Straight-Arm Lat Pulldown (Cable)
A cable isolation exercise that targets the lats by performing shoulder extension with fixed, straight arms. It effectively isolates the back muscles without fatiguing the biceps.
Since this is an isolation movement often performed after heavy compounds, the AI analyzes your previous pulling volume to prescribe the optimal weight, preventing overtraining of the lats. By tracking RPE and recovery data from your wearable, the system ensures you're isolating the muscle effectively rather than compensating with momentum due to fatigue. If you report shoulder discomfort, the app instantly suggests neutral-grip alternatives or range-of-motion adjustments to maintain training volume pain-free.
Form Cues
- Hinge slightly at the hips with knees soft to stabilize your torso
- Keep your elbows locked or with a very slight, fixed bend throughout the rep
- Depress your shoulder blades before initiating the pull
- Drive the bar down towards your thighs in a smooth arc
- Squeeze your lats hard at the bottom position
- Don't bend and extend your elbows during the movement (turning it into a tricep press)
- Don't use momentum to swing the weight down
- Don't let your shoulders shrug up towards your ears
- Don't round your lower back or lose core tension
Common Mistakes
- Turning the movement into a triceps pushdown
- Using excessive momentum
- Shrugging shoulders upward
- overarching the lumbar spine
- Gripping the bar too tightly
Muscles Worked
This exercise primarily targets the latissimus dorsi by utilizing pure shoulder extension, removing the biceps from the equation which limits many other back exercises. It also heavily recruits the long head of the triceps for stability, the posterior deltoids, and the core to maintain a rigid torso position.
Primary
Secondary
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