Pull Up Bar

My opportunities for climbing these days are a bit restricted by time and other activities. After a good winter climbing trip I'm planning to get out for more trad climbing this summer as I'm finding that I miss it. So as to not be utterly rubbish when I do get out I'm going to need to work on my upper body strength at home.

To this effect I've installed a pull-up bar in the garage. The idea is that when I arrive back from my cycle home I can do a full set of pull ups before I enter the house and find that motivation has deserted me. Five sets of pull up exercises a week should see some progression.

This was a slight technical challenge as the roof beams are a bit flimsy to have 85 or so kilos of Yorkshireman dangle from them and the headroom in the garage is a bit limited so I'm going to have to lift my legs up to get the requisite clearance! After a bit of thinking I ended up coming up with the below design.

Simplified view of the mounting method

Since its only in the garage I don't have to worry too much about it's appearance so the frame is made from rough sawn timber. A couple of lengths of 2400 x 100 x 50mm for the reinforcing beams from B+Q and the rest is made up of similar cross section lengths from an old pallet that I ripped apart. Recycling!

The pull up bar hooks into the arms for easy removal. I should have used a coping saw to cut the rounded ends but I confess I was too lazy so carved them out with a chisel. The hook base is reinforced with a few screws.

The arms swing up into the roof space for added headroom.

The M10 x 150mm coach bolts hold the arms tightly enough and the surface is rough enough to hold it in place. Penny washers spread the load and double nuts (I didn't have any M10 Nyloc) prevent loosening.

The bar is a 25mm galvanised steel conduit that was getting thrown out of work a while back that I saved. More recycling! I can always add some self amalgamating tape for extra grip if necessary.

Not exactly fine craftsmanship, but rough, ready and ultimately practical.

I've got this picture stuck up on the reinforcing beam that I look at when I've completed a pull up. Just a little something to keep me motivated!

Himmelswillen, VS 4c, Wharncliffe; Louise; Point Five Gully, V 5, Ben Nevis, the nippers.

There's some good suggestions for training routines on that internet and I'm intending to do the following for the first week to see how I get on. I'm starting from pretty much nothing, I can probably do one or two pullups unassisted. So I'll probably start with my feet on a chair and progress from there.

Week 1, daily routine

• Standard pull ups, palm away from face, 5 reps
• Straight arm hang, leg raises, 90º knee bend, 5 reps (working core)
• Lock off and slow controlled descent to straight arm over a few seconds, 5 reps
• Push ups, 5 reps

I'll probably still suck at climbing!