Exercise
PULL-UPS
Form cues
About
The pull-up is one of the most effective upper-body compound movements, requiring you to lift your full bodyweight through a vertical pulling pattern. It targets the latissimus dorsi, biceps, and rhomboids simultaneously, making it a benchmark of relative upper-body strength. Consistent pull-up training builds the wide-back V-taper associated with upper-body development and transfers directly to climbing, gymnastics, and everyday overhead tasks.
Instructions
Step-by-step technique
Grip and hang
Grasp the bar with an overhand grip slightly wider than shoulder-width. Hang with arms fully extended, letting your shoulder blades elevate naturally into a full dead hang. Take a breath here.
Full dead hang before every repPack your shoulders
Before pulling, depress and retract your shoulder blades — think "shoulders away from ears and into your back pockets." This pre-loads the lats and prevents shoulder impingement at the top.
Shoulders down and back firstPull chest to bar
Exhale and drive your elbows straight down toward your hips. Visualize bringing your chest to the bar rather than your chin. Your torso will naturally angle back slightly — this is correct.
Elbows drive down, chest leads upClear the bar
Continue pulling until your chin is clearly above the bar and your collar bones approach it. Do not crane your neck forward — the movement should end when the back and biceps are fully contracted.
Chin over bar, collar bone closeLower with control
Inhale and lower yourself slowly over 2–3 seconds back to the full dead hang. Resist gravity on the way down — the eccentric phase builds as much strength as the pull itself.
2–3 second descent to dead hangCommon mistakes
What goes wrong — and why
Partial range of motion
Not starting from a dead hang or stopping short of chin-over-bar reduces the training stimulus by cutting the lat through only a fraction of its functional range.
Commit to full range: dead hang to chin above bar to dead hang. If you cannot complete one full rep, use band assistance rather than shortening the range.
Kipping for every rep
Using a kip (momentum from hip swing) allows more reps but removes the lat-loading benefit of a strict pull-up. It also places significant stress on the shoulders when technique breaks down.
Build strict pull-up strength first. Kipping is a skill for gymnastics; for strength development, keep the body vertical and eliminate swing.
Chin jutting forward
Pushing the chin forward to clear the bar means the back muscles did not complete the movement — the neck compensated. This misses the final few degrees of lat contraction.
Keep the neck neutral throughout. If you cannot clear the bar without craning your neck, you are at your current rep limit — stop there and use negatives to build strength.
Elbows flaring wide
Flaring the elbows out like a lat spread shifts stress from the lats onto the shoulders and reduces mechanical advantage on the pull.
Keep elbows pointed down and slightly inward. Imagine bending the bar apart with your hands — this naturally keeps the elbows in the correct path.
Variations · Progressions · Regressions
Adaptations for every level
Band-Assisted Pull-up
Loop a resistance band over the bar and place one knee or foot in it. The band offloads a portion of your bodyweight, letting you practice the full range of motion while building strength.
Chin-up
An underhand grip (palms facing you) shifts emphasis from the lats to the biceps and is slightly easier for most beginners due to stronger elbow flexor recruitment at the start of the pull.
Weighted Pull-up
Add a dip belt with plates or hold a dumbbell between your feet once you can perform 8–10 clean bodyweight reps. Even small loads (2.5–5 kg) dramatically increase strength gains.