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Test Gym
Your Inability to Do Pullups Is All in Your Head
Anyone can do pullups — and here’s why you should
Test Gym is a new Elemental column about the science of exercise.
I’ve always loved pullups. They require nothing more than an overhead bar and some dig-deep grit. They’re a primal yet elegant way to test your might and strength-to-weight ratio while building core and upper-body strength.
Pullups are also a show of power. Mark Wahlberg did 22 pullups in 30 seconds as a charity fundraiser on the Ellen DeGeneres Show. Former FBI boss James Comey told the New York Times he was spending the “unemployed celebrity” chapter of his life working toward a goal of doing 10 consecutive pullups.
There’s a popular notion that certain bodies just aren’t capable of executing a proper pullup —the New York Times once tried to explain why women can’t do them — but there’s ample evidence to the contrary. Megan Rapinoe does pullups, because of course she does. And Eva Clarke, an Australian mother of three, set a world…
