Pull-ups

I love doing pull-ups as they are one of the best lat builders out there. Another great thing is you don't need much equipment just a body and a bar. Pull-ups are also great for fat loss workouts since they are metabolic and as you get leaner the more pull-ups you will be able to do.


SOME KEY TIPS

• Start in a dead hang and control the movement on the way up and down
• Keep your chest up and try to pull through your elbows thinking of your hands as just simply hooks. Aim to pull the bar toward your body.
• A proper pull-up finishes with the chest touching the bar
• Keep the glutes and abs tight

FOR BEGINNERS

If you struggle to do 2 or fewer pull-ups you would fall into this category. If this describes you then start off doing band-assisted pull-ups or negatives. Doing negatives in which you jump up to the top of the movement and then try to lower yourself slowly works great. Sometimes it is as simple as dropping some body fat and improving technique to improve performance.  


FOR MORE ADVANCED

You can add weight, switch up your grip or play with the speed of the movement. Keep the reps low and do them more often.


IDEAS FOR CHANGING IT UP

• Wide grip
• Narrow grip
• Slow count on the way up.....on the way down...or both
• Take a pause and hold at the top
• Do half reps-from the top let yourself come half way down and then go all the way back up, then finally going all the way back down to equal one rep.
• Super-set with another back exercise like one arm rows
• For fat loss- do burpees plus pull-ups
• Wrap towels around the bar to work grip 
• Use Rings or handles to make it more joint friendly

Below is one of my favorite back routines