Pull-up

Quality 0.50 · 1 view · Updated 2 months ago

Upper-body compound pulling exercise

title: "Pull-up" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["bodyweight-exercises", "sports-biomechanics", "articles-containing-video-clips"] description: "Upper-body compound pulling exercise" topic_path: "sports" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pull-up" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Upper-body compound pulling exercise ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/67/Marine_Pull-ups.jpg" caption="A U.S. marine performing a pull-up"] ::

A pull-up is an upper-body strength exercise. The pull-up is a closed-chain movement where the body is suspended by the hands, gripping a bar or other implement at a distance typically wider than shoulder-width, and pulled up. As this happens, the elbows flex and the shoulders adduct and extend to bring the elbows to the torso.

Pull-ups build up several muscles of the upper body, including the latissimus dorsi, trapezius, and biceps brachii. A pull-up may be performed with overhand (pronated), underhand (supinated)—sometimes referred to as a chin-up—neutral, or rotating hand position.

Pull-ups are used by some organizations as a component of fitness tests, and as a conditioning activity for some sports.

Movement

Beginning by hanging from the bar, the body is pulled up vertically. From the top position, the participant lowers their body until the arms and shoulders are fully extended. The end range of motion at the top end may be chin over bar or higher, such as chest to bar.

Pull-ups are a closed-chain, compound movement involving flexion at the elbow and adduction or extension of the shoulder joint. The trapezius, infraspinatus, and brachialis muscles are most active at the beginning of the pull-up; the latissimus dorsi, teres major, and biceps brachii reach peak activity during the middle of the movement, and the triceps brachii and subscapularis experienced maximum activity at the top of the movement. There is similarity to the pull-down in terms of the muscle activation.

A 2017 study found that pronated grip activated the middle trapezius more than the neutral grip, but that overall the muscle activation of different grip variants was similar. Muscle activation is significantly different depending on whether the pull-up is completed individually or in a set without resting between repetitions, which is more efficient due to muscle and tendon stretch-shortening rebound.

Overhead movements such as pull-ups reduce the subacromial space and create a risk of shoulder impingement. According to one study, the pronated grip pull-up with hands at shoulder width apart led to less risk of impingement than other variations studied.

Variations

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fc/Navy-seal-buds-training-pull-ups.ogv" caption="Pull-up techniques"] ::

Pull-ups can be done with a supinated, neutral, or pronated grip; devices allow the grip to rotate during the pull-up. The pull-up performed with a supinated grip is sometimes called a chin-up.

::data[format=table]

Name	Description	Picture
Standard		[[File:Pullup.gif
Weighted	To increase the difficulty, weights are added using a dip belt, weight vest, or other means.	[[File:Weighted, wide-grip pullup video.gif
One arm	A one arm pull-up is performed by using only one arm to lift the body; another variation is using only one finger.	[[File:Onearmpullup.gif
Kipping	An easier version in which momentum is built by adding a glide kip swing. Kipping pull-ups have lower muscle activation in the upper body but greater activation in the lower body and core; it is possible to perform them faster and complete more repetitions before encountering upper-body fatigue. Kipping pull-ups are considered high risk for injury and are a major cause of shoulder injury in CrossFit athletes.
Muscle-up	A pull-up that transitions to a dip; it is more difficult than a pull-up and requires significant strength and technique to execute. Originating in gymnastics, it is also popular in CrossFit where it may be performed with kipping.	[[File:Muscle-up.gif
Assisted	last1=Johnson	first1=Doug
Eccentric	Beginning from the top position of the pull-up, the participant gradually lowers themselves into the dead hang position. This can be used as a progression to performing a standard pull-up.
::

Equipment

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/Horní_pozice_shybu_(cropped).jpg" caption="Performing a pull-up using a [[joist"] ::

Pull-ups are commonly performed using a bar; doorway mounted bars are sold for use in in-home gyms. They can also be completed by grasping towels,

Use

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/53/USMC-120412-M-UY543-003.jpg" caption="[[31st Marine Expeditionary Unit]] members in a team pull-up competition."] ::

Pull-ups are a common way to measure upper body strength, endurance, and strength-to-weight ratio. The strength to do a pull-up is correlated with job-related tasks in some careers such as firefighting, police, and military.

