Lat pull downs vs. pull ups

[MightyJohn]

I personally do both but feel better results/pump from the pullups

 

[Brometheus]

I switched from pull downs to pull ups few months ago. One of the best training decisions I ever made! Pull ups all the way.

 

[hellraiser27]

This just might be the worst post ever....no offense.

Your comment to my post is offensive. And it shows you know nothing about physics.
Its Newton's 3rd Law of Motion
Newtons third law states that when you apply a force on an object the object applies the same force back in the opposite direction.

This means(once again) that pulling yourself up(moving the mass of your body up) is exactly the same as pulling that exact amount of mass towards your body.

I don't even need to argue this. Newton spent his entire life arguing it. It is now accepted by everyone in the world as his 3rd law of motion.
If you don't understand it, then don't insult me by saying I posted the worst post ever when you don't even understand physics 101.

Now there will always be technical differences such as hand width and angle. But these are minor. Pulling yourself up, or pulling the weight down will always be the same untill the end of the universe. I didnt make the law, something else did. Argue with Him.

 

[Ashop]

same grip on both and u can add weight to the pull ups which will spark more growth?

I know people always say pullups are the way but honestly I like pulldowns on a machine best. I still do pullups I just dont feel I get alot out of them for some reason. If its all I had though,,pullups it would be.

 

[lostin760]

When I first started working out I was so weak that I needed to about 100 pounds of assistance so I quickly stopped doing pullups because I was embarrassed. Since then I have never done them, I have always done pull downs. I am gonna do back on Wednesday and I will substitute pull ups and see how it goes.

 

[dragonfire101]

Best growth i ever got for width was weighted pull-ups...Even if I only could only do 6-8 with a little assistance my back just blew up.

Now that I'm getting older and my weight is up they hurt my shoulders and elbows too much to do.

Even if I could not go up all the way I would just hang with weight and do a bunch of partial reps.

 

[Ness]

Your comment to my post is offensive. And it shows you know nothing about physics.
Its Newton's 3rd Law of Motion
Newtons third law states that when you apply a force on an object the object applies the same force back in the opposite direction.

This means(once again) that pulling yourself up(moving the mass of your body up) is exactly the same as pulling that exact amount of mass towards your body.

I don't even need to argue this. Newton spent his entire life arguing it. It is now accepted by everyone in the world as his 3rd law of motion.
If you don't understand it, then don't insult me by saying I posted the worst post ever when you don't even understand physics 101.

Now there will always be technical differences such as hand width and angle. But these are minor. Pulling yourself up, or pulling the weight down will always be the same untill the end of the universe. I didnt make the law, something else did. Argue with Him.

Well okay, this post is the second to your first in the list of worst ever. No offense. Honestly, how does one argue physics and take you seriously with such a laughable statement by you referring to the technical differences as "minor?" Dude, really? LOL. That's preposterous.

Let's forget physics as far as you dont know it and focus on the mechanics of bodybuilding. Oh wait, cant do that with you either. Thats like putting the horse before the cart. Of course, no offense.

 

[hellraiser27]

Well okay, this post is the second to your first in the list of worst ever. No offense. Honestly, how does one argue physics and take you seriously with such a laughable statement by you referring to the technical differences as "minor?" Dude, really? LOL. That's preposterous.

Let's forget physics as far as you dont know it and focus on the mechanics of bodybuilding. Oh wait, cant do that with you either. Thats like putting the horse before the cart. Of course, no offense.

You know very little and I wont argue with you. The Mechanics of BB is ALL about physics. If your hands are in the same position and you pull your chest to the bar just as you would when doing a pull-up then it is exactly the same. Has nothing to do with putting horse before the cart. I could care less if you agree or not. But your insult just shows your ignorance! If you don't get it then oh well. I'm done lol Jeez
Good luck!

 

[btech]

Your comment to my post is offensive. And it shows you know nothing about physics.
Its Newton's 3rd Law of Motion
Newtons third law states that when you apply a force on an object the object applies the same force back in the opposite direction.

This means(once again) that pulling yourself up(moving the mass of your body up) is exactly the same as pulling that exact amount of mass towards your body.

I don't even need to argue this. Newton spent his entire life arguing it. It is now accepted by everyone in the world as his 3rd law of motion.
If you don't understand it, then don't insult me by saying I posted the worst post ever when you don't even understand physics 101.

Now there will always be technical differences such as hand width and angle. But these are minor. Pulling yourself up, or pulling the weight down will always be the same untill the end of the universe. I didnt make the law, something else did. Argue with Him.

But, does the same thing apply to pullups vs pulldowns? As long as same grip is used, etc . . . is it the exact same? There's a difference I can think of in this particular case (not in the argument of pulling an object toward you vs pulling yourself toward an object in general, but specifically pulldowns vs pullups).

 

[claymore]

Moving your body freely through space will always produce better progression than any cable exercise.

Agreed

 

[gyno]

You sir, are quite the retard.

Your comment to my post is offensive. And it shows you know nothing about physics.
Its Newton's 3rd Law of Motion
Newtons third law states that when you apply a force on an object the object applies the same force back in the opposite direction.

This means(once again) that pulling yourself up(moving the mass of your body up) is exactly the same as pulling that exact amount of mass towards your body.

I don't even need to argue this. Newton spent his entire life arguing it. It is now accepted by everyone in the world as his 3rd law of motion.
If you don't understand it, then don't insult me by saying I posted the worst post ever when you don't even understand physics 101.

Now there will always be technical differences such as hand width and angle. But these are minor. Pulling yourself up, or pulling the weight down will always be the same untill the end of the universe. I didnt make the law, something else did. Argue with Him.

