The Rogue individual pull up system (aka IPS) is a minimalistic pull up bar and straps set up for calisthenics.

I’m big into calisthenics and before using this, I had only worked on gymnastic rings and suspension trainers but never a hanging pull up bar.

So I was stoked to try this out with different bodyweight exercises to see how it felt.

Let’s check it out.

Specs

Pull up bar weight: 7 lbs

Pull up bar length: 43″

Diameter: 1.25″

Bar material: 14-gauge steel

Strap: 16′ long, 1.5″, heavy-duty nylon, with cam buckles

Strap color options: Black, Ranger Green, Desert Tan

Set Up

Setting up the Rogue individual pull up system is not hard to do but you do need experience finding wall studs/ceiling joists.

This is important since you’ll be hanging from this so you wanna make sure it’s secure.

There’s many different types of ceiling anchors but I really like Titan’s ceiling ring hanger.

I like it because I can set the straps at different widths which is useful with different exercises.

With rings and other suspension training devices, the wider the width, the harder the exercises become.

Watch the video above where I show how to set it up on the ceiling for either gymnastic rings or the Rogue individual pull up system.

Here’s what the Titan ceiling hanger looks like with rings on it.

Any ceiling anchor will work as long as it’s installed properly.

Rogue Pull Up Bar

The Rogue IPS bar is solid and there’s really not much to it.

It’s 43″ long, has a diameter of 1.25″, and weighs 7 lbs.

Each end of the pull up bar has a built in stay so the straps don’t move around.

I just insert the strap through the stay and with my weight pushing or pulling on the bar, there’s nowhere for the strap to go.

The ends of the pullup bar have a plastic end cap.

Straps

Rogue’s straps are made of heavy duty nylon so they’ll last me a while.

They’re 1.5″ wide and 16 feet long.

One end of the straps is angled so it’s easier to get through the cam buckle.

Once I feed it through the cam buckle, it stays in place securely.

The cam buckle makes it easy to change the length of the straps quickly.

Exercises On The Individual Pull Up System

Just like with gymnastic rings, I can do a lot of bodyweight exercises on the individual pull up system.

If I want to add more intensity to my pull ups, I can throw on a weight vest.

Here I’m doing inverted rows.

What I really like about this set up is that I can scale the exercises in several ways…

For example, when doing inverted rows I can change grip widths or even add Swissies to the bar for a neutral grip.

Or I can move my body closer or further from the anchor point.

The further my body is from the ceiling anchor, the easier the exercises get.

Here I’m doing push ups and they’re more challenging then regular push ups because of the instability.

I can also stay at the top of the push up and make it an unstable plank.

And right here I’m doing toes to bar which require much more control than when I do them on my PRx performance rack pull up bar.

This requires more core and scapular stabilization so they’re more challenging than using a wall mounted or rack mounted bar.

I’ve shown you a handful of exercises that can be done using the pull up bar but there’s many more.

Dips, pelican curls, bodyweight bicep curls, Bulgarian split squats, overhead tricep extension, are others that come off the top of my head.

Rogue Individual Pull Up System Alternatives

Pull Up and Dip Outdoor Bar

The Pullup and Dip outdoor bar, like the Rogue pull up bar, is a portable pull up system that can be anchored down almost anywhere.

I can mount it on posts and trees plus it also works as a dip station.

Pullup And Dip Station

Rogue Individual Pull Up System vs Gymnastic Rings

I love using gymnastic rings for bodyweight exercises.

They’re tough as hell because of the instability they provide.

And with the Rogue individual pull up system using the same strap as rings, I wanted to see what felt different.

Stability

Both the pull up bar and rings feel unstable with straps…

But I feel the rings are harder because each arm is working independently.

Similar to using dumbbells vs a barbell when bench pressing.

My body requires more stability when using each arm separately.

So exercises on the pull up system were still challenging but not as much as when using rings.

Range of Motion

When doing exercises like muscle ups on the Rogue Fitness pull up system, the motion is different than on rings.

For the muscle up, I have to pull the bar close to my hips in order to get my body over the bar.

If I do muscle ups with rings I only have to get the rings below shoulder level.

So doing muscle ups on the pull up bar are harder and require more strength.

Gymnastic Rings

Pros & Cons

Pros

Versatile: I can do lots of calisthenic exercises with one piece of equipment and can even swap out between pull up bar and rings

Portable: I can set it up in my garage gym and also take it outdoors anywhere I can hang straps (trees, playgrounds, etc)

Footprint: This takes up no space especially since it’s hanging from the ceiling

Inexpensive: Just like gymnastic rings, I get a lot of versatility for less than $100

Scalable: Can easily be scaled for beginners or advanced athletes

Cons

Initial set up: Finding ceiling joists to anchor the straps may be challenging if you’re not handy