5 Exercises To Help The Advanced Excel At Pull-Ups

Can you already perform pull-ups and are looking to improve your pull-up form, your current PR for reps, and your weight used during weighted pull-ups? Do you want to learn more advanced pull-up variations? Or are you a coach who works with advanced clients? If so, this feature will really help.

This week I’m sharing 5 exercises that will help the advanced excel at performing pull-ups. These exercises will help address many of the key components of pull-ups, including pull-up specific technique, lumbo-pelvic stability (many of you might better understand “core stability”), shoulder and scapular controlled mobility, grip strength, and upper body strength.

#1) Advanced Re-Grip Iso Pull-Ups

When it comes to performing pull-ups, having a strong and sustainable grip is imperative. I got this awesome exercise (and the name) from coach Luka Hocevar. This exercise improves grip strength, strengthens the lats, improves shoulder and scapular controlled mobility, and lumbo-pelvic stability. Really, this exercise does it all!

Coaching Tips:

You may start so your palms are facing away from you (pronated), or are facing you (supinated). Adopt your preferred hand width and positioning.
Adopt a hollow body position. Straighten your knees, contract your quads, and dorsiflex your feet (you may cross one foot over the other).
Before you go, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine), tuck your ribs towards your hips (close the space in your midsection), squeeze your glutes, This will help stabilize your pelvis, spine, and legs, and will help prevent you from swinging.
Initiate the movement by using the muscles in your mid and upper back and draw your shoulder blades together and down (bring each shoulder blade in towards the spine and down towards the opposite hip), perform either a pull-up or chin-up, and bring your body up so your elbows form roughly a 90% angle. Maintain this position for the duration of the exercise.
While maintaining this elbow angle and body position, use one hand at a time, and switch your grip. So if you start out using a supinated grip, switch to a pronated grip, and vice versa. Keep doing so for the target number of reps.
For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, ribcage to flare, or torso, spine or hips to rotate. Maintain the pull-up specific body positioning I described above. This will be challenging.
In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.

#2) Hollow Body Hold + Band Resisted Dowel Presses⁣⁣ ⁣⁣

This hollow body hold, which is significantly more challenging than it looks, improves lumbo-pelvic stability, and shoulder and scapular controlled mobility. The overhead position during the dowel presses mimics the overhead position during pull-ups.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣

Coaching Tips:

Loop a resistance band around a secure surface and slide the dowel through the band. There should be tension in the band for 100% of the exercise.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣
⁣Grab onto the dowel, and adopt your preferred hand width. Aim to use a similar width as you would during pull-ups.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣
⁣Lie on the floor. Lift up your legs so they are in a vertical position, fully extend your knees, point your feet towards you (dorsiflex).⁣⁣ ⁣⁣
⁣⁣Keep your neck in a neutral position, chin tucked, and tuck your ribs towards your hips (close the space in your midsection).⁣⁣ ⁣⁣
⁣⁣Before you go, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), and contract your anterior core muscles.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣
⁣Now slowly lower your legs towards the ground, and to a range where you are able to maintain proper form (and feel your anterior core muscles). Maintain this position for the duration of the exercise.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣
⁣While keeping your body in a fixed position, perform overhead presses with the dowel.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣
⁣For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, ribcage to flare, torso, spine or hips to rotate, or pelvis to move. Your torso and hips should remain square to the ceiling.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣
⁣⁣If elevating your head bothers your neck, you may rest your head on a yoga block, or on the floor.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣
In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you. ⁣⁣

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#3) Overhead Barbell Hold + Hanging Kettlebells

This exercise improves shoulder and scapular stability, lumbo-pelvic stability, and grip strength.

