Side To Side Chins
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General info
How to perform exercise
- Grab the pull-up bar with the palms facing forward using a wide grip.
- As you have both arms extended in front of you holding the bar at a wide grip, bring your torso back around 30 degrees or so while creating a curvature on your lower back and sticking your chest out. This is your starting position.
- Pull your torso up while leaning to the left hand side until the bar almost touches your upper chest by drawing the shoulders and the upper arms down and back. Exhale as you perform this portion of the movement. Tip: Concentrate on squeezing the back muscles once you reach the full contracted position. The upper torso should remain stationary as it moves through space (no swinging) and only the arms should move. The forearms should do no other work other than hold the bar.
- After a second of contraction, inhale as you go back to the starting position.
- Now, pull your torso up while leaning to the right hand side until the bar almost touches your upper chest by drawing the shoulders and the upper arms down and back. Exhale as you perform this portion of the movement. Tip: Concentrate on squeezing the back muscles once you reach the full contracted position. The upper torso should remain stationary as it moves through space and only the arms should move. The forearms should do no other work other than hold the bar.
- After a second of contraction, inhale as you go back to the starting position.
- Repeat steps 3-6 until you have performed the prescribed amount of repetitions for each side.
Caution: If you are new to this exercise and do not have the strength to perform it, using a spotter to hold your legs can help being that it requires putting a lot of stress on the rotator cuffs. Alternatively you can also use a chin assist machine.
Variations: If you have developed enough strength to perform this exercise with weights, do so with caution. Side to side chins can be a challenging exercise and if not performed correctly, can cause injury. Before attempting to use weights, make sure you are able to perform the exercise with good form.
You can also perform the side to side chins by doing all reps to one side and then the next or by also including the middle movement as well (in which case you would pull up first to the left hand side, then the middle and then the right side).
You can use a chin assist machine if you do not have the strength to perform the exercise on your own.
Photos of the correct technique
What muscles work?
If the correct technique is followed, the following muscle groups work: Lats, and auxiliary muscles: Shoulders, Forearm, Biceps, Traps
Weight and number of repetitions
The number of repetitions and working weight depends on your goal and other parameters. But the general recommendations can be presented in the form of a table:
| Goal | Sets | Reps | Weight, %1Rm | Rest between sets |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Strength | 2-6 | 1-5 reps | 100-85% | 3-7 min |
| Mass gain | 3-6 | 6-12 reps | 85-60% | 1-4 min |
| Fat burning | 2-4 | 13-25 reps | 60-40% | 1-2 min |
In order to make the training more diverse and effective you have to change the number of repetitions and the working weight. It is important not to go beyond certain values!
*Specify the weight and the maximum number of repetitions that you can perform with this weight.
Best workout routines with this exercise
These programs with this exercise «Side To Side Chins » are among the best rated by athletes.
Exercise substitutions
Workouts with «Side To Side Chins »
