Pull Ups on R Day (females)

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raft11

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My DD is extremely nervous about not being able to do any pull Ups on R Day. She did bent arm hang for CFA so it is not an issue of falsifying her reported abilities.

Could someone provide insight as to what will happen if she is not able to do any on R Day? She has images in her mind of being yelled at or not making it through Day 1.

Thanks very much and best of luck to class of 2021!!
 
She's going to be yelled at on Day 1 whether she can do a pull up or not. A lot. At the same time, they're not going to turn someone away on Day 1 just because they can't do a pull up.
 
raft11 said:
My DD is extremely nervous about not being able to do any pull Ups on R Day. She did bent arm hang for CFA so it is not an issue of falsifying her reported abilities.

Could someone provide insight as to what will happen if she is not able to do any on R Day? She has images in her mind of being yelled at or not making it through Day 1.

Thanks very much and best of luck to class of 2021!!
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Don't worry. The only issue is with candidates that dramatically under-perform what they did on the CFA. A dropoff is expected due to the stress of R Day, travel, etc.
 
You should be getting a letter that says something like "for the CFA you reported X, on Rday we expect a minimum of Y." There's plenty of time to learn to do a pull up before July 3. Get to the gym. :rolleyes:
 
@mom3boys is giving good advice- get to the gym. You still have some time. However, you have to focus on developing strength in the correct areas. The fact that one cannot do even one pull-up points to weakness in certain muscle groups. I would suggest that you focus on increasing upper body strength in general, but pay specific attention to the shoulders and upper back. When you hit the gym you would want to do shoulder presses, front raises, side raises, bent-over rows, etc. Also work on core strength. EVERYTHING starts with a strong core. In addition, she should work on all of the other muscle groups- biceps, triceps, chest, and lower body.

You would be surprised how much stronger you can get in a couple of months. But- pick up HEAVY weights. The heaviest you can without comprising form. Also, look up videos on youtube about working towards pull-ups. She can start by doing negative pull-ups. It might not be concerning at all, @Dixieland . Pull-ups are a different animal altogether, and it is possible to not ever make progress towards doing even one if you're not focusing on building strength in the correct areas. Als0-pull-ups are hard for women. The most fit, strong women are often happy to be able to do 3 consecutive pull-ups.
 
The advice on the other thread is good- but I would be careful with the pull-up assist band. Don't get too dependent on it. You still have time- but not enough time to fool around with that thing. You need quicker progress. Get one of the bands that are adjustable- and be determined to adjust it until you can do a pullup on your own.

I wanted to emphasize the importance of going heavy with weights. Too many women don't do it because they don't want to bulk up. Women do not bulk up! Not easily. Don't be afraid of heavy weights.
 
Go to a gym with a friend and start StrongLifts 5x5 (there is plenty of info on internet explaining it) ASAP. It is for women and men. It starts with almost no weight. Follow the simple program and you will increase your upper, lower and core strength tremendously in a short time frame. There is an android and apple app for it to make it that much easier. Best of luck!
 
Good Evening All- The Marine Corps introduced the pull up as a fitness requirement for women--it was work in progress over the last four years.
There are videos on line produced by the Marine Corps--especially featuring Major Misty Posey. MAJ Posey can get any woman to do a pull up.
I strongly suggest Googling the Marine Corps' advice for pull ups and specifically looking for the Marine Corps female pull up videos.
For starters: read the material at this link and have your daughter watch the video.

http://www.marines.mil/News/News-Di...-marine-develops-program-to-improve-pull-ups/

THE ONLY WAY TO DO PULL UPS IS TO DO PULL UPS--go to the gym, install a pull up bar--and use it!

(I am a fan of the using the stretchy band for assistance...but you have to walk by that pull up bar two to three times a day...we had a competition in my office and the young female Marines who could not do a pull up at the start were knocking them out by the end of the month.)

Don't stress too much--but don't give up either. The eight or nine weeks remaining are plenty up time.
 
No need to get a personal trainer or anything drastic like that, just grab a buddy and do negatives. That's where you have help going up, but then guide yourself down, slowly. It shouldn't be that hard to get a pull up under your belt by R-Day.
 
