Wide-Grip Lat Pulldown

What is the Wide-Grip Lat Pulldown?

The wide-grip lat pulldown is a machine vertical pull performed with the hands set wide on a long bar, biasing the outer lats and upper-back width. It trains the same pattern as a wide-grip pull-up but lets you dial the resistance up or down, making it the go-to width builder for lifters who can’t yet handle wide pull-ups at bodyweight.

Muscles worked

Primary: Back

The lats are the prime mover, and the wide grip emphasises shoulder adduction so the outer lats take a larger share of pulling the bar to the upper chest.

Secondary: Biceps

The biceps assist by flexing the elbows, though the wide grip gives them a weaker line of pull, keeping the emphasis on the lats.

How to perform the Wide-Grip Lat Pulldown

1. Set the thigh pad snug and take a wide pronated grip on the bar, hands well outside shoulder width to bias the upper and outer lats.
2. Sit with the cable angled slightly in front and lean the torso back only about ten to fifteen degrees, keeping the chest proud.
3. Depress the shoulder blades before the elbows bend so the pull starts from the back rather than the hands.
4. Pull the bar to the upper chest by driving the elbows down and out along the wide line, not by dragging with the biceps.
5. Stop the bar at the collarbone or just above the upper chest without hauling it past the sternum into shoulder internal rotation.
6. Let the bar travel back overhead under control, permitting a full lat stretch without shrugging the shoulders up around the ears.

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

Mechanics

A bilateral vertical pull performed seated with a wide pronated grip: the shoulders adduct and extend while the elbows flex to bring the bar down in front. As a compound pull the guided path and adjustable stack let you isolate the back, and the wide hand spacing shifts effort toward the outer lats compared with a shoulder-width or close grip.

Form cues

• •Set the hands well outside shoulder width and keep the torso close to upright: a small lean back is fine, a full row is not.
• •Pull the bar to the upper chest by driving the elbows down and out, not by heaving backward.
• •Let the bar rise to a full overhead stretch and feel the lats lengthen without shrugging up.
• •Keep the tempo controlled both ways rather than yanking the wide bar down.

Common mistakes

• •Hauling the bar well past the sternum, which forces the shoulders into internal rotation and stresses the joint.
• •Leaning the torso way back and turning the pulldown into a rowing swing to move heavier weight.
• •Pulling with the biceps by curling the elbows in rather than driving them down and out along the wide line.
• •Shrugging the shoulders up around the ears at the top and losing the stretch on the lats.

Variations & alternatives

• •Standard lat pulldown: a shoulder-width grip through a slightly longer, more biceps-friendly range.
• •Wide-grip pull-up: the bodyweight progression once you can handle stacks near your own weight.
• •Close-grip / neutral-grip pulldown: a narrower handle that brings the lower lats and biceps in more.
• •Single-arm lat pulldown: one side at a time to even out imbalances through a fuller range.

Conventional Deadlift

Back · Barbell

Barbell Row

Back · Barbell

Pull-Up

Back · Bodyweight

Lat Pulldown

Back · Machine

Seated Cable Row

Back · Cable

Programming: sets, reps & when to use it

Program the wide-grip lat pulldown as a primary or secondary back-width movement in the library’s 8–12 rep range, where controlled tension matters more than maximal load. It pairs naturally with a horizontal row to train both pulling directions and builds the strength that carries over to wide-grip pull-ups. Two to four sets drive plenty of upper-back growth.

Frequently asked questions