The back - the part that separates the strong from the weak. Try our workout for a huge back.

If there is one part that truly separates the strong from the weak, it is the back. Back development is the cornerstone of a muscular physique and strength. My friend says:

"I've seen weak guys with big arms and chests, but I've never seen a weak guy with a big back."

For a proper back, you'll need to lift heavy weights vertically and horizontally. You'll get stronger from this for all other activities and you'll look impressive. This is what training for a good back looks like.

Why most people have small and weak backs

I see guys in gyms doing all sorts of ridiculous back exercises. Most of them, however, can't perform the basic exercises with even a modicum of effectiveness.

Most people will have to spend years getting stronger at the basic exercises, setting new maximums, before it's time for them to seek out an isolated exercise for the teres major and lower trapezius. The same question applies to everyone:

"Why are you lying on a medicine ball facing the ground pulling the bottom pulley if you can't handle your own weight on the rower and 10 proper push-ups is an insurmountable problem for you?"

Whether it's with a barbell in your hand or in your everyday life, you'll be surprised how greater strength can solve almost any problem. This goes for every muscle group, including your back.

Back width and depth

Let's put it in a little folksy way:

• Vertical pulling (like shrugs and pulldowns) generally builds lats. It builds the width of your back.
• Horizontal pulling (like deadlifts) generally builds depth in the mid-back, rhomboids, and traps. Deadlift variations build the spinal extensors.

This is backed by years of experience. If you need studies for even that information, you probably don't even want to get into training that much.

And if you want some miracle exercises, I'm here to tell you that THEY DON'T EXIST!
We already know the answer to back quality = hard core exercises, time under tension, good technique and regularity.

The tragedy of the big axis pull-ups

This is a crucial exercise for the back, but many people don't get the most out of it. What are they doing wrong? Different things. There are usually two poles to see here. They both have one thing in common. If you're exercising like this, your back probably isn't growing.

• Super Strict Technique - A person like this takes a statue position that doesn't allow them to load any weight. He then tells everyone around him that any cheating will result in a ruined back.
• No Technique - The opposite extreme is the person who has obviously loaded too much and the entire movement consists of swinging with the belly hitting an axis that hasn't moved. This is where any time under tension is missing.

If you belong to any of the groups above, I'm attaching a video on how to properly practice big axis pull-ups.

1. Take a safe position where the joints are stable and the supporting muscle groups play a strong isometric role in stabilization.
2. Heel weight. Like practicing the Romanian deadlift. This balances the weight of the axis in front of you. The lower body must be anchored to the ground.
3. Breathe into your diaphragm. Inhale into the abdomen, pushing the abdominals in and the obliques out. This pressure in the abdomen stabilizes the lumbar spine.
4. Activate the lats and upper back. How? Elbows point back and shoulder blades down. The movement will come from the lats and the mid-back, and together with breathing, this will keep the spine stable.
5. Once you're in the right position, you can begin the effectiveness of the pull-up itself.

The angle of the torso will determine the axis

People speculate quite a bit about the correct tilt. You can use the position of the axis for this. This should be just below your knees at the lowest point. If it's higher, you're practicing shoulder shrugs, or trapezes, not pull-ups.

If you go even lower with the axis, the lats will stretch more, but again you lose the stable spine position, which is risky.

Pull the axis towards the lower abdomen

This is also a problem for people. If you pull higher, the leverage on your lower back will increase disproportionately, and their health will be compromised. Here we want to load the middle of the back, not the lower back.

Once again:

• Weight on the heels
• Elbows back
• Shoulder blades down
• Lowering the axis just below the knees and pulling it towards the lower abdomen

It's not hard. Now go load up some serious weight.

Dorian and his deadlift

I call it Dorian's deadlift because he was the first to do it this way. It's a good exercise for the back, but the beginning is more about the hamstrings and glutes. The back works more isometrically, by trying to prevent your spine from shooting up the wall behind you.

The traditional deadlift is actually two exercises: getting it off the ground and getting it over your knees. The lower part is all about the legs, with the rhomboids, lats and traps completing the upper part. So for back training, the deadlift presents a few challenges.

1. The eccentric phase of the movement doesn't really exist. And it has decent growth potential.
2. The erectors, trapezius and rhomboids do most of the work in a short range of motion, and they tend to hold the spine in the correct position.

Dorian's deadlift solves both of these problems. It emphasizes the eccentric portion of the movement and creates tension throughout the back.

Execution

Start with one full repetition, and for the next, lower the axis just below the knees and pull back up. You won't be able to keep your shoulder blades together, and you'll need to get them back into a retracted position on each rep. And that's a lot of tension you take off the uprights, and it goes to the upper back. That's what we want.

Why not pull from the rack? That's good too. The problem is you lose tension. In Dorian's design, the upper back has to stay closed, and it works harder.

Pulling the pulley with the rope

You don't see that much in the gym. But that's okay. It's great because you get a very strong lat contraction at the top.

1. Sit on the floor and rest your back on the seat.
2. Fully extend your lats and pull your elbows as far as you can.
3. Do this with your back arched and chest out. It's not rocket science.

The pyramid of push-ups

This is how you'll improve the fastest:

1. After your warm-up, put some weights on your belt and do 5 reps.
2. On the next set, add weight and do 4 reps.
3. Add weight again and do 3 reps.
4. Add weight again and this time it will be 2 reps.
5. The last one will be 1. Heavy, but trained with power, not explosive.
6. Then do 2 sets with bodyweight, doing the maximum reps.

Each week, try to add a little weight to the one and some reps to the last two sets.

The key is not to overdo it on the weight one. It's not supposed to be dead reps. That would exhaust your nervous system and make the last two sets worthless.

Exercise your back twice a week

If you are serious about your back, you need to exercise it twice a week. Choose one vertical exercise and big axis pull-ups or Dorian deadlifts.

Day 1:

• Rope pull-ups: 4 sets of 8-10 reps
• Dorian Deadlift: 2 sets of 6-8 reps

Day 2:

• Pyramid push-ups: 5,4,3,2,1 - 2 x bodyweight max
• Big Axis Deadlifts: 4 sets of 6-8 reps

How to exercise your back every day

You can also alternate one of these exercises each day. For three weeks, give it a try. Aim for maxes, after which you'll take a week off from back training.

• Day 1:Dorian Deadlift - 1 set of 6-8 reps
• Day 2:Pyramid crunches
• Day 3:Rope pull-ups - 4 sets of 8-10 reps
• Day 4:Big Axis Pull-ups - 4 sets of 6-8 reps
• Day 5:Start a new cycle

The main thing is to lift iron

There will come a time when these basics and progressive overload stop working on you. Until then, however, you need to invest some time in them. Then you can start looking for new solutions.

Good foundations are always built on strength in comprehensive exercises. Get in shape that allows you to lift heavy weights. If you want to be strong and big, you must not neglect your back.

Support your performance with quality supplementation!

In our shop you can choose from a lot of proteins, gainers, amino acids(bcaa, glutamine, ...), vitamins and minerals, creatines,fat burners and much more. So don't hesitate and step it up a notch!

Source: www.t-nation.com - The Simple Plan for Ultimate Back Size
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