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Muscle ups are often considered to be the best bodyweight exercise you can do if you want to build upper body muscle mass and size. I don’t really agree. The problem with this exercise is that it happens to be on the low reward, high risk end of your bodyweight exercise options. In this video, I show you how to perform a version of the muscle up but more importantly, discuss why you might not want to do them in the first place.
In order to perform this bodyweight exercise, you’ll want to understand what the movement is in the first place. The muscle up is a combination of a pullup and a bodyweight dip. In order to complete the move you have to have some prerequisite strength in both exercises. I recommend that you are able to do at least 10-15 strict (non-kipping) pullups and around 20 bodyweight dips before even trying it. In addition, you should be able to perform an explosive pullup (as shown in the video) which enables you to explosively get your chest up to the bar.
If you can do all of the above then you might be ready for a muscle up. I say might because there are some important joint considerations that must be made before even attempting this exercise. Most importantly, you need to determine the condition of your elbows and shoulders if you want to start doing muscle ups as part of your bodyweight training programs.
Many will find that this exercise hurts their medial elbow. They will develop a condition known as golfer’s elbow (or medial epicondylitis) from doing muscle ups. This is due to the fact that the wrist must forcefully flex in order to propel your body over the bar and position your hands on top of the bar in order to be able to complete the second half of the movement.
This rapid torque placed on the common flexors in the forearm can lead to an enormous amount of stress on the medial elbow. It may not hurt you the first time you do the exercise, but can lead to a slow tendonitis developing over time.
The second consideration is the health of your shoulder before performing the exercise. Again, due to the incredible amount of internal rotation needed at your glenohumeral joint, you can quickly damage your rotator cuff. If your acromion is of the type that it hangs into the shoulder joint space too far down (this is something you are born with), then you might be that much more prone to feeling the ill effects of this movement in your shoulder.
The exercise can be performed a bit less explosively and in a more controlled manner (in the way that a gymnast would perform it) but at that point, I feel as if concentrating on simply increasing the number of quality pullups you can do rather than adding onto the movement and decreasing that number in order to muscle ups, is the better option.
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38 comments
A party trick that can save your life! Have you ever watched an action movie? Getting up from a ledge is a critical life skill.
I'm going to do it anyway Jeff.!
You should have avoid those fucking subtitles because i cant see your whole body 😂
I would love to be able to do a muscle up. Its a skill but once you master it it sticks
Whenever I see a muscle up I always wonder why not just do pullups and dips separately? You'll get more out of both individually. 👍
Anybody need a Pull Up Mate II ?
XDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD
May 17 I just wanna say I had extreme elbow pain thanks to muscle ups
Muscle up is a great combo if done on gymnastics ring. On bar it wont feel much.
Casually doing the explosive pull up whilst talking
It's killing your gains bro
Nah Jeff u just old 🌚
The muscle ups is also a transition beetwen skills, it is a real worth of this move. It is also a skills itself, who is the base of a lot of calisthenics and gymnastics move, with kipping or without.
Do you want another skills who is really hard on the tendons ? The maltese, and iron cross. That gymnast are doing without injure themselves. If you slowly build up your tendons, there is no problem.
Disagree. Your form looks like shit
muscle up is always useful if you train rings and need to get from below to on top of them
BTW with all due respect jeff cant even to a proper MU so his opinion is somewhat invalid
nice vid though
Be able to do them cause its impressive but don't do them cause its rough on the joints and unnecessary.
I honestly see it more as a milestone than an exercise
I love how people stare at me after I buss out muscle ups in the gym
Yeah, make a video about slow muscle-up.
MUSCLE UPS KILL YOU GAINS
On behalf of all the callisthenics guys we disagree.
To the people defensing strict muscle ups, I believe Jeff meant that even strict ones are not good for your elbows and shoulders, probably something related to our body's anatomy.
I love your videos, but this is the worst one I've seen so far. You may well be right in what you're saying, but you miss some crucial technique details. You're criticising a much inferior version of a muscle up (more like a crossfire one) and judging by the comments, I'm not the only fan of yours who has the same opinion. Maybe time to update this?
I have to do these for first response training because I got to actually climb over bars, and ledges and walls and trucks….and logs in a river.
I joined a gymnastics club to polish my other battle gnome rescue moves.
Excellent. I was concerned I can't do this. Now I won't bother. Thanks.
It's not about being practical or functionality, it's about sending a message to everyone who's nearby.
Another weakling that doesnt understand muscle ups.
After having watched numerous 'how to muscle up' videos, it all concluded to athlean x, again.. Next time ill look no further, ill come here from the beggining
He is accurate about pain in forarms and shoulders, I faced it too eventually stopped practicing for it
Did some at the gym today , and I can feel the pain In my shoulders …. I don think muscle up are meant for me
Jeff’s such a real dude. Makes me feel like I already know him.
I believe learning a muscle up will be incredibly beneficial to learn how to climb ledges and surfaces, just in case…
All I do is muscle ups and pull ups
Practise good form, never flare your elbows outward and keep them tucked in alway just like doing strict pushups, or it'll hurt your elbows and shoulders. Then it's fine, don't do it every single day. Of course do not attempt to learn the muscle up before you are strong enough, 10 strict pullups, 20 dips, 20seconds hanging L sit hold, 10 toes to bar . . .
Just did my first strict band assisted muscle in the gym, trained so long for this, YEAH !!
Bravo! They're a Very Stupid exercise! Thank You!
I've been noticing my time at the gym has been taken up trying to learn these. Which is robbing me of my gains.. yes I know I'm sad , but dammit I wanna learn this !! 🤣😭
I disagree with this video. I have a plate in my collarbone and an ac joint separation. I have been doing muscle ups for over a decade and feel zero issues due to muscle ups. In fact, my shoulder feels less pain and stronger due to them. Same with using gymnastics ring, and doing muscle ups/holds. His technique relies on swinging, using momentum, and angling of wrists vs pure strength. A proper muscle up isn't done this way.
That guy is the most beefy physical therapist I’ve ever seen.