Happy to assist. This is a new skill--like in the entire world--to ask women to do pull ups as a job requirement/physical fitness requirement. The evidence is building both in terms of changes to musculature (i.e. all female Marines were given more weight in the height and weight tables because they built muscle working up to the large number of pull ups as well as performance in combat element related jobs.) and in terms of potential injury from overuse. (I would not worry about that for a single pull up requirement--you will not be injured).
So... @phxdd ...good luck. Cheering you on. Watch the video with Major Posey.
 
Major Posey is impressive. Having worked at Quantico I attended one of her classes out of curiousity, many swear by the program. I have had multiple friends use this program and went from no pull ups to 3+ as the USMC moved towards this for women. One of my closest friends had never been able to do 1. After 6 months she could knock out 10. I even had some male Marine friends who had always struggled with pull ups and wanted to up their number for the PFT. They all increased their number.
 
Class of 20'girl here. If you can't do a pullup on R-day...... nothing happens. You move on and continue your journey throughout West Point. On R-day, LOTS of girls could not do a pullup. I believe there were a couple of guys who couldn't do a pullup. When you can't complete a pull-up you recycle through the line and do the flex arm-hang and go on about your merry way. I did not see anyone being yelled at or kicked out. The only people kicked out are on drugs or they left by themselves. Now that doesn't mean don't try to work towards it until R-day, you have plenty of time, but it's not an end all be all. There are girls here who still can't do pullups in all classes unfortunately. You'll realize it's a problem for a lot of girls here. But it doesn't have to be your problem and you don't have to be that girl. That being said, work on it. Do pullups everyday. If you can't do a complete one, do negatives, use a assisted machine or a dip bar. It goes a long way being able to do pullups. Also work on pushups and dips. My biggest advice for PT, work on upper body strength every day and don't look back, you'll thank yourself. Everyone's first APFT and physical abilities are rough because of nervousness, travel, and just adjusting. It can be a good culture shock and definitely throws your body off the first week. I still remember it and being so tired and drained. Message me if you have any questions.
 
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catlover2 said:
Class of 20'girl here. If you can't do a pullup on R-day...... nothing happens. You move on and continue your journey throughout West Point. On R-day, LOTS of girls could not do a pullup. I believe there were a couple of guys who couldn't do a pullup. When you can't complete a pull-up you recycle through the line and do the flex arm-hang and go on about your merry way. I did not see anyone being yelled at or kicked out. The only people kicked out are on drugs or they left by themselves. Now that doesn't mean don't try to work towards it until R-day, you have plenty of time, but it's not an end all be all. There are girls here who still can't do pullups in all classes unfortunately. You'll realize it's a problem for a lot of girls here. But it doesn't have to be your problem and you don't have to be that girl. That being said, work on it. Do pullups everyday. If you can't do a complete one, do negatives, use a assisted machine or a dip bar. It goes a long way being able to do pullups. Also work on pushups and dips. My biggest advice for PT, work on upper body strength every day and don't look back, you'll thank yourself. Everyone's first APFT and physical abilities are rough because of nervousness, travel, and just adjusting. It can be a good culture shock and definitely throws your body off the first week. I still remember it and being so tired and drained. Message me if you have any questions.
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Thank you so much! The best of luck to you, and thank you for your service!!
 
catlover2 said:
Class of 20'girl here. If you can't do a pullup on R-day...... nothing happens. You move on and continue your journey throughout West Point. On R-day, LOTS of girls could not do a pullup. I believe there were a couple of guys who couldn't do a pullup. When you can't complete a pull-up you recycle through the line and do the flex arm-hang and go on about your merry way. I did not see anyone being yelled at or kicked out. The only people kicked out are on drugs or they left by themselves. Now that doesn't mean don't try to work towards it until R-day, you have plenty of time, but it's not an end all be all. There are girls here who still can't do pullups in all classes unfortunately. You'll realize it's a problem for a lot of girls here. But it doesn't have to be your problem and you don't have to be that girl. That being said, work on it. Do pullups everyday. If you can't do a complete one, do negatives, use a assisted machine or a dip bar. It goes a long way being able to do pullups. Also work on pushups and dips. My biggest advice for PT, work on upper body strength every day and don't look back, you'll thank yourself. Everyone's first APFT and physical abilities are rough because of nervousness, travel, and just adjusting. It can be a good culture shock and definitely throws your body off the first week. I still remember it and being so tired and drained. Message me if you have any questions.
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Thank you for your advice.
 
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