10 Best Barbell Pullover Alternatives for Lat Stretch

The Barbell Pullover is done lying on your back with a barbell. Ranked closest by our scoring: the Barbell Decline Bent Arm Pullover, the Barbell Decline Wide-grip Pullover and the Barbell Bent Arm Pullover.

The Barbell Pullover has you lie on a bench with your head at one end, then hold a bar overhead with straight arms and lower it behind your head until you feel the lat stretch. The Barbell Decline Bent Arm Pullover comes closest: the same overhead arc on a decline bench with your head lower than your hips and feet secured, and a slight bend in your elbows instead of straight arms. With no bench, the Cable Straight Arm Pulldown has you stand and pull a straight bar down to your thighs.

Barbell PulloverWatch the Barbell Pullover

Each substitute is scored on movement pattern, muscles worked, equipment and body position. Read how we rank alternatives

How to Do the Barbell Pullover

The steps for the Barbell Pullover itself, so you can judge how close each substitute below really is.

Lats, with chest, triceps · Barbell · Intermediate · Isolation

  1. Lie flat on a bench with your head at one end and your feet on the floor.
  2. Hold a barbell with a shoulder-width grip and extend your arms straight above your chest.
  3. Keeping your arms straight, lower the barbell behind your head in a controlled manner until you feel a stretch in your lats.
  4. Pause for a moment, then raise the barbell back to the starting position.
  5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

The 10 Best Barbell Pullover Alternatives

10 substitutes, ranked by how closely each one matches the Barbell Pullover on movement pattern, muscles worked, equipment and body position. The higher the score, the less you change. Cards with a "How to perform it" link open to show the steps; every card title links to that exercise's own alternatives page.

Each link re-ranks the list below for the kit it names. Pick one to hide the substitutes you cannot set up.

  1. Barbell Decline Bent Arm PulloverPlay demonstration

    1. Barbell Decline Bent Arm Pullover

    89% match

    Lats · Intermediate · Isolation

    It still works the lats, through a different movement.

    • Barbell
    How to perform it
    1. Lie down on a decline bench with your head lower than your hips and your feet secured.
    2. Hold a barbell with a pronated grip (palms facing away from you) and extend your arms straight above your chest.
    3. Lower the barbell behind your head in a controlled manner, keeping your arms slightly bent.
    4. Pause for a moment, then raise the barbell back to the starting position by contracting your lats.
    5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

    Sets and reps: 3 sets of 10 to 15 reps.

    Why this matches
    • Primary muscle: lats, the same as the Barbell Pullover
    • Equipment: free weights, the same as the Barbell Pullover
    • Body position: lying on your back, the same as the Barbell Pullover
  4. EZ Bar Lying Bent Arms PulloverPlay demonstration

    4. EZ Bar Lying Bent Arms Pullover

    84% match

    Lats · Intermediate · Isolation

    A good swap when you have an EZ bar to work with, and it still works the lats.

    • Ez-barbell
    How to perform it
    1. Lie flat on a bench with your head at one end and your feet on the floor.
    2. Hold the EZ barbell with a pronated grip (palms facing away from you) and your hands shoulder-width apart.
    3. Extend your arms straight above your chest, keeping a slight bend in your elbows.
    4. Lower the barbell in an arc motion behind your head, maintaining the slight bend in your elbows.
    5. Pause for a moment, then return the barbell to the starting position by reversing the arc motion.
    6. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

    Sets and reps: 3 sets of 10 to 15 reps.

    Why this matches
    • Primary muscle: lats, the same as the Barbell Pullover
    • Equipment: free weights, the same as the Barbell Pullover
    • Body position: lying on your back, the same as the Barbell Pullover
  5. Cable Lying Extension Pullover (With Rope Attachment)Play demonstration

    5. Cable Lying Extension Pullover (With Rope Attachment)

    70% match

    Lats · Intermediate · Isolation

    A good swap when you have a cable machine to work with, and it still works the lats.

