Fitness advice

Back Workout

Blake Schneiderman

Mike with Young Muscle Magazine

Back is one of the most neglected body parts of a novice weightlifter. Most people choose not to train their back simply because they cannot see it, but we all know that is not a good reason. So what are the consequences of disregarding your back? If you overlook your back and only train your chest you will walk around all hutched over. What happens is your chest develops, it gets tight, and causes your shoulders to cave in. How can you prevent this? Follow our guide to training the back and that sexy “V” shaped look in only weeks away.

The back is made up of four major muscle groups, the latissimus dorsi, rhomboids, trapezius, and the spinal erectors. It is very important to workout all the major muscle groups evenly and not to over train anyone group. Uneven workouts can cause more harm then benefits. You should train each group once during your back workout, doing 3 sets of each exercise for about 8-15 reps.

The main exercise for working out your latissimus dorsi (or lats) is the lat pulldown. This exercise can be done a number of ways, but the most important aspect is to do it correctly. The first step when setting yourself up on the lat pulldown machine is to make sure that your feet are on the ground, your legs are creating a 90 degree angle, and the pad is on the top of your thighs. Grab the bar with palms facing away from you, arch your back slightly, and keep you head tilted up so that your eyes are focused on the top of the machine. Lower the bar to the top of your chest, bringing your elbows away from you on an angle. Squeeze your shoulder blades together and bring your arms back to the starting position. Remember whenever you are working out and performing the negative part of the exercise you should always control the weight, don’t let gravity do all the work.

You might be wondering why there are so many grips and variations to this exercise. Each grip and variation works the muscles differently, so it is always in your best interest to change the grip every workout. For beginners, I suggest that the lat pulldown be performed with a neutral hand grip; that is when your palms face you. You are less prone to error with this grip and it automatically places you in the correct position to perform the exercise. Remember never to perform this exercise with the bar going behind your head because it can be dangerous to your neck and rotator cuff.

The rhomboids’ main exercise for optimal muscle isolation is the row. The row can be performed on a machine, with dumbbells, barbells, bands, or even the Smith machine. We will first talk about the dumbbell row. First we have to set ourselves up by placing your left knee and left hand on the bench. Slightly bend the left elbow and making sure that your back is straight throughout the exercise. Now with the right arm, possesses the dumbbell, lower your arm so that it is fully extended. When you lower the weight, for best results, bring the dumbbell down on a angle like you are sawing wood. Do not let the dumbbell swing and bring towards you chest, squeezing your back. Once feeling comfortable with the exercise we can progress to the advanced row on the Smith machine to perform an inverted row. First you set the machine up by placing the bar on the fourth prong or higher depending on your arm length. Lie underneath the bar so that you are lying parallel to the floor and bend your knees slightly. Pull your self up so that your chest touches the bar, then lower self back down, try 15 of these.

Now to workout the trapezius muscles, the main exercise for is called shrugs. Incase of confusion, your traps are the muscles the visually connect your shoulders to your neck. The traps are the easiest muscles to train. You can train them with dumbbells, barbells, or a shrug machine. Simply just grab dumbbells hold them in your hands and bring your shoulders to your ears. Never rotate the shoulders while performing this exercise because it can be very dangerous to your neck. You can use heavier weight for this exercise due to the limited mobility of your traps and the small distance of muscle contraction.

The final muscle that should be trained with the back is the erector spinae muscles that protect the spine. The erector spinae is a muscle incorporated into a muscle group called your “core”, a strong core means a stronger overall body. This muscle is located on the opposite side of your abs, on your lower center back. The main exercise for the erector spinae is the hyperextension. The hyperextension is best performed with a stability ball. First lay on the ball so that your quadriceps are on the ball and your face is looking at the floor. Cross your hands on your chest and arch your back till you feel a squeeze and then release. You should finish each back workout with some pull-ups, but if you can not squeeze out any by the end of your intense workout do not fret, just simply do them on the Smith machine which will give you the assistance needed to perform this crucial finale. Set the bar up so that it is higher than it was set for you to perform the row, probably on the fifth prong. Position your body on an angle so that it is no longer parallel to the ground and pull your self up. Following these steps to healthy complete back workout you will be able to continue on your way to body of your dreams.

Blake Schneiderman Personal Trainer, Steel Fitness for Young Muscle Magazine

Our model Mike Bellantuono is one of the founders of Young Muscle Magazine. Click Here to Subscribe.

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