Simple but effective exercises on the 3-in-1 horizontal bar

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Can't go to the gym regularly? Don't fall into despair! You can fully train without going far from home with the help of the simplest sports equipment - a horizontal bar. A well-designed horizontal bar training program for beginners allows you to work out almost all the muscles of the torso: latissimus dorsi, biceps, triceps, deltoids and abs.

The benefits of exercising on the horizontal bar

There are dozens of varieties of exercises on the horizontal bar: pull-ups in various variations, push-ups, hanging leg raises, power-ups and many others. Finding the ones that suit your purposes won’t be difficult. With the help of the complexes described in the article, you will gain muscle mass, become stronger and improve your relief. However, methodicality and consistency are important in everything, and training on the horizontal bar with your own weight is no exception.

In this article we will analyze several of the best training programs on the horizontal bar, answer the question of how to create an individual program, and give useful tips and recommendations.

Benefits of training

It is no coincidence that exercises on the horizontal bar and parallel bars form the basis of general physical training (GPP). Men are taught to practice on the horizontal bar from childhood: both at school and in any sports section. In the army and in physical education at the university, these exercises are also not ignored. How are they useful and what are their main advantages?

1. Availability and prevalence. There are horizontal bars in every yard: you don’t have to waste time getting to the training place. In large cities there are more and more well-equipped workout areas with horizontal bars of different heights and widths, parallel bars, rings, ladders for grip training, ropes and other equipment. All this is free. You can do it even simpler - buy or make a horizontal bar yourself and play sports without leaving your home.
2. Variety of the training process. If you think that training on the horizontal bar is limited to just pull-ups, you are deeply mistaken. Having a certain physical training, you can work out almost all the muscles of the torso on the horizontal bar.
3. Safety. If you follow the correct exercise technique, the risk of injury is minimized. The rules are simple: during pull-ups and other pulling exercises, do not tilt your head back too much, do not round the thoracic spine, and do not make circular movements with your shoulders.
4. Increased muscle mass and strength. On the horizontal bar it is easy to implement the principle of progression of loads, which will make you bigger and stronger. Also, training with your own weight strengthens ligaments and tendons, which increases strength potential.
5. Save time. Training on the horizontal bar will not take much time. 25-30 minutes is enough to complete the entire planned amount of work.

Positive effect on the body

It has been proven that prolonged hanging on the horizontal bar without the use of wrist straps relieves hypertonicity in the spinal extensors, strengthens the grip, improves posture and reduces the risk of back injuries.

Continuous work with your own weight allows the muscles to overcome pain and a burning sensation in the muscles. Refusal comes much later. Over time, athletes adapt to such loads, and training on the horizontal bar is much easier.

Among other things, playing sports in the fresh air is much healthier for the body than in a stuffy gym. A higher oxygen content in the air promotes rapid recovery between approaches and improves the oxidation process of adipose tissue.

Contraindications

Not all athletes will benefit from training on the horizontal bar. It is widely believed that hanging on the horizontal bar has almost miraculous properties and helps with hernias and protrusions. Unfortunately, this is far from the case.

If you have such problems with the spine, you should not train on the horizontal bar at all, since a long time in an extended position can aggravate the situation.

Be sure to consult with a qualified physician before beginning full-scale exercise. Only he will competently answer the question of how to play sports and not harm your health.

It is also not recommended to exercise on horizontal bars for those who have recently had sprains or torn ligaments in their shoulders or elbows. Hanging for a long time will lead to pain, especially if your own weight is above average. You risk recurrence of the injury.

Benefits of pull-ups and dips

Everyone wants to have a beautiful, strong, muscular body, but few people put really serious effort into it. For men, pumped chest muscles, broad shoulders, impressive biceps and triceps are a symbol of masculinity; having them is a dream. It’s just that some people work long and hard to make their dreams come true, while others indulge in their dreams, sitting on a soft sofa. Everyone makes their own choice.

