Tips and Tricks: High Pulls

I recently rediscovered one of the biggest bang for your buck movements. I have always been at my biggest and best when I include high pulls in my regular movement bucket. High pulls are similar to a power clean, except you do not catch the bar. Without having to worry about getting under the bar, you can focus on pulling with reckless abandon. As the weight gets heavier, your total height will obviously go down. Try to get each rep to nipple level or lower chest at the very least.

If starting from the ground, get your damn chest up and create tension in your lats, glutes, and hamstrings before beginning a rep. Return the bar to the ground as quickly as possible. Although catching the bar in the hang position will fry your forearms, it also increases the chance of jerking your lower back forward. Granted you will likely not be using enough weight to injure yourself (at most, I have used 270 for reps), it will cut your training short if your lower back gets prematurely fatigued.

This is not something you use for max effort. Repeated heavy efforts trump light/high reps or max singles. Translation: submaximal heavy reps for high sets. Get to it.

Surgeon General's Recommended Sets/Reps
I have used both 10x3 and 15x1 with great success. Whatever you choose, perform 1-2 quality reps at a weight above your working weight before you drill into your 10x3 or 15x1. This heavy primer set will make your working weight feel more manageable. This is useful considering the violent nature of the lift (you can attack set 1 with balls and vigor instead of settling into your groove on set 5).

DBZ Character to Channel: Recoome

Never go full retard...except on high pulls