The 24-Hour Pull-Up World Record Progression: Human Limits on the Bar

by Felix Wong | 27 Jul 2025

For my 50th birthday, I set a goal: complete 500 pull-ups in a single day. That’s far more than I had ever done, and honestly, I had no idea whether I could do it. But I felt a spark of hope when I remembered that nine months earlier, YouTuber/gamer Doug “Censor” Martin had completed 9,250 pull-ups in 24 hours. If he could do that, then surely 5% of that number was within the realm of possibility for me.

Later I heard that someone broke Censor’s record just half a year later. That made me curious—what’s the full progression of this record? Who has attempted it, succeeded, or failed? Shockingly, I couldn’t find a single webpage that listed all that information clearly. Even AI chatbots failed to (although after this post, they won’t)! It didn’t help that Guinness only lists current, and not previous, world records on their website.

So, this blog post (after many hours of research) is my attempt to fill that gap. Here is a chronological look at the fascinating history of the 24-hour pull-up world record.

Men’s 24-Hour Pull-Up World Record Progression

Note: Although I created the following table in July 2025, I am trying to keep it current—at least until a similar list is created on, say, Wikipedia. Please leave a comment at the end of the article if I am missing information. Thanks!

Note: Ages preceded with a ~ symbol are best estimates. They were inferred from published ages in articles from later years, or from the year of their first university degree.

Women’s 24-Hour Pull-Up World Record Progression

About the Male World Record Holders

Steven Price

Before successfully setting a world record of 3,175 pull-ups in April 2009, Dr. Steven Price—an associate vice president for technology development at Oklahoma State University—made two failed attempts that were hugely instructive. During his first try, he made it to about 18 hours and took a half-hour break—only to find that when he returned to the bar, he couldn’t do a single rep. He later learned the ultramarathoner mantra of “beware of the chair,” and vowed to never take an extended break again during an attempt.

On his second try, he completed the full 24 hours but came up 251 pull-ups short of the record at the time. (I have yet to learn more about this previous record; therefore, I haven’t listed it on this page.) This was still encouraging, as he realized that with better pacing and nutrition—and in the presence of an audience—he could hit the target. He emphasized that nutrition, especially in the final hours, was likely what held him back. His wife believed more glucose in the final hours would have made the difference.

Three years after his pull-up world record, he set the 24-hour world rowing record for 60-year-old males that were 165+ pounds.

Jason Armstrong

U.S. Navy Seaman Jason Armstrong set a record on Memorial Day by performing 3,376 pull-ups at In-Shape Fitness in Pacific Grove. His attempt raised $5,000 for the Wounded Warrior Project and broke both the 6- and 12-hour pull-up records en route to his 24-hour achievement.

Just 19 years old at the time, Armstrong trained daily on both reverse and overhand pull-ups. He was a lifelong athlete—a swimmer, gymnast, and football player—and was studying Chinese at the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, California.

The Memorial Day timing wasn’t accidental. His record was as much about honoring service members as it was about athletic performance. That sense of purpose undoubtedly fueled him through the pain.

Stephen Hyland

Stephen Hyland is a super-fit Brit who ran a building and development firm. He made a name for himself by dominating chin-up and pull-up records worldwide while he was in his 50s and 60s. In fact, he held eight global records in various time durations, including 30 minutes, 1 hour, 6, 12, and 24 hours. He once did 1,019 chin-ups in one hour—an average of 17 per minute.

When he achieved the world record 4,020 pull-ups, it took him only 7 hours and 50 minutes to do them. But he did so many that it was a record for not only 12 hours, but 24 as well.

Hyland insisted he was getting better with age. After a devastating accident in his youth that shattered his arms and shoulders, he didn’t begin serious training until age 43. By 52, he was smashing world records, often from the comfort of the gym he built in his garage.

David Goggins

Ultra-endurance legend David Goggins brought the 24-hour pull-up record into mainstream consciousness. After two failed public attempts—one due to a wrist injury and another to torn skin on his palms—he finally succeeded on January 19, 2013, in Brentwood, Tennessee, completing 4,030 pull-ups in 17 hours and surpassing Hyland’s record by 10.

Goggins’ journey was more than physical; it embodied his “Can’t Hurt Me” ethos and 40% rule, which suggests that most people quit when they’ve only used 40% of their capacity. His grit and refusal to give up, even after injury, inspired a generation of fitness enthusiasts.

His influence continues to ripple outward. For instance, only two weeks after Doug “Censor” Martin broke the record in September 2024, fitness YouTuber Browney and his buddy “Captain America” Arjen posted a video of them trying to exceed Goggins’ 2013 record. (Arjen had to abort mid-attempt and go to the hospital for a torn bicep, illustrating how difficult the challenge is for even a supremely fit person.) More than a decade later, Goggins’ legacy still looms large.

