As described in http://stackoverflow.com/a/9537923 (paraphrased below):
> You need to create a local branch that tracks a remote branch.
> The following command will create a local branch
> tracking the remote branch of the same name.
> When you push your changes the remote branch will be updated.
>
> `git checkout --track [remotename]/[branch]`
>
> This is a shorthand for `git checkout -b [branch] [remotename]/[branch]`.
>
> For git 1.7.2.3 and higher this is enough: `git checkout daves_branch`
>
> Note that with recent git versions,
> **this will command not create a local branch and will put you in a 'detached HEAD' state.**
> If you want a local branch, use the --track option.
> Full details here: http://git-scm.com/book/en/v2/Git-Branching-Remote-Branches#Tracking-Branches