Intermediate

Chin-Up

Flipping the grip to supinated turns the chin-up into a slightly more forgiving pull than the overhand version because the biceps get into a stronger line of pull. You still train the lats through a full stretch, but most people can do more reps and load here, which makes it a great strength builder and a smart stepping stone toward strict pull-ups. It doubles as serious biceps work.

Equipment
Pull-Up Bar
Body part
Back, Lats
Type
Strength
Browse by muscle
Latissimus Dorsi
Browse by movement
Vertical Pull
Muscles worked
Target
Latissimus Dorsi
Secondary
Biceps Brachii Long Head, Biceps Brachii Short Head, Brachioradialis, Trapezius Lower, Trapezius Middle
Tertiary
Infraspinatus, Erector Spinae

How to do it

  1. 1

    Take a shoulder-width grip on the bar with your palms facing you.

  2. 2

    Hang at full length, chest up and shoulders set down and back.

  3. 3

    Brace your midsection and pull yourself up by driving your elbows down toward your sides.

  4. 4

    Bring your chin above the bar while keeping the body vertical and controlled.

  5. 5

    Lower smoothly until your arms are fully straight again.

  6. 6

    Breathe out as you rise and in as you lower, avoiding any bounce at the bottom.

Tips

  • Keep your wrists stacked over the bar rather than letting them bend back under load.
  • Squeeze the shoulder blades down first so the lats lead and the biceps assist, not the reverse.
  • Control the negative for a full second or two, this is where a lot of the strength is built.

Variations

Common mistakes

  • Swinging the knees up to launch the first few inches. The kip gets you over the bar and leaves the lats with almost nothing to do; if you need it, the set is finished.
  • Stopping the descent with the elbows still bent to keep the rep count up. Every rep should return to straight arms, even when that turns eight reps into four.
  • Craning the chin up and forward to clear the bar. Pull the chest toward the bar instead, so the chin clears as a consequence rather than as a stretch of the neck.
  • Taking a very narrow underhand grip with the hands nearly touching. It loads the wrists and the inside of the elbow; about shoulder width keeps the strain in the muscles.

Frequently asked

How many chin-ups should you do when you are new to the exercise, and how do I get more of them?
If you can do five or more, four sets of four to six strict reps builds strength faster than one set to failure: stop each set with a rep or two left and add reps across the weeks. If you can do one to four, use more sets of fewer reps, five sets of two for example, with two minutes of rest. If you cannot do one yet, jump to the top and lower for five seconds, three to five times per set, and use ring rows for volume in between.
How do I make chin-ups easier or harder?
Easier: loop a band over the bar and put a knee or foot in it, use an assisted chin-up machine, or do slow lowering reps from the top. Ring rows and inverted rows build the pulling strength that eventually shows up on the bar. Harder: hang a plate from a dip belt, pause a second with the chin above the bar, lower over three seconds, or do one-and-a-half reps by dropping halfway and pulling back up before finishing the descent.
What is the chin-up good for, and when is it the wrong exercise?
The underhand grip puts the biceps in a strong line, so most people manage more reps and more load here than on a pull-up, which makes it a good lat and arm strength builder and a sensible stepping stone toward strict pull-ups. It is the wrong exercise when a straight bar irritates your elbows or wrists, where rings or a neutral-grip handle let the forearm rotate freely, and it is the wrong starting point if you cannot yet do a single rep. Build up with assisted or band-assisted work first.

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