Blog Post

HOW TO GET YOUR FIRST MUSCLE UP

Kevin Kohan • Jan 10, 2017

Hitting your first muscle up is a coveted experience for most fitness athletes. Everybody remembers when they executed their very first muscle up, where they hit it and how excited they were! MU's are very much like pulling yourself up and over a wall in an OCR Spartan race, or climbing over a fence, which is what makes them one of the most functional movements in the gym. They are the ultimate test of upper body strength and power.

What You MUST Know

  • Just like pull-ups, With sufficient 'strength to body weight ratio', kipping allows you to perform muscle ups with minimal amount of energy exerted. However, to ensure you have the appropriate strength and positioning for kipping muscle ups, it is ideal to learn them strict first.
    • The more strict pull-ups and dips you are able to complete, the faster your muscle up will come.
      • A bare minimum of 1 strict pull-up and 1 strict ring dip is needed, but 5 strict chest to bar (more on this in a minute) pull-ups and 5 strict ring dips is preferred. In this case, the more you can do the faster the muscle up will come.
        • A muscle up is the highest pull-up and deepest dip combined into one movement; therefore, train your pull-ups and dips accordingly (FULL RANGE OF MOTION).

        The first step is to figure out which category you fall into – the majority of people reading this will be in Group B.


        Group A

        You have the requisite strength (5 Strict Pull-Ups, 5 Strict Dips, but can’t get a muscle up)

        • Learn what the transition feel like by having a qualified coach show you how to perform them. Or, at the very least, watch and see what a good strict muscle up looks like. The transition is why most people who may be strong enough lack the ability to get above the bar or rings.
          • You need more time working on technique and flexibility. This group is definitely the minority. Stay with it and be patient working on the skills and drills and you will have your first muscle up in no time.

          Group B

          Most people will fall into the group that just flat out need to get stronger. These people will need to practice strict dips and pull-ups. A great way to get stronger in these simple gymnastic movements is to build volume. The pull-up and dip are some of the most basic upper body movements that people need to spend more time on.

          The following is an example program for someone who has roughly 3 strict pull-ups and roughly 3 dips. Same can be applied to anyone with less or more of these two movements.

          Week 1

          Monday: Every minute on the minute (EMOM) for 10 minutes: 2 strict pull-ups and dips

          Wednesday: EMOM for 12 minutes: 2 strict pull-ups and dips

          Friday: EMOM 14 minutes: 2 strict pull-ups and dips

          Week 2

          Monday: EMOM 10: 3 strict pull-ups and dips

          Wednesday: EMOM 12: 3 strict pull-ups and dips

          Friday: EMOM 14: 3 strict pull-ups and dips

          Week 3

          Monday: EMOM 12: 3 strict pull-ups and dips

          Wednesday: EMOM 14: 3 strict pull-ups and dips

          Friday: EMOM 16: 3 strict pull-ups and dips



          *Research found through Invictus programming

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