The Kipping Pull-Up

The kipping pull-up is a movement common in gymnastics. In the early 2000s, CrossFit took the fitness world by storm by including this movement in a strength and conditioning program targeting the general population. Often criticized for not being a “strict movement” or termed by many as not being a “real pull-up,” highlights the misunderstanding of the application. This movement is a full-body exercise that requires coordination throughout the body to transfer power effectively. Do not be confused; we still implement the strict pull-up and recommend it as a prerequisite for the kipping pull-up. When the kipping variation is utilized, it is done so with intent. 

This page will clarify what the kipping pull-up is, how it is properly executed, and how movement modifications are adaptable for any ability level. 

• What Is the Kipping Pull-Up?
• Benefits of Kipping Pull-Ups
• Muscle Groups Worked
• How to Prepare for the Kipping Pull-Up
• Equipment Needed for the Kipping Pull-Up
• How to Warm Up for the Kipping Pull-Up
• How to Do the Kipping Pull-Up: Step-By-Step Progression
• Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
• Kipping Pull-Up Modifications
• Kipping Pull-Up Variations 
• Common Kipping Pull-Up Workouts

What Is the Kipping Pull-Up?

A kipping pull-up is a type of pull-up where the athlete starts by hanging on a pull-up bar with arms fully extended. To generate momentum, they move through an “arch” position where the chest moves forward and feet go behind the body, and a “hollow” position where the chest moves back and legs come forward. This swinging motion, called the “kip,” allows the athlete to use coordinated power from both the hips and arms to pull their chin over the bar.

The functionality of the pull-up in everyday life is significant, so even if someone cannot do a pull-up without assistance, the movement will be adapted and preserved for any level athlete. This often includes the use of bands or a box.

The movement is prioritized in workouts “for time” or “for reps/rounds” when the athlete wants to move through a workout as quickly and efficiently as possible. When compared to its strict counterpart, a properly executed kipping pull-up increases power output, allows for a larger volume of reps to be completed, increases cardiovascular output, and involves skill development needed to improve maximum efficiency.

Kipping Pull-Up Benefits

The kipping pull-up involves dedicated practice time to coordinate the entire body to work in a manner that optimizes core-to-extremity movement efficiency. When done proficiently, there are numerous benefits to learning and implementing this movement.

Increased Coordination

The kipping pull-up involves a coordinated effort between the hips and the upper body to complete the movement effectively. The hips generate upward momentum before transferring power to the upper body musculature to pull the chin above the bar to minimize fatigue and allow for more work to be accomplished by the entire body.

Shoulder Flexibility

Kipping pull-ups can help with shoulder flexibility because they require a lot of shoulder flexion, which is the ability to reach overhead. On the flip side, if an athlete’s range of motion is limited, they may compensate by bending their elbows or internally rotating, putting undue stress on the shoulders. By practicing the kipping pull-up progression correctly and consistently, athletes can improve their shoulder flexibility.

Increased Power Output

The coordinated effort of the hips and arms allows for increased power output. This is essential for maximizing performance in conditioning workouts.

Muscle Groups Worked

A kipping pull-up is a dynamic movement that engages multiple muscle groups throughout the body, including the upper body, core, and lower body. This coordinated engagement of lower-body, core, and upper-body muscles makes the kipping pull-up a full-body movement that relies on timing, strength, and control.

However, despite the number of muscles engaged in performing a kipping pull-up, the kipping pull-up develops movement pattern efficiency and maximizes power output. It is not typically used to promote upper-body maximum strength or hypertrophy of the targeted musculature. Its goal is to increase endurance and stamina.  

Here’s a breakdown of the upper-body muscles used:

1. Latissimus Dorsi (Lats): Primary movers during the pulling phase, helping to lift the body toward the bar.
2. Rhomboids: Assist in retracting the shoulder blades.
3. Trapezius (Upper and Mid): Stabilize the shoulder blades during the pulling movement.
4. Teres Major: Assists in shoulder extension and adduction.
5. Biceps Brachii: Engaged in the elbow flexion portion of the pull-up.
6. Brachialis and Brachioradialis: Additional forearm muscles aiding in elbow flexion.
7. Pectoralis Major and Minor: Activated in the chest, especially during the transition and kip phases.
8. Deltoids: Particularly the posterior deltoids, assisting in shoulder stabilization and rotation.
9. Infraspinatus and Teres Minor: Assist with shoulder stabilization and external rotation.

Core

Here’s a breakdown of the core muscles used:

1. Rectus Abdominis: Active during the kip swing, stabilizing the torso and aiding in the hip extension and flexion phases.
2. Obliques: Engage to maintain trunk stability and control the swing.
3. Transverse Abdominis: Provides core stability and support throughout the entire movement.

Lower Body

Here’s a breakdown of the lower body muscles used:

1. Glutes: Help with hip extension during the kip, particularly in the swing and transition.
2. Hip Flexors: Engaged during the kipping movement, helping with the leg and hip drive to create upward momentum.
3. Quadriceps: Assists in stabilizing the lower body during the swing and helping control the leg movement.
4. Hamstrings: Engaged for stability and control of the swing motion.

How to Prepare for the Kipping Pull-Up

Adequately warming up the upper body through dynamic range of motion drills and muscle activation exercises before moving into a progressively challenging specific warm-up is valuable to increase performance and reduce safety concerns. A general warm-up for kipping pull-ups might include ring rows, banded rows, and banded pull-aparts.

Equipment Needed for the Kipping Pull-Up

All you need to get started with the kipping pull-up is a fixed and stable pull-up bar. Boxes and bands can be on hand for those working toward developing the strength necessary to complete the movement without assistance.

