Pull-Up Performance Training

This is part 1 of a 3 part series about performing safe, strong and effective pull-ups. Written by Jim Skoczen PT, DPT, OCS and owner of Full Circle Performance Physical Therapy.

Pull-ups are an excellent, but sometimes controversial exercise. Sometimes thought of as dangerous or overly stressful, it actually can be a great activity for a wide variety of people, regardless of their fitness goals.

They target a number of areas in one movement pattern: upper back, shoulders, core, arms, hands, wrist.  And it doesn’t take much time to get in a super challenging workout that will improve your functional fitness, posture, and overall strength. More people should be taking advantage of these benefits for their health and fitness gains.

Pull-up anatomy: posterior.

As a healthcare and fitness professional, I frequently come across clients or gym-goers who don’t include pull-ups in their workouts for various reasons: having a prior injury (typically the shoulder), lacking strength or confidence, or being told by another medical provider that they should stop doing them. In my experience as a performance physical therapist, these can be a safe and effective exercise for the majority of people once they have the required amount of strength and are doing them correctly.

It's really not dangerous.

So let’s tackle some of these issues and I will show you the safest way to work towards getting your first ever strict pull-up or build your strength to start repping out more than you ever have before. Following these tips and progressions will help you safely and efficiently progress

First things first…

How do you do this? Like most exercises, having good form is key.  Pull-ups are no exception, and having bad form can be a seriously limiting factor with your progress or put you at risk for an injury down the line.  So let’s make sure you know exactly what to do.

1.Set up. 

• You want to start with a wide grip on the bar with your palms rotated away from your body. The chin-up is the similar, underhand variation of the exercise that people often confuse with the pull-up.  For the purposes of this article, we are just going to discuss the pull-up but it is important to know that these exercises work different muscle groups and require different techniques.

Chin-up vs. pull-up positioning.

2. Form. A strict pull-up requires starting with your arms completely extended overhead and pulling yourself vertically until your chin clears the bar. Pause for a second and then lower slowly back down. 

 Sounds simple right? Well not exactly. 

I found this gif of a random guy on the internet.

Here are a few points of performance:

• Grip wider than your shoulders, palms forward.  We already talked about this!

• Keep your elbows from flaring too wide.  You don’t want your arms even with your ears, bring them forward at a little less than a 45 degree angle to get the most effective pull. 

• Don't lose your core. Throughout the movement, you want to keep your abs engaged and bring your legs slightly forward with your toes pointed. DON’T tuck your knees or bring your feet behind you, or you will risk putting your back in a bad position. 

• Keep an ACTIVE HANG. This means your shoulder blades and upper back muscles are working through the whole motion! Especially at the bottom position, make sure it doesn’t feel like your arms are getting yanked upward!

Pull-up form from start to finish.

3.Get after it!  So now that you know what a perfect form strict pull-up looks like, get out there and do it! 

Obviously, it’s not that simple.  Maybe you already knew everything I just discussed, but are struggling to maintain good form or have pain whenever you do a set of pull-ups. Or simply don’t have the strength to get yourself up and over the bar… then what, genius!?

Well don’t worry! I’ve got you covered.  In the next blog posts we’ll go over common faults and strength building exercises to get you where you need to be.

If you have further questions or concerns, contact Full Circle Performance Physical Therapy or stop in for a full evaluation and assessment. The information shared in this post is not intended to be used as medical advice, and I recommend visiting a qualified PT if you need further assistance.