Scapular Pull-Up — bottom hold
Strength at the very bottom of the hang, which is where a shoulder is most exposed and where nothing else in the program loads it
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
Hang from a pull-up bar with an overhand grip, hands shoulder width, arms straight.
The rep
Let the shoulders rise towards the ears over four seconds as you sink into a full passive hang. Then, without bending the elbows, pull the shoulder blades down so the body rises a few centimetres. Hold that down position for twenty seconds with the ribs down and the legs still.
On the exercise card
- Sink into the shoulders, then pull them down without bending the elbows
- Hold the down position
- Ribs stay down
- Tempo
- 4s to sink
What goes wrong, and the fix
| What goes wrong | The fix |
|---|---|
| Bending the elbows | The movement is all in the shoulder blades. The arms stay straight and the lift is small. |
| Arching the back or flaring the ribs | Ribs down, legs together. The movement is in the shoulders, not the spine. |
| Rushing the sink | Let the shoulders rise slowly into the hang before you pull them down. |
Make it easier, or harder
- Easier
- Feet resting lightly on a box to take some of your weight.
- Harder
- A longer hold, or a few slow reps before the hold.
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.
A shoulder is most exposed at the very bottom of a hang, and nothing else in the program loads that position. Basketball and gymnastics both hold it in the prehab block: basketball for rebounding and reaching, gymnastics for every skill on a bar.
| Program | Session | Sets × reps | Load |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basketball | Upper + Trunk | 2 × 20s hold | BW |
| Gymnastics | Shoulders + Core | 2 × 20s hold | BW |
What it trains, and who trains it
- Muscles worked
- Shoulders
- Region
- Upper body
- Classified as
- Mobility
- Prescribed in
- basketball · gymnastics
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 |
| 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 |
| Lat Pulldown | Machine: scalable vertical pull, easy to load |
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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