    • Cable
    How to perform it
    1. Attach a rope to a cable machine and set the pulley at the highest position.
    2. Lie down on a bench with your head towards the cable machine.
    3. Hold the rope with both hands and extend your arms straight up above your chest.
    4. Keeping your arms straight, slowly lower the rope behind your head while maintaining control.
    5. Pause for a moment at the bottom, then slowly raise the rope back to the starting position.
    6. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

    Sets and reps: 3 sets of 10 to 15 reps.

    Why this matches
    • Primary muscle: lats, the same as the Barbell Pullover
    • Equipment: a cable, not free weights
    • Body position: lying on your back, the same as the Barbell Pullover
  6. Weighted Muscle UpPlay demonstration

    6. Weighted Muscle Up

    68% match

    Lats · Advanced · Compound

    Pick this when you want a harder version that still works the lats.

    • Weighted
    How to perform it
    1. Start by hanging from a pull-up bar with your palms facing away from you and your hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
    2. Engage your core and pull your body up towards the bar, leading with your chest.
    3. As you reach the top of the movement, transition your grip so that your palms are facing towards you.
    4. Continue pulling yourself up until your chest reaches the bar, then pause for a moment.
    5. Slowly lower yourself back down to the starting position, maintaining control throughout the movement.
    6. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

    Sets and reps: 3 to 5 sets of 5 to 8 reps.

    Why this matches
    • Primary muscle: lats, the same as the Barbell Pullover
    • Equipment: free weights, the same as the Barbell Pullover
    • Body position: hanging, not lying on your back
    • Balance: harder to stay steady on than the Barbell Pullover

Why You Might Need a Barbell Pullover Alternative

A Barbell Pullover needs a flat bench to lie on and a straight bar to hold overhead with a shoulder-width grip, so the session stalls the moment either one is missing. The pullover variations keep that same overhead arc into a lat stretch: the decline versions move you to a decline bench with your feet secured, the EZ bar version swaps the bar and holds a slight bend in your elbows, and the cable version keeps you lying down while a rope from a high pulley replaces the bar. The Cable Straight Arm Pulldown breaks from lying down, standing you at a cable machine to pull a straight bar from the high pulley down to your thighs, arms straight throughout. Match what you have: a barbell on a flat or decline bench, an EZ bar, or a cable stack.

How to Choose the Right Barbell Pullover Substitute

If you want to keep the same bar and flat bench, the Barbell Bent Arm Pullover keeps your elbows slightly bent instead of locked straight. The Barbell Decline Bent Arm Pullover does the same on a decline bench, head lower than your hips. Without a straight bar, the EZ Bar Lying Bent Arms Pullover keeps the same flat bench and arc. Where a cable station is free, the Cable Lying Extension Pullover (With Rope Attachment) keeps the same lying arc: pulley high, head toward the machine, lowering a rope behind your head instead of a bar. For a version that skips the bench, the Cable Straight Arm Pulldown has you stand and pull the bar to your thighs.

Barbell Pullover FAQ

What muscles does the Barbell Pullover work?

The Barbell Pullover targets the lats through a long, straight-arm arc that runs from above your chest to behind your head while you lie on a bench. Keep your arms straight and pause when you feel the stretch behind your head: that stretch, and the pull back over your chest, is the lat work the exercise is there for.

What can I use instead of the Barbell Pullover if I only have an EZ bar?

The EZ Bar Lying Bent Arms Pullover keeps the same lying arc: hands shoulder-width on the EZ bar, palms away, with a slight bend held in your elbows as you lower it behind your head and reverse the arc back up. It uses the same bench setup as the Barbell Pullover, head at one end and feet on the floor, so nothing else about the position changes.

Which Barbell Pullover alternative uses a cable machine?

The Cable Lying Extension Pullover (With Rope Attachment). You set the pulley high, lie on a bench with your head toward the cable machine, and take the rope in both hands with straight arms above your chest, then lower it behind your head and raise it back to the start, the same arc as the barbell version.

Is there a Barbell Pullover alternative that skips the bench entirely?

The Cable Straight Arm Pulldown is done standing. You attach a straight bar to the high pulley, face the machine, grip it overhand with straight arms, and pull it down toward your thighs by engaging your lats, then let it return slowly. Your arms stay straight the whole way, as they do on the Barbell Pullover.

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