Muscle group
Lats Exercises
The widest muscle on your back, running from your upper arm down to your pelvis. It pulls your arm down and toward your body, which is why it dominates pull-ups and pulldowns rather than rows.
Vertical pulling is the main event here. Full range matters more than load — letting the shoulder blade travel up at the top and pulling it all the way down is what separates a pulldown that builds lats from one that builds biceps. 10–20 sets a week.
27 lats exercises in Gym Journal
23 compound and 4 isolation, each with a default rep range and rest interval already set. Everything here is in the free app.
| Exercise | Equipment | Type | Reps |
|---|---|---|---|
| Assisted Chin Upalso Biceps, Shoulders, Upper back | Bodyweight | compound | 10–15 |
| Assisted Pull Upalso Biceps, Shoulders, Upper back | Bodyweight | compound | 10–15 |
| Band Lat Pulldownalso Upper back, Biceps | Other | compound | 12–20 |
| Behind The Neck Lat Pulldownalso Biceps, Upper back, Shoulders | Cable | compound | 8–12 |
| Bent-Arm Barbell Pulloveralso Chest, Triceps | Barbell | compound | 8–12 |
| Bent-Arm Dumbbell Pulloveralso Chest, Triceps | Dumbbell | compound | 8–12 |
| Cable Incline Pushdown | Cable | isolation | 10–15 |
| Cable Pulldownalso Biceps, Shoulders, Upper back | Cable | compound | 8–12 |
| Cable Single Arm Lat Pulldownalso Upper back, Biceps | Cable | compound | 10–12 |
| Cable Straight-Arm Pulldown | Cable | isolation | 10–15 |
| Chin Upalso Biceps, Shoulders, Upper back | Bodyweight | compound | 8–12 |
| Dumbbell Pulloveralso Chest, Triceps | Dumbbell | compound | 8–12 |
| Machine Lat Pullover | Machine | isolation | 10–15 |
| Muscle Upalso Triceps, Chest, Shoulders, Biceps | Bodyweight | compound | 3–8 |
| Neutral Grip Lat Pulldownalso Upper back, Biceps | Cable | compound | 10–15 |
| Neutral Grip Pull Upalso Upper back, Biceps | Bodyweight | compound | 5–10 |
| Plate-Loaded Iso-Lateral Rowalso Biceps, Upper back | Plate-loaded machine | compound | 8–12 |
| Plate-Loaded Lat Pulldownalso Upper back, Biceps | Plate-loaded machine | compound | 8–12 |
| Pull Upalso Biceps, Shoulders, Upper back | Bodyweight | compound | 8–12 |
| Pulldownsalso Biceps, Shoulders, Upper back | Cable | compound | 8–12 |
| Pulldowns Close Gripalso Biceps, Shoulders, Upper back | Cable | compound | 8–12 |
| Reverse Grip Lat Pulldownalso Biceps, Upper back | Cable | compound | 10–15 |
| Rope Pullover | Cable | isolation | 10–15 |
| Weighted Chin Upalso Upper back, Biceps | Bodyweight | compound | 5–8 |
| Weighted Pull Upalso Upper back, Biceps | Bodyweight | compound | 5–8 |
| Wide Grip Lat Pulldownalso Biceps, Upper back, Shoulders | Cable | compound | 8–12 |
| Wide Grip Pull Upalso Upper back, Biceps | Bodyweight | compound | 5–10 |
Log them, and watch the numbers move
Every exercise here is in the free app, with form instructions, its own progression chart and PR tracking. No account needed to start.