 

[petedw]

I thought I’d contribute my opinion as to why pull ups are superior to pulldowns for back width.

As hellraiser27 says, with regards to physics both motions would seem to be the same. You are either pulling yourself up to a bar or pulling a bar down towards you.

The reason I believe pull ups are superior to lat pulldowns is because of the positioning of the forearms during the movement. During a pullup, the forearms remain in line with your torso and stay at right angles to the floor.

During a pulldown, most people tend to lean back and do not pull the bar straight down. Instead it is pulled down and back on a slight angle towards their body with their forearms also on a slight angle (not at right angles with the floor). This incorporates the rear delts, infraspinatus and middle traps.

So you see, lat pulldowns use these 3 more muscles (synergists) to assist with the movement, taking some of the strain off the lats.

Less synergists are used during a pull up, so your lats do more of the work.

And just for the hell of it, I’ll throw in a Poliquin quote (not that I agree with everything he says but I thought this was appropriate for here):

"Why are pulldowns a dork exercise? Simple. In pulldowns, you move a free-moving object (the bar) around you. It's easier to use your lower back and momentum to pull the weight. "Easier" is never the best way to build strength and musculature. With chins, you have to move your body around a fixed object (the bar), insuring an overload on the back and the muscles of the upper arms. This movement is more realistic and has a much better transference to sports performance."

 

[JTPitbull]

Pullups 1 week, pulldowns tha next..... i feel they each work a lil different part of tha back bc tha angle iz a lil diff with each....and bc of tha different angle, a few different muscles r incorporated... maybe this thread should b titled pullups v pulldowns for lat width....

x2 to ness....pullups w weight r starting to take over more lately bc most of tha machines stop at 250lbs....when ur doing reps pretty slowly and easily passing single digits....what else can one do but goto pullups with a belt n chain for progression..... i guess i could maybe try phils "secret to growth" technique and have partner pull up on tha bar slightly in tha negative portion.... kinda lyke pushing down on tha bench..... maybe ill try this next tiime......

 

[hellraiser27]

But, does the same thing apply to pullups vs pulldowns? As long as same grip is used, etc . . . is it the exact same? There's a difference I can think of in this particular case (not in the argument of pulling an object toward you vs pulling yourself toward an object in general, but specifically pulldowns vs pullups).

Well is there? Only you can decide for yourself. Also, as for the bar swinging and being in a fixed position is the same as your body swinging and the bar in a fixed position. The only difference is how everything else around you moves(relativity) As long as gravity is pulling you straight down then there is no difference.

Everyone is allowed their own opnion on this. But before you resort to name calling and insults, grow up a little bit first.

 

[btech]

Well is there? Only you can decide for yourself. Also, as for the bar swinging and being in a fixed position is the same as your body swinging and the bar in a fixed position. The only difference is how everything else around you moves(relativity) As long as gravity is pulling you straight down then there is no difference.

Everyone is allowed their own opnion on this. But before you resort to name calling and insults, grow up a little bit first.

The bar swinging on a lat pulldown can happen very easily . . your body swinging during a pullup is much more restricted, requiring much more effort, so is much less likely to happen. Is this because the bar is only a few pounds, whereas my body is 190 lbs? Not sure.

P.S. I don't name call.

 

[brisk walk]

I really prefer pullups to pulldowns.

For some reason I just don't seem to get much from the pulldowns.


I need to get my weight down a bit....in order to be able to pull myself up.

Pullups are sensational.....no doubt about it!

 

[BaconBits]

My Opinion

Pull-downs are not the same as pull-ups. Pull-ups involve all the muscles of the back and are a functional, body-weight movement. Pull-downs, which can also be effective, tend to emphasize certain back muscles over others, depending on form, technique, hand grip, and so on

 

[JTPitbull]

For those that say pulldowns are not as good..... can someone please tell me why ronnie, jay, dorian, etc have multiple back training videos out and they ALL do pulldowns one way or anotha....BUTTTTT.... i have YET to see a video of any of these guys with 4 or 5 plates strapped around their waist doing pullups....

 

[VTliftVT]

For those that say pulldowns are not as good..... can someone please tell me why ronnie, jay, dorian, etc have multiple back training videos out and they ALL do pulldowns one way or anotha....BUTTTTT.... i have YET to see a video of any of these guys with 4 or 5 plates strapped around their waist doing pullups....

You're not going to see 300lb men strapping 200 more lbs to their body's and doing pullups. Whats the highest you've seen a pulldown machine go to weight wise? Like 250lbs or so?

Interview with Dorian:

T: Did you do pull-ups at your heavy bodyweight?

Dorian: Yeah, I used to. We used to do them with maybe an extra hundred pounds, stuff like that. Maybe not full range pull-ups, though. But after the bicep injury in '94, I stayed away from pull-ups because the stretch position on the bicep wasn't right. Then I was relying on machines a lot more, particularly the Hammer pulldown machine and the row.


Coleman Pullups:

YouTube - Ronnie Coleman Calls Brock Lesnar a Fat Bitch


Jay Pullups...kinda:

YouTube - Jay Cutler Training Back in Atlanta

 

[betito]

In the world of physics there is no difference.
Pulling the weight down toward you or pulling yourself up is exactly the same.

This is true... but doesn´t mean a pull up is the same as a pull down... the way all the muscles work together is different (try doing a pull up with your knees raised and tell me if it is the exact same movement as a pull up with your knees crossed behind you), and since the posterior chain works as a team, that´s why it´s not the same to do a pull up, a pull down and rack chin. I agree with you that there is no reason to be offensive, most of the people that say they are not the same exercise can´t explain why...