Training · Nov 2, 2026
The close-grip chin-up keeps the elbows on the ribs
Palms face you and the hands stay near shoulder width. Swing, or let the elbows flare, and it stops being this exercise.
FitActive · Close-grip chin-up · Back, biceps
A pull-up asks the elbows to travel out and the back to take a wide grip. A close-grip chin-up asks for the opposite arrangement: palms toward you, hands about shoulder width, elbows staying near the ribs while the chest comes up to the bar. The biceps help more. The back still has to pull. If the elbows flare, you have changed the exercise back into a pull-up and the log should say so.
The gif in FitActive is that narrow, palms-in version. The chin clearing the bar is the easy part to film. The rep is the trip from straight arms to that chin, and back down to straight arms, without a kick. Everything below is about keeping the elbows honest.
What to watch
- Palms toward you, hands about shoulder width, and leave them there.
- Start and finish with straight arms. The shoulders stay down.
- Elbows drive toward the ribs, not out to the sides.
- The chin clears because the chest rose, not because the neck craned.
- A kick or a band is a different entry. Write it down.