Interestingly, Goggins himself tried to reclaim the record 10 years after his historic achievement by doing 7801 in May 2023! But unbeknownst to him, Jaxon Italiano had already surpassed that number the year before.

Kyle Gurkovich

A middle school math teacher from New Jersey, Kyle Gurkovich broke Goggins’ record by completing 4,182 pull-ups. Gurkovich’s background in competitive swimming and his lightweight frame (140 pounds) helped him crank out impressive sets.

He trained hard—doing weighted sets with 90-pound dumbbells and up to three workouts a day. His sessions included early morning weights, afternoon cardio, and a nighttime finisher.

Caine Eckstein

Eckstein, a professional surf lifesaving athlete from Australia, took the record to 4,210 pull-ups in October 2014 on NBC’s Today Show. Then, in June 2016, he broke the record again with 7,620 reps—just three days after John Orth had set his mark. However, Guinness never ratified his second total.

His attempts weren’t just athletic performances—they were tied to charitable causes, including raising awareness for Corpus Callosum disorders, which had affected his best friend’s son.

Mark Jordan

Mark Jordan—like Steven Price, Stephen Hyland, and Rodney Hahn—was also in his 50s when he set the world record. At age 54, he completed 4,321 pull-ups in November 2014. His motivation included fundraising for education and inspiring others to pursue fitness no matter their age.

Michael Tufo

Tufo, a strength and conditioning coach at Rutgers University, completed 5,101 pull-ups in May 2015. The attempt was inspired by his football players, who challenged him to aim for the record.

Tufo’s coaching background likely gave him a strategic advantage in pacing, recovery, and technique. It also demonstrated the cross-pollination between traditional sports and endurance feats like this.

John Bocek

In May 2015, John Bocek completed 5,801 pull-ups in a CrossFit gym in Arlington, Virginia.

Bocek was no stranger to ultra-endurance events. He had trained extensively for 100-mile ultras.

Michael McCastle

Michael McCastle—a Navy air traffic controller stationed on Whidbey Island—set a world record with 5,804 pull-ups in 24 hours at North End Fitness in Oak Harbor, Washington. What made the feat especially striking was that he completed it while wearing a 30‑pound pack to raise awareness for soldiers living with lasting injuries.

“Why add to the misery with an additional 30‑pound pack strapped around your torso?” McCastle rhetorically asked. “I wanted to add the extra pack to represent their burden that [wounded veterans] carry. They don’t take that pack off. They carry it with them for the rest of their lives.”

This was actually not his first attempt. On an earlier try he completed 3,202 pull-ups, but he had to be hospitalized with rhabdomyolysis and muscle tears in his biceps and forearms before reaching the world record mark. That attempt came after a severe ACL injury that required extensive physical therapy. With his lower body still recovering, McCastle turned to a pull‑up challenge to rebuild strength and purpose during a difficult period.

In the year before his successful pull‑up record, McCastle had completed a world‑record 13‑mile, 250‑pound truck tire flip across the parking lot of the CrossFit gym where he trained. He also climbed a 20‑foot rope a cumulative 29,029 feet—the height of Mount Everest. Across these stunts he raised thousands of dollars for charities including the Wounded Warrior Project, Operation Enduring Warrior, and the Michael J. Fox Foundation as part of his “Twelve Labors Project,” a modern riff on Hercules intended to inspire people to challenge themselves and give back.

Vinko Trivunovnić

Trivunovnić of Serbia set an unofficial world record of 5,820 pull-ups, with the last ones posted to YouTube on October 21, 2015. He surpassed John Bocek’s mark by 19 with only seven minutes to spare.

Guy Valentino

Valentino performed 5,862 pull-ups between November 11–12, 2015, beginning on Veterans Day and concluding during Fox & Friends on Guinness World Records Day. The timing and publicity amplified the impact of his feat, drawing attention to the military community.

Jan Kareš

Czech athlete Jan Kareš hit 6,800 pull-ups in September 2015. In that same session, he attempted to break the 6-hour and 12-hour records too, showing extraordinary endurance and planning.

This was not the first time he had broken the world record, but it was the first time Guinness recognized him for it. He had previous done 4,620 and 4,654 in October 2011 and April 2014, respectively.

Rodney Hahn

Hahn performed 6,844 pull-ups in a furniture store in Illinois called “The Dump,” aiming to finish on Memorial Day 2016. The setting was unorthodox, but the result was outstanding.

