Muscle outlines from Body Muscles by Ivan Vulović, Apache 2.0 — regrouped and recoloured for Muscle Train.
Retract shoulder blades and depress them. Drive elbows down and back, initiating the pull. Pull until chin clears the bar. Squeeze your back muscles at the top, pause, then lower slowly to full arm extension, maintaining a straight body line.
To maximize back engagement, lead with your elbows, focusing on driving them down and back as you initiate the pull, rather than pulling with your arms. Consciously keep your shoulders down and away from your ears throughout the movement to prevent upper trap dominance and protect your shoulder joint. Engage your core muscles tightly to stabilize your body and prevent excessive swinging or arching during the exercise. Control the lowering phase by resisting gravity, feeling the stretch in your lats and maintaining tension throughout the entire range of motion. Visualize pulling your chest towards the bar at the top of the movement to ensure you're fully engaging your back muscles and achieving a complete contraction.
MuscleTrain is actively being built. If something looks broken, or you have a suggestion, let us know — it really helps shape the app.