RC/PE11 (Bulgarian pull-up)

I tried these today for a couple of sets after my PE10 training. How are they looking?

I'll still consolidate PE10 at 5x5 for a couple of months and will alternate between sessions of PEs 10 and 11.

Hi @Petri Widsten, you need to pull your elbows outwards. A good cue would be its like your doing a "double biceps" pose while pulling the rings down. If you check @Everett Carroll's avatar, its the correct angle of the arms when pulling up the bulgarian pullup. I hope this helps.

I'll try that, Leo. Thanks!

HI Petri, please post a video from a side view.

Hi @Leo Trinidad@Alessandro Mainente I tried to find better angles to shoot videos. This is my current form.

huge improvement @Petri Widsten but you still need to work on the angle. In the side view of the video it shoes that your hands are not aligned with the ear.

4 hours ago, Leo Trinidad said:

huge improvement @Petri Widsten but you still need to work on the angle. In the side view of the video it shoes that your hands are not aligned with the ear.

OK, next time I'll pull more vertically. Thanks for checking, Leo.

Is my form acceptable now, @Leo Trinidad and @Alessandro Mainente? Not my RC day today but did a couple of reps trying to align hands and ears.

Hi @Petri Widsten, much more better  

1 hour ago, Leo Trinidad said:

Hi @Petri Widsten, much more better  

Thanks! I only slightly adjusted the pulling direction.

What are the specific benefits of this pull-up variant compared to a standard GST or BB style pull-up? Strengthening the scapular retractors (rhomboids and middle traps)?

@Alessandro Mainentesaid that the forearms should be vertical in the other Bulgarian pull-up thread. I tried a few singles after my PE10 training and they look like the one above. I'm pulling the rings back as much as I can. Am I close enough to vertical for mastery form or is absolutely no deviance allowed?

That is really great improvement @Petri Widsten Make sure to keep your reps and sets consistent. Keep up the good work.

I personally prefer vertical forearms since the tendency to have the hands tilted forward it is a sign of bad work on the shoulder joint, think about pulling the elbows back but also the shoulders.

1 hour ago, Alessandro Mainente said:

I personally prefer vertical forearms since the tendency to have the hands tilted forward it is a sign of bad work on the shoulder joint, think about pulling the elbows back but also the shoulders.

I'll definitely try to do that every rep. Let's see what happens in a few weeks time.

Pulling the shoulders back: this is why I think wall extensions are not a bad mobility drill to go with this exercise.

Thanks for the feedback.

Keep up the consistent practice Petri

23 hours ago, Alessandro Mainente said:

I personally prefer vertical forearms since the tendency to have the hands tilted forward it is a sign of bad work on the shoulder joint, think about pulling the elbows back but also the shoulders.

Alessandro, if I do my sets like this, am I close enough to what you'd like to see, or not yet? Is any of the 3 reps a model for future training or are all good/bad?

hei Petri do you have foundations 3?

2 hours ago, Alessandro Mainente said:

hei Petri do you have foundations 3?

I do, Alessandro 

See this post at the end

2 hours ago, Alessandro Mainente said:

See this post at the end

I'll add that to my daily shoulder stretches. Thanks for the tip.

Would HBP PE11 and 12 iMs also help here? I usually do iM 11.

By the way, I could elevate the rings to extend my legs but the side camera angle would become very large.

They are not so beneficial as IM 15.

On 08/03/2017 at 10:27 AM, Alessandro Mainente said:

See this post at the end

Today I did both variants of iM15 and then a large number of single reps to experiment with different pulling patterns with my legs hanging freely. I had the most success when I held my shoulders back but pushed my elbows forward while pulling the hands back. What's your opinion?

NIce work here, focus on actively pull back the hands.

7 hours ago, Alessandro Mainente said:

NIce work here, focus on actively pull back the hands.

Cheers Alessandro. I need to push hands and elbows in opposite directions to have better alignment.  

How is my pulling height, @Alessandro Mainente? I can pull the rings to the level of my ears (with reasonably vertical arms as in the videos below) but to pull the rings lower to the level of my chin my arms have to move slightly to the front of the head. This is what seems to happen in the course video as well: after the arms pass the 90 deg angle the elbows turn inwards at the end of the pull and the arms move to the front of the head. So I'd like to clarify whether I should

1) Only pull down to ear level with arms also aligned with ears, or

2) Pull as above to ear level but continue to pull downward to chin level and allow the arms to come to the front like in the course video