How to learn to do push-ups and pull-ups with negative reps

Any exercise consists of three phases: eccentric, static and concentric. During the eccentric phase, the muscles stretch as the weight is lowered or released. During static, you linger at a certain point with weight for a certain amount of time, the muscles are motionless, but at the same time tense. The concentric phase is directly the work of the muscles during the exercise: squeezing the bar up from the chest, lifting during squats or push-ups, and so on.

The essence of negative reps is to eliminate all stages except eccentric. That is, you have to lower the limit weight, and the more it is, the more effective the exercise.

For example, you find it difficult to do push-ups. If you leave only the eccentric phase, you will constantly lower your body down from the plank position, rather than pushing up.

How negative repetitions develop strength

When you do a push-up, that is, pushing the body up, your muscles make a concentric contraction, the cells of the muscle tissue contract. The same thing happens when you are trying to pull up or lifting heavy weights off the floor.

When you lower the weight (or yourself), eccentric contractions occur: the muscles try to stay in a contracted state, while they are stretched. Despite the fact that this is practically the same work, but in the opposite direction, the load is higher and the cells are damaged more.

It would seem that this is not a very good argument for promoting negative reps, since after performing such exercises, the muscles will hurt much more, but damage to muscle fibers during training is a natural process. And after recovery, muscle mass will increase, as will your strength. That is why this training method is so popular among bodybuilders and weightlifters.

Exercises you can do with negative repetitions

If you are unable to lift the weight or your body up, you should have the strength to lower it slowly in a controlled manner. The same can be said about push-ups: if you find it difficult to push yourself up, you can probably go down even with additional weight on your back.

1. Pull-ups

Negative pull-ups can be performed on a special simulator - a gravitron or on a low horizontal bar (you must reach with your feet to the ground). In the version with a horizontal bar, you will need to jump to the top position in the pull-up and then very slowly, for 45 seconds, lower the body until the elbows are fully extended.

Negative pull-ups on the horizontal bar

Working with the gravitron

2. Push-ups

The same technique works with push-ups as with pull-ups. If you can't push your body up from the bottom of the push-up position, you can certainly be able to lift yourself up from the lying position. As slowly as possible, lower yourself completely to the floor from the starting position and, as soon as your belly touches the floor, return to all fours, and not to the plank. Some add weight to the back on purpose.