Japan - In a truly extraordinary attempt that left his hands blistered and his arm muscles burning to high hell, Kenta Adachi managed to break the world record for most pull-ups in only 24 hours.

Pull-ups are some of the hardest and most physically challenging exercises you can do, both as a professional athlete and as a simpleton at the gym.

Requiring a lot of control and an extraordinary amount of strength, it can easily leave the body withered and injured. Yet, to this Japanese man, the challenges of pull-ups were something to embrace, not walk away from.

So, who is Kenta Adachi, the man who recently won the world record for the most pull-ups in 24 hours by a male participant, and how did he achieve the goal he set out to beat? It's an extraordinary story!

Guinness World Records confirmed on April 11, 2024, that there's a new master in town - giving Japanese athlete Kenta Adachi the world record for most pull-ups made in 24 hours. In a set that took him over 300 pull-ups farther than the previous record holder, Adachi managed to stumble through 8940 pull-ups in a period that spanned 24 hours.

A multi-world record holder, Adachi also holds the record for the most consecutive pull-ups in 2022, when he managed to do 651 all in one go. Covered in thick layers of muscle, his upper body might not surprise you when you know what he can achieve with nothing but the strength of his own two arms!

He originally set out to beat his own 2022 record, but once he hit the 651 mark, he decided that it was time to go higher and try to set the 24-hour record. It was a level of confidence that could easily have ended in hubris and folly, but one that he carried through right to the finish line and achieved in glorious style.

The road to that 24-hour record was long and hard, though, and it wasn't just a matter of continuing on and pushing his body to the limit. Instead, he started training for the attempt and slowly extended the duration of time he spent doing pull-ups. A few weeks ago, he managed 5000 pull-ups in 9 hours and 32 minutes, but he sprained his arm while doing so.

Talking to Guinness World Records, he described the moment he decided to try to beat the 24-hour record, saying "While there are many pull-up records, I felt that the 24-hour record is at the top of the pyramid, king of all pull-up records."

Having decided last year that he was going to undertake the world record attempt for most pull-ups completed in 24 hours, Adachi began actively working on extending his duration back in December last year. At that point, he was averaging at least 100–200 pull-ups every day or two, which was already quite impressive.

Still, to reach that 24-hour mark, he would need to have a lot more stamina. This was made all the more difficult when, having hit 5000 and injuring himself only weeks before the attempt, he had to be extremely careful in the run-up. As a result, he told Guinness World Records, "I had to look after my body for the last two weeks of the attempt. I only practiced one or two hours."

When the day came, though, it was not just a matter of getting it done and then running off down to the pub. Instead, Kenta Adachi had to overcome an enormous amount of pain and exhaustion. After only an hour, for example, he had extreme pains in his right shoulder, as well as a severe amount of sleepiness and stomach discomfort.

Once he hit the 5000 mark, Adachi was at the point where his nausea made him want to vomit constantly. With his hands covered in grisly blisters and his arms filled with crippling pain, it didn't look like he would pull through. Somehow, though, he rallied, pushed through the agony, and managed to surpass the world record with flying colors.

"At the end of it all, I felt that this was impossible for me to achieve by myself," he said of his insane record. "I was able to keep on going for 24 hours because there were so many people who supported me. I'm proud of the fact that so many people offered their hands to someone so insignificant like myself."

When compared with other workout activities, like pushups and sit-ups, the humble pull-up is incredibly taxing and challenging. Requiring a great deal of strength in the arm, pull-ups like the ones that Kenta Adachi completed easily keep you fit and healthy when completed on a daily basis. This simple reality makes Adachi's world record even more impressive.

It is unlikely that without months and years of practicing and a huge amount of fitness, it would be possible for you to break Adachi's record. Having gone more than 300 repetitions further than the last record holder, though, we doubt anyone will beat him anytime soon.