Exercise of the Week - Lat Pulldown

The Lat Pulldown is a great exercise and strength training move for the upper back and biceps.  Although the biceps are secondary, they are still involved because any time you FLEX the elbow, the biceps contract.  So, the muscles involved in Lat Pulldown are the Latissimus Dorsi (imagine that??), Rhomboids, Posterior (Rear) Deltoids, and Biceps.
There have been several questions raised as to where you should "pulldown."  Behind the head or not?  I will tell you there is a greater risk of injury involved in a behind the neck Lat Pulldown.  Why is this?  Well, here my little biomechanical  rant...

The NECK is excessively flexed which places great stress on the cervical spine and disks.  The shoulders are stressed because they are placed in an extreme external rotation and a hyper-extended position (i.e. the shoulder-elbow alignment is behind the mid-line of the body).  This stress could contribute to injuries such as shoulder impingement, rotator cuff problems, and anterior shoulder instability.  The Lat is also NOT optimally challenged because the line of pull does not adequately oppose the muscle fibers of the Lats.

Okay, that said, here is the correct approach to a Lat Pulldown:

1.  Place the feet firmly on the floor and hands on the bar, a little wider than the elbows, in an overhang grip.

 

2.  Pull the bar downward slightly, maintaining neutral posture and leaning back at the hips about 20 to 30 degrees (without rounding the back).

3.  Retract and depress the scapula (shoulder blades) and hold throughout the exercise.

4.  Contract the abs and begin movement by contracting the Lats, driving the elbows down toward the floor and back slightly.

5.  Pull the bar toward the upper chest while keeping the trunk from moving back and forth.

6.  Return to the starting position.

And as always....DON'T forget to breathe!!

Till next time....Christie