Muscle-Up
Muscles worked: Back (assisted by biceps, triceps, front delts).
How to do it
- Grip the rings using a false grip, with the base of your palms on top of the rings.
- As you reach the top position of the pull-up, pull the rings to your armpits as you roll your shoulders forward, allowing your elbows to move straight back behind you.
- Maintaining control and stability, extend through the elbow to complete the motion.
- Use care when lowering yourself to the ground.
Coaching cues
The two cues IronPack shows on this exercise's card mid-workout:
- Explosive pull to the sternum
- Fast wrist turnover, then press out
Logging it
IronPack suggests working in the 3 to 8 rep range, progressing in 2.5 kg jumps when you own the top of the range. Bodyweight movement: log added weight only, and your records account for your logged bodyweight. Records are tracked automatically at every rep count from 1 to 12. Check your estimated 1RM from any hard set.
Related exercises
- Deadlift - back, glutes
- Pull-Up - back
- Chin-Up - back, biceps
- Lat Pulldown - back
Track the muscle-up properly
IronPack logs every set, tracks your records at every rep count, shows these form photos mid-workout, and turns the training into a card game you play with your mates.
Get IronPack free on the App StoreSteps: free-exercise-db (public domain) with IronPack corrections. Cues, muscle weighting and logging guidance are IronPack's own app data. Last generated 2026-07-17.