Lat Pulldown

What is the Lat Pulldown?

The lat pulldown is a machine vertical pull that trains the same pattern as the pull-up but lets you dial the resistance up or down freely. That scalability makes it the go-to lat builder for lifters who can’t yet do many pull-ups, and a reliable way to add back volume without grip or bodyweight being the limit.

Muscles worked

Primary: Back

The lats are the prime mover, pulling the bar down by driving the upper arms down and toward the torso.

Secondary: Biceps

The biceps flex the elbows to assist the pull and the mid-back helps control the shoulder blades, though the machine’s fixed path keeps the emphasis firmly on the lats.

How to perform the Lat Pulldown

1. Adjust the thigh pad so your legs are locked in tight enough that the pad does not lift when you pull; this is your anchor point.
2. Grip the bar slightly wider than shoulder width with a pronated grip and sit with the cable angled slightly behind you, torso tilted maybe 10–20 degrees back.
3. Start each rep with active shoulders, depressing the shoulder blades down and back before the elbows begin to bend.
4. Pull the bar toward your upper chest by driving the elbows down and back, leading with the elbows rather than yanking with the hands.
5. Stop the bar at the upper chest; do not crank it down past the collarbones, which forces the shoulders into internal rotation.
6. Return the bar overhead under control, allowing a full stretch at the top without letting the shoulders shrug up around the ears.

Suggested working range: 8–12 reps. Default progression: double progression.

Mechanics

A bilateral vertical pull performed seated against a machine: the shoulders adduct and extend while the elbows flex to bring the bar to the upper chest. It is a compound pull, but the guided path and adjustable stack make it easier to isolate the back and control the tempo than a free bodyweight pull-up.

Form cues

• •Anchor your thighs under the pad and keep the torso close to upright: a slight lean back is fine, a full row-back is cheating the range.
• •Pull the bar to the upper chest by driving the elbows down, not by leaning away from the machine.
• •Let the bar rise all the way up and feel the lats stretch before the next rep, without shrugging up at the top.
• •Avoid jerking the weight down; a controlled pull and an even more controlled return is where the muscle works.

Common mistakes

• •Leaning back excessively and using the torso swing to pull the bar down, which turns the lat pulldown into a sloppy seated row.
• •Cranking the bar down past the collarbones and forcing the shoulders into internal rotation.
• •Pulling with the biceps first by curling the elbows in rather than driving them down and back.
• •Letting the shoulders shrug up to the ears at the top of every rep, which loses the lat stretch and engagement.

Variations & alternatives

• •Pull-up: the bodyweight progression once you can handle stacks near your own weight.
• •Close-grip / neutral-grip pulldown: a narrower or neutral handle that brings the biceps and lower lats in more.
• •Single-arm cable pulldown: trains each side independently to even out imbalances.
• •Straight-arm pulldown: an isolation variant that hits the lats with the elbows locked.

Conventional Deadlift

Back · Barbell

Barbell Row

Back · Barbell

Pull-Up

Back · Bodyweight

Seated Cable Row

Back · Cable

Dumbbell Row

Back · Dumbbell

Programming: sets, reps & when to use it

The lat pulldown works well as a primary or secondary back movement in the library’s 8–12 rep range, where controlled tension matters more than maximal load. It pairs naturally with a horizontal row so you train both the vertical and horizontal pull. Use it to build the strength and volume that carry over to pull-ups.

Frequently asked questions