Vince Gironda Sternum Chin-Ups

These have been dubbed by many as the single best lat exercise ever invented! Hold on to your lats!

Implementation: This involves leaning back throughout the entire movement. In this variation, the lower portion of the chest should touch the bar.

(A) Begin by grasping the pull-up bar with an underhand grip, approximately shoulder width apart. Now hang with your arms fully extended. (B) As you pull yourself to the bar, have your head lean back as far away from the bar as possible and arch your spine throughout the movement. At the upper end of the movement, your hips and legs will be at about a 45-degree angle to the floor. You should keep pulling until your collarbone passes the bar and your lower chest or sternum area touches it. By the time you’ve completed the concentric portion of the movement, your head will be parallel to the floor. This is the king of back exercises! It not only works the lats, but the entire lower back!

1. The beginning of the movement is more like a classical chin.

2. The midrange resembles a pullover motion.

3. The end position duplicates the finishing motion of a rowing movement.

This is an advanced exercise to say the least!

17 Comments
  1. Exactly and you also said: Begin by grasping the pull-up bar “approximately shoulder width apart” but Vince holds the pull up bar almost twice the size of his shoulders.. Please get a proper documentation of the exercise before people injure them selves.

  2. Why do people argue with this exercise? this is THE BEST developed by THE BEST. Vince has never been surpassed as a trainer because he understood how the muscles and the body worked. My dad used to train under him and at almost 60, after not being in the gym in at least 10 years because of heart problems, still looks better than 9 out of ten people I see at the gym.

  3. Im currently not strong enough to get 8 good reps on this with a shoulder width grip. I do a bit better getting them when I use a 6 inch wide neutral grip by placing a cable row V bar over the pull up bar. Will this also work as intended for this exercise?

  4. I started doing these a month ago, now I have painful tendonitis in my left elbow and have had to stop training for 2 weeks and counting. 🙁

    1. I agree. They’re not for everyone. Don’t do this, or any chin that gives you this kind of pain, unless you want permanent problems.

  5. Usually the real cause of elbow pain is some mobility issue in the shoulder. Go to a good physiotherapist and have it sorted out.

  6. Best thing is to switch it up your hand position with pull-ups, chins, and the “Girondas”. Tendonitis is caused by repetitive movements, switching up your movements each workout, hitting different angles. Chin’s, Pull-ups, and Bent-Over Rows can all be used, just don’t get stuck on one or the other, routinely switch them up! everettketelhut.com

  7. #15, if you can do a set of chin-ups with proper form, then you can do these as well. You may not be able to do as many reps at first, but you will work your way up.

  8. My tendonitis went away when I started taking desiccated liver powder. Just 4 times a week will do the trick. Take one tablespoon and mix it with a little grape juice or water. Take it with a vitamin C (ascorbic acid form) to improve the absorption of the iron. Desiccated liver powder is amazing. A lot of aches and pains disappeared as well and my energy level and endurance have increased as well.

  9. Can anyone p Lease recommend how to do scapula rotations correctly.. Maybe teocmmend a good precise youtube video they think is same as Vince taught

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