The action of pulling your body-weight up, called the pull up or the chin up, is one of the most beneficial upper body exercises around currently. This simple exercise builds the chest, shoulders, and many other aspects of the upper body in a simple and efficient manner. There are many types of machines that can be used as an aid for this, as well as removable bars that can be installed over a door frame to help an individual workout from home.
The free standing pull up bar comes in two varieties and are considered more useful overall than the door frame using variants due to the greater amount of space for exercising and the ability to perform the exercises of choice without having to bend the knees. The two varieties of free-standing pull up bars are the simple tower and the power assisted mechanical tower.
Free Standing Pull Up Bars: Simple Tower.
The simple tower is a device that is comprised of two major components. Those components are a pull up bar and two poles or beams for that pole to rest between. Everything else about this unit can change. There can be entrenched permanent versions that are bolted to the floor or cemented into place outside. There can also be collapsible structures that have runners for stability on the bottom. Both of these types can also come in an adjustable version that allows the height of the bar to shift.
There are companies that make or will build free standing pull up bars on your behalf but they are fairly simple to construct as well. All that you would need is two well secured free standing poles and a bar attached at an appropriate height between them.
Pros :
This is the simpler of the two pull up bars to install and the most cost effective. There are many exercises, including abdominal related ones, that can be performed depending on the height and length of the bar.
Cons :
This is a simple pull up bar style to install and it is cheaper, however, what you see is what you get. Unless you decide to wear weighted clothes or put a springboard underneath all of the exercises will be solely dependent upon your body weight to perform them.
For individuals with weaker upper body strength there may be little advance in pull up skill due to being unable to actually perform one repetition. This is a good bar to use for people who can already do pull ups or for those who have someone to spot them, otherwise it could be an exercise in frustration.
Free Standing Pull Up Bars: Mechanical Assisted.
Power, or mechanically assisted, free standing pull up bars are often called towers. These devices generally include several different handgrips of various shapes, sizes, and direction, as well as a set of parallel bars for doing dips. The weight varies for each machine, but generally won’t be more than three hundred pounds due to the unlikely nature that an individual over this weight will be able to perform a pull up. For large athletes in excess of this weight there are custom made models as well as larger machines that also have reverse force mechanics that actually mimic a minor increase in the user’s weight. Generally this latter version simply requires a set of special boots that attached to the standing point of the machine.
Pros :
This type of device allows for a much greater variety in exercises as well as the fact that they usually come with dip bars as well. With the variable weight resistance settings you can effectively lower your weight so that even individuals with a lack upper body strength can perform repetitions of each exercise at a level that lets them work hard but would not be impossible.
You can normally move this tower around readily and it has a professional gym quality look that will add to the placebo effect in a work out. This will cause you to work out more because you’ll feel like it counts as such.
Cons :
Free standing pull up bars of this type can be rather cramped for heavy set individuals and some may not be able to use them at all. Cables can last a long time but sometimes they snap due to poor quality of manufacture. It is important to purchase a reliable model from a respected company. Further, while the capacity to set your weight as something other than your actual body weight is useful for those who need to work at a lower setting to build their endurance and strength initially, this can actually retard the growth of muscle in some individuals due to a lack of effort when it comes to decreasing the weight resistance and forcing yourself to work harder.
Conclusion
Free standing pull up bars come in two basic forms and allow for a much greater freedom of exercise types than their door frame variant cousins. They often require a little more effort in setting up, or in actual use, but they offer far too many advantages to ignore.
Related posts:
- The Different Types of Pull Up Bars
- Pull Up Bars Are a Great Way to Work Out
- The Different Types of Pull Up Bars
- Buy Chin Up Bars: How to Buy a Pull Up Bars
- Why You Should Get a Pull Up Bar
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