Back: exercises and how to train them
Two kinds of pulls build a back: vertical — pull-ups and pulldowns — for width, horizontal — rows — for thickness. The deadlift adds the lower back and the whole posterior chain.
What these muscles do
The lats pull your arm down and back — pull-ups and pulldowns. The traps and rhomboids squeeze the shoulder blades together — rows to the waist and chest. The spinal erectors keep your spine straight when you're bent over and when you deadlift. The biceps and rear delts help in almost every pull, and your grip often gives out before your back.
Exercises with technique breakdowns
27 more exercises in the catalog
- Underhand Lat Pulldown
- Close-Grip Lat Pulldown
- Reverse-Grip Bent-Over Row
- Incline Dumbbell Row
- Hammer Strength Row
- Dumbbell Pullover
- Bent-Over Dumbbell Row
- V-Bar Pulldown
- One-Arm Lat Pulldown
- Smith Machine Bent-Over Row
- Lying T-Bar Row
- Seated One-Arm Cable Row
- Iso-Lateral Machine Row
- Kneeling High Pulley Row
- Neutral-Grip Bent-Over Dumbbell Row
- Incline Bench Pull
- V-Bar Pull-Up
- Chest-Supported Barbell Row
- Deficit Deadlift
- Elevated Cable Row
- Kneeling Single-Arm High Pulley Row
- Full Range-of-Motion Lat Pulldown
- Suspended Row
- Weighted Pull-Ups
- Band-Assisted Pull-Up
- Bent-Arm Barbell Pullover
- Floor Back Extension
They're all in the diary: find one by name in the bot or the app, and I'll remember the weight and reps.
How to train them
- Keep it balanced: a vertical and a horizontal pull every week. I'll flag it in your progress review if one's been missing for a while.
- Start the pull with your shoulder blade, not your arm: pull it down and back first, then bend the elbow.
- Your grip goes before your back — use straps on heavy pulls.
- Don't count the deadlift as your main lat exercise: it's about hamstrings, glutes and lower back.
Programs and sets for this group
| Program | Sets per cycle | Days per cycle |
|---|---|---|
| Full Body — 3 Days | 13 | 3 |
| Push / Pull / Legs | 11.5 | 3 |
| 3-Day Split | 11 | 3 |
| Upper / Lower | 7 | 2 |
| Full Body — 2 Days | 6 | 2 |
| Glutes & Legs — 3 Days | 6 | 3 |
| Strength 5×5 — A/B | 5.5 | 2 |
Sets for one pass through all of the program's days, by its own schemes. A deadlift set is split in half between back and hamstrings — the way the diary counts it.
Exercise comparisons
Log your workouts — I'll show how many sets a week you give this group.