Bodyweight strength training exercises like pull-ups and push-ups test and develop upper body strength without weights. Known for strengthening the back and chest, deltoids (shoulders) and arms respectively, the main benefit of these exercises is developing a strong core.
But I love the dead hang for several reasons: it strengthens your shoulders, forearms, and wrists, stretches your upper back, arms, and lats, activates your core, and helps decompress your spine.
To achieve this, all you need is a pull-up bar or similar object, and you don't even have to move. If you're interested, here are the benefits of dead hangs, how this exercise can help you improve your posture, stretch and strengthen your upper body, and how to add them to your exercise routine.
What does hanging yourself do to your body?
The dead hang involves hanging from a bar and simply holding the hanging position. It can be used as a gateway to pull-ups and chin-ups to build the strength needed for those exercises, especially since it mimics the start of the pull-up from the straight-arm position.
It is also handy as a warm-up or cool-down for workouts to stretch and strengthen the shoulders, back and arms before upper body workouts that include pushing or pulling exercises.
You’ll develop wrist and grip strength, which is essential for technical exercises like deadlifts, snatches, and cleans, as well as any exercise that requires gripping an Olympic bar or more gymnastic exercises using a pull-up bar. Plus, dead hangs are functional and mimic very natural human activities. We’ve been swinging and hanging for a very long time, after all, it’s in our DNA.
How to do a dead hang
- Grasp the bar shoulder-width apart using an overhand grip and fully curl your fingers and thumbs
- Lift your feet off the floor and hold onto the bar
- Pull your shoulders down your back and away from your ears and squeeze them together slightly.
- Keep your arms straight and relax your upper body while maintaining tension in your abdominal muscles. Your legs should feel heavy
- Pull your pelvis slightly towards you and look straight ahead.
- Hold and release the bar.
Advantages of Dead Suspensions
You only have to look beyond popular workout styles like CrossFit and hit TV shows like Gladiators to see that we love to swing. Whether it's swinging on a set of rings or performing muscle-ups in the gym, we can be found swinging just about anywhere.
If your goal is to strengthen your upper body and core muscles and build flexibility, the dead hang is an exercise to try. I like that hanging is low-impact because you're using an isometric contraction, meaning the working muscles aren't moving through a range of motion, shortening, or lengthening. You can do this exercise just about anywhere, even hanging from a tree branch if you don't have a pull-up bar.
It's also great for developing shoulder mobility and stability, which could help you better perform bodyweight movements like pull-ups and push-ups, improve your posture, and develop a more resilient upper body.
How long should you do dead hangs?
It depends on why you’re adding hangs. If you need a stretch, add it at the beginning or end of a workout. To build grip or upper-body strength, consider holding the position for a set amount of time (20 seconds or more) and repeating multiple sets as part of your upper-body strengthening routines.
If you've never tried it, develop your shoulders safely, without rushing. You can try an active hang, which involves a lot of muscle engagement, squeezing the shoulder blades and focusing on contracting the whole body. For a passive hang, try to relax completely and let gravity do its work.
To get started, start by placing your feet on the floor and bending your knees to create some slack. Raise one or both legs as you feel more comfortable. To progress, try using rings, which are less stable and harder to control, requiring more muscle to hold the rings in place.
As mentioned earlier, hanging initiates a pull, initially engaging many active muscles during the movement. And research has even shown that “hanging by the hands” using a horizontal bar can improve endurance over time. Personally, I enjoy the challenge and spend time focusing on my breathing, and it helps prepare my wrists and hands before lifting heavy weights.
I always feel elongated and stretched after a few minutes on the barre before a workout and I love the way it feels on my spine and back after a day of writing at my desk.
Verdict
If you sit for long periods of time or prefer to lift heavy weights in the gym, the dead hang is perfect for stretching tight muscles and relieving tension in the spine.
Targeting primarily the lats, shoulders, arms, and upper traps, you'll find that stretching these muscles and engaging your core should help improve posture, when done consistently over time and in conjunction with other strength exercises for posture, mobility work, and plenty of everyday movement.
If you have access to a door frame, trees, pull-up bars, local parks, or gymnastics rings, you can do a dead hang, making it one of the most accessible ways to build upper body strength.