As you know, pull-ups are an excellent exercise to work your upper body muscles. And it is that they are not only highly effective at the level of bodybuilding, but to do them, you only need your weight and something to hold on to, such as the typical bars of the parks, those of the gym, or, if you prefer to train at home, your wall dominated bars. Still don’t know which muscles chin-ups work? Keep reading! Here’s everything you need to know about the types of pull-ups and the muscles they work!
The main muscles that work chin-ups
If you are looking to work your upper body, chin-ups are an exercise that you cannot miss in your routine. And, although they are a bit complicated, especially at the beginning, you will be working with a single dynamic a lot of muscles at the same time, such as the latissimus dorsi, the biceps, the pectoral, the trapezius, the rhomboids, the round muscle major, teres minor and infraspinatus, among others. Of course, depending on the type of pull-up you do, you will work some to a greater extent than others, but, in general, all of these are involved.
- Latissimus dorsi: In chin-ups, the latissimus dorsi pulls the upper part of the spleens closer to the body, allowing it to rise to the bar.
- The biceps: this is the primary muscle for getting up on the bar. You will notice that it works in conjunction with the bib, especially when you go down.
- The trapeze: here is the one in charge of supporting the load in the chin-ups.
- The deltoid: with this type of exercise, various muscles of the back are worked. In the case of the delts, you will notice a different activation depending on the type of grip you make.
- The pectoral: this is the great helper of the latissimus dorsi when you are going up in the chin.
- The teres major, the minor, and the infraspinatus: here are some of the great collaborators of the latissimus dorsi when you’re doing pull-ups.
Types of pull-ups and muscles that work
Now that you know the general implication of the different muscles when doing chin-ups, it’s time to see which muscles work chin-ups the most depending on the grip type. Although, remember! It is very important that you always do more than one type when training and do not always stay with only one option. In variety is efficiency!
The main types of grip in chin-ups
When we talk about chin-up grips, in general, we can differentiate three main types:
- Prone grip (pull-ups): the backs of the hands face you, and the palms face out.
- Supine grip (chin-ups): the palms face towards you, and the backs of the hands face outwards.
- Neutral grip: the hands do not look to one side or the other. It would be like stretching your arms and grabbing the bars in that same position.
Which muscles are involved in the different pull-ups
With the different types of grip, we get more muscles to intervene than others. Hence the importance of varying our routine.
- Main muscles that work with the prone grip: the involvement of the latissimus dorsi, the trapezius, and the infraspinatus is greater with respect to the supine grip.
- Main muscles that work with the supine grip: in this case, the pectoralis major, the biceps brachii, the erectors spinae, and the external oblique are more activated than the previous one.
- Main muscles that work with the neutral grip: here, the powers of the prone and supine grip are activated, highlighting, above all, the activation of the pectoralis major, concerning the first.
Mistakes to avoid when doing pull-ups
Now that you know that success lies in variety and which muscles are activated in the different types of pull-ups, the time has come to reveal the typical mistakes that you should avoid when doing pull-ups to get the most out of your training and prevent injury to the short and long term.
- Don’t use body momentum: To get the most out of your pull-ups, you need to work your arm and back muscles. Falling into the temptation to jump to reach the bar and swing as an impulse mode translates into wasting the work of such important muscles in chin-ups, such as the latissimus dorsi. But if you notice that you are working! Yes, the abdomen and lower body muscles are not what you are interested in chin-ups … although it is in kipping, which is how this variant is called.
- Control the lowering movement and do not go down too fast: fatigue may want to sabotage your pull-ups by convincing you that you don’t need to stretch your elbows and have already gone down enough not valid. Ignore him! Stretch your elbows well on each rep.
- Count only the finished repetitions: ouch! Fatigue … don’t let it convince you that incomplete repetition counts. For a useful training stick only with the ones that have been complete. Better few and well done than many already half.
- Do not contract your shoulders too much: if you feel the shoulders, almost in the ears, be careful! The trapeze will be overloaded, and you will begin to notice compensations that you were not looking for in your pull-ups.
Final Thought
Now that you know which muscles chin-ups work, are you already seeing progress in all of these muscles? If you haven’t yet incorporated pull-ups into your workouts, what are you waiting for? In Mundo Fitness, you will find a wide catalog of specific material for pull-ups. Share your experience!