There are so many measures against which we hold ourselves. If you can’t hold a plank for 2 minutes then you’re a wimp. If you can’t deadlift extraordinary loads you’re not strong. If you don’t look like a fitness competitor/model you’re not thin enough.
It’s desirable to have goals – of course. It’s healthy to “reach for the stars.” But some of these strength standards – and comparing ourselves to others – only serve to make us feel inadequate.
The Study, the Results
Doing pull ups – hanging from a bar, palms facing out, and using your back and arms to raise your chin over the bar – is a feat we can aspire to. Lifting your own body through space is a rush, and if you can do even one you’re near beast status. That’s because using your back and arms to lift yourself up is hard.
So if you have to be a beast to do them, are they a good measure of upper body strength?
A recent study conducted at the University of Dayton set out find out. Seventeen normal-weight women were trained 3 times a week for 3 months and given aerobic training to lower body fat.
The results: Although the subjects increased their upper-body strength by 36 percent and lowered their body fat by 2 percent, only 4 of the 17 women (about 23 percent) could do one pull up by the end of the study.
A subsequent New York Times article about the study pointed out that women have less testosterone and higher body fat, so it’s more difficult for them to do pull ups. It also mentioned that in both men and women, tall and long-limbed people have a harder time doing pull ups mechanically.
Some readers took issue with the insinuation that weakling girls shouldn’t even bother trying to do the hard stuff. I get this completely; women have worked hard to be respected athletically. You might even argue that by saying pull ups are harder for women, it discourages them from even trying.
I agree that women and men should aspire to do pull ups (as long as it doesn’t cause pain or injury). Plus it’s motivating for everyone else to see those 23 percent who can do one.
But I think we put too much pressure on ourselves to do things that are supposed to be the “golden standard” of strength, when in fact there are other measures that are more valid. Why make people feel bad about themselves because they can’t fit this particular standard? In all honesty, I have seen only one woman at the gym ever do pull ups (or was it chin ups?) and she did them without full range of motion (I was still impressed).
Take me, for example. I’m short and my back is strong. I also have low body fat. So logically I should be able to do pull ups. But I have never been able to do more than one or two. True, I haven’t practiced them – pull ups feel uncomfortable on my tweaky shoulder and elbow so I avoid them.
I do chin ups (palms facing in) instead and am very happy with that (I’m currently stuck at six or seven, depending on how I feel). Chin ups are deemed easier because they recruit the arms more than the back. But I’m not going to let someone tell me I’m not strong because I can’t do 10 pull ups in a row.
The PR Standard
Powerlifters use their PR (personal record) to measure progress, so you see lots of PRs posted for deadlifts, squats, bench presses, etc. So if you see PRs posted, don’t feel that you need to compete with that number (unless you are want to). Powerlifting and Olympic lifting have become main stream and the message seems to get out that everyone should be lifting for super strength.
The problem is that many people don’t train for super strength and most of us are not powerlifters (including myself). We simply aren’t interested in that particular goal, much less competing or posting PR’s. Joint issues can also play a big role in that decision; no matter how much I love Olympic lifts my knees and wrists cannot withstand the impact.
Estimating Your Own Strength
So instead of comparing yourself to people who have different body mechanics, goals, and training methods than you, measure your own strength against your one-rep max (1RM). You don’t actually have to do a 1RM test; you can estimate your 1RM by doing a safer test, such as a 5RM or 10RM.
After you estimate your 1RM for the bench press and squat, compare it as relative percentage of your body weight.
This allows bigger and smaller people to compare their strength on a relative, or pound-for-pound, basis rather than on an absolute basis in which the larger person has a distinct advantage.” (Read more here.)
Then use this calculator to see how you stack up against normative data. You might be pleasantly surprised to see that despite how much others lift (and who are training for strength and power), you are doing quite well for your size. Or you may see that you can push yourself a bit more.
Be the strongest you can be and train for performance. Don’t try to live up to someone else’s expectations or try to be like an online strength expert who makes a living by becoming more educated in strength training. You can be very healthy and strong without being as strong as a powerlifter.
That doesn’t mean you should give up without trying or give yourself limitations just because you’re a woman. There are some crazy strong women out there who are completely amazing. Let’s admire and respect others without comparing ourselves to them. Be the best you can be given your personal goals and body mechanics.
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I like this post because it does speak to the truth, that there are some fitness standards out there that are not really applicable to everyone. I see people trying to aim for 5 minute planks, and I do not think that anything being 90 seconds is even worth my time. I can deadlift more than my bodyweight, and I feel awesome about it, but know not ever girl wants to deadlift (even though you should!). I can rock a couple pull-ups, but maybe that’s not the goal of everyone. But.. get me running. I’m super slow and super weak. I majorly lack the endurance.
Yet I still feel like I am being measured in all aspects.. regardless of what my goals are. So yeah, I like this because as long as you are achieving your personal goals you should be happy!
