Beginner's Guide to Pull Day Workouts
Table of Contents
What Is a Pull Day?
A pull day, as the name suggests, is a workout day involving pulling movements and exercises. It is a fundamental component of the famous push/pull/legs split in training.
What Muscles Are Primarily in a Pull Day
List of Pull Exercises
You can look up more pull exercises here. Remember to use the search bar to find exercises tutorials.
How Would You Go About a Pull Day Workout Routine
Compound lifts involving multiple joints, such as the bench press and overhead press, are typically performed first, followed by single-joint exercises for isolation. This is to ensure that you have the most energy and freshest when performing the compound lifts first.
Although deadlifts are a pulling movement, they involve considerable glute and hamstring activation. If you decide to incorporate deadlifts into your pull day, remember to space out the pull and leg workouts to avoid overtraining.
Recommendations Prior to Incorporating a Pull Day Routine
For most individuals, a whole-body workout suffices for maintaining fitness and overall health. Some opt for an upper/lower routine, dividing their workouts to focus on chest, back, triceps, and biceps in the upper body session, and targeting the legs in the lower body session. More experienced lifters often prefer the push/pull/legs routine, which allows for a more targeted approach to each muscle group. If time is limited or general health improvement is the goal, both whole-body and upper/lower splits are effective. However, for those seeking a more intense regimen, incorporating the push/pull/legs routine can yield significant results.
There are numerous workout routines available in the fitness community, select one that aligns with your goals and preferences. You can always make exercise and routine adjustments to tailor the routine to your specific needs and objectives.
Examples of a Pull Day Workout
| Level | Exercise | Sets | Reps | Intensity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beginner | Lat pulldown | 3 | 10 | 60% 1RM |
| Seated cable row | 3 | 10 | 60% 1RM | |
| Bent over dumbbell row | 3 | 10 | 60% 1RM | |
| Face pull | 3 | 12 | 50% 1RM | |
| Dumbbell biceps curl | 4 | 10 | 60% 1RM | |
| Intermediate | Pull-up | 2 | 8 | Bodyweight |
| Barbell deadlift | 3 | 8 | 75% 1RM | |
| Lat pulldown | 4 | 10 | 70% 1RM | |
| Seated cable row | 3 | 10 | 70% 1RM | |
| EZ bar curl | 3 | 10 | 70% 1RM | |
| Hammer curl | 3 | 12 | 60% 1RM | |
| Advanced | Barbell deadlift | 3 | 5 | 80% 1RM |
| Barbell row | 3 | 10 | 70% 1RM | |
| Chin-up | 3 | 10 | Bodyweight | |
| Lat pulldown | 3 | 12 | 60% 1RM | |
| Seated cable row | 3 | 12 | 60% 1RM | |
| Barbell curl | 3 | 10 | 70% 1RM | |
| Preacher curl | 3 | 10 | 60% 1RM | |
| Dumbbell curl | 2 | 15 | 55% 1RM |
