How Many Pull-ups Should I Do Each Day?

The pull-up is a compound exercise that you can do almost anywhere -- you only need a sturdy bar to hold onto and you are good to go. However it is less simple to decide on the ideal number of pull-ups per session. Ultimately, how many pull-ups you should do depends on your own fitness goals.

The Basics

Pull-ups mainly engage your lats, located on the sides of your chest. Your biceps, shoulders and core also get a good workout from pull-ups. Proper pull-up form calls for grabbing the bar with a grip slightly wider than your shoulder width and making sure your elbows point at three and nine o'clock throughout the exercise. To do a full pull-up, make sure you raise your chin just above the bar.

Considerations

How many pull-ups you should do depends on whether you want to get stronger or develop more endurance. In an August 2002 study in the "European Journal of Applied Physiology," Gerson Campos and colleagues showed that people who did four sets of three to five reps gained more strength. People who performed two sets of 20 to 28 reps gained more endurance. So, lower amounts of pull-ups with a lot of weight will make you stronger, whereas higher numbers of pull-ups with less weight will allow you to do pull-ups for longer.

Strength

Do sets with low amounts of pull-ups and high weight if you want to develop a stronger upper body. If you find it too easy to lift your body weight, you can increase the resistance by wearing a backpack with weights in it or strapping on a weight belt. In an article for "Iron" magazine, Sean Nalewanyi suggests five to seven as the ideal rep range to gain strength and muscle. If you use a simple pull-up bar propped inside a doorway, make sure it is sturdy before adding too much extra weight. You may want to have a spotter nearby in case the bar comes loose.

Endurance

Increase your endurance by doing as many pull-ups as you can. You may find it difficult to do more than a couple pull-ups when you start out. You can do half pull-ups to gain enough endurance to do the many full pull-ups needed to increase your endurance. For a half pull-up, simply stand on a chair so your chin sits just above your pull-up bar. Grab the bar as if you were in the up portion of a pull-up. Let yourself hang for a moment and then slowly lower yourself.

Frequency

It is good to think about your fitness on a daily basis. However, you do not need to do pull-ups every day. Dr. Edward Laskowski on Mayo Clinic suggests that two or three weight training sessions a week are enough for most people. If you want to work out most days of the week, consider splitting your routine into upper body and lower body days, to avoid working the same muscle groups too much.