Towel Pull-Up

The towel pull-up is an intermediate variation of the pull-up where you grip a towel draped over the bar instead of the bar itself. It trains your grip and lats as the main targets, with your biceps and forearms helping out.

Drape a sturdy towel over a pull-up bar so both ends hang down evenly. Grip each end with your hands about shoulder-width apart, palms facing each other or slightly turned inward. Start in a dead hang with your arms fully straight, shoulders set, and feet off the floor.

Crush the towel like a collar grip so it cannot slip. Initiate the pull by driving your elbows down and in toward your ribs. Pull your chin above the bar, then lower yourself under control until your arms are fully straight again.

Take a breath in and brace your midsection before each rep; exhale as you pull up. To make it easier, loop a resistance band under one foot for assistance or simply hang from the towel for time. To make it harder, slow down the lowering phase or grip the towel with fewer fingers.

Fault: The towel slides or your hands ride up toward the bar. Fix: Grip the lower ends of the towel tightly and crush the towel like a collar grip so your hands stay fixed throughout the set.

Fault: Your elbows flare out and your shoulders shrug toward your ears. Fix: Pull elbows down and in, and keep your shoulders away from your ears on every rep.

Fault: You swing or kip to get over the bar. Fix: Keep your body still, legs straight or knees bent in front of you, and pull only with your arms and back.