invisible lat syndrome

invisible lat syndrome (uncountable)

1. (derogatory, humorous) Synonym of imaginary lat syndrome.
   • 1993 January 11, Aleck H Alexopoulos, “Vanadyl Sulphate: An experiment”, in misc.fitness‎^[1] (Usenet), archived from the original on 15 July 2025:

     A week has gone by and i^[sic] still like a skinny guy wearing a Powerhouse gym sweatshirt suffering from acute ILS (Invisible Lat Syndrome....).

   • 1998, TDF, RDE, “Wade Blizzard: Frederick, Maryland; Naval Flight Officer”, in R. Fisher Reynolds, editor, Lucky Bag, Annapolis, Md.: United States Naval Academy, →OCLC, page [564], column 1:

     Pinball, hearts, spades. Those geekers look great on you, weren’t they suppose to be indestructable? Mr. 4.0, man you’re smart. Invisible lat syndrome. Freakin’ Nuke!

   • 2002, Ray Burton, “That Which Doesn’t Bend, Breaks!”, in Branda Moen, editor, Fat to Fit: Your Complete Guide to Losing Weight and Getting Fit, Canada: buildingbodies, →ISBN, “The Basics of Working Out and Your First Routine” section, page 41:

     Weight lifting is awesome when done properly. However, doing a limited range of movement (chopping your reps short of full extension) over a prolonged period of time can create shortened muscles. This is commonly seen with “ILS” and “MAS”. The “Invisible Lat Syndrome” and “Monkey Arm Syndrome” are where the person walks around like they are carrying a beer keg under each arm.

   • 2011, Jayson Krause, “Stranger 12”, in 52 People: Connecting with Life Through Strangers, [Okotoks, Alta.]: Driven By Passion Press, →ISBN, page 58:

     You see, I have always been a short, stocky, muscle bound guy. Hours upon hours in the weight room have contributed to stiff rigid movements, limited flexibility, and extended suffering of the condition of ILS (Invisible Lat Syndrome – walking with my arms out wide to make me look bigger).

   • 2016, Dom Mazzetti [pseudonym; Mike Tornabene; Gian Hunjan], “Beach Weekend Pump Workout”, in The Swoly Bible: The Bro Science Way of Life, New York, N.Y.: Plume, →ISBN, stage 3 (Brotégé), page 89:

     LAT PULLDOWN / Now I know what you are thinking: “But Dom! I can’t even see my back. Why should I work it out?” I have three words for you: invisible lat syndrome. You need to pump your lats to create the ultimate illusion of size. If any haters ask, you will be able to tell them, “No, I actually cannot put my arms down, and yes I am actually this huge.”

   • 2018 April 26, Tim Kirkpatrick, “5 of the stupidest diseases you can develop at the gym”, in We Are The Mighty‎^[2], Palo Alto, Calif.: Mighty Networks, archived from the original on 27 April 2018:

     1. ILS, or Invisible Lat Syndrome / This severe ailment is considered by many to be one of the worst physical deformities of all time. If you've ever seen an average guy walk around the gym looking like he's got invisible braces holding up his arms, then you're probably witnessing a terrible case of "invisible lat syndrome."

   • 2019, Eric O’Neill, “Jersey Walls and Airplanes”, in Gray Day: My Undercover Mission to Expose America’s First Cyber Spy, New York, N.Y.: Crown, →ISBN, page 132:

     I hated to poke the bear, but Kate [Alleman] would want a report. “Who is Assistant Director [Gene] O’Leary?” / [Robert] Hanssen paused at his office door, his shoulders up in the hypermasculine pose my little brother Danny calls invisible lat syndrome. I readied myself for a tongue-lashing. Instead he deflated.