Ill-considered training planning, too much overload, lack of full recovery - these are the three most common mistakes. Understand that in order to have a pumped up upper body, it is not at all necessary to cram every possible exercise into your workout: bench presses on flat and inclined benches, endless presses, kettlebell and dumbbell rows, exercises with an expander (the most popular).

In my experience, adding too many sets and reps to your workout is a recipe for disaster. You will get nothing but horribly bloated muscles. It looks very unnatural, so you shouldn’t be so brutally zealous.

In general, I love athletics; I have been studying all the nuances and pitfalls for a long time. Each sport involves a specific muscle group, and in the end it is the most pronounced. For example, sprinters have big hips and buttocks, this is a fact. Skaters and cyclists have quadriceps that would be the envy of any bodybuilder. And male gymnasts can boast of a sculpted upper body, which they achieve precisely thanks to numerous pull-ups and push-ups on the uneven bars.

In my opinion, these exercises are the most important and basic when building the relief of the upper body. I have always actively used pull-ups on the horizontal bar and push-ups, but as part of the training. And at the beginning of last year, a brilliant idea came to my mind: what if I dedicated an entire workout to them? From this thought I caught fire, like Ray Lewis during the match, and decided to bring my plan to life at all costs.

The results were amazing. I established pull-ups and push-ups on the horizontal bar as a separate day of training, and after a short period of time I noticed that my upper body became fuller and more impressive. The pectoral muscles took shape, the back got bigger, the arm muscles grew - I was pleasantly surprised! Frequent separate training sessions combined with my regular program, as well as complete rest and recovery days, caused my upper muscles to grow even faster than Rocky's beard when he fought in Russia.

I also noticed that I had become more resilient and strong: I had to increase the weight of the barbell and dumbbells, since my usual ones seemed like fluff to me. But enough about me, the time has come for you to make up your mind and start training according to my program.

4 Effective Outdoor Training Methods

Below I will outline the main points of the 18-week push-up and pull-up program. I recommend doing them because it is very important. Nowadays, many fitness trainers make tempting promises that you will achieve amazing results in a minimum of time. 4 weeks - and you have stone abs, 60 days and a large chest relief. Don't be fooled by this! A complete scam.

Understand that real results take time and a lot of effort. My program is proven, it guarantees you that you will achieve your goal, provided you follow all the recommendations. After 18 weeks, your upper body will be muscular, toned and beautiful. Each of you will have your own results, because organizing your daily routine, diet and rest is of great importance. But I promise you that the result will be!

Program for Beginners

The first thing beginners need to do is learn how to do pull-ups technically correctly. Pull-ups are performed not by the biceps and forearms, but by the latissimus dorsi muscles. This is the basis on which all other exercises are built. The easiest way to do this is to try to bring your shoulder blades together as you lift your body up. No need to swing.

The pulling movement itself should be performed not due to some kind of impulse, but due to compression of the latissimus dorsi muscles. It is quite difficult to feel this movement, and often it takes more than one month of training. But when you learn to do this, your back will begin to grow at an enviable speed. Another option is to use straps, they help to “turn off” your arms.

Before you start performing the complexes, you need to do a test - do pull-ups with a wide grip for the maximum number of times. If you manage to do more than 5, skip the first program and immediately proceed to the second. If you manage to do 1-4 times, start with a simple 4-week program to increase the number of pull-ups:

The horizontal bar training program for those who were able to perform more than 5 pull-ups is designed for 3 sessions per week. Other exercises have already been added here. Each workout is quite short, no more than 30 minutes.

Once you can complete the entire amount of work without much effort, begin to slowly increase the number of repetitions and approaches. Also, from time to time, measure your progress separately in pull-ups, because this is the basis of all exercises on the horizontal bar. If you can easily and technically perform 15 reps, it's time to move on to heavier training for more experienced athletes.

Another great option for increasing the load is to use additional weights. A backpack filled with something heavy, such as sandbags or water bottles, works well here.

What can you upgrade?

