Am I Doing Pull-Ups Wrong? — Key Takeaways
Assess your pull-up asymmetry with a wall slide — if you can't rotate outward, strengthen your external rotators; if you can't pinch your shoulder blades back, strengthen scap retractors with band pull-aparts, prone tees, and bent-over tees.
Key takeaways
Use wall slides to diagnose asymmetric pull-up elbow positioning
Use wall slides to diagnose asymmetric pull-up elbow positioning
- Inability to keep forearms/wrists on wall without shoulder cramp signals weak external rotators
- Failure to pinch shoulder blades in that position indicates weak scap retractors on that side
Breathe out on the easy part, hold breath through the hard part
Breathe out on the easy part, hold breath through the hard part
- Valsalva maneuver during hard phase increases intra-abdominal pressure and whole-body strength
- Don't overthink eccentric vs concentric breathing — just hold hard, exhale when you can
Hunching forward at pull-up top indicates thoracic mobility deficit
Hunching forward at pull-up top indicates thoracic mobility deficit
- Add thoracic mobility and strengthening work to address forward hunch at top position
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In this video
- 1mAssessing Pull-Up Asymmetry
- 1mDiagnosing the Limitation
- 1mCorrective Strengthening
- 2mBreathing During Exercise
- 3mFree Workout Offer
“You should not be thinking about your breathing during an exercise because it should come quite naturally.”
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