Pullup Bars for the Home Gym-Get the Best Value Pull-up Bar for Home Use and Get Strong

Pull-up bars may be the best piece of home gym equipment, with the greatest potential to transform your body.

The handy pull-up bar can be used for abdominal work, wrist work, biceps exercises and more.

If you can’t do a pull-up yet, you can do assisted pull-ups with the Pullup Revolution or substitute a box or chair.

The possibilities are diverse, with a sturdy pullup bar even serving as an anchoring point for ropes, resistance bands or suspension trainers like the TRX.

The best pull up bars for the home will depend on your budget, goals and the type of space you are working out in.

A cheap indoor solution is the doorway pull up bar which installs with brackets screwed into the frame of the door. As a pull up bar for home use, this is a solid, time-tested solution, and many people grew up with these.

As with all doorframe pull up bars, this version has its limitations. Wide grip exercises can only go so wide, and advanced moves above the bar are difficult or impossible to perform. Still, for the basics, it’s easily worth $20-40.

There are many companies that who make doorway mounted pull-up bars for the home now, but it all started with The Iron Gym. Okay, so they were one of the first, and they have thousands of reviews to back them up.

While I like this product, and I like the fact that you can do wider grip and alternate grip pull-ups with it, I really prefer the solid feel of a straight bar.

Not that The Iron Gym doesn't have a sturdy construction, but it can never have the feel of a solid, straight bar. Personal preference.

What it sacrifices in 'solid bar' feel, it makes up for in versatility, and it definitely won't break on you. Give it a try if having the different grip options is a must for you-or if you need a bar that installs quickly without screws.

Pullups have a pretty badass reputation, and it certainly helps that a number of hot celebrities have been featured on and off the screen doing them.

So who's doing pull-ups in the movies (or off)? It's a long list, but here are some our favorites:

Garage and outdoor shed spaces allow you to be more creative with your home pullup bar station.

You can install a commercial grade or homemade pull up bar, set up a power rack with a top bar, or suspend an iron pipe from the ceiling on some strong rope.

Let's talk about the homemade version for a moment. While a homemade pullup bar is typically priced below the basic doorway pull up bar, it has some additional advantages.

1. You can fit a nice wide pipe in there because you aren't limited by the doorframe width, which allows you to do wide grip pullups.

2. If the garage ceiling is high enough, the bar can be positioned to allow for some acrobatic trapeze work! Or at least enough so you can practice your “muscle-ups.”

3. A tough galvanized steel pipe suspended from the ceiling gives the user confidence. Some doorframe pullup bars can feel as though they might fall apart.

The handy do-it-yourselfer can build this station, but if you prefer to get a finished, professional product, look no further than Power Systems excellent ready-to-install sets.

Whoever invented this piece of equipment had a moment of genius.

It's always been my wish to have an industrial strength commercial version of these so-called 'power towers' in my bedroom, but so far the wife has vetoed any such decoration.

If you aren't familiar with the term "power tower," it's simply a sturdy stand with, at minimum, a pull-up bar and dip bars. There are an endless number on the market now, and since I don't own one I don't have a personal recommendation.

However, if you're willing to spend some coin, you can get a commercial grade unit for around $1200 usd.

Once you have a pullup bar in the house or in your garage gym, a gym space without one feels naked!

So find the right equipment for your home gym space and individual workout needs and start enjoying the advantages of a home pullup bar station.

Once you have your pull up station set up, try this workout and see if you can complete all the rounds in less than 15 minutes. Have fun!

Workout:

(after warm-up)

Circuit with no rest between exercises, 60 seconds between rounds.

Circuit #1

• Jumping pull-ups x 10
• Hanging knee raises: x12-15
• Underhand Static Hang w/ engaged shoulders (not a dead hang) x 20 seconds
• Regular (overhand) pull-ups x 6-8

Or: Circuit #2:

• Alternate close grip pull ups: x 8-10
• Hanging leg raises x12-15
• Underhand pull ups x10-12

So the entire workout would be three rounds of either circuit #1 or circuit #2. Intermediate and advanced trainees could alternate circuits for a total of 6 rounds.

The pullup is a challenging exercise for many people, and there are many ways to perform assisted pull ups until you build up the strength and power to execute the full movement.

Here are some suggestions:

• Stand on a ladder, chair, or stool. The ladder is advantageous because it gives you multiple positions to work from.
• Perform 'jumping' pull ups, and resist the negative (downward) motion.

You can also purchase the Pullup Revolution from Lifeline USA. Basically, one end of this adjustable resistance band attaches to the pullup station/bar, while the other end has a foot cradle the user steps into.

The Pullup Revolution assists the user to perform a full range of motion pull up in proper form.

You can also use a long resistance band and tie it to your bar. This works great as a pull-up assistance tool, but can be a hassle to attach and get your foot in.

No matter what pullup bar you choose, the key ingredient is you! As long as you have a strong, sturdy bar to pull up on, you can get great results.

Buy the strongest pullup bar you can afford and it will bring you a lifetime of fun and effective bodyweight workouts.