Training on the horizontal bar trains the back most of all, especially the lats and deltoids. If you train with your own weight, then this is perhaps the best choice for quality development. Moreover, like any exercise without any equipment, pull-ups occur not only through a specific muscle, but through the whole body. Therefore, you will achieve comprehensive development of the upper body, even the abs. Also, the forearms work very effectively and the fingers are trained. Roughly speaking, the horizontal bar has everything that will help you in everyday life: it will increase your strength, endurance and sense of your own weight and help you achieve the coveted V-shape. Below is a list of exercises that will help beginners understand how to do pull-ups correctly or help create a training program for more experienced ones.

Program on the horizontal bar for gaining weight

If you are a fairly experienced athlete and have a good command of the technique of all basic exercises, then this weight training program on the horizontal bar is for you. By doing it, you will add muscle mass in your arms, back and shoulders.

The bar training program for gaining mass is built around multi-joint movements that involve several large muscle groups at once. The work is carried out in the repetition range from 8 to 15. Only three workouts per week, but rest between approaches should be minimal - this way you will increase blood flow to the working muscles, without which muscle growth is impossible.

As you can see, in every workout we directly or indirectly load all the major muscles of the core. This approach to training does not lead to overtraining at all, since the amount of work is not as large as with a classic three-day split in the gym. The muscles have time to fully recover.

To maintain the intensity of the training process, try to rest as little as possible between working approaches - no more than one minute. If the specified amount of work is too small for you, add 1-2 sets to each exercise and increase the number of repetitions to 15. You can also use additional weights.

Exercises for experienced athletes

Raising legs to the bar

1. Grasp the horizontal bar in any way convenient for you.
2. Raise your legs until you touch the horizontal bar at the top.
3. Lower yourself slowly.

This is one of the best exercises for the abs and, especially, on the horizontal bar. Try not to swing and work more with your abs and legs, rather than with your back. If there is not enough stretching, then there is no need to straighten your legs through pain.

Commando pull-ups

1. Stand under the horizontal bar, turn around so that your gaze is directed to the side posts.
2. Use a reverse grip with one hand and a standard grip with the other, so that you continue to look at the support posts as you lift.
3. Pull yourself up, alternately touching the bar with different shoulders.

Be careful not to roll too far in different directions. The exercises are perfect for developing the lats and triceps.

High pull-ups

1. Grab the horizontal bar with a normal grip, shoulder-width apart.
2. Pull yourself up to your waist.

Try to do it without jerking, using your back muscles.

Pull-ups in the corner position

1. Grasp the horizontal bar with a normal grip, shoulder-width apart.
2. Raise your legs until you form a 90-degree angle and keep them straight throughout the reps.
3. Pull yourself up to your waist.

To begin with, you can try to do this exercise without straight legs, that is, with your knees bent.

Slow pull-ups

1. Hold with any grip (depending on what muscle you want to work).
2. Rise for 20 seconds and lower at the same speed.

Negative pull-ups will help you strengthen your muscles. When you train, you need to devote equal amounts of time to dynamics and statics, where the first is growth, and the second is strength.

Pull-ups behind your back

1. Grab the horizontal bar with a standard grip.
2. Go up the inversion climb, but do not throw your legs over the horizontal bar, but crawl under it to twist your body into the desired position.
3. When your hands are behind you, round and tense your back.
4. Pull yourself up with your arms until your lower back touches the bar.

Stretch your shoulders well so as not to damage them when turning over. Do not relax your back, as this will make the task much more difficult for you. The triceps and lats perform a huge load, which will lead to their effective development.

Pull-ups with clap

1. Use a standard grip to make it easier to grab the bar later.
2. Pull yourself up to your chin, and then push yourself higher to make a clap.
3. After clapping, return your hands to the previous position and slowly lower yourself.

One of the best exercises on the horizontal bar, which combines good dynamics and statics.

Typewriter pull-ups

1. Take a wide grip with your fingers facing away from you.
2. Pull yourself above your chin and hang in this position.
3. Slowly move your body towards your hand, then towards the other, without lowering your chin.