He raised money for the Navy SEALs Foundation and proved that world-class efforts can come from unexpected places. It’s also notable that Hahn was 55 when he set this world record.

Andrew Shapiro

Still in high school, Andrew Shapiro completed 7,306 pull-ups during a Relay for Life event in May 2016, raising over $7,000 for the American Cancer Society. He is the second teenager on this list, the other being Jason Armstrong.

John Orth

Orth completed 7,600 pull-ups in 19.5 hours in June 2016, leaving the rest of the 24-hour period unused. Cain Eckstein supposedly beat his record only three days later, but Orth’s pull-ups were ratified, whereas I don’t think Eckstein’s were.

A couple of years later, Orth beat his own personal record in Golden, Colorado. He ended up doing so by 70 for a total of 7,670—which included dehydration, crying, and passing out.

Unfortunately, it appears this second effort was never ratified by Guiness.

Brandon Tucker

Brandon Tucker, a former Army Ranger, performed 7,715 pull-ups in October 2019 in Columbus, Georgia. He would later set a world record for muscle-ups (1300) in 24 hours.

He was one of the several people on this list that was inspired by David Goggins. He was a personal trainer and nutrition coach after his time in the army.

Jaxon Italiano

Australian Jaxon Italiano completed 8,008 pull-ups at age 23. Despite wearing gloves, his hands were shredded by the end. He was raising money for Dementia Australia.

Later, he became the coach-at-a-distance for Doug Censor Martin’s record attempt, and even flew over from Australia to New York for Censor’s record.

Gary Lloyd

Queensland police officer Gary Lloyd completed 8,600 pull-ups in October 2023 to support HOPE (Helping Out Police Everywhere), surpassing Truett Hane’s 8,100 that were completed less than 24 hours earlier. His lightning-fast response to Hanes’ mark exemplified the record’s growing hyper-competitiveness.

Kenta Adachi

A diver for the Japan Coast Guard, Kenta Adachi managed to do 8,940 reps in February 2024. Once only capable of 12 pull-ups, he transformed through years of training. During the event, he fought through intense pain, sleepiness, nausea, and exhaustion—and still found a way to push through.

Even more impressive: later that year, Adachi set the world record for consecutive pull-ups—a jaw-dropping 1,224, defined by Guinness as at least one pull-up every 15 seconds without stopping.

Doug “Censor” Martin

I first came across Censor in 2015—not for his victories in national Call of Duty tournaments, but through his YouTube fitness content as a Gymshark-sponsored athlete. His name was also buzzing thanks to his high-profile relationship with Yanet Garcia, the Mexican weather presenter famous for her curve-hugging dresses and viral forecasts.

Censor began training for the pull-ups world record in May 2023 with the goal of 11,111. His training was intense—two bags of candy three times a week, torn tendons, and even depression. Along the way, he formed a close friendship with former record holder Jaxon Italiano, who became both a mentor and a source of inspiration.

On September 7, 2024, Censor completed 9,250 reps. His transformation from champion gamer to world record-holding athlete was remarkable, although by his own admission, the journey really put him in a negative headspace.

I enjoyed the documentary below about his pull-up record attempt, and highly recommend it if you’re curious about the training and preparation involved.

Truett Hanes

Truett Hanes, son of bowhunter Cameron Hanes, tried to break Jaxon Italiano’s record—and “failed miserably.” But he came back strong on his second attempt after training more, completing 8,100 pull-ups that October. His Instagram bravado—saying that Italiano’s record of “8006 was too easy”—may have been premature, as Australian Gary Lloyd surpassed him less than two days afterwards.

But less than 16 months later, he broke the 10,000-rep barrier in February 2025 with 10,001 reps. That record, ratified in April, dethroned Doug “Censor” Martin.

Hanes’ journey was pure Goggins-style: just two months after his pull-ups, he ran the Boston Marathon in jeans (finishing in an astounding 2:38, despite looking like he’d peed himself). He eats 11 eggs a day, trains with purpose, and isn’t shy about aiming high.

Oh Yohan

Unbeknownst to Truett Hanes due to a late Guinness application, Oh Yohan of South Korea had actually done more pull-ups three months before. A former military officer and paratrooper, he became publicly known through a reality TV series called Steel Unit 3, which had special forces soldiers compete in intense challenges. He also started a business crafting furniture and interior models.

Oh completed an astounding 11,707 pull-ups between September 28–29, 2024. His number wasn’t random—he stopped at 11,707 to honor his unit, the Republic of Korea 707th Special Mission Group. Guinness officially confirmed the record in June 2025.

