Neutral Grip Pull-Up
The neutral-grip pull-up is a pull-up on parallel handles with your palms facing each other. It works the lats as the main mover, places more of the elbow work on the brachialis and brachioradialis than an overhand grip, and is the grip in which many lifters are strongest.
Also called: Parallel Grip Pull-Up, Hammer Grip Pull-Up, Neutral-Grip Pullup, Palms-Facing Pull-Up · Equipment: bodyweight · Pattern: pull
Step by step
- Grip the parallel handles with your palms facing each other, hands about shoulder-width apart and thumbs wrapped.
- Hang with straight arms, brace your abs and keep your legs together and still.
- Start each rep by drawing your shoulder blades down, before your elbows bend.
- Pull your elbows down towards your hips, keeping them close to your sides, and lead with your chest until your chin clears the handles.
- Pause briefly at the top with your shoulder blades drawn down and back.
- Come down under control to a full hang with straight elbows, keeping your shoulders set rather than letting them ride up.
- Shoulder blades down, then pull
- Elbows down to your hips
- Chest up to the handles
- Brief squeeze at the top
- Full hang at the bottom of every rep
In VALDA, these cues are one tap away on the exercise while you train.
What it trains
| Muscle | Role | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Latissimus dorsi | Prime mover | C |
| Brachioradialis | Prime mover | C |
| Brachialis | Prime mover | C |
| Biceps brachii | Secondary | C |
| Trapezius: lower | Secondary | C |
| Teres major | Secondary | C |
| Rhomboids | Secondary | C |
| Pectoralis major: sternocostal (mid) | Secondary | C |
| Forearm flexors | Stabiliser | C |
| Rotator cuff | Stabiliser | C |
| Rectus abdominis | Stabiliser | C |
Evidence grades: A = strong research base · B = good · C = limited · D = coaching consensus.
What goes wrong, and the fix
Shrugging into a passive hang
Fix: Draw your shoulder blades down before your elbows bend on every rep.
Elbows flaring wide
Fix: Keep your elbows close to your sides as they drive down towards your hips.
Half reps
Fix: Start each rep from straight elbows and finish with your chin over the handles.
Kipping or swinging the legs
Fix: Brace your abs, keep your legs still and pause briefly in the hang.
Craning the neck to reach the handles
Fix: Keep your neck neutral and pull your chest up towards the handles.
What the research says
Strength · first choiceGeneral fitness · first choiceSport performance · first choiceMuscle growthRehab & prehabEndurance
- Load by goal — Research comparing loads finds maximal strength favours heavier loads (about 8 reps or fewer per set), while muscle growth is similar across a wide range of loads when sets are taken close to failure. Added weight or band assistance keeps pull-ups in a target rep range.
- Effort — Studies show sets that finish a few reps short of failure capture most of the size and strength benefit, and that true failure adds only a small extra return.
- Grip — EMG research comparing overhand, underhand, neutral and rope pull-ups found broadly similar activation across grips, with the overhand grip activating the middle trapezius more than the neutral grip. No study has compared long-term growth between grips.
- Volume and frequency — Research links more weekly sets for a muscle to more growth, with diminishing returns. Training the back about twice a week is a common way to spread that volume.
- Placement — Research on exercise order finds the exercise done first in a session tends to show the larger strength gain, so pull-ups are commonly placed early in a pulling session.
Swap it mid-workout
With VALDA Pro, FLEX offers alternatives like these when you swap an exercise mid-workout.
Log the neutral grip pull-up in VALDA, with these cues one tap away while you train and your history for it in one place.
General information about exercise technique, not medical advice. If you have an injury or a health condition, your healthcare provider is the right person to ask.