reps, it is better to use kipping and get into a slower pace to link the reps without getting too tired.
When is it best to use grips?
“You need to alternate. I would work with and without grips because it’s important to get your hands used to it, get calluses, and make them stronger," he recommends.
As a professional athlete, Javi Gómez emphasizes that he uses pads to help him with his grip rather than as protection.
"I'm used to having my hands splitting. And as I start to bleed, I slip. And I’m not as efficient with my movement. Grips prevent you from slipping, and you don’t need to work with your forearm so much and overload it".
In his CrossFit and gymnastics training, Javi Gómez tells us that he loves PicSil's Azor Grips because, in addition to protecting his hands, they give him a better grip on the bar and rings. "I hold on pretty much the same as when my hand is free".
He also has Raven Grips, PicSil’s new model, in his training bag. "I like PicSil's grips best because they are the most functional," he admits.
