Step aside Red Bull… lat pulldowns are the real secret to getting wings.
But what’s the best technique, grip, and form to get the job done?
The lat pulldown is one of the major exercises used to train the muscles of the back, shoulders, and arms. The most common variation of the lat pulldown is a wide overhand-grip, which many people believe is the variation that will give you “wings,” or activates the latissimus dorsi (aka “lats”) more than the standard shoulder-width or underhand grips. But what does the research say?
To figure out which lat pulldown variation is the best, researchers use a method known as electromyography (or EMG), which measures the amount of muscle fibers recruited during an exercise. The more fibers that are recruited for the job, the more work that muscle has to do to perform the exercise, and maybe the training effect will be better.
Types of Lat Pulldowns
There are many variations of the lat pulldown, and each one puts your body in different positions, which may have an effect on how quickly the lats will grow from that exercise. For instance, using a wide-grip pulldown reduces the range of motion that occurs at the shoulder joint, but allows the back muscles to pull the arms down and keep the limbs directly out to the sides of the body.
Another variation, the close-grip pulldown, uses a shoulder-width overhand grip. By decreasing the distance between the hands, the arms can no longer stay directly to the sides of the body when pulling the bar down; instead the arms are a little more in front of the body. This change in the shoulder angle creates a greater range of motion at both the shoulder and elbow, allowing for more time under tension (which is an important part of muscle growth).
Other common variations are the neutral-grip, which uses a V-bar, and the underhand- or reverse-grip, which is performed with the hands shoulder-width apart and palms facing toward you. These two styles place the arms directly in front of the body during the exercise, further changing the muscular activity of the lats.
Maximizing Muscle Activity of the Lats with Changes in Grip
Seeing so many different ways to perform a lat pulldown begs the question: Does any variation make a difference when it comes to muscle activation? Research studies have shown that, when comparing a wide overhand grip versus a shoulder-width underhand grip the ratio between latissimus dorsi activity and biceps activity was quite different, with the wide-grip overhand lat pulldown exercise having a significantly higher ratio than the reverse-grip lat pulldown. This means that the wide-grip overhand lat pulldown directed more muscle activation to the lats and less to the biceps as compared to a narrow underhand- or reverse-grip variation [1]. Other research supports the superiority of an overhand grip (regardless of grip-width) if your goal is to maximize lat muscle activation [2].
(As a side-note: A common piece of bro-science is the idea that choosing an underhand grip for the lat pulldown will increase the focus on your biceps. However, it’s been shown that changing grip widths and styles doesn’t change the recruitment of the biceps, so that’s just another gym myth [2]!
Want to check out some more common myths about gaining and building muscle? Check out our article!)
Lat Pulldown Technique: Front of the Body vs. Behind the Head
Ask a few people how to perform a proper lat pulldown and you’ll get many different answers. The main debate goes back and forth between two variations:
1.) Pulling the bar down in front of the body
2.) Pull the bar down behind the neck
Is there an advantage to performing a lat pulldown behind the neck? Not according to a published research study in the Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research [4]. In this study, performing an overhand lat pulldown behind the head (as compared to using an overhand grip and pulling the bar in front of your head) resulted in less latissimus dorsi muscle activation. Furthermore, the behind-the-neck lat pulldown places the shoulder joint in a compromised location (e.g., overly rotated externally) which can increase injury to the shoulder joint and surrounding muscles [5].
If you think about it, this makes sense in terms of functionality. In daily activities and in sports, you always pull toward yourself and from the front of your body–you never reach behind your head and pull to the back of your neck! So, if your goal is to avoid injury and improve functionality, it’s best to avoid the behind-the-neck version.
The Perfect Lat Pulldown Form:
So far, we’ve only talked about the different styles of the lat pulldown. And while this is key for muscle activation, combining this with proper technique is the only way to get the most bang for your buck! In fact, some research has shown that just doing the lat pulldown better–with proper instruction–can increase lat activation on its own [6]!
Here is a quick checklist that outlines the proper technique for the lat pulldown:
- Grasp the handles slightly wider than shoulder-width with a closed, overhand grip.
- Keep your torso and spine in a neutral position with a slight backward lean (approximately 10-15o backward should do the trick).
- Exhale while pulling the bar down toward the upper chest. Avoid internal rotation of the shoulder during the pull by keeping the elbows pointed down toward the floor.
- Continue pulling down until the bar reaches the level of the chin. The pulling phase should be performed with a smooth and controlled motion. Avoid excessively swinging the body backwards to pull the weight down.
- Once the bar reaches the chin, allow the bar to slowly return to the starting position while controlling the weight. Avoid shrugging at the top of the movement (this will keep muscular tension on the lats).
Many sports, including swimming, gymnastics, wrestling, and rugby, contain crucial movements that could benefit from using these techniques to develop powerful lats. But even if you don’t play sports and just want to better your back strength or get the “v-taper” of an awesome pair of wings, the basics and benefits of the lat pulldown are the same for anybody!
Now you have everything you need: Choose an overhand grip, pull to the front of your body, spread those wings, and fly!