June 11, 2018

Chin up vs Pull-up - Muscles Worked

The chin-up, pull-up, and all of their variations, will help you build muscle and improve your overall fitness. Every hanging exercise is beneficial, but certain hand grips will help target different muscles and may also provide more comfort depending on your shoulder mobility.

Hand Placement: Chin-up vs Pull-up

Chin-ups are performed with a supinated (underhand) grip with your palms facing you or facing each other (neutral-grip) and shoulder width apart.

Pull-ups are performed with a pronated grip (overhand) with your palms facing away from you with hands slightly wider than your shoulder distance apart.

Muscle Activation: Chin-up vs Pull-up

Although chin-ups and pull-ups are similar exercises, the modified grip results in the activation and targeting of different muscles.

Primary Muscles: Chin-up Latissimus Dorsi (back) Biceps (arms)	Primary Muscles: Pull-up Latissimus Dorsi (back) Lower & mid trapezius (upper back)
Secondary Muscles: Chin-up Pectorals (chest) Glutes (butt) Lower & mid trapezius (upper back) Infraspinatus (rear shoulder muscle) Rectus abdominis (core)	Secondary Muscles: Pull-up Infraspinatus (rear shoulder muscle) Glutes (butt) Lower & mid trapezius (upper back) Rectus abdominis (core)

We recommend starting off with the neutral grip (shoulder-width) versions of these exercises. Modifying your grip by widening it, will work more of the muscles closer to the centre of your back (ie. Trapezius muscles and rhomboids) and give you more of that body builder v-shape. Narrowing the grip will target your latissimus dorsi muscles to a greater degree.

**Please note, variations can also put more stress on your shoulders and elbows and should be done with caution.

Shoulder Movement: Chin-up vs Pull-up

Despite working similar muscles, there is a distinct difference in how your shoulders and elbows should move during these exercises.

Shoulder Movement: Chin-up

For a chin-up exercise you will use shoulder extension, where the elbows come down and back from the front.

Shoulder Movement: Pull-up

During a pull-up, you will use shoulder adduction, where the elbows come down and back from the sides towards your centre line.

These exercises require strength in our muscle groups that are often underdeveloped, especially for runners. When performed using proper form, chin-ups and pull-ups can be a very functional part of your fitness routine.

If you would like to learn more about the proper form and tips to avoid injuries while performing these exercises, see our other blog post below.