In a bodybuilding contest, the elusive V-taper—coupled with a thick, detailed upper back— separates the truly memorable physiques from the rest of the pack.
If you want your back to grow and are willing to put in the time and effort, these four game-changing exercises are for you. Coupled with some unique intensity techniques, they’ll help you maximize strength and hypertrophy while getting mile wide.
Kris Gethin has created half a dozen full training programs and dozens of workouts for Bodybuilding.com, and everyone has their favorite. But many of us inside the Bodybuilding.com walls hold a soft spot deep in our pecs for Kris Gethin’s 12-Week Muscle-Building Trainer in particular.
Why this program? In 84 daily videos, it features Kris living a muscle monk’s lifestyle in India, barely surviving unfathomable workouts in tiny, obscure gyms, and watching the scale go up every week against all odds. Each day also contains his wonderfully dark and poetic diary entries, if you’re strong enough to handle them.
Most people hear the term “core” and think sleek, sexy six-pack. But core doesn’t just apply to rock-hard abs—it actually describes almost every muscle in your torso. From elite athletes to weekend warriors, everyone can benefit from a stronger core.
Core-specific training is often forgotten or neglected until the end of a workout, when you’re already gassed. But a weak core doesn’t protect the spine as well as it should, and increases your risk of injury while performing even the simplest of daily tasks.
When it comes to your body, your development should be striking and memorable from every angle, which is why RSP Nutrition-sponsored athlete Hannah Eden believes developing a strong, sexy back is a must.
It’s not just about looks, either; a strong back is functional. While many believe you need to focus more on the core to help alleviate nagging back issues, a strong back, glutes, and hamstrings (aka the posterior chain) can help correct bad posture and alleviate the weaknesses causing you pain.
“Strong back, strong lifter.”
Truer words were never spoken in the gym! But it’s also possible to hit your lats like a Mack truck every week, and miss the point entirely. Here’s what your back needs to be wide, deep, and legitimately mighty!
I’m only being a little snarky here. In the case of rows as much as any other movement, it’s crucial that before you try any unconventional tips, you know how to get the most out of each traditional rep. These rules apply regardless of which row variation you’re doing, and they’ll help you maximize the massive payoff in muscle size, posture, and shoulder health that should come from rows.
Chest, shoulders, and arms are by far the most popular muscles to train, but the true sign of a beast in the gym is a massive, well-defined back. Wide lats with detailed knots in between leave no doubt in anyone’s mind that—yeah, bro—you really do lift.
Basics like barbell rows, pull-ups, and deadlifts are all great options for building your back, but they’re not the only options. Take machine work, for example: Machines can help you isolate an area and pack on more weight, while minimizing the risk of injury.
My trip to the 2017 FIBO Expo in Cologne, Germany, was full of firsts. It was my first time in Europe and it was my first international expo. It was also my first time training with Animal’s Roman Fritz. Thinking back, that training session was probably the part of my trip I was most nervous about, and with good reason.
When it comes to building an impressive physique, lats should be a primary focus. Nicely developed lats create the sought after and powerful looking V-taper for men, and in women, nicely developed lats give the illusion of a slimmer waistline, defining a sleek and contoured figure.
Yet for many lifters, lat pull-downs are a rarely included afterthought. Rows and deadlifts tend to dominate.
Thirty-year-old MuscleTech brand ambassador Lawrence Ballenger’s workouts are known to be absolutely relentless, and his brutal mass-building back regimen is no exception. It’s a gauntlet of nine exercises with a set and rep scheme designed to deliver maximum shock, for maximum growth.
“It’s so tough that when you’re finished, there’s no way you’ll need to do your back again for another week,” chuckles the Chicago-based lifter.
Your back is a big body part, which means it takes a lot to push its limits. While there are challenging back movements out there, it’s difficult to max out such a large muscle group. And the last thing you want is to leave the gym feeling like you didn’t leave it all in the weight room.
Pushing yourself as hard as possible is the best way to bring up your back and break through plateaus. This 100-rep finisher is a surefire way to finalize your back session and leave the gym with nothing left in the tank.