Wide-Grip Pull-Up

PullBarBW

Pull-up performed with hands significantly wider than shoulder width. Shortens the range of motion and biases the outer lats and teres major/minor, at some cost to biceps leverage and total load capacity.

Demo: Athlean-X

Sets

3

Reps

5-8

Rest

1:30

Contraindications

Shoulder impingement history — excessively wide grips increase anterior shoulder stress; use neutral grip instead if symptomatic.

Setup

Grip the bar well outside shoulder width, palms forward, full dead hang.

Execution

  1. 1Depress shoulder blades hard before pulling — wide grip reduces leverage
  2. 2Pull elbows down and slightly out to the sides
  3. 3Bring the upper chest toward the bar, not the chin only
  4. 4Lower with control to a full hang

Key cues

  • Wide grip, shorter range — don't fake extra ROM
  • Drive elbows to the floor
  • Chest up and proud through the pull
  • Resist the urge to kip to compensate for reduced leverage

Common faults

  • Excessive kipping to make up for reduced mechanical advantage
  • Rounding the shoulders forward at the top
  • Not controlling the eccentric
  • Using an unnecessarily wide grip that increases shoulder strain without added benefit

Tweaks

  • Alternate wide and shoulder-width grip across sets
  • Add a fat-bar or towel grip for additional forearm demand
  • Pause 1-2s at top

Regressions

Dead-Hang Pull-UpBand-Assisted Pull-Up

Progressions

Archer Pull-Up

Muscles

Primary: Latissimus Dorsi, Teres Major

Secondary: Rhomboids, Biceps Brachii, Forearms

Notes

Barbell Medicine notes grip-width differences are generally smaller in practice than commonly believed — prioritize consistent, repeatable execution over chasing a 'perfect' width.

Sources

Attribution: Athlean-X / Jeff Cavaliere