← EXERCISE LIBRARYCalisthenics
Negative Pull-Up
Jump or step to the top of a pull-up and lower as slowly as possible. Three sets of five lowers lasting five seconds each before you attempt a full unassisted rep.
- 01Set a box under the bar so you can step to a chin-over-bar position.
- 02Take an overhand grip just outside shoulder width and step off the box.
- 03Hold the top position with the chest near the bar and the shoulders down.
- 04Lower over five seconds, resisting through the whole range.
- 05Finish at a full straight-arm hang, then step back up and reset.
- 01Fight the whole way down, no free fall at the bottom.
- 02Chest stays proud, do not curl forward.
- 03Straight arms at the end of every rep.
- 01Dropping fast through the last third, which is exactly the range most people are weakest in and need the exposure.
- 02Stopping short of a full hang, which leaves the bottom of the pull-up untrained and stalls the first clean rep.
- 03Doing too many too soon, since heavy eccentrics leave the elbows and lats sore for days if the volume jumps.
Note: Reference material, not a prescription. Load, volume and whether this movement suits you at all depends on your assessment — if something hurts, stop and get it looked at.