Pull-ups primarily target the latissimus dorsi muscle group in the back, though many other muscles are involved in the movement. These assisting muscles include the brachialis, brachioradialis, biceps brachii, teres major, deltoid muscle, infraspinatus, teres minor, rhomboids, levator scapulae, trapezius lower, trapezius middle, and pectoralis minor.
The muscle groups targeted when performing pull up exercises are primarily the back muscles, specifically the latissimus dorsi, as well as the biceps and forearms.
Probably.... the biceps brachii
latissimus dorsi
The primary muscle groups targeted during pull-up exercises are the latissimus dorsi (back muscles), biceps, and forearms.
latissimus dorsi
The muscles targeted when performing pull-up exercises are primarily the latissimus dorsi (lats), biceps, and forearms.
biceps brachiilatimus dorsiLatissimus Dorsi.latissimus dorsi
latissimus dorsi
The antagonist muscle group for a pull up is the pectoralis major, which is primarily responsible for shoulder adduction and internal rotation. In addition, the biceps brachii serves as a synergist muscle during the movement.
The traditional pull up is a so-called `compound` exercise, which means it targets most of the muscle groups of the upper body (so basically it trains your entire upper body fairly equally). In my experience though, the muscles which grew tired the most after every pull up workout and in long-term grew the most were the obliques and shoulder muscles.
All pull-up variations will target the back muscles. It is an overall dominant back movement. The muscle group which will be worked hard are the lats and the traps. These are two of the larger muscle groups in the back. Almost all of the back muscles will assist in this movement. Also, your bicep and forearms will be involved and can be experienced as "sore" the day after doing pull-ups. The pull-up next to bent over rows and dead-lifts are considered to be a staple for back training.
latissimus dorsi