It started with changing a sentence. I changed it from, “I wish I could do a pull-up,” to “I’m going to do a pull-up.” That seemingly simple switch changed my mindset from a nebulous desire to an action-oriented, long-term goal that I could plan around. Identifying a concrete long-term goal was exciting and allowed me to remember the other times I accomplished something that was hard (e.g. riding a bike, learning to swim, finishing school). It had been a long time since I felt the energy of working towards something that took hard effort. So, I rolled up my sleeves and got started.
Why?
A pull-up at 48? Why not? I always wanted to do a pull-up and decided that if I was going to do it, then I better get started. Around this time, I saw a pull-up competition at an obstacle course event. It looked so fun! I thought it would be super awesome to march up to the competition stage and crank out a few unexpected pull-ups while viewing the gaping audience below.
Having the strength to complete a pull-up fed into the overall health vision I have for myself of being strong. Competing in a pull-up competition…that is a bonus.
Approach
With my long-term goal in-hand, I next identified the incremental steps that would allow me to get my chin over that bar.
Firstly, by informing the coaches at my gym of my goal I was able to get the support of people experienced in this skill set. I could do this on my own, but it seemed like a no-brainer to utilize the expertise of people that were very experienced in helping clients achieve this goal. I also watched YouTube videos, of which there are numerous. My resources gave me tips on achieving this goal through the:
- various exercise modalities (negative pull-ups, weighted negative pull-ups, scapula pulls, banded pull-ups), and
- frequency of practice and number of reps (>3 time a week).
Secondly, I invested in a small amount of inexpensive equipment—a doorway pull-up bar and bands.
Thirdly, and most importantly, I was consistent in my practice. This was the key factor in achieving my goal. I started with negative pull-ups, then weighted negative pull-ups, then I added scapula pulls to my pull-up sets.
Success and lessons learned
It took a year, but I finally did it! I was practicing my scapula pulls one day when I realized I was able to keep going. I was ecstatic!!! I suddenly saw every bar, tree limb, and ledge as a pull-up opportunity. I was able to easily do one pull-up, but wasn’t able to do back-to-back pull-ups. This led me to my new goal of five back-to-back pull-ups. The problem is that I stopped being consistent. I completed my pull-up goal, but then I stopped practicing. I did not maintain my new skill.
Goal setting versus habit setting
I unconsciously thought that achieving my goal somehow meant that I was done. However, with any habit change there are two parts:
- achieving the new habit, and
- maintaining that habit.
I did not work on the second part of habit change and it led me to temporarily lose the new skill I had spent a year developing.
The term habit-setting is a more accurate reflection of what I want to achieve. I not only want to perform one pull-up, I want to execute multiple pull-ups (yes, I am a little obsessed with this). I did not want to be one-and-done, which is what I unconsciously set myself up for. I wanted to achieve and maintain the new habit.
Conclusion
I continue to work on being able to do one pull-up. There is value in my setback in that I learned what worked and what did not work. With that information in-hand, I am going back to a consistent practice, am accepting the power of incremental steps, and am enjoying the journey along the way.
As with any habit change, there can be challenges. Learning from those experiences is a gift that allows one to modify one’s approach to change in a way that works best for you.
I am so proud of you! Go Coach Julie 🙂