Incredibly strengthens your hands: gives them strength and endurance. Also, the exercises work well on the shoulder muscles.

Pull up archer

1. Take a wide grip with your fingers facing away from you.
2. Pull your body diagonally towards your right hand, then repeat the same with your left.

Even though the supporting hand does almost all the work, don't forget about the left one, it stabilizes your body. This is a spectacular strength element that in the future will help you learn how to do one-arm pull-ups.

Relief program

In terms of the strength component, the training program on the horizontal bar for relief is not too different from working on weight. In both cases we train in the medium rep range (8 to 15) and do similar exercises. This is the optimal amount not only for gaining weight, but also for maintaining it.

The main difference between the dialing and cutting modes is nutrition. It is this that determines whether an athlete will build muscle mass or burn excess fat. Also, while drying, you can add cardio in separate workouts: jogging, cycling, etc.

To increase calorie consumption during strength training, we will need some exercises from CrossFit:

To get more out of this program, make it a habit to pause at the point of peak contraction in your pull-ups (the top of the range). The muscles respond well to this technique, the back quickly becomes stiffer and lumpier. Work strictly according to your feelings. When your lats are most tense, squeeze your shoulder blades and try to lock them in place. If you do everything correctly, you will feel something like a slight cramp in the latissimus muscles. The main thing at this moment is not to put the load on your biceps and forearms.

If you want to increase the intensity of your bar workout while burning fat, do the same program, but in a circuit training format. This is done as follows: perform one set of 10-15 repetitions of each exercise without rest. This is one round. After each round we rest for two to four minutes. There should be 3-6 rounds in total.

To track the progression of loads, gradually increase the number of repetitions in the sets. For example, do 3 rounds of 10 reps each set. Then 11, then 12 reps... When you reach 15 reps, add one extra round and repeat all over again.

Workout for back and abdominal muscles

If your back muscles are severely delayed in development, then a horizontal bar training program for developing your back and abdominal muscles is exactly what you need. These are the best exercises for growing your back wider; nothing more effective has yet been invented. By adding a few variations to the classic wide-grip pull-up, you will work the entire array of back muscles.

You can also fully train your abs using a horizontal bar. Agree, doing monotonous crunches on the floor or in machines at different angles is boring. In such situations, hanging leg raises come to the rescue; there are a huge number of variations of this exercise.

There will be four workouts in total in a week, the first two are hard, the second two are easier. This way you will be less tired without compromising your progress.

The volume of work on Monday and Tuesday is almost twice as much as on Friday and Saturday. This is necessary to relieve the psyche and muscles from hard work. If you are able to do four hard workouts a week, no one forbids you to do this, but then you will have to pay much more attention to recovery.

Strength training program

If your goal is to increase strength, a strength training program on the horizontal bar will help you.

Exercises like plyometric pull-ups (lifting your hands off the bar and clapping them), two-arm power-ups, and weighted pull-ups will make you much stronger:

In total, it is advisable to conduct three workouts per week, in each of which you need to specifically work on strength in a relatively small repetition range.

Complex on the horizontal bar and parallel bars for the press - video

Results

Simplicity is the key to life. With this program of simple exercises you can easily gain volume and definition in your upper body.

Pull-ups on the horizontal bar and push-ups on the uneven bars are basic exercises for increasing the muscles of the chest, arms, and shoulder girdle. All you need to do is remember the sequence of sets and repetitions.

Adjust your diet according to your goal: losing weight or gaining weight. If you are persistent and patient, your body will soon be completely transformed.

The Batman figure is an ideal figure for many people. His physique motivates and makes you move forward. And a character like Johnny Bravo just makes you laugh. By the way, at my house I have pipe cleaners in the shape of the legs of this brave athlete. Good luck to you!

Tips for training on the horizontal bar

If you've been following the above programs but haven't noticed any significant changes in your fitness, don't get discouraged. These guidelines will help you reach your full potential.

