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Pull-Up

From a dead hang with palms facing away, you pull until your chin clears the bar, then lower back to straight arms. The lats, upper back, biceps and grip do the work, and the load is your own bodyweight unless you add more on a belt.

Pull-Up, start position
Start
Pull-Up, end position
End
FrontBack
PrimarySecondary
Main muscles
Lats
Also working
Biceps, Upper Back, Forearms, Core

How to do it

  1. Take an overhand grip a little wider than your shoulders and hang with your arms straight.
  2. Before you bend your elbows, pull your shoulders down away from your ears. Keep your legs still, either straight or with ankles crossed.
  3. Drive your elbows down toward your hips and bring your chest toward the bar.
  4. Stop when your chin is over the bar, with your neck in line rather than craned forward.
  5. Lower under control for a second or two until your arms are straight again, and reset your shoulders before the next rep.

Cues

Short phrases to think during a set.

  • “Elbows to your back pockets”
  • “Chest up, chin over the bar”
  • “Straight arms at the bottom of every rep”

Common mistakes

  • Half reps that never return to straight arms. The bottom of the rep is the hardest part; if you have to skip it to get the rep count, the count is too high.
  • Kicking or swinging the legs to get up. For strength work, keep the body still and use bands or slow negatives to make up the difference.
  • Shoulders hunched up by the ears at the bottom. Pull them down before each rep so the lats start the movement.
  • Reaching with the chin and craning the neck to clear the bar. Keep the head neutral and bring the chest up instead.

The short version

A first strict pull-up is one of the more common goals for people new to lifting, and getting from zero to one is where most of the advice concentrates. The standard approach mixes slow negatives (jump to the top, lower for five seconds or so), band-assisted reps with lighter bands over time, and lat pulldowns. Many prefer bands and negatives to the assisted pull-up machine because the machine supports you in a fixed path.

Once you can do several clean reps, progress means more reps and then added weight. Kipping, the hip-driven swing used in CrossFit, is a separate skill for doing many reps quickly. Strength coaches generally want strict reps learned first, and many have shoulder concerns about high-volume kipping.

Why people do it

  • Needs only a bar that holds your weight, including a doorway bar at home
  • Loads the lats through a full stretch at the bottom and works the grip on every set
  • Easy to see progress: reps from a dead hang to chin over the bar are hard to fudge
  • Can be made harder with a dip belt or vest and easier with bands, so it works from beginner to advanced

Drawbacks

  • Many beginners cannot do a single rep, so the first weeks are spent on assisted versions
  • Your bodyweight is the minimum load, and gaining weight makes it harder
  • Adding weight needs a dip belt or weight vest, and small increases are awkward
  • High-volume sets can irritate the elbows, and palms tend to callus or tear early on

Sources

Questions

How do I get my first pull-up?+

Train pulling two or three times a week with slow negatives, band-assisted reps and lat pulldowns. Drop to a lighter band as you get stronger, and test a strict rep every week or two.

What's the difference between a pull-up and a chin-up?+

A pull-up uses an overhand grip and a chin-up an underhand grip. The chin-up uses the biceps more and is usually the easier of the two. Both work the lats heavily.

Do kipping pull-ups count?+

They count in CrossFit, where the standard allows them. For building strength, strict reps from a dead hang are the standard, because the muscles do all the work.

Why do my elbows hurt from pull-ups?+

Usually too much volume added too quickly, often with every set taken to failure. Cut back for a while, stop a rep or two short of failure, and try a neutral grip, which tends to sit easier on the elbows. Leave weighted pull-ups out until bodyweight sets stop hurting.

When should I start adding weight?+

A common rule is once you can do clean sets of around 8 to 12. Start with a small plate or dumbbell on a dip belt.

Swaps on other equipment

Each has the lats as its main muscle and is also a pull, on a different piece of equipment.

Variations

Chin-Up · Neutral-Grip Pull-Up · Band-Assisted Pull-Up · Lat Pulldown

Other lat exercises

Written for this site from the sources listed above. Last reviewed October 20, 2026. How this site is put together · Report a mistake