The Dead-hang Pull-up: Ultimate test of strength, discipline, and grit.

Opinion: Jason Peterson

“One!- aye aye Sir! Two!- aye aye Sir! Three!- aye aye Sir!”

Every United States Marine Corps Recruit

I am going to unleash a flurry of disagreement about this topic, however, I think my opinion has its merits. And of course, I’ll explain why.

I have been religiously building strength and testing my capabilities for well over half of my 37 years on Earth. One million push ups logged, Marine Corps boot camp, death by burpees, one mile of lunges, and countless other seemingly unreal leg sessions. The list goes on and on. If it was sadistic and someone mentioned they thought I may not succeed, I proved them wrong and did. I tapped into an alternate state of being and accomplished what even I doubted was possible at first. Which brings me to the great equalizer- The Dead Hang Pull-Up.

Dead hang means exactly that. You are dead hanging from a bar, elbows completely locked out, and this is where each rep begins. In the USMC you would be prompted by your senior commander to proceed after you yelled out your rep count and completely dead hung, followed by an “aye aye Sir”. “Kipping”? WTF is that??? Shouldn’t even be allowed to have the term pull-up attached to that shit.

Prove me wrong on this. Please. If a man can do multiple sets of ten-plus dead hang pull-ups, let’s say 4 or more, he will be in fantastic shape. In all aspects of the word. Aesthetics will be on point. He will be strong. He will have discipline and grit. And more than likely, his diet will also be dialed in. My record in an hour and fifteen minutes was 300 divided by 30 sets of ten. My abs were sore for six days. To pull off this kind of volume in double digit sets, you have to be at the top of the food chain fitness wise.

Like I said, prove me wrong. I am not discounting other very important exercises, which I also utilize to the fullest, I am just praising this particular one for what it is. The great equalizer.

Email me or post a comment with feedback. As always, If it doesn’t instill fear, it is beneath your true potential.

Jason Peterson