Straight-Arm Lat Pulldown

How to do it

1. Attach a straight bar or rope to a high pulley and stand a step back from the stack.
2. Take an overhand grip at shoulder width and hinge forward slightly at the hips.
3. Set a small bend in your elbows and hold that angle for the whole set.
4. Depress your shoulder blades and sweep the handle down toward your thighs.
5. Squeeze the lats at the bottom without folding the trunk forward.
6. Let the handle rise back overhead under control and repeat.

Common mistakes

• Bending and straightening the elbows, which turns the lift into a triceps pressdown.
• Arching the lower back as the handle rises, which leaks range and loads the spine.
• Loading so heavy that the hips finish the rep, which takes the lats off tension.
• Locking the shoulder blades in place, which blocks the scapular travel this exercise trains.