Coaching Tips:

Hang a band around either end of a barbell, and attach a kettlebell to each band.⁣⁣
You can set the barbell up so it’s already at overhead height and so no press is required, at overhead pressing height, or on the floor. No matter what you choose, be sure to get the barbell into the starting position using correct form.
Get into a tall kneeling stance. Your head, torso and hips should be in a stacked position.
⁣⁣Before you go, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine), tuck your ribs towards your hips (close the space in your midsection), and squeeze your glutes. ⁣⁣
⁣⁣Press the barbell into an overhead position. Once you are in the overhead position, your shoulders and shoulder blades should remain in a fixed position. ⁣⁣
⁣⁣Keep the barbell over your head. It should not drift ahead or behind of your body.⁣⁣
Keep your wrists in a neutral position.
⁣⁣Now hold for the target length of time.
⁣⁣For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your lower back to hyperextend or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, or torso, spine or hips to rotate.⁣⁣
⁣⁣In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you. ⁣⁣Keep your core muscles braced, and glutes engaged.

#4) Advanced Negative Pull-Ups

This advanced pull-up variation involves performing the regular concentric component of the exercise, but then taking 3-5 seconds to perform the lowering component.

Coaching Tips:

Place your hands so they are facing away from you (pronated), and adopt your preferred hand width.
Adopt a hollow body position. Straighten your knees, contract your quads, and dorsiflex your feet (you may cross one foot over the other).
Before you start, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine), tuck your ribs towards your hips (close the space in your midsection), squeeze your glutes, straighten your knees, contract your quads, and dorsiflex your feet (you may cross one foot over the other). This will help stabilize your pelvis, spine, and legs, and will help prevent you from swinging.
Initiate the movement by using the muscles in your mid and upper back and draw your shoulder blades together and down (bring each shoulder blade in towards the spine and down towards the opposite hip), and drive your elbows in towards your sides and down towards the floor so you are in the top position of the pull-up. Do not initiate the movement with your arms.
In the top position, do not allow your elbows to flare. They should remain at approximately a 45 degree angle with your torso, similar to the bottom position of an overhead press.
Make sure that your chin passes the bar, but do not look up and reach with your chin.
Take 3-5 seconds and lower yourself to the bottom position with control. During the lowering/eccentric component, do not keep your shoulder blades pinned. They are meant to move, and should perform the reverse movements as they did during the ascending/concentric component.
In the bottom position, your elbows should be close to fully extended, but not hyperextended.
For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, ribcage to flare, or torso, spine or hips to rotate. Maintain the pull-up specific body positioning I described above.
In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you. I prefer to exhale just after I have initiated the “pull,” and will inhale and “reset” as I am descending. You may also do a full reset when you are in the bottom position.

#5) Single Leg Band Resisted Hip Thrusts

You might ask why I am including a glute exercise in this article? Well, in order to perform pull-ups as efficiently and effectively as possible, you need to be able to keep your lumbo-pelvic region in a relatively fixed position. This will help prevent you from pulling needless deadweight, from swinging, and will help keep your path to the bar as short and efficient as possible. People might scoff at this exercise, but it is significantly tougher than it looks.

Coaching Tips:

Set yourself up so your shoulder blade/upper back area is positioned on a bench.
Place a resistance band under your midfoot and over your knee. There should be tension in the band for 100% of the movement.
Place your shin in a relatively vertical position or else your hamstrings might take over. Make sure your knee is in line with your foot.
Before you go, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine), and tuck your ribs towards your hips (close the space in your midsection).
Now lower your hips to a range where you can maintain proper form, and return to the top position by driving through the mid to back of your foot (you can pick up your forefoot if this works best), and squeezing your glutes, NOT by arching your lower back and flaring your ribcage. This is extremely important. In the top position, your body should form a straight line from your shoulders to knee.
When you get to the top position, hold for a count or more and really squeeze your glutes.
For the duration of the movement, your non-working leg should remain in a fixed position, and should not provide ANY assistance.
For the duration of the movement, your head, torso, and hips should remain in a stacked position, and should move as a single unit. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend or round, ribcage to flare, or torso, spine or hips to rotate.
Be sure to engage both the core muscles and glutes on the non-working side. This will help keep your body square, and moving as a single unit.
Do not allow your knee to fall inside or outside of your foot.
In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.