What's more, it also eliminates any kind of momentum with your chest, allowing you to concentrate solely on working out your back. T-bar rows are one of the best lat pulldown alternative exercises. Fix the bar to a level that you can grab from a seated position. Bend your knees at a 90 angle. For example, here's how to do a narrow-grip pulldown a popular lat pulldown alternative using elastic resistance bands and a doorway: Hold both handles or ends of the elastic resistance band in one hand and use your other hand to shut the door on the midpoint of the band. . All these exercises and more are outlined in this article. Close Grip Pull Ups 5. One Arm Row 3. While both your arms are extended in front, bring the torso back at an angle of 30 degrees thereby bending the lower back and protruding your chest out. 1. The banded lat pulldown is a fantastic functional exercise that helps strengthen the back, shoulders and arms. Close Grip Pulldown Muscles Worked. While lat pulldowns are often considered an alternative for those who can't do pull-ups, variations of pull-ups can just as easily substitute for pulldowns.The reverse grip pulldown also called reverse grip lat pulldown is a strength-gaining exercise targeting the lats and helps in enhancing the back, forearm, and biceps. It is a powerful tool for building a wide, strong upper back. Lat Pulldown Alternatives With Dumbbells 3. 1. The strict pull-up is a viable alternative to the lat pulldown. Elastic Band Resistance Pulldown 4. Once you're set up and braced, take a deep breath and then pull the handle down to your upper chest. This exercise compound can help increase the strength of your upper body while improving your posture. Coaching Points BANDED CLOSE GRIP LAT PULLDOWN The wide grip lat pulldown can help build you a wider back. Close Grip Lat Pulldown Alternatives 1) Incline Dumbbell Rows 2) Chin-ups 3) Barbell Bent Over Rows Related Guides Difference Between Close and Wide Grip Lat Pulldown The key difference between close and wide grip lat pulldowns is the grip used. Each of these exercises has its own set of pros and cons that should be considered before choosing which exercise to do. Pull-up Okay, you probably all saw this coming. Pronated narrow grip. 5. Or make do with whatever you have. How To Do A Close Grip Lat Pulldown Grasp the bar firmly with both hands Lock your knees under the pads to prevent your body from coming off the seat Start with your arms stretched straight above you, your back straight, and your chest out Pull the bar down towards your chest while keeping your elbows directly under your hands Lat Pull-Down Alternative Exercises. The chest-supported incline dumbbell row provides a great alternative to the lat pulldown as it prevents the need to use your core for bracing. Then, place your feet on either side of the barbell and bend forward at the waist. Build a Bigger, Wider Back. These lat pulldown exercises are great alternatives you can use without a machine to build massive lats and insane upper body pulling strength. Reasons to choose a lat pulldown alternative. Analyzing the Lat Pulldown The lat pulldown is a compound exercise designed to target many muscles of the back, most notably the latissimus dorsi (Figure 1). 3. How to do the lat pulldown Start by sitting at a lat pull machine, facing the bar. #3 Alternating Lat Pulldown You can also work your lats unidirectionally using the pulldown of alternate lats, with two handles that you pull one down at one time. The exercise can be performed conveniently at home. T-bar rows are a great exercise for targeting the lats. Begin by grasping the bar with your palms facing you, and your hands spaced shoulder-width apart. Hypertrophy is best for building mass as it causes the muscles cells to increase in size. Pronated medium grip. If you don't have a pullup bar at home, you can pick up an inexpensive doorway pullup bar. If you want to enhance the diameter of your back and improve general upper body strength, the wide grip width variant is a fantastic alternative. Place your thighs under the pads and ensure a snug, comfortable fit. The wider grip gives you room to pull more vertically while maintaining a more upright torso angle. Credit: Wood Water Wall / Shutterstock. Slowly return the arm to the start position. This will still train the trapezius, rhomboids, and biceps alongside the lats, but it will activate them to a lesser degree compared to a close grip variation. For this tutorial, we're going to sit on the floor. If you use an underhand, shoulder-width grip, it's similar to a chin-up. Chin Up Begin by grabbing the bar with your palms facing towards you and your hands shoulder width apart. Piecing these exercises together into a training program would look something like this: A1) Pull-Up 4 x 5-8 B1) Band Assisted Chin-Up OR Band Lat Pulldown 4 x 10-15 C1) Dumbbell Pullover 3 x 10-15 Step 3 - Stretch back up and repeat. Close Grip Lat Pulldown Alternative at Home or the Gym If you're hoping to work on the muscles we discussed earlier but would try another form of exercise, check out our list of alternatives: 1. Kroc Rows 5. Make sure you squeeze your shoulders together and feel . Placing your hands at a distance slightly closer than your shoulder width, hold the pulldown bar using a supinated or underhand grip so that the palms face your torso. My only suggestion for this exercise is to try it with either a mid or wide grip. Unlike lat pulldowns, a close-grip cable row is a compound exercise that's classified as a horizontal pull. Now, pull the bar down to your chest, squeezing the lats hard at the bottom. Wide Grip Lat Pulldown. Equipment: Cross-over cable system with single handles The reverse-grip pull down, more often called the reverse-grip "lat" pull down, is an exercise that targets the back and biceps. 