Making the Lateral Pull Down More Effective

As one of the standard upper body exercises, the lateral pull down is one of the best.  Aside from the fact that the lats are responsible for defining the highly desirable “triangular” shape coveted by bodybuilders and casual athletes alike, it works the arms as well.  Attention to form is very important while doing this particular exercise.

Position While Doing Lat Pulldowns

One of the things any athlete should avoid while engaged in lat pulldowns is pulling the bar down behind the neck.  This puts undue strain upon the neck and shoulders and can cause injuries.

To do lat pulldowns correctly, you must make sure that your positioning is correct.  Adjust the thigh pads so they hold snuggly.  Connect the wide bar to the cable and sit so that it is just forward of your face when seated.  Reach up to grasp the bar at shoulder width and pull it down evenly and smoothly, pulling past your face to your upper chest.

Maintain an upright position; you don’t want to shift your body forward and back while performing lat pull downs as this reduces the effectiveness of the exercise.  Additionally, you must keep your shoulders down and shoulder blades together and pulled back.  This maximizes the use of the lat muscles, isolating them effectively.

An Additional Boost with the Isolator™

One of the best things you can do to increase the effectiveness of your lat pull down is to do the exercise while wearing the Isolator™ a tool that helps isolate muscle groups while they are being worked.  What may, at first glance, look like nothing more than a collection of straps, is actually a well designed, American made product which was created with the bodybuilder in mind.

The purpose of using the Isolator™ is to remove the lower arms and grip from the equation when working any muscle in the shoulder, chest, or back.  Since the grip is usually the weakest link in the chain, performing any exercise without it increases the potential benefit of each lift.

When you perform a lateral pull down with the Isolator™, you optimize each movement and target the lats more specifically.  That means that you will see better results with less effort, and who doesn’t want that kind of benefit?  Best of all, you can use this piece of equipment to work all of your upper body muscles, making it cost effective while achieving the kinds of results you desire.

Tags: isolator fitness, lat pull down, lat pull downs, lat pulldown, lat pulldowns, lateral pull down, lateral pulldown, the isolator