Six months before his 11,707 pull-ups, Oh had thought he had broken the record by doing 8,707 reps. [Video] But unbeknownst to him at the time, Kenta Adachi had done more the month before. His comeback attempt, undertaken while his wife was expecting their second child, is a testament to personal resolve and symbolism in sport.

Lennert Schots

Lennert Schots of Belgium completed 11,900 pull-ups on December 13, 2025, in Diest, Belgium, at age 25. A true hybrid athlete, Schots competes in HYROX, CrossFit, and ultra‑endurance running, and holds a master’s degree in Exercise Physiology. He also runs a hybrid coaching business, which makes his rapid progression toward the record even more intriguing.

“Only 4 months of training to set a world record—while others need years?” he boasted on Instagram. He says he did a total of 72,000 pull-ups in preparation.

What I am also very impressed with is that he ran a 2:45 marathon in April of the same year.

Enrique Zapata surpassed his number of pull-ups only seven weeks later, before the Internet Archive could even take a snapshot of his record published on Guinness’ website. (Again, this is a frustration I have with Guinness: they should be publishing a history of—and not simply overwriting—the world records they publish on their site!) However, I did find a search snippet on Bing that proved to me that Guinness did officially certify Lennert’s record, in addition to recognizing it in a later article about Enrique.

Enrique Zapata

The current record for most pull-ups in 24 hours is 12,345, achieved by Enrique Zapata (Mexico) at the Loma High Performance Sports Center in Querétaro, Mexico, on January 13, 2026.

12,345? That number is too perfect—sequential, memorable, the kind of figure that looks engineered for a headline. But given the volume and pacing required, it’s also a testament to how meticulously he structured the attempt.

Zapata is a power‑endurance athlete, biohacker, and high‑performance and longevity coach. After practicing for more than five years, he finally secured a Guinness World Records title.

“It took discipline, belief, and an extraordinary team,” said Enrique, who dedicated the record to his wife, physiotherapist, mindset coaches, and supporters after he achieved it.

“This record is about perseverance over time. If I can do this, everyone can,” he concluded. I’m not sure about everyone—but I like his spirit.

He previously held two other Guinness World Records (since broken), including most pull-ups in eight hours, and most in 12 hours. All three records were achieved after an impressive gym transformation—Guinness even published a photo of him standing beside a cardboard cutout of his former, pudgier self. After a health crisis in 2018, he “hacked” his body and mind and made radical changes to his habits, training, consistency, recovery, and mentality.

About the Female World Record Holders

Eva Clarke

Eva Clarke of Australia was the first woman to set a Guinness World Record for most pull-ups in 24 hours.

Clarke had worked as a truck driver and combat fitness leader for the Australian army, and then a physical training instructor for the the Royal Australian Air Force. Despite being diagnosed with Kienbocks disease in 2005 which resulted in unyielding pain, that did not stop her fitness education career. In 2012, she and her kids followed her husband’s work to Abu Dhabi, where she achieved multiple Guinness fitness records (e.g., for burpees, knuckle push-ups, and fastest marathon with a 40-pound pack). She also once did 251 unbroken push-ups (no pauses).

In April 2016, at the Al Wahda Mall in Abu Dhabi, UAE, she completed 3,737 pull-ups as just one of three world records she set that day. [Video] The event raised over USD$14,600 for the charity organization Task Brasil, which provided services and facilities to teenage mothers and their babies.

Paula Gorlo

Paula Gorlo of Poland broke Eva Clarke’s long-standing mark in March 2022 by doing 4,070 pull-ups within 24 hours. Unfortunately, I could not find any information about her aside from that she is a sport and exercise enthusiast who “wanted to test the possibilities of the body with this attempt.”

Olivia Vinson

Olivia Vinson of Australia currently holds the women’s 24-hour pull-up world record with a staggering 4,084 pull-ups, set in May 2023. Her husband—who is also her coach—suggested doing 24 hours of pull-ups as a “bigger challenge.” At first she laughed at the idea, but after doing some calculations, thought maybe she could.

She trained for three months before taking on her first attempt. However, she pulled a bicep tendon in her left arm after 12 hours. Her second attempt was successful after resting the bicep for two months and then training for a few more months.

Final Thoughts

What began as my personal quest to do 500 pull-ups turned into a deep dive into one of the most grueling one-day endurance records on Earth. When I did my 50th birthday challenge, I was doing five pull-ups every three minutes for five hours. The latest record holders had been doing more than five every minute for close to 24 hours. That’s a big difference.

May this blog post serve as a resource—and maybe even a source of inspiration—for anyone daring enough to chase a big, audacious goal.

Photo: Edgar Chaparro / Unsplash