How to Warm Up for the Kipping Pull-Up

A general warm-up for the kipping pull-up may include: 

• Monostructural exercises such as an air bike or rower
• Dynamic range of motion exercises like a PVC pass-through or arm swings
• Banded movements like a banded pull-apart or banded face pull
• Foam rolling for the upper back and lats 
• A static stretch for the shoulders for those who may need a little extra attention to range of motion improvements 

A simple strategy can be to combine a monostructural exercise with two of the above-mentioned movements and complete two to three rounds at a moderate pace. For example:

2 rounds:

1:30 row

10 PVC pipe pass-throughs

20 banded pull-aparts

10 air squats

*This warm-up will vary based on the other movements involved in the workout and the duration.

How to do the Kipping Pull-Up: Step-By-Step Progression

There are a variety of progressions available for the kipping pull-up. The following progression is instructed at the CrossFit Level 1 Certificate Course. The skill progression can be scaled by utilizing a box to a point where feet aid with moving the chin above the bar or to a point where the legs provide a small jump to get the chin over the bar.

Kip Swings

Start hanging from the bar with the shoulders pulling away from the ears slightly and elbows locked out. This is a shoulder initiation movement where the athlete pulls the shoulders forward of the bar into an arch position. Then, the athlete presses the shoulders behind the bar while maintaining straight arms and a hollow position in the front of the body. Keep legs straight and abs tightened. Complete 2-3 sets of 3-5 reps.

2 Kip Swings + 1 Kip

After performing 2 kip swings, on the third rep, focus on pressing the hands down into the bar aggressively on the back of the swing while maintaining straight arms. This will create vertical momentum for the athlete, and a moment of weightlessness may occur. Perform 1-3 sets.

2 Kip Swings + 1 Pull-Up

The moment of weightlessness or the highest point of the aforementioned kip designates the moment the athlete should pull towards the bar with their arms. Perform 1-3 sets.

At this point, it is recommended to perform the remaining steps with feet on the box if the athlete cannot perform a strict pull-up.

2-1-2 Drill (2 Kip Swings + 1 Pull-Up + 2 Kip Swings)

When the chin is above the bar, focus on pushing the body away from it to reset back to the front position of the kip swing. This habit will aid with performing multiple reps consecutively. Perform 1-3 sets.

Kipping Pull-Ups

The final step involves linking multiple pull-ups together. Focus on keeping a tight body position while you move throughout all phases of the movement. Perform 1-3 sets of 3-5 reps.

Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Deviations from optimal mechanics are often due to the initiation of the kip swing, the timing of the upper body pull-up, and inefficiency in completing multiple reps consecutively.

Leg-Initiated Kip Swing

It is natural for athletes to swing their legs forward and backward excessively to gain momentum. Proper execution of the kip swing involves an initiation by the shoulder by pulling and pressing into the pull-up bar with the upper body when moving through the arch and hollow positions. 

To aid with the fault, athletes can practice arches and hollows on the floor, or a coach can use targets for the athlete to touch their torso while kipping.

Pulling Early With the Arms

Athletes may utilize their arms to pull their chin towards the bar before gaining vertical momentum on the back of the kip swing. Athletes can practice proper timing by doing a drill involving two kip swings followed by one kipping pull-up or by a coach putting a target behind the athlete to cue as a signal for when to pull with the arms.

Poor Return Mechanics

From the top of the bar, athletes should press away from the bar to a degree that allows them to recreate the kip swing immediately. A fault occurs when the athlete passively drops back to the hang position without control and must perform 2-3 kip swings before the next reps.

To aid with this fault, elevate the chin above the bar (with or without assistance), pause in this position, and then focus on pressing away from the bar while relaxing the muscles in the arms.

Kipping Pull-Up Modifications

With a bit of creativity, the kipping pull-up can be modified to meet any skill or physical capacity level. Prioritizing movement functions like upper-body vertical pulling while performing movements with a horizontal pulling function can also be a viable option.

Use the Legs to Assist

Variations of a pull-up can involve using the legs to assist the athlete in reaching their chin above the pull-up bar. Variations like a toe-nail spotted pull-up or a jumping pull-up are great substitutions.

Use Bands to Provide Assistance

Performing a band-assisted pull-up variation can be another option to aid with performing pull-ups. The bands can be altered in tension to provide enough assistance to nearly any level of athlete and can be progressed by reducing the tension over time.

Alter the Apparatus

If uncomfortable with moving the body throughout space from a hanging position, the apparatus can be altered.  A ring row, banded pull-down, and dumbbell/barbell row can be used to modify the movement while still providing an upper-body pulling demand.

Kipping Pull-Up Variations

The traditional kipping pull-up and movement modifications provide a wide variance to meet most individuals’ needs. For those interested in the competitive nature of CrossFit, the movement can be varied to increase the speed of execution.

Butterfly Kipping Pull-Up

For those interested in competitive CrossFit, a butterfly pull-up can be utilized to increase the speed of the reps. The movement is similar to the traditional kipping pull-up, with a somewhat continuous circular motion. 

Notably, capacity in strict pull-ups and high proficiency in traditional kipping pull-ups are recommended before performing the butterfly pull-up variation.

Common Kipping Pull-Up Workouts

For any workout that is “for time” or “for reps/rounds,” it is assumed the kipping pull-up is the default pull-up unless stated otherwise (e.g., strict pull-up). Workouts like Fran (21-15-9 reps of thrusters and kipping pull-ups) contain a low to moderate value of pull-ups, where the goal is to move quickly, with many consecutive reps being performed. A workout like Murph (run 1 mile, then complete (in any manner) 100 pull-ups/200 push-ups/300 squats, followed by another 1-mile run, while wearing a vest) involves a large number of pull-ups where the reps can be achieved in many small sets.

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