strength · pull-up bar
Pull-Up
The gold standard for upper-body pulling strength.
3–5 × 3–10 8 minrest 120s
Equipment
pull-up bar
Rest
120s between sets
Primary muscles
lats, biceps
Also works
upper back, core
How to do it
- Hang from a bar with hands slightly wider than shoulders, palms facing away.
- Pull shoulder blades down and back before you start moving.
- Drive your elbows down and back to pull your chest toward the bar.
- Lower under control to a full straight-arm hang.
Form cues
- ✓Chin over the bar, chest up
- ✓Squeeze the bar hard
- ✓No kipping unless training for that
Common mistakes
- ✗Only doing half reps
- ✗Shrugging shoulders to the ears
- ✗Swinging
Progressions
- Band-assisted pull-up → negatives → strict pull-up → weighted pull-up