7 Tips To Improve Your Chin Ups

The chin up is sometimes called the squat of the upper body, implying that if they can be performed well, we should use them.

The problem is that – similar to the squat – many people can’t do a good chin up.

For the purposes of this post we are only going to cover the dead hang, or strict, variation of the chin up

Not the kipping version sometimes used by crossfiters and gymnasts.

Here are a few methods that will help you increase the amount of chin ups you can do or get to the point where you can tick off that elusive first chin up.

Improving your Chin Up:

More Frequency

Starting with the obvious. If you want to get better at something you need to do more of it. Add a max set of chin ups as part of the end of your warm up every time you are in the gym. Either that or perform as many reps as possible in a time period e.g 10 minutes instead of simply 3 sets of x.

Slow Down The Eccentric

Eccentric means the lowering phase and is the strongest of the three muscle contractions. If you can already perform chin ups slow down the eccentric portion on the last rep. If you cannot perform a bodyweight chin up, renowned strength coach Charles Poliquin, has a theory that once you can do one 30second eccentric chin up at a steady speed you should be able to perform 1 full chin.

Be Strict With Form

This may sound obvious when talking about a ‘strict’ chin up, but you don’t want your legs flailing all over the place. Nor do you want to be curling yourself over the bar at all costs. To fully activate the upper back you need to keep your chest up at the top of the rep, ‘elbow’ through ribs’.

Weak Point Training

This is where bicep curls may be useful when it comes to performance and not just aesthetics. The biceps play a big role in chin up strength and theoretically may have more of a carryover than exercises such as lat pulldowns. If the upper back is weak address that with band work and facepulls etc. Grip strength can also be a weak point for some, which can be dress with specific train (carries etc).

Address Mobility

You may be lacking the mobility to get in the correct position at the top. Common problem areas are shoulder mobility, scapular control and thoracic (upper back) mobility.

Use Of Bands

Resistance bands are one way of allowing people who can’t perform chins to do them in correct form without creating bad movement patterns by cheating. They provide more help at the bottom, which is the hardest part of the movement, and less at the top. As you get stringer, use thinner bands

Lose Weight

Sorry, I had to. As I mentioned above chin ups are a matter of relative strength therefore you don’t have to have a masters in physics to realise that the lighter you are the easier they will become. Extra timber will ways make pulling yourself up more difficult. Dial your diet in.

Chin Up Tips

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