Straight-Arm Pulldown — form guide
Lats (isolation) · Long Head Triceps. Equipment: Cable + Rope or Straight Bar. Difficulty: Beginner.
Arms locked straight throughout. This is one of the very few true lat isolation moves.
Sets & Reps
Programming defaults depend on your goal. Pick the row that matches yours:
Cues
- Arms slightly bent, then locked in that position
- Hinge slightly at hips
- Drive bar/rope down to thighs in an arc
- Squeeze lats at bottom for 2 seconds
Common mistakes
- Bending elbows — turns into pushdown
- Going too heavy — momentum takes over
Injury notes
Safe for shoulder issues — no compression.
Progression
Add 2.5kg when reps hit top of range with no elbow bend.
Indian gym reality
Cable stations in most tier-2 and tier-3 Indian gyms sit at the back with one shared pulley — expect a queue during peak hours (7–9 am and 6–9 pm). Bring supersets or plan this lift for off-peak windows.
If your gym doesn't have this equipment
- Loop a resistance band around a fixed pole or rack — mimics the constant-tension profile of a cable.
Home & hostel version
Pull-ups from a doorway bar (₹500 on Amazon) are the single best home back exercise. Add a resistance band assist if you can't hit 5 clean reps.
Nutrition & recovery around this lift
Isolations recover fast — 24 hours is usually enough. You can hit the same muscle again the next day with a different exercise. For an Indian lifter, land 30–40g of protein within 90 minutes of finishing — 200g paneer, 4 whole eggs, 150g chicken, or a whey shake all work.
Programs that feature Straight-Arm Pulldown
Full workout plans where this lift sits in the main slot — pick the goal, split, and frequency that fits your life.
Eat to support this lift
Recovery and growth happen at the plate. A meal plan matched to the training goal:
Frequently asked
What muscles does Straight-Arm Pulldown work?
Primarily Lats (isolation) · Long Head Triceps. Load and rep range shift the emphasis — heavy triples bias the primary mover, sets of 12+ bring more of the secondaries in.
How many sets of Straight-Arm Pulldown per week?
For hypertrophy, 10–20 direct working sets per week across all exercises for that muscle. This exercise usually contributes 3–8 of those sets, depending on where it sits in your program.
My Indian gym doesn't have this machine — what do I do?
See the "If your gym doesn't have this equipment" section above — every variant listed is a legitimate substitute, not a compromise.
How often should I do Straight-Arm Pulldown?
Most intermediates do best with 2× per week frequency on any given lift — one heavier session and one lighter, or two matched sessions with different rep ranges. Beginners can add a third if recovery holds up.