Rope Straight-Arm Pulldown

Muscles Worked

The lats handles the primary load during this movement. This isolation movement keeps tension concentrated on a single muscle group.

How to Rope Straight-Arm Pulldown

1. 1

   Attach a rope to a high pulley and make your weight selection. Stand a couple feet back from the pulley with your feet staggered and take the rope with both hands. Lean forward from the hip, keeping your back straight, with your arms extended up in front of you. This will be your starting position.

2. 2

   Keeping your arms straight, extend the shoulder to pull the rope down to your thighs.

3. 3

   Pause at the bottom of the motion, squeezing your lats.

4. 4

   Return to the starting position without allowing the weight to fully rest on the stack.

Common Mistakes

• • Focus on the mind-muscle connection — feel the target muscle working through each rep.
• • Use a controlled tempo of 2 seconds up, 2 seconds down to eliminate momentum.
• • Stand far enough from the pulley to maintain constant tension at every point in the range of motion.
• • Squeeze at peak contraction for a full second — this is where most of the growth stimulus occurs.

Similar Exercises

Band Assisted Pull-Up

beginner lats

Bent-Arm Barbell Pullover

intermediate lats

Cable Incline Pushdown

beginner lats

Catch and Overhead Throw

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Chair Lower Back Stretch

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Chin-Up

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Frequently Asked Questions