Gironda Sternum Chin-Up
What Is the Gironda Sternum Chin-Up?
Gironda Sternum Chin-Up is a compound exercise that primarily targets the back, especially the latissimus dorsi, and also engages the muscles between the shoulder blades and the elbow flexors. It is an advanced-level movement in which you hang from a pull-up bar, lean your torso back and keep leaning back the whole way up, pulling until your lower chest, not your chin, meets the bar.
The exercise is named after Vince Gironda, the bodybuilding trainer who argued that the back should be pulled to full contraction rather than stopping once the chin reaches bar height. Because of the layback, each rep blends three movements: it starts like a regular chin-up, passes through a pullover-like sweep of the arms in the middle, and finishes like a row with the shoulder blades squeezed together. That makes it a demanding upper-back builder for bodybuilders and experienced lifters, usually placed early in a back or pull session while you are fresh.
The lats still do most of the work, as in any vertical pull, but the extra range at the top asks much more of the rhomboids, the trapezius and the other muscles that pull the shoulder blades down and together. Coaching descriptions allow either an underhand or an overhand grip, anywhere from narrow to shoulder width. The version shown here uses an overhand grip about shoulder width apart, which makes it close to a Pull-Up in setup, while an underhand grip brings the biceps in more, as in the Chin-Up.
This is not a first pulling exercise. You should already handle strict sets of pull-ups or chin-ups with a controlled lowering, and be able to squeeze your shoulder blades back while hanging. If the full lean is out of reach, build up with the Scapular Pull-Up for shoulder blade control, the Barbell Inverted Row for the rowing finish, and the Band-Assisted Pull-Up or Negative Pull-Up for vertical pulling strength. Thinking of pointing your breastbone at the bar and driving your elbows down toward your back pockets helps keep the work in the back instead of the arms.
Muscles Worked
- Latissimus Dorsi
- Primary
- Brachialis
- High
- Lower Trapezius
- High
- Rhomboid Major
- High
- Teres Major
- High
- Biceps Brachii
- Medium
- Brachioradialis
- Medium
- Infraspinatus
- Medium
- Upper Trapezius
- Medium
- Deltoid
- Low
Instructions
- Grab a sturdy pull-up bar with an overhand grip, palms facing away from you, hands about shoulder width apart or slightly wider.
- Hang with your arms fully straight, then bend your knees and cross your ankles behind you.
- Brace your abs, squeeze your glutes and draw your shoulder blades slightly down.
- Lift your chest and lean your torso back so your breastbone points up toward the bar.
- Pull by driving your elbows down and back toward your sides, keeping the lean the whole time.
- As you rise, let your head tip back comfortably and keep your chest high while your shoulder blades squeeze together.
- Keep pulling until your collarbones pass the bar and your lower chest reaches or nearly reaches it, with your body angled back about 45 degrees.
- Pause briefly with your shoulders down and back, without letting them roll forward.
- Lower slowly along the same path until your arms are fully straight, then repeat without swinging.
Common Mistakes
Not leaning back enough
Staying upright and just arching at the top turns the rep into a regular pull-up, so lean the torso back from the first inch and keep it there.
Stopping at chin height
Ending the rep once the chin clears the bar skips the rowing finish that defines this exercise, so keep pulling until the collarbones pass the bar and the lower chest approaches it.
Rolling the shoulders forward at the top
Forcing the chest to the bar after the shoulder blades have run out of room lets the shoulders round forward and strains the front of the shoulder, so end the rep where the shoulders are still down and back.
Arching from the lower back
Getting the lean by sagging through the lower back loads the spine instead of the upper back, so brace the abs and squeeze the glutes while the chest lifts.
Cranking the neck back
Throwing the head back hard to fake height strains the neck, so let the head tip back only as far as it goes comfortably while the chest does the traveling.
Swinging or kipping
Using leg drive or a swing to reach the bar takes the work away from the back and jars the shoulders, so keep the knees bent, the body still and the tempo slow.
Injuries
Gironda Sternum Chin-Up is a medium risk exercise when performed with proper technique. You lift your full body weight through a longer range than a regular pull-up and finish with the shoulders pulled far back and the spine arched, so the margin for error is smaller, especially when you are tired or swinging.
The main strain points are the front of the shoulder, the lower back, the elbows and the neck. At the top, pulling past the point where your shoulder blades can still move back lets the shoulders roll forward and pushes the front of the shoulder joint into an uncomfortable end range, so stop where your shoulders stay down and back even if your chest does not touch the bar. Brace your abs and squeeze your glutes so the arch comes from the upper back rather than the lower back, and let your head tip back only as far as it goes comfortably instead of cranking the neck. Lower every rep under control rather than dropping into the bottom.
To regress, return to the Pull-Up or Chin-Up to chin height, use the Band-Assisted Pull-Up, or practice the rowing finish with the Barbell Inverted Row. Scapular Pull-Ups build the shoulder blade control the lean depends on. To progress, add a pause with the chest at the bar and slow the lowering before adding more reps or sets.
Stop if you feel sharp pain or pinching at the front of the shoulder, pain in the lower back, sharp elbow or wrist pain, or numbness or tingling in the hands. Pain that lingers into the next day or worsens from session to session is a reason to drop back to an easier pull and get it checked.
- Primary Focus
- Back
- Equipment
- Pull-up bar and body weight
- Modality
- Strength
- Difficulty
- Advanced
Alternative Exercises
Other Names for the Gironda Sternum Chin-Up
The Gironda Sternum Chin-Up is also known as:
- Gironda Sternum Pull-Up
Frequently Asked Questions
- Q: How is it different from a regular pull-up?
A regular Pull-Up stays fairly upright and ends when the chin clears the bar. Here you lean back throughout and keep pulling until your lower chest reaches the bar, so the top of the rep becomes a row that squeezes the shoulder blades together and asks far more of the upper back.
- Q: Should I use an overhand or an underhand grip?
Either works, despite the name. The version shown here uses an overhand grip about shoulder width apart, while an underhand grip, as in the Chin-Up, brings the biceps in more and many people find it easier to pull with. Use the grip that lets you keep your wrists and elbows comfortable through the full lean.
- Q: What if my chest won't reach the bar?
Pull as high as you can while your shoulders stay down and back, and stop there. Arm and torso length affect how close you can get, and strength in the rowing finish usually builds over weeks, so a rep that ends a little short with good shoulder position is better than one forced to the bar.
- Q: What should I be able to do before trying it?
You should be able to do strict sets of Pull-Ups or Chin-Ups with a slow lowering and get your chest close to the bar on a regular rep. Scapular Pull-Ups and the Barbell Inverted Row build the shoulder blade control the lean needs.
- Q: Where should it go in a workout?
Put it early in a back or pull session, while you are fresh, and keep the reps low enough that every one reaches the same height with the same lean. When the lean starts to fade, end the set.