Back · Pulldown and pull-up
Band-Assisted Chin-Up
The Band-Assisted Chin-Up mainly trains your lats and biceps. Also working: upper back and forearms.
Bodyweight with cable assist
Pull-up bar
Pull-up assist band
Stable
How to do it
- Clip the assist band to both top cables, underhand grip, knees or feet in the band
- Start from a dead hang, shoulder blades down
- Pull your elbows down in front of your body, chin over the bar
- Lower under control to just short of full extension
Coach’s tip
With an underhand grip your biceps help out: this is often how the first unassisted pull-up happens. The pinned weight is your assistance: less weight means harder. Don’t drop into full extension at the bottom; your elbows won’t like it.
Noticeably loads the elbow. If you tell DCFT that this joint bothers you, the app leaves exercises like this one out and picks a better supported alternative.
Setup
Pulley
Both pulleys at the top, assist band between them
Grip
Feet on the band, underhand grip
Load
Bodyweight with cable assist
Needs two cable towers
You need
Pull-up bar, Pull-up assist band
Stability
A bench, the floor or the frame takes the counterforce, or the cable pulls straight up or down. Good for heavy sets.
Alternatives
Other exercises for the same movement (pulldown and pull-up). In DCFT you can swap with one tap, and the app only offers what your equipment allows.
Questions about this exercise
What muscles does the Band-Assisted Chin-Up work?
Mainly the lats and biceps. The upper back and forearms help.
How do I set up the cable machine for the Band-Assisted Chin-Up?
Pulley: Both pulleys at the top, assist band between them. Grip: Feet on the band, underhand grip. You also need: Pull-up bar, Pull-up assist band.
Can I do the Band-Assisted Chin-Up on a single cable tower?
Not like this. The Band-Assisted Chin-Up needs both cables at once, so two towers. If you set up DCFT for one tower, the app leaves it out of your plan and uses exercises such as Pull-Up and One-Cable Wide-Grip Lat Pulldown instead.
What can I do instead of the Band-Assisted Chin-Up?
For the same movement: Pull-Up, Band-Assisted Pull-Up and Kneeling Wide-Grip Lat Pulldown. In DCFT you swap with one tap.
DCFT
The Band-Assisted Chin-Up in DCFT
In the app this exercise comes with your weight: the plate to pin, what you lifted last time and a rest timer that starts by itself.
Free on the App Store for iPhone. Pro is a one-time purchase with no subscription.