Pull-ups are used as a conditioning activity for many sports, especially those that require pulling strength, including rock climbing, gymnastics, rope climbing, rowing, and swimming. They are also used by police and military to increase muscular strength among their members.

Some organizations have allowed women to use a flexed arm hang as a substitute for a pull up in fitness tests after discovering that few female recruits could complete a pull-up. According to a 2003 study in college-age women, one third of participants were able to complete a pull-up after a twelve-week full-body strength training program.

Guinness World Records

The Guinness World Record for the most consecutive pull-ups was set by Japan Coast Guard diver Kenta Adachi in 2022 with 651 pull-ups, taking 87 minutes. In 2024 he improved his record to 1224 pull-ups. The rule was that one pull-up has to be done every 15 seconds. The world record for pull-ups with no breaks is 88, held by Joonas Mäkipelto. The Guinness World Record for the maximum amount of weight added to a weighted pull-up was set by David Marchante of Spain in 2016, with 104.55 kg.

References

(2015). "Reliability of pull up and dip maximal strength tests". Journal of Australian Strength and Conditioning.
(2019). "ESSA's Student Manual for Exercise Prescription, Delivery and Adherence- eBook". Elsevier Health Sciences.
(2017). "Electromyographic analysis of muscle activation during pull-up variations". Journal of Electromyography and Kinesiology.
(2022). "Pull-up forms of completion impacts deeply the muscular and articular involvements". Science & Sports.
(2016). "Scapula kinematics of pull-up techniques: Avoiding impingement risk with training changes". Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport.
(22 February 2021). "The Best Pull-Up Bars". The New York Times.
(2010). "Surface Electromyographic Activation Patterns and Elbow Joint Motion During a Pull-Up, Chin-Up, or Perfect-Pullup™ Rotational Exercise". The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research.
(2014). "The Pull-up". Strength & Conditioning Journal.
(2021). "Effect of the Pronated Pull-Up Grip Width on Performance and Power-Force-Velocity Profile". Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport.
Miller, Delaney. (19 September 2022). "How to do a One-Arm Pull-Up". [[Climbing (magazine).
(7 December 2011). "Magnus Midtboe's Training: One-finger Pull-ups". Climbing.
(2019). "Alterations in kinematics and muscle activation patterns with the addition of a kipping action during a pull-up activity". Sports Biomechanics.
(2022). "Upper Extremity Injuries in CrossFit Athletes—a Review of the Current Literature". Current Reviews in Musculoskeletal Medicine.
(2013). "Proceedings of the ASME 2013 International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition. Volume 3A: Biomedical and Biotechnology Engineering".
(2015). "Traumatic Tear of the Latissimus Dorsi Myotendinous Junction: Case Report of a CrossFit-Related Injury". Sports Health: A Multidisciplinary Approach.
(2017). "Comparison of Muscle Activity During a Ring Muscle Up and Bar Muscle Up". International Journal of Exercise Science: Conference Proceedings.
(2009). "Relationship of Lat-Pull Repetitions and Pull-Ups to Maximal Lat-Pull and Pull-Up Strength in Men and Women". The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research.
(2017). "Electromyographical Comparison of a Traditional, Suspension Device, and Towel Pull-Up". Journal of Human Kinetics.
(2020). "Avoiding high-risk rotator cuff loading: Muscle force during three pull-up techniques". Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports.
(2003). "Training College-Age Women to Perform the Pull-Up Exercise". Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport.
(28 May 2022). "Coast Guard diver sets Guinness Record for consecutive pull-ups". japannews.yomiuri.co.jp.
(4 March 2022). "Most consecutive pull ups".
"World record in the pull-up repetitions".
"Heaviest weighted pull up (male)".
(12 March 2020). "Watch These Guys Try to Break the Unofficial Weighted Pull-Up World Record". Yahoo News.

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::