Weights That Prepare for Chin-Ups

Chin-ups are challenging for most because they require you to be able to lift your entire body weight. How difficult they are depends on a few factors, including your strength and how much you weigh. There are a variety of exercises you can incorporate into your workout that will help you build up the strength so that you’ll eventually be able to do chin-ups. Do them two to three days per week and on non-consecutive days.

  1. Muscles for Chin-ups

    • The chin-up is a compound exercise that involves movement around multiple joints and thus requires the contribution from several muscles. According to ExRx.net, the muscle that handles most of the load is your latissimus dorsi, which is the largest muscle in your back and responsible for driving your upper arms down into the sides of your torso. Also assisting are your trapezius, pectoralis major and minor, rhomboids, teres major and posterior deltoids, which help control movements at the shoulders and scapulas. Your brachialis and brachioradialis muscles in your arms are recruited to bend your elbows as you pull your body up toward the bar.

    Training with a Pulley

    • You can train the same collection of muscles by using the lat pulldown cable pulley unit. Grip the wide bar with your hands set to shoulder-width apart and your palms facing you. Sit at the unit and place your thighs under the leg pads with your feet flat on the floor. Pull the bar down to your upper chest and then extend your arms to return the bar to starting position. Complete three sets of six reps, while using a weight that makes finishing each set challenging.

    Rowing your Body Weight

    • The underhand inverted row requires you to lift your body weight, but not your full load. Lock a horizontal bar onto a squat rack so that it’s at about waist height. Lie on the floor underneath the bar. Reach up and grip the bar with your hands set to shoulder-width and palms facing you. Lift your hips off the floor so that you’re creating a straight line throughout your torso and legs. Keeping your body straight, pull your torso up toward the bar and then slowly extend your arms to lower your body back to the starting position. Perform three sets, with each set performed to muscular failure.

    Chin-ups with Help

    • Most gyms offer an assisted pullup machine that allows you to practice chin-ups without having to lift your entire body weight. When you select a weight on the machine, that weight is subtracted from what you have to lift. Grip the overhead bar with your hands set to shoulder-width apart and your palms facing you. Kneel on the platform, which slides up and down. Pull your body up until your chin is over the bar and then lower down by slowly extending your arms. Complete three sets of six. Set the weight on the machine appropriately to make finishing six reps difficult.