This is the best way to train the lat on the lat pulldown!
Although the exercise is known as the lat pulldown, which muscles are primarily trained depends on the choice of grip and execution. If you specifically want to strengthen the lower part of the latissimus, i.e. the vertical fibers, a long grip is ideal, where you can decide on the grip width yourself.
You can either work with an overhand grip or with parallel grips. Note that your biceps are heavily involved in the underhand grip – so if you want to train your latissimus in isolation, you should avoid the underhand grip. For the best activation of the latissimus, a grip width that is slightly wider than shoulder width, about 1.5 times the width of your shoulders, is probably optimal.
Lat anatomy:
The latissimus dorsi, an impressive muscle, has a number of points of origin:
These range from the lower thoracic spine via the lumbar spine, the sacrum, the lower ribs and the iliac crest to the thoracolumbar fascia. From all these points, the lat extends to the inner upper part of the humerus. Due to this broad base, the latissimus can pull the laterally raised arm towards the body, i.e. perform an adduction, and at the same time rotate the upper arm inwards. It also has the ability to move the arm from an anterior, upper position to a posterior, lower position next to the body, which is known as retroversion.
On the subject of shoulder blades:
Should you let them move upwards (as I did in this video) or keep them stabilized / motionless?
👉🏼 Involving the shoulder blades in the movement automatically causes the upper arm, and therefore the insertion of the latissimus, to move further upwards. This stretches the latissimus to the maximum. Such pre-stretching and a large range of motion are particularly beneficial when building muscle, as they contribute to the effective strengthening and development of the muscles.
👉🏼 By keeping the shoulder blades stable and not allowing them to move, you achieve a more isolated training of the latissimus. When the shoulder blades are pulled down, the lower part of the trapezius muscle is also used. The targeted stabilization of the shoulder blades concentrates the load more on the latissimus, which enables more effective and targeted training of this specific muscle.
Therefore, both have advantages and disadvantages, so to speak, and the decision is, as always, goal-dependent.
And what about the movement of the shoulder blades backwards (contraction of the shoulder blades)?
What you should avoid during training is moving the shoulder blades too far back towards the spine. This is because this movement is not performed by the latissimus, but by the muscles between the shoulder blades.
It is therefore also advisable to avoid excessive stretching of the thoracic spine. If you stretch your chest too far forward, this often leads to a contraction of the shoulder blades. You can control this movement by adopting the correct sitting position, as I explain in this video.
This is precisely why the lat pull-down variation, where you pull the bar behind your head towards your neck, is not ideal for building muscle.
To bring the bar behind your head, you need to stretch your thoracic spine, which is usually associated with a contraction of the shoulder blades. In addition, the mobility of the upper arms is often restricted with this type of exercise.
If you lean backwards during the lat pulldown, the direction of pull of the cable changes: it no longer comes from above in relation to your body, but from the front. This leads to the upper back, i.e. the muscles between the shoulder blades, being trained.
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