Let's train! How does a pull-up go?

The headline already reveals what we want to show you today. A brief explanation of how to correctly perform a pull-up. But if you want to learn much more about pull-ups, we highly recommend our NEOLYMP Pull-up Bar E-Book. There you will definitely find answers to all your open questions.

Today we are talking about the all-rounder for the upper body. It ensures a strong back, trained arms, defined shoulders, and also an efficient coordination of those body regions.

Have you ever tried pulling yourself up on a bar? There are many possibilities, but not all are good for you and your body. We also have a little trick for you that might make it easier the first time.

A pull-up must be performed slowly and controlled. To grip the bar, you can also make a small jump upwards. As soon as you have a firm grip on the bar, be sure to control every one of your movements. Especially at the beginning, it is absolutely not important to get your chin over the bar. Always keep your shoulders back and avoid pulling them forward during the execution. This way, the load is on your back, exactly where it should be.

If you keep all this in mind, nothing stands in the way of your first pull-up. Gradually, you will come higher and make optimal use of the full range of motion.

The most important thing is definitely body tension. Grip your bar at the start with an overhand grip, palms facing you, thumbs outside, and already tense your entire body.
Keep your shoulder blades pulled back and lift your body. Now slowly lead your upper body as far as possible past the bar upwards.

If that is still too difficult, our NEOLYMP fitness bands can help you. You can thread them through the ring positioned in the middle and place one leg inside. Even now, you hold the bar with an overhand grip, one leg bent in the band, and the other remains on the floor. When you now perform a pull-up, you will notice that it is much easier for you. And you are absolutely right, because our bands support your pull-up and reduce the effort. But how strong the band should be is up to you. The stronger the band, the easier the exercise. Keep training and try again and again. You will be able to do your pull-up without bands very soon – promised! The best advice we can give you is this: Never lose motivation.

Finally, we explain the 4 possible grip positions. Try them all and find out which one suits you best.

• Shoulder-width overhand grip: In this variant, you grip the bar shoulder-width from above, meaning the backs of your hands face you. The latissimus dorsi does most of the work here. The shoulders are also trained, but less intensely.
• Shoulder-width underhand grip: Here you grip the bar from below, palms facing you. The underhand grip activates the biceps more. The latissimus dorsi is also involved in the movement.
• Wide overhand grip: With the wide overhand grip, you grasp the bar wider than shoulder-width, backs of the hands facing you. The shoulders are strongly activated here, as well as the latissimus.
• Hammer grip: To do the hammer grip, you need two parallel bars. The palms face each other. If you grip very close, the biceps are especially active. The wider apart the two bars are, the more effectively your latissimus is trained.

Tip: I am very short myself and actually always put a stool under the bar so that I can grip the bar well right from the start.