A pull-up progression is a series of scaled pulling exercises — body rows at varying angles, then banded pull-ups with progressively lighter bands — that builds you from zero to a full pull-up. In this Physical Friday I make the case that pulling strength may be the single most important physical safety skill an outdoorsman can have, because if you go in the water, you have to be able to pull yourself back into the boat, and you would be surprised how many people cannot.
Watch now: press play on the video above and follow along.
Because if you go in the water wearing your clothes, you have to be able to pull yourself back up into the boat, and you would be surprised how many people cannot do it. Those people may not make it. Often you have friends aboard who can help, but sometimes you are by yourself. The ability to pull yourself onto a boat, onto a dock, out of a stream, or up a slippery bank by grabbing a tree takes some strength, and many people discover they do not have it when it is too late.
Not many. You do not need to do a hundred pull-ups to get yourself out of the water or up a slippery bank, but being able to do a couple will certainly help. The goal is functional pulling strength, enough to move your own bodyweight in wet clothes when it counts, not a gym record.
Start with body rows, which let you adjust difficulty by angle: standing nearly upright is easiest, and getting your body almost parallel to the ground is hardest. You can do them on rings, a railing in a park, a fence, or anything sturdy you can grip. As you get stronger, move to the pull-up bar with elastic assistance bands, then graduate to thinner bands until you do not need one at all.
Bands loop over the bar and support part of your bodyweight through the positions where you are weakest. They come in sizes: start with a large band, and when it gets too easy, move to a medium, then a small, then get rid of the band entirely. It is a simple graduation system that takes you from assisted reps to a full unassisted pull-up.
Almost anything: gymnastic rings, a railing in a park, a fence, a sturdy bar at a playground. Set your feet further out in front of you to make it harder, or stand more upright to make it easier. The angle is your resistance dial, so one piece of railing covers every strength level.
Here is the progression I encourage every outdoorsman to follow, from no pulling strength at all to a full pull-up on the bar.
Hopefully you never need this strength. But if you ever find yourself in the water next to your own boat, you will be very glad you trained it.
If someone asked me the most important thing for an outdoorsman as far as physical strength goes, I would probably say the ability to do a pull-up. Of course you need strong legs to stand on a boat all day, but when it comes to safety specifically, pulling strength is the one that decides outcomes. Think about going in the water fully clothed: can you get yourself back in the boat? I walk through the scenarios in the episode, so press play above.
A lot of times you have friends on the boat, people who can grab an arm and haul you up, but sometimes you do not, and sometimes you are by yourself. Pulling yourself onto a dock, out of a stream, or up a slippery bank by grabbing a tree does not take a ton of strength, but you would be surprised how many people do not have it, and when they find out, it is too late. I talk about why this gap is so common in the episode, so press play above.
The body row is where everyone should start, because the angle of your body is a built-in difficulty dial. Nearly vertical is easy enough for a total beginner; parallel to the ground challenges a strong athlete. You can do them anywhere: rings, a park railing, a fence. No gym membership required to build the strength that might save your life. I demonstrate the angles in the episode, so press play above.
Between body rows and your first strict pull-up there is a gap, and elastic bands fill it perfectly. A large band carries you through the weakest part of the movement, and you graduate down through medium and small until the band disappears. It is gradual, measurable progress, the same philosophy we apply to everything on Physical Friday. I show how to set the bands up in the episode, so press play above.
Do yourself a favor: if you are an outdoorsman who spends time on boats and you are lacking in the overhead pulling department, train it. Start with body rows this week, add bands when you are ready, and earn that first pull-up.
Hopefully you will never need it. One day it might come in handy, and on that day it will be the most important strength you own. Press play above and I will show you each step of the progression.
pull-ups · pull-up progression · body rows · resistance bands · gymnastic rings · boat safety · falling overboard · dock pull-outs · slippery banks · functional strength · outdoorsman fitness · Physical Friday · Saltwater Experience
Physical Friday is my weekly fitness series for fishing guides, anglers, hunters, and outdoorsmen — the training, nutrition, and mindset to stay in the game for life. Watch and listen to every Physical Friday episode from Tom Rowland.
I'm Tom Rowland, a professional fishing guide based in the Florida Keys, host of the Tom Rowland Podcast, and the longtime host of the Saltwater Experience television show. Physical Friday is the podcast's weekly fitness series, where I share the workouts, training formats, and mindset lessons that keep guides, anglers, hunters, and outdoorsmen strong enough to do what they love for life.
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