10 No-Equipment Lat Pulldown Alternatives. Landmine Row 9. How To Do the Close Grip Lat Pulldown: Proper Form 1. These distances will ensure that you develop the width and fullness of the . Put your hips back and keep your back straight as you bend down. Leap up and grab the bar with your palms facing away shoulder-width apart or wider if you are using it as a wide grip lat pulldown home alternative Engage the core Use shoulder, arms, and back muscles to slowly lift your body up Try to bring your chest towards the bar, and hold it for a fraction Move slowly down to your starting position Set the cable high up and sit down on the floor. The lat pulldown is something of a staple in bodybuilding and strength athletics, with pro and commercial gyms around the world catering for it. How to Do Archer Pull Ups? Bent Over Row 8. 1. The wide grip lat pulldown is among the most effective exercises to strengthen your back. Band Pull Apart 6. You can even switch up your grip with the same attachment enabling you to be as efficient and effective as possible. Pull the dumbbells up while rolling your shoulders back. There are some variations of the lat pulldown exercise including the close-grip pulldown, wide-grip pulldown, reverse-grip (supination) pulldown, and neutral-grip pulldown (to name a few). It also doesn't require a gym to perform the exercise, with doorway pull-up barscosting around $30. T Bar Row 10. Lean forward at the hip until your torso is slightly above being paralell with the floor. Keep your chest up and don't round your lower back. The kneeling cable lat pulldown is a great alternative to the neutral grip pull-up because it targets the lats and biceps to a great degree. The lat pulldown is a very effective exercise for adding width to . There are five different grip options on the ol' lat pulldown bar. It's performed on a pull-down machine, which you'll find in gyms or health clubs. How to Do a Lat Pulldown (With Proper Form) Step 1 - Grasp the bar and take a seat. Close grip lat pulldowns are performed either with a neutral grip or a supinated grip. Though it mostly works the large latissimus dorsi muscles in the mid back, as a heavy compound movement, it also brings many other muscles into play, such as the biceps, rhomboids and . To do an archer pull up, hang from the bar with a wide grip. Don't hunch your back or neck as you move. Pull yourself upwards until your chin passes the bar. Repeat! V Bar Pulldown Alternatives 1. This is a perfect alternative to close grip lat pulldown basically because it assumes a similar movement. Lat Pull-Down Alternatives. This lat pulldown alternative isolates one side of the back and lat muscles and is one of the best exercises for replicating one arm pull ups. Pull-Ups 2. To do this exercise, start by placing a barbell in a landmine or corner and load it with weight. Begin by grasping the bar using your hands facing away from you, and your hands spread more than shoulder length apart. With resistance bands coming in varying levels of strength, it means the banded lat pulldown can . Here are ten lat pulldown alternative exercises to try! If you are feeling a little overwhelmed by all the anatomy vocab so far, don't sweat it, I will break them each down one by one. 6 Lat Pulldown Alternatives you Can Do at Home 1. Check out our top 3 favourite free weight lat pulldown alternatives: #1 Quadruped Birddog Single Arm Dumbbell Row This is probably the hardest exercise to get right, but the most effective exercise for developing total body strength and balance. Grip the bar approximately shoulder-width apart with the palms facing forward towards you. When going up, your elbows should be tucked in. Close Grip Lat Pulldown Alternatives. TRX Row 7. For that reason, they are also a lot harder than regular pull ups. Begin pulling yourself upwards until your chin passes the bar. 2. Neutral grip pulldown workout If you're training for hypertrophy, aim for 10 - 12 reps for 3 - 4 sets using a 1 - 2 minute rest time. Many people tend to stick with one lat pulldown variation without changing it up. If you loved the pulldown with a close grip take a look at these back exercises that will help improve the strength of your upper body: #1 Chin Up. It still effectively targets the lats, but it also works the rhomboids, traps, biceps, forearms, and teres minor/major. More like the grip you'd use when doing pull-ups. Step 2 - Slightly arch your back and pull the bar straight down. 1. Kneeling cable lat pulldown. If you have a pulley system, you could use this exercise to build your back just as good as doing pull-ups. Raise your chest and tighten your core. Push yourself upwards until your chin is over the bar. Cue 1: Grab the bar with an underhand grip and take a seat or give yourself enough room to sit back on the floor. Its only noticeable difference is the use of a pronated (overhand) grip rather than the reverse. T-Bar Rows. Supinated medium grip. Lat Pull Down Variations Wide-Grip Lat Pull-Down. They include: Supinated narrow grip. If you enjoyed the close grip lat pulldown, check out these back exercises to improve your upper body training: Chin Up. Bent-Over Rows Best Lat Pulldown Machines Best Power Racks with Lat Pulldown Attachments Closing Word 6 Lat Pulldown Alternatives you Can Do at Home Now, let's go through them one by one. Pronated wide grip. Reverse-grip lat pulldowns are a great alternative for those who want to focus on building bigger, stronger lats. The wide grip lat pulldown is the most lat-dominant pulldown variation. Part of the series: Unique Workout Tips. This wide grip lat pull-down without a machine works the lats, shoulders, arms, and back muscles. Wide Grip Lat Pulldown: Alternatives. Keep your lower body in a still . The article also guides you on the lat pulldown alternatives that you can choose. The Best Lat Pulldown Alternatives - Six Ways to Level Up Your Lats 1. Inverted Row 4. The main difference is that a pull-up moves your body whereas a pulldown moves the bar. Alternative exercises for the reverse-grip pull down work the same muscles but don't require such expensive equipment.