Thread: chinups versus pullups

the chin ups when done close griped you work more oyur biceps than your bac, when you do wide griped pull ups you are working more your back , it also depends how you do the pull ups, it can be done in 2 different ways.

With a supinated close grip, you are simply putting your biceps in a stronger position. Wide gripped pullups make the exercise more akward. I can use more weight and more reps with my biceps in the strongest position, so my back also benefits.

I am not capable of doing wide chinups because mine bar is in a doorway. However, based on the comments of others, I believe using a wider grip requires greater lat strength.

For whatever it's worth, I am also able to use greater weight and/or do more repititions with a supinated grip.

so wide grip pullups would be best for back/lats?

yeah

Originally Posted by wilwn

so wide grip pullups would be best for back/lats?

Wide grip rules for lats and back. It broadens your back too.
Narrow grip supinated for biceps.

Try both. Wide grip for your first sets and then finish with supinated.

I am not clear - why are wide grips better for the back?

I don't like either, at all, personally. For me, rows.

They make up my entire lat program

It has to do with shoulder placement and plane of motion.

Chinups- sagital plane (shoulder extension)
wide grip pull ups- frontal plane (shoulder adduction)

The lats are large, "fan shaped", muscles which pull in a variety of angles so be sure that you are strong in all planes of motion. Also, with chiups, because you are getting more scapular adduction (where as with wide grips you are getting scapular internal rotation) you are going to work your rhomboids and rear delts a little more. And as stated before your biceps are in a much greater position to apply force. They are also used on wide grip pull ups as well however. Basically if you aren't depressing your scapula before you pull then you are using mostly your arms. You need to make sure you aren't shruging while you do the pull ups as this fixes the scapula and will not allow you to recruit your lats, rear delts and rhomboids to their maximum potential.

Thanks P.

Is there any reason to not keep your palms supinated? Wide, narrow, etcetera, wouldn't it be best to keep them in the strongest position as the weakest link in the chain? Or is that logic flawed?

Originally Posted by Duncans Donuts

Thanks P.

Is there any reason to not keep your palms supinated? Wide, narrow, etcetera, wouldn't it be best to keep them in the strongest position as the weakest link in the chain? Or is that logic flawed?

I wouldn't keep them supinated all the time for a few reasons:

1) if you are strongest in that position because you are recruiting more biceps (able to achive for elbow flexion) then why not work on your weaker points. it would be the same as saying, why would i ever do hammer curls or reverse curls?

2) when pronated you will get some extra work on your grip as it is much harder (for most people) to hang on in this position.

3) when supinated you are placing the shoulder in external rotation. So, you are recruiting your external rotators to do more work (rear delts, teres minor, infraspinatus). This is great but also when you are pronated you are placing your shoulder in internal rotation, the lats are an internal rotator, so it is just a different variation to work with. basically what it comes down to is just what is working around the shoulder joint and the shoulder girdle in these two positions.

In laymans, when i do wide-grip i find i use more middle back muscles (traps, rhomboids, teres) than if i were to do close-grip.

My lats aren't a weak bodypart, so i do all my rowing/pulling with a wider grip. For now, at least.

Dang P Funk,

I was just taught that it was better on wide grip. I never new all of that other stuff (planes and adductors etc). Thanks for all of the info.