Chin-Up

Lats
Biceps
Forearms
Upper Back

Equipment: Bodyweight

New to this

Your first chin-up

What weight should I start with on the chin-up?

Bodyweight. On the assisted machine, start with the counterweight at about half your bodyweight and lower it 10 lb at a time. A looped band over the bar works too. You are ready for unassisted chin-ups when 10 reps at 20 lb of assistance feel easy.

What usually goes wrong on the chin-up?

Hang from the bar with an underhand grip, hands about shoulder-width.

Pull your shoulder blades down first, before your arms bend.

Pull until your chin clears the bar, driving your elbows toward your ribs.

Lower all the way to straight arms under control.

You should feel this in the lats and biceps. If only your arms are working, you skipped the shoulder blade step.

Most common mistake: cutting the bottom short and living in the top half of the rep. Full extension every time, even if the count drops.

If the chin-up bar is occupied

The Inverted Row is a horizontal pull that builds the same base with less load on your arms.

The Close-Grip Front Lat Pulldown is a nearly identical pull pattern with the weight set on a stack.

How to do it

Grab the pull-up bar with the palms facing your torso and a grip closer than the shoulder width.
As you have both arms extended in front of you holding the bar at the chosen grip width, keep your torso as straight as possible while creating a curvature on your lower back and sticking your chest out. This is your starting position.
Tip: Keeping the torso as straight as possible maximizes biceps stimulation while minimizing back involvement.
As you breathe out, pull your torso up until your head is around the level of the pull-up bar. Concentrate on using the biceps muscles in order to perform the movement. Keep the elbows close to your body.
Tip: The upper torso should remain stationary as it moves through space and only the arms should move. The forearms should do no other work other than hold the bar.
After a second of squeezing the biceps in the contracted position, slowly lower your torso back to the starting position; when your arms are fully extended. Breathe in as you perform this portion of the movement.
Repeat this motion for the prescribed amount of repetitions.