How to Get your First Chin Up
So you want to finally do your first chin-up?
Who doesn’t?!
The chin-up is one of the most badass, empowering, and beneficial exercises you can do. This versatile compound bodyweight exercise can be done anywhere, anytime, as it requires nothing but a bar, and there are many different variations you can master.
Unfortunately, most people struggle with chin-ups or are not able to do a single chin-up.
If this sounds like you, then you arrived at the right place!!
Today I am going to show you how to master the chin up, even if you’re struggling to get one.
You will build strength, work every muscle in your body, and even improve posture.
Why you Should do Chin Ups
As I mentioned, chin-ups are one of the most badass and empowering exercises you can do. For good reason, too. You’ll be hard pressed to find another upper body exercise that gives you more bang for your buck.
For clarity's sake, I’m referring to all chin-ups, pull-ups, and their variations under the name chin-ups.
Here’s why:
1) Chin-ups work every muscle in your body body
The chin-up is a compound exercise, meaning you’ll be using multiple muscle groups simultaneously. You’ll be using your upper back, arms, and even abs will grow stronger from doing just chin-ups.
Yes, you read that right - your abs.
You’ll be engaging your abs as you stabilize your body while pulling yourself up.
2) Chin-ups are a great indicator of overall strength.
Since you are working against gravity, you’ll have greater relative strength (strength to bodyweight ratio). This should be obvious, but the more you weigh the more you have to lift in order to complete a chin up.
3) Chin-ups will improve your posture
Since chin-ups are an upper back dominant exercise, you’ll be strengthening and building your back. This will naturally pull your shoulder blades back and down in proper position instead of hunching over like Quasimodo.
4) Chin-ups improve grip strength.
Chin-ups are a great way to improve your grip since your hands and fingers have to support your body weight throughout the movement. Grip strength is an underrated indicator of overall health. In fact, a strong grip has been correlated with lower mortality rates.
5) Chin-ups are convenient
Unlike other big compound movements (think deadlifts), chin-ups don't require a lot of equipment to perform. All you really need is a chin-up bar, a strong beam, or monkey bars at a local playground. So, even if you are stuck at home, you can still get a great workout.
Preparing for the Chin Up
The chin-up is a badass exercise, not many people can do them with ease. If you plan on actually seeing your performance increase while mitigating the risks of training-related injuries, you need to properly warm-up.
You’ll need an intelligently designed warm-up sequence to specifically prepare your body for the demands of the workout.
With this in mind, I’ve specifically designed this warm-up sequence that will address mobility and flexibility issues while bulletproof your body.
Warm-Up Procedure
1) Foam Roll Lats 60 seconds each
Why - Your latissimus dorsi (aka lats) are the biggest and most powerful muscle in the upper back and is an essential muscle to nailing your chin ups. In addition, your lats pull a huge role in your overall posture.
2) Bench T-Spine
Why: - By improving t-spine mobility and targeting the lats, serratus anterior, and traps, you’ll improve your shoulders ability to stay in position and transfer force.
3) Floor Slides
Why: The floor slides activate muscles of the mid and upper back, specifically the lower traps. This will help combat poor posture to improve overhead work.
Progressing to the Chin Up
Now that the warm-up is completed, let’s dive into exactly how to master the chin up. If you have never been able to do a chin-up, this simple progression will provide you a path to success.
Want someone to build you a custom-made progression plan for doing your first chin up? My 1:1 online coaching program will do just that, plus I’ll be able to review your movements through our app so you’ll know your training correctly and safely.
1) Single Arm Db Rows
Why - This is one of the most basic, yet underrated back exercises. This exercise is a fantastic upper back exercise that will build a foundation of the strength of the mid and upper back while developing grip strength.
Do 3 sets of 8 reps for each side. Rest 60 seconds between sets.
2) Inverted Rows
Why - Inverted rows are the perfect precursor to chin-ups as they work the same muscles by lifting your body in a slightly different angle. Depending on your strength level, you’ll need to adjust the bar height. A higher bar makes the exercise easier while a lower bar makes the exercise harder. For more of a challenge, place your feet on a bench.
Do 4 sets of 8-12 reps. Continue to lower the bar until nearly parallel to the floor. Make sure to get a full range of motion and squeeze your shoulders with each rep. Rest 60 seconds between sets.
3) Isometric Chin Ups
Why - Isometric holds force you to recruit the proper muscles of your upper back, specifically in the lower traps and rhomboids.
Do 3 sets of holding the top position for 3-5 seconds. Think to squeeze your shoulders in the top while squeezing your abs and glutes as hard as possible.
4) Eccentric Chin-ups
Why - This exercise will help you become capable of performing the lowering phase of the chin up. As you continue to lower yourself down, you’ll build strength, eventfully creating enough muscle so you can pull yourself up.
Do 3 sets of 3-6 reps for 3-5 seconds for lowering yourself.. Control the descend from start to finish. If necessary, use a box or jump up to start in the top position.
5) Assisted Chin-ups
Why - By now, you have built up a decent level of strength, so it’s time for you to actually start doing chin ups… with a little assistance. Take a band and loop it around the bar. The band’s thickness will depend on your strength levels so lighter bands will provide less assistance while thicker bands will provide more assistance.
Do 3 sets for 4-8 reps. To progress, aim to get multiple sets for 8 reps before moving to a less thick band.
Time to do Your First Chin Up
By now, you should be ready to do your first chin-up.
Here’s a step by step guide on doing a chin-up:
Grab the bar with a grip slightly wider than shoulder width. I recommend starting with a neutral (palms facing inward) grip.
Start from a dead hang with your shoulders squeezed while squeezing your glutes.
Pull your chest up to the bar by driving your elbows down, minimizing any swinging of your legs and torso.
Slight pause at the top
Lower your body under control, extending the arms to near lockout position. Maintain tension while keeping your shoulders down and back.
Repeat for reps
Congratulations on getting your first chin up!
How to Become a Chin Up Master
Now that you can do a chin-up, you want to start slowly increasing the volume (i.e. repetitions.) The chin-up requires a lot of upper bodyweight strength to accomplish, so you might only be able to bust out 1-3 reps at a time.
If so, here’s a simple, yet highly effective way to progress your chin-ups. Let’s say you can only do one chin-up set (after all you just got your first one).
Here’s how you’ll progress your volume over time using 4 sets
1,1,1,1 (4 total reps)
2,1,1,1 (5 total reps)
3,2,1,1 (7 total reps)
3,2,2,2 (9 total reps)
By using this simple progression system, you’ll start mastering the chin-ups. Eventually, you’ll start to consider other methods to challenge your chin-ups, like how many consecutive chin-ups you can do or adding resistance.
No matter your starting point, you CAN do chin-ups.
And you WILL do chin-ups with this guide.
If you follow this progression sequence listed above, then you’ll be on your way to nailing your first chin up. Put in the work and you’ll find yourself becoming a chin-up master in no time.