http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrNIuw-S7H4
What do you get when you combine a towel and a pull-up? One of the greatest exercises known to man for grip strength! This exercise is awesome and it’s also a head turner and conversation starter at the gym. So if you don’t want people to watch you or come up to you and start chatting, you may want to perform this one at home or away from the crowds at the gym.
There are two versions of this exercise – using one (1) towel or using two (2) towels.
For the 1 towel version begin by hanging a towel over a pull-up bar and grab each end of the towel with your hands. Be absolutely sure not to use a towel with any rips or tears in it.
Once you have a secure grip, simply do a pull-up, bringing your chest to your hands. Due to the nature of the exercise, you may rotate slightly as you pull up. This is OK and is giving you instant feedback that you may be pulling more with one arm. This feedback can also help you correct any pulling muscular imbalances you may have.
For the 2 towel version, simply hang two towels about shoulder width apart from a pull-up bar. Because youÕll be gripping both ends of a towel with one hand versus just one end of a towel as in the 1 towel version, the 2 towel pull-up is more difficult than the 1 towel pull-up.
Be careful not to have the towels too far apart as this will limit your range of motion and you’ll end up doing partial pull-ups. In addition, your shoulder joints can be place in a compromised position if the towels are too far apart. If the towels feel like they are too far apart, then they are.
Everyone is slightly different so be sure to determine the proper towel spacing for you before diving into a full set. Perform multiple sets of the towel pull-up, just as you would normal pull-ups. You will notice your grip beginning to fatigue. That’s OK, work through the grip fatigue as you would any other strength exercise.
You’ll make improvements over time. Of course, not only does the towel pull up help you develop a crushing grip, but it also helps build the muscles of the back, arms and shoulders. If you can perform a lot of pull-ups you will be strong in many other areas as well. And, chances are, you’ll have a significant amount of muscle mass to boot.
We have yet to see someone who can rep out towel pull-ups who isn’t very strong elsewhere. This is the type of strength that converts over to other exercises and real life situations. Do you like this exercise and are you looking for even more awesome grip strengthening tips to add to your workouts?
Great, weÕve put them all in one place for you to learn – https://usplabsdirect.com/blog/how-to-increase-grip-strength.html
Thank you to Arthur Gonzales for showing us how a world-class towel pull-up is performed.
