Eccentric Chin-Up — dead-hang finish
Loads the elbow and biceps tendon at full length under control — the tendon that complains in every grappling, climbing and bar sport
How to do it well
The set-up and the rep in full, then the cues the app shows on the exercise card — the short version, for the moment you are standing in front of the bar.
Set-up
Stand on a box or step under a bar so the top position is easy to reach. Grip the bar with the palms facing you, hands shoulder width.
The rep
Jump or step up so the chin is over the bar. Then lower yourself as slowly as you can, aiming for six seconds, controlling the elbows all the way to straight arms. Step back up for the next lower. After the last lower of the set, stay in a full dead hang for fifteen seconds with the shoulders relaxed.
On the exercise card
- Jump or step to the top, then fight the way down
- Finish in a full hang and hold
- Elbows travel slowly — no free-fall at the bottom
- Tempo
- 6s to lower
What goes wrong, and the fix
| What goes wrong | The fix |
|---|---|
| Dropping through the last part of the lower | The bottom third is where the elbow and biceps are at full length. Keep it slow right into the hang. |
| Holding the hang with bent elbows | A dead hang is straight arms. Let the elbows fully straighten. |
| Jumping down after each rep | Step down onto the box. The lowering is the exercise. |
Make it easier, or harder
- Easier
- A shorter lowering, or the feet resting lightly on the box during the hang.
- Harder
- A light backpack or a dip belt, or a longer lowering.
How Train Smart prescribes it
The sets and reps below are the authored starting point. The actual weight you see is calculated from your own last top set and the week you are in within your four-week block.
The elbow and the biceps tendon get sore in every sport that grips and pulls: grappling, climbing, anything on a bar. The bodyweight program puts this in the prehab block of its upper-body session, loading that tendon slowly, at full length, under control.
| Program | Session | Sets × reps | Load |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bodyweight Athlete | Upper Push + Pull | 2 × 4 lowers + 15s hang | BW (+load) |
What it trains, and who trains it
- Region
- Upper body
- Classified as
- Mobility
- Prescribed in
- bodyweight training
If you cannot do this one
Rack taken, kit missing, or it does not suit you. These are the swaps the app offers, matched by movement pattern and body region — each with the reason it is a fair substitute.
| Alternative | Why it works as a swap |
|---|---|
| Weighted Chin-Up | Loaded vertical pull, big back + biceps |
| Pull-Up | Bodyweight back + grip strength |
| Wide-Grip Pull-Up | Lat-width bias — swimmer / climber back |
| Commando Pull-Up | Side-to-side pull-up — combat/grappling pulling |
| Muscle-Up Progression | Explosive vertical pull → press transition — gymnast/calisthenics |
| Rope Climb | Grip + pulling strength under tension — combat / military |
This exercise, in a program that knows why it is there
Train Smart puts this movement in the right session, at the right point in your block, at a weight calculated for you — and swaps it automatically if you do not have the kit.
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