“The Chin-Up Is King For Back Exercise But Here’s A Highly Effective Abdominal Exercise As Well…”
So, of course, I’ve decided to take that aspect of the chin-up to the next level by adding weight…
In this case, you’ll be performing a chin-up with knees and hips bent 90 degrees…
The bar cradled in the “bend” of your hips to add resistance to the abdominal aspect of the exercise.
You’ll need to be strong enough to perform weighted chin-ups with at least 50 to 60 pounds or more in order to use this one…
It will put AMAZING tension on the Rectus Abdominis (six-pack ab muscles) as you’re performing the exercise.
There is some minor loading on hip flexors although not as much as you might think…
The setup requires a power rack with a chin-up bar attachment (the easiest way to go).
If you don’t have that, you can also set another bar on the J hooks or on top of rack itself to get setup right.
And if you still don’t have any of the above, you can potentially have a partner set bar in position for you.
Set safety rails in power-rack to about mid-section height (although this may vary according to height of rack).
You’ll need to play with settings to get the best setup for YOU.
Grip the bar for chins.
Now do a knee raise and “catch”/cradle the bar right in the bend of the hips.
The height of rails has to be maintain your hips bent at 90 degrees at catch point.
This is in order for the bar to stay in place and not roll forward.
For me, I found catching it about 1/4 of the way up into the movement was ideal.
You can try catching it higher or lower to see you find works best.
Now, with the extra loading, continue the chin-up all the way to the top…
Keep your hips and knees bent to keep the bar cradled.
When doing this one, I prefer to cross my feet over.
I find it locks in my core better and I get a better pull…
And it’s not wrong to keep feet freely moving or pressed together as well.
As long as you maintain the hip and knee bend.
The moment you pick up the bar in your hips…
You will notice a MASSIVE jump in tension in your six-pack abs!
It is a very intense exercise and even if you’re strong with chins.
It’ll be a challenge even to get more than just a few reps.
This is an excellent exercise for the back, in addition to the abs.
I would recommend you perform it early in your back workout.
Do this abdominal exercise while everything is relatively fresh and strong…
So you’re able to maximize the number of reps you get.
Aim for 2-3 sets of as many reps as you can handle.
Chin up Variations
By Nick Nilsson
Flying in the face of conventional wisdom, Nick Nilsson is known around the world as the “Mad Scientist of Muscle” for a reason. Nine-time published author and fitness expert Nick Nilsson enters his lab every day with one obsession to experiment with and deliver something better, the kind of mind-blowing, extraordinary resistance training exercises that get results FAST.
An expert in kinesiology, physiology and anatomy, Nick’s driving passion is helping people create the body they want, especially when nothing else seems to do the trick.
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Chin up Variations