This topic is brought to you by our resident sage and my friend PFM...thanks for the idea!
Cashout Back Pic from 1/22/2013
Back training, for me, has always been a very difficult endevor. I think the biggest reason that has been the case is that back is darn hard to see when you are training it. I know that sounds odd but it is true. I know I do much better training a muscle if I can see it respond as I work it. That is just not always the case with back.
Beside that visibility issue, back is a huge muscle group that is comprise of so many smaller muscles. That compounds the confusion for many when they set out to work back.
I was no different 27 years ago when I started bodybuilding. I really had no idea how to attack this huge and somewhat invisible body part.
What I did learn very early on that has influenced my back train and subsequent back development is what I call...
RULE #1 of Back Training - Weight is a Function of Form.
I learned early on with back to lift for feel and not for weight. With back it is easy to sling weight around doing rows and pulldowns. I never really benefited from that type of training in terms of growing my back and eventually it will lead to injury. What I did find to be helpful was concentrating on the contraction, stretch and the form. My goal was, and still is, to finish a set and have that tight, cramppy pumped feeling in my lats. If I hit it right, the lats feel like they are just swollen and hanging under my armpits. It is a hard feeling to describe but you know what I'm talking about if you've felt it before.
RULE #2 of Back Training - Extend the Set.
Back is big. A lot of times with back, the little muscles used bis, forearms used in gripping and lower back used for support will fatigue and give out first. I learned to remove those muscles as the first point of failure. Lets face it, if you are doing heavy cable rows or lat pulldowns with some weight, your lower back and arms may fatigue from supporting your body or holding the weight before your lats are fully exhausted. To this end, I like to use drop sets. The support muscles might give way with 280 but they can still support 185 for another 6-8 reps so strip the weight and extend the set. I do this with lots of my movements - cable rows, lat pulldowns are favorites for this type of back work - quick and easy and back into the set with out much disruption. A lot of times, I'll do triple drop sets with these movements. Another type of technique that worked for me for extending the set was super setting or even giant setting back. I love this type of training and it accomplishes the same goal with back as drop setting - going beyond your normal support muscle limited work load.
So those are my two Back Training Rules. I've followed that type of approach for atleast 20 years now and it his helped me develop my back to a respectable competitive level.
Cashout Back Pic from 1/22/2013
Back training, for me, has always been a very difficult endevor. I think the biggest reason that has been the case is that back is darn hard to see when you are training it. I know that sounds odd but it is true. I know I do much better training a muscle if I can see it respond as I work it. That is just not always the case with back.
Beside that visibility issue, back is a huge muscle group that is comprise of so many smaller muscles. That compounds the confusion for many when they set out to work back.
I was no different 27 years ago when I started bodybuilding. I really had no idea how to attack this huge and somewhat invisible body part.
What I did learn very early on that has influenced my back train and subsequent back development is what I call...
RULE #1 of Back Training - Weight is a Function of Form.
I learned early on with back to lift for feel and not for weight. With back it is easy to sling weight around doing rows and pulldowns. I never really benefited from that type of training in terms of growing my back and eventually it will lead to injury. What I did find to be helpful was concentrating on the contraction, stretch and the form. My goal was, and still is, to finish a set and have that tight, cramppy pumped feeling in my lats. If I hit it right, the lats feel like they are just swollen and hanging under my armpits. It is a hard feeling to describe but you know what I'm talking about if you've felt it before.
RULE #2 of Back Training - Extend the Set.
Back is big. A lot of times with back, the little muscles used bis, forearms used in gripping and lower back used for support will fatigue and give out first. I learned to remove those muscles as the first point of failure. Lets face it, if you are doing heavy cable rows or lat pulldowns with some weight, your lower back and arms may fatigue from supporting your body or holding the weight before your lats are fully exhausted. To this end, I like to use drop sets. The support muscles might give way with 280 but they can still support 185 for another 6-8 reps so strip the weight and extend the set. I do this with lots of my movements - cable rows, lat pulldowns are favorites for this type of back work - quick and easy and back into the set with out much disruption. A lot of times, I'll do triple drop sets with these movements. Another type of technique that worked for me for extending the set was super setting or even giant setting back. I love this type of training and it accomplishes the same goal with back as drop setting - going beyond your normal support muscle limited work load.
So those are my two Back Training Rules. I've followed that type of approach for atleast 20 years now and it his helped me develop my back to a respectable competitive level.
