![]() Moreover, using momentum will put more stress on your connective tissue and joints, possibly causing injuries. If you want to move more weight and use as many muscles as possible, then skip the straight-arm pushdowns and do some barbell rows. If you start using body English to move more weight, you’ll end up working your hips, abs, and arms more than your back. Swinging the WeightĮgo should never have a place in the gym, especially not when doing an isolation movement. You have to nail the technique if you want to progress safely, and that means avoiding these common mistakes. The straight-arm pushdown requires focus to reap all the benefits. Once you’re at the top of the range of motion and your back is fully stretched, repeat for the desired amount of reps.įorm tip: If you feel your arms overpowering your lats, and your triceps or shoulders fatigue before your back muscles, use a “false grip” by placing your thumb on top of the bar next to your fingers. Keep your torso still and don’t stand up straight at the weight comes up. When the bar is nearly touching your legs, slowly reverse the motion and let your arms come up. ![]() Step 3 - Control the Stretch Credit: ANRproduction / Shutterstock This will help you recruit your back more and shift focus away from your arms. Keep your wrists neutral, don’t allow them to curl down or bend back.įorm tip: Imagine you have an orange under each of your armpits and you’re squeezing them for their juice. ![]() Keep your arms straight or slightly-bent for the duration of the lift. Step 2 - Pull the Weight Down Credit: ANRproduction / ShutterstockĮxhale and squeeze your lats as much as you can while driving the bar down towards your thighs. This will diminish the stress on your shoulders and reduce interference from non-target muscles like your shoulders or traps. Your hands should be slightly above shoulder-height.įorm tip: Keep your shoulders down and your chest puffed up. Lean forward at the waist and slightly bend your knees to adopt a stable position from which to pull. Step back until the weight starts floating off the stack and you feel tension pulling you toward it. Grab the bar using a palms-down, shoulder-width grip, and fully extend your arms toward the pulley. Set a cable pulley at the maximum height so that you can enjoy a full range of motion, and attach a straight or EZ-curl bar. Step 1 - Set up at the Cable Station Credit: ANRproduction / Shutterstock ![]() These types of movements typically require less coordination and technique than multi-joint exercises, but you still need to use proper form if you want the best results. How to Program the Straight-Arm PushdownĪs a single-joint exercise, the straight-arm pushdown is a fairly straightforward to perform.Muscles Worked by the Straight-Arm Pushdown.How to Progress the Straight-Arm Pushdown.Straight-Arm Pushdown Mistakes to Avoid.Here’s why and how to add it to your training plan. This allows you to really focus on the target body part with minimal assistance from other muscles.Īdding this exercise might just be the key to unlock new growth and a better mind-muscle connection. The straight-arm pushdown, sometimes called a stiff-arm pushdown or pulldown, is one the most effective movements to work just the lats because it is an isolation (single-joint) exercise. The lats are a notoriously hard to target body part, and these big lifts have the risk of shifting the work to other supporting muscles. The problem is that compound (multi-joint or “polyarticular”) exercises like chins, deadlifts, and rows not only train the large lat muscle of your back, but also many other muscles in your whole body. You have to add some seasoning if you want the best final product, and the extra flavor (and extra results) will come from your exercise choices. Exercises like the chin-up and the deadlift are seen as the kings of back-builders by many lifters, but they are only the meat and potatoes.
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