V-Bar Pulldown
The V-Bar Pulldown is a cable machine exercise that targets the latissimus dorsi using a close, neutral grip. This variation emphasizes the lower lats and improves overall back thickness while engaging the biceps.
Since the V-Bar Pulldown involves significant bicep contribution, your performance can degrade quickly if your arms fatigue before your lats. The AI analyzes your rep velocity and drop-off rates from previous pull sessions to optimize your target weight, ensuring you reach muscular failure in the back muscles rather than just the arms. Additionally, by tracking your daily readiness and recovery, the app can adjust volume in real-time to prevent strain on the elbow flexors.
Form Cues
- Lean back slightly with your chest puffed out to engage the thoracic spine.
- Drive your elbows vertically down and tight against your sides.
- Squeeze your shoulder blades together firmly at the bottom of the movement.
- Control the weight slowly on the way up until your arms are fully extended.
- Keep your core braced to maintain a stable torso position.
- Don't use momentum to swing your torso back and yank the weight down.
- Don't let your shoulders shrug up towards your ears at the top of the rep.
- Don't pull the bar lower than your upper chest.
- Don't round your lower back or slouch forward.
Common Mistakes
- Swinging the torso to generate momentum
- Pulling too low toward the stomach
- Rounding the shoulders forward
- Gripping too tightly and fatiguing forearms
- Cutting the range of motion short
Muscles Worked
This exercise primarily targets the latissimus dorsi, specifically emphasizing the lower fibers due to the close grip and arm path. It also heavily recruits the biceps and brachialis as secondary movers, along with the rhomboids and middle trapezius for scapular retraction.
Primary
Secondary
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