Technical nuances

1. Keep an eye on your technique. When performing pull-ups on the bar, focus the load on the back muscles, not on the arms. To better feel the contraction and stretching of the latissimus muscles, use wrist straps. Try to lower your shoulders a little, this way you will “free up” the trapezius and rhomboid muscles, and your back will receive more load.
2. If your grip is the weakest link in your chain, pay more attention to your hang on the bar. You can use additional weights by hanging a weight or disk on a chain from your belt. Another option is to use a towel. Hanging on it perfectly develops the strength of the forearms. You can also wrap a towel around the bar to make it wider - this will strengthen your hands and increase finger strength. It is recommended to use magnesium, this will make holding the horizontal bar much more comfortable, and your grip is unlikely to let you down.
3. Extinguish the force of inertia. Do not deceive yourself - each repetition must be performed under control. They should all be “clean”; you shouldn’t squirm your whole body to pull yourself up. There is no point in this. It is better to do fewer repetitions, but technically correct, the benefits will be much greater.
4. Try to maintain a consistent pace of exercise. This will make it easier to use the neuromuscular connection and focus on stretching and contracting the muscles. This applies to all exercises performed with your own weight. However, this does not mean that the faster the better.
5. If you are still a beginner and the training program we have indicated is difficult for you, pay attention to practicing auxiliary exercises. Do back exercises on blocks in the gym - this way you will become stronger and pull-ups will be much easier. Another option is to use a partner's help. Let him push you up a little while doing pull-ups, thereby making the task easier. After some time, you will be able to safely do pull-ups on your own. The third option is to do partial pull-ups. Over time, you will understand the biomechanics of movement and will be able to easily overcome sticking points and perform pull-ups at full amplitude. The last option is pull-ups in a gravitron. This is an excellent machine that helps you do pull-ups using a counterweight, the resistance of which can be changed as your strength increases.
6. Watch your diet. It is not enough for muscles to stimulate growth through strength training; they need resources for recovery and subsequent hypertrophy. Therefore, a calorie surplus, sufficient protein intake (about 2 g per kg of weight) and complex carbohydrates (from 4 g per kg) are necessary.

Exercises for girls and beginners

Australian pull-ups

1. Go to a small horizontal bar, parallel bars or sports vertical ladder (the main thing is that the crossbar is somewhere at the level of your ribs or even lower).
2. Grasp the bar with a normal grip.
3. Place your legs forward so that you assume a kind of lying position, only with your arms up.
4. Fix yourself on the ground with your heels so as not to ride when you rise, and lift your body until it touches your chest.

Try to relax your legs to shift the center of gravity to your upper body and increase the load on your arms.

Negative jumping pull-ups

1. Grab the horizontal bar with any grip (depending on what you are training at the moment).
2. Jump, helping yourself with your hands so that your chin is above the bar.
3. Fix yourself in this position and slowly lower yourself.

This will help you gain strength in your arms and is a great exercise if you are not good at doing pull-ups.

Standard pull-ups

1. Grab your hands shoulder-width apart, fingers facing away from you.
2. Pull yourself up until your chin is behind the bar.

• If the elbows are turned out, then the lats and back will be pumped.
• When they are directed forward, the load goes to the forearm, triceps and chest.

If you find it difficult, you can use a little rocking.

Reverse grip pull-ups

1. Grasp the bar with your fingers facing you.
2. Pull yourself up to your chin.
3. Don't go all the way down.

This exercise is good for biceps and chest. When you start lifting, you push yourself with your back and then with your arms, so you don't have to go all the way down. There are other exercises for the back.

Pull-up with knees bent

1. Use a straight grip, with your fingers facing away from you.
2. Place your hands shoulder-width apart.
3. Bend your legs at the knees and lift them parallel to the floor.
4. Pull yourself up to your chin.

An excellent exercise for girls, as it pumps almost the entire body at once. Moreover, due to the static nature, it is a good way to strengthen the core.

Raising the knees to the body

1. Grasp the horizontal bar with an overhand grip.
2. Raise your knees to your chest.

Make sure that your body does not swing in different directions. Work only with your abs, not your back.