3 Pull-Up Variations for a Bigger, Wider Back

Pull-ups should be part of every back-training program. Period.

From a functional perspective, pulling your own bodyweight up carries over into other gym lifts, real-world activities, and pretty much any sport. Pull-ups also promote better muscular balance and posture (since most people overuse the anterior pushing muscles of the chest and shoulders), not to mention grip strength. Upper body exercises don’t get more functional than this.

From a physique perspective, well, that’s simple: A wider, thicker back for a more dramatic V-taper. Pull-ups are as good as any exercise for developing the huge latissimus dorsi muscles (“lats” for short) as well as the rhomboids and middle traps. You’ll also get bigger biceps and forearms from doing pull-ups, particularly with certain variations (more on that in a minute).

The only problem with pull-ups is this: Not everyone can do them. It takes a baseline of upper body strength to be able to pull your body up to a bar for even one rep, let alone a set of 5 or 10 reps. If you’re lacking this strength, chances are you opt for lat pulldowns and assisted pull-ups on back day. Nothing wrong with that; in fact, JYM Athlete Kevin Lo shows you 5 great assisted pull-up variations in this video to help you work up to bodyweight (unassisted).

And that’s the end goal: To eventually leave assisted pull-ups behind (except maybe for certain high-rep back workouts) in favor of full-on bodyweight pull-ups. Below are three pull-up progressions that Lo, aka “The Pull-Up King,” recommends for taking your back training – and your V-taper – to the next level.

Degree of Difficulty: Easiest of the three.

With this pull-up variation, you’re holding onto the bar with a supinated (aka, reverse or underhand) grip, where your palms and forearms are facing toward you and your hands are no more than shoulder-width apart.

Because the forearms are supinated, the biceps are more heavily involved in the movement than with an overhand (pronated) grip. The lats and other back muscles (rhomboids, middle traps) are still working, but the greater involvement from the biceps will make the movement slightly easier than the other two variations.

Recommended Reps: Just because you can’t do a lot of reps (10 or more) doesn’t mean you’re not strong enough to do bodyweight pull-ups. If you can do at least 3-5 reps of reverse-grip pull-ups, says Lo, start with that and work your way up. In the context of a back workout, this could mean anywhere from 3-5 sets of 3-5 reps per set, with the goal of working up to 3 or 4 sets of 6-8 reps, then 8-10 reps, 10+, and so on.

Degree of Difficulty: Harder than reverse-grip, easier than wide-grip (overhand).

With this variation, you’re gripping parallel bars (which most gym pull-up stations provide) with your palms facing each other. Biomechanically, this hand position means slightly less involvement from the biceps but more activity from the smaller brachialis muscles that lie beneath the biceps. You’re also using more of the lats here.  

With the biceps taken out of the movement to an extent, you’ll find that neutral-grip pull-ups are a little more difficult than the reverse-grip variation. But you’re also getting more direct focus on the lats, and less on the biceps, which is good for anyone looking to prioritize back development.

Recommended Reps: Lo recommends working up to sets of 5-8 reps on neutral-grip pull-ups before moving onto the next progression.

Degree of Difficulty: Hardest of the three.

The wide-grip pull-up represents the most difficult variation of all. You’re grabbing the bar with an overhand grip, palms/forearms facing forward (pronated), and your hands outside of shoulder-width.

Because of the biomechanics involved here, the biceps and brachialis are far less involved than on the first two progressions, essentially placing maximum emphasis on the lats. With fewer muscles serving as prime movers, the exercise becomes more difficult. If maximizing lat growth and overall back width is your primary goal, the wide-grip pull-up is definitely a move you’ll want to include in your training on a regular basis.

As for grip width, the wider you go, the more difficult the exercise will be. Reason being, when you widen your hands, you further take the biceps out of the movement.  

Recommended Reps: The ultimate goal, says Lo, is to work up to where you’re doing sets in the “hypertrophy [muscle building] sweet spot” of 8-12 reps. With overhand pull-ups, start with your hands just outside shoulder-width, and at some point experiment with going an inch or two wider as you get stronger in the movement.