General Form Cues
- Body slightly hollow with straight legs throughout the whole exercise. Don't cross your legs.
- If you cannot get straight legs, it's preferable to keep the feet in front of the body rather than behind.
- Arms straight at the bottom. Don't think about anything else, just straight arms. The rest will happen automatically.
- Strive for chest to bar at the top. For this the forearms have to deviate from vertical, which may be a bit hard on the elbows, so build up to it slowly.
- Keep the neck in a neutral position: avoid craning it to get your chin over the bar
- It's natural for your legs to come forward: this keeps your centre of mass under the bar. Just make sure you're not violently swinging them upwards.
Recommended Progression
- Elbows should stay straight
- Your back will arch more as you get stronger
- These should be performed with a pause at the "top". Squeeze your shoulders, hold it for 3-5s then release into a dead hang under control
- If you can't pull out of the dead hang at all, consider using bands or your feet to assist you until the gain the necessary strength.
- Elbows should stay straight
- Hold it for time/reps
- Start at this level
- Progress towards a 90 degree in your shoulder. Like this