Jennifer recently posted..energybits Review – #PoweredByBits
What you say about still feeling like you’re being measured regardless of your goals is really insightful. Sort of fighting against this is healthy, I think, so it’s good for us all to support each other as much as possible!
I LOVE THIS!!!!!! In my younger days I did strive for the pull ups & even got a few but more with reverse grip close – chins or neutral grip like you. About 3+ years a go I had an inkling to try again since I had just stopped them for a while. My back (easy gain there) got so big as I worked to strengthen myself that I found it really not worth it too get that big just to say I did it.
I see this in other posts too where people are writing about their dead lifts & squats & more. Don’t get me wrong, I HONOR & RESPECT that they do this!!!
For me, it is really not about how much I can lift but am I doing what I want to do for me to look the way I want to look. I don’t need to lift massive amounts of weight to feel good about myself. I feel proud that I do what I do & am able to accomplish my goals for me. I am happy with my look right now well, besides the few things that age is just fighting me on.
Now, I am not saying people have to lift these weights or do pull ups to brag & feel good about themselves, I am just saying I don’t need it for ME – I feel fine with lifting what I do & challenges & things like that don’t effect me anymore.
GREAT POST!!!!!!!
Jody – Fit at 54 recently posted..Gratitude Monday & Just Gratitude!
We are cut from the same cloth, Jody. Love how you articulate this philosophy! You won’t see me posting my PRs… my personal best is all I strive for. However, like you, I very much respect powerlifters and in another life…
I just hate it when people tell me I can’t because I’m female. It took me a long time to get my chin up and I am proud of it. But you are right – there are many other ways to measure strength. The only person we really need to compete with is ourselves.
A tough lesson that can take a LONG time to process.
I love working toward lifting more weight in the gym, but I could care less what anybody else’s PR’s are. We all have different goals and joint issues (more so as we age, right?) and as long as we’re progressing (or at the very lease, not backsliding…), we should feel fabulous about ourselves!
I’m still working on my pullups and chin-ups, but know that very few people in my gym (other than some young, super lean guys), are regularly doing more than 3 or 4…
Thanks for this very realistic perspective!
Tamara recently posted..Saucony Women’s ProGrid Guide 6 review | not just for running
Haha, indeed, we all have our own joint issues
. Love your attitude Tamara.
You are just amazing…
ragemichelle recently posted..Rage Advice For Halloween
Whew,,here I was thinking I was kind of a weakling because pull-ups have been near impossible without any assistance for me. But i love the idea you share about doing chin-ups instead. That is within my forte and I’ll try to bust a few of those moves at the gym tomorrow. Thanks again for the always well-researched insight and information!
Shira recently posted..Get spicy to make healthier restaurant-style meals at home
I love pull-ups, but it took me a couple of years before I could do them. Doubt I could do any right this minute because I haven’t been training them . . . But back in the dark old days before the assisted dip and pull-up machine was born, a gym buddy of mine used to hold my knees so I could do assisted pull-ups.
Mary C. Weaver, CSCS recently posted..Kick metabolic syndrome to the curb with strength training
I love this post. Pull ups require not only power but perfect form. A lot of people have the strength to do pull ups but not correct form. it’s hard to isolate those powerful backmuscles as opposed to relying on arm and shoulder strength.
Pull ups are an amazing strength builder, but I hope nobody will gauge their own progress based on a single exercise.
Chad @ beardrunner recently posted..Welcome to Beardrunner
You make such a good point about form Chad. It really is easy to protract the shoulders, etc. and most people don’t know how to correct this problem (closer grip and so on). If one’s back isn’t strong enough the shoulders do kick in, and if you’ve ever had a shoulder issue it’s the first thing to feel tweaked. That’s why I stick to chin ups.
Love this post! Thank you so much.
Love hearing from you, thanks!
This is a very encouraging and inspiring post for me. First, I am so glad how you wrote for use to measure ourselves against ourselves. That is the way I came at running and I was fine with it. If I had compared myself with anyone else, I would be sorely disappointed, because I’m really slow. But because I took it on as my own personal goal, I was able to finish my marathon and was so excited about that. Imagine how defeated I would have felt if I thought I had to get a certain unobtainable (for me) time.
) then that’s what should be important to me when it comes to how I’m improving in strength. I can totally deal with that.
Now, as I enter weightlifting, it’s funny–I have looked at other women who are doing pull ups and I so want to be able to do one of those. I also look at some of the numbers people are lifting, and it’s also disappointing because I can’t lift that much. But, if I compare myself to my 1Rep Max (hmm I think that is what you called it
Thanks Suzanne!!
Bethany Lee recently posted..National Academy of Sports Medicine: Personal Training Certification Starts Now
You have the right idea Bethany. I’m all for admiring others who are doing something we aspire to. It sounds like you have a good perspective. It’s pretty easy to feel disappointed about how much you’re lifting compared to others, but I always caution that you have no idea what they’re training for or how they’re training. So… no comparing
.