Back Training

Should I train my back?

The benefit of having a strong functional back is that not only does it improve your posture, but it also helps with your compound movements massively and a strong thick back improves overall muscle mass.

Most of the time the casual gym goers or “Gym bro’s” if you’d like to call them… mainly focus on developing their chest and arms to look bigger and fill their T-shirts and then all they end up with is poor posture and overactive pushing muscles.

What they forget is that neglecting your posterior just has a negative impact on your training and when you build a strong functional back not only do you see dramatic results but solidify your performance in the gym!

My 3 key points to improve your back sessions are:

1. Work in full ranges of motion to help improve your movement quality.
2. Utilise several movements in your sessions to hit every part of the back correctly.
3. Have the best trunk and core stability to increase your muscle control and contraction with every rep.

What are the main exercises I can do to train my back?

If you want to train your back and build muscle, there are many exercises you can do, and they can also be split into the back’s four main regions; lower lats, upper and outer lats, lower back, and middle back.

Each of the separate sections of the back can benefit from different exercises, but here’s a brief overview of some of the beneficial back building exercises you can do to focus on each area:

Area                                                                                                 Exercise                                                                                                                                 ‍

Lower Lats                                                         Reverse-Grip Pulldown

                                                                            Straight-Arm Lat Pulldown

Upper and Outer Lats                                       Wide Grip Pullup                

                                                                            Bentover Barbell Row

Middle Back                                                       One-Arm Dumbbell Row

                                                                            Close-Grip Seated Cable Row

Lower Back                                                             Back Extension                     

                                                                                 Stiff-Legged Deadlift

Should I back train every week?

You can definitely train your back every week if you’re able to. Training your back once a week can help you to grow your back muscles, but a study has shown that training your back 2-3 times a week is more effective than just once a week. You might want to split your back exercises across 2-3 different sessions in order to achieve a diverse range of exercises.

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