Pull-ups: how to perform them.
The pull-up is the benchmark for relative strength: you can't fake lifting your own bodyweight with your back alone. It builds wide lats, biceps and a grip of steel, and the road to your first rep is a training program in itself.
Starting position
- Grip the bar with a pronated grip (palms facing forward), slightly wider than shoulder width.
- Start with arms extended but shoulders ACTIVE: shoulder blades slightly depressed, never "hanging off the shoulder joints".
- Legs together or crossed, core braced: your body is one solid block, not a pendulum.
Proper form
- Start the movement by pulling your shoulder blades down, like tucking your shoulders "into your pockets": the elbow follows, it doesn't lead.
- Pull your elbows toward your hips, driving your chest toward the bar, not your chin forward.
- Rise until your chin clears the bar (ideally: chest close to the bar), without kicking or swinging.
- Pause for an instant at the top, in full control.
- Lower over 2-3 seconds until your arms are nearly extended: the descent is half the exercise, not a release.
- At the bottom, re-engage your active shoulders and go again without bouncing.
When to inhale, when to exhale
Inhale at the bottom, arms extended, and exhale as you rise or once your chin clears the bar. On tough reps, hold your breath during the pull and exhale at the top.
Mistakes to avoid
Stopping halfway to "do more reps" only trains your ego: the lats do their real work in the bottom part of the movement. Arms nearly extended at the bottom, chin past the bar at the top.
Leg kicks and body swing take work away from your back and load your shoulders unpredictably. If you need momentum, the load is too heavy: scale down with a band or the lat pulldown.
If you only feel your biceps, you're pulling with your hands instead of your shoulder blades. Focus on driving your elbows down and your chest up: the lats fire immediately.
Jutting your chin out to "clear" the bar is cheating with your cervical spine. Keep your head neutral: if your chin doesn't clear the bar, the rep wasn't complete.
DAWT tip. Can't do one yet? Work on negatives (jump up and lower over 5 seconds) and banded pull-ups, alongside the lat pulldown. With 2-3 sessions a week, your first pull-up comes sooner than you think.
Variations and alternatives
Quick answers
How do I get my first pull-up?
Combine the lat pulldown with increasing loads, banded pull-ups and slow negatives. Don't "try a pull-up" every day: train it like an exercise, with sets, rest periods and progression.
Wide grip or narrow grip?
Slightly wider than shoulder width is the best compromise between range of motion and lat recruitment. A very wide grip shortens the movement; a narrow grip shifts work onto the biceps and lower lats.
Pull-ups or lat pulldown?
Pull-ups are superior for strength and mass at equal effort, but the lat pulldown lets you dial in the load with precision. The ideal sequence: lat pulldown to build up, pull-ups as soon as your bodyweight becomes manageable.
Related exercises
How much should you load on this exercise?
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