Doing 100 pull-ups is impressive however you slice it. Doing 100 pull-ups every day for 30 straight days is the kind of challenge most people wouldn’t even attempt. Still, YouTubers, ‘Buttery Bros’, Heber Cannon, Julian Marquez and Marston Sawyers, decided to give it a go and documented exactly what happened along the way.
By the end of the month, the challenge totalled 3,000 pull-ups. Throughout the 30 days, the trio tracked strength gains, muscle growth including biceps peak size, and overall consistency. The daily 100 reps could be broken up however they liked, meaning the pull-ups didn’t have to be done in one brutal session.
Day 1
On day one, each participant tested a strict max set of pull-ups and measured their biceps. The baseline results were:
- Cannon: 14-inch biceps, 18 max pull-ups
- Marquez: 16.5-inch biceps, 12 max pull-ups
- Sawyers: 15.5-inch biceps, 20 max pull-ups
The group was quick to acknowledge the lack of scientific rigour behind the process. This was a self-experiment, not a lab study.
Day 7
As the days progressed, the physical and logistical toll became obvious. Unlike push-ups, pull-ups come with an access problem. Cannon admits, ‘One of the harder things with this challenge compared to the push-up challenge is you’re not always around a pull-up bar. I can’t just break it up in sets of 10 across the day unless I’m conveniently filming at a gym all day.’
At one point, Cannon squeezes in reps before boarding a long-haul flight. ‘I’m about to go catch a flight to London. I need to get them in before we go on the flight because it’s a 12-hour flight and I’ll miss my day.’ Sawyers also notes having to complete 80 reps before midnight on one occasion just to stay on track.
@butterybros1//YouTube
Day 17
By day 17, progress starts to show. ‘Getting better pull-ups. I definitely think they feel better,’ says Sawyers. Cannon is less convinced when it comes to muscle growth, admitting, ‘I don’t know about growth. I haven’t had enough sleep or food to have big growth.’
All three have to get creative with where they train, completing pull-ups on construction sites and improvised setups using parts of buildings.
Day 30
By the end of the challenge, strength gains were clear:
- Cannon: Lost 0.75 inches from his biceps, 25 max pull-ups (+7 reps)
- Marquez: 19 max pull-ups (+7 reps)
- Sawyers: No biceps growth, 25 max pull-ups (+5 reps)
Reflecting on the challenge, Marquez says, ‘You can do push-ups anywhere. Pull-ups are a little more tricky,’ but adds that creativity makes them workable and that ‘you see real gain after as little as 30 days.’ He also struggled with DOMS from day one. ‘I was sore throughout the entirety of the process,’ he admits
Cannon notes the demands of strict pull-ups compared to kipping variations. ‘It’s a very different use of the muscles,’ he says, adding, ‘I feel much more confident in my pull-ups.’
