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I eat 1.5g protein a day, plenty of carbs, plenty of EFAs. Got that in check.
1) Do deads hit the lats or just the lower back legs and traps?
2) My routine :
Machine pulldowns (4sets, 8reps)
Machine pulldowns, 45d incline, to chest (4 sets, 8 reps)
T bar rows (4 sets, 8 reps)
Deadlifts (4 sets, 8 reps)
I can do barbell rows and db rows, yet I dont want thickness.
WHat I want is width, a vtaper, yet Im too heavy, particularly inmy legs to do a single chinup.
Help me out.
I still say pullups are the best exercise for back. I prefer wide grip pullups bc you can really feel your lats throbbing. Trust me, no one can do a ton of pullups, that's what should tell you how good they are. And everyone struggles at first, when I first started doing them I would do 2 or 3 for 3 sets and feel so weak but it makes you work harder and want it more. If you can, find a partner to hold your feet once you can't get them on your own and assist you for a couple more, after a while you'll find your totals rising before you need to call on your partner for help.
If you're able to do chins, then those are the best recommended routine for lat thickness. If not, heavy pulldowns.
It all depends what your goal is. Lat pull downs are great, but for some it doesn't work too well, like myself. I find I have to go light because I can't handle a heavy load with good form. So I'll break it up and destroy back in other ways. I'll do chinups on a smith machine, it's tough to explain. You set up the bar so your feet are touching the ground, and your body is leaning back. You grab the bar and do a chin up, you can set up the bar from different angles to hit more of your lats, rhomboids, or even your subscapular and trapz. I like that as a warm up, but I'll squeeze on the rest of my basic exercises and it's working well for me.
Smith Machine Chin Ups *read above for description (4 sets of 10-15)
Barbell Row Underhand Grip (3 sets of 8-12)
Chainsaw Rows (3 sets of 6-8)
Barbell Row Overhand Grip (3 sets of 8-12)
Reverse Flies (4 sets of 10-15)
Deadlift (3 sets of 3-6)
Shrugs (4 sets of 8-10)
On the higher rep sets, squuuuueeeeeeeeeeeeeeeezzzzeeee until it hurts. It you do it proper and squeeze, it'll be sore the next day, but 2 days post workout, you'll be screwed. It'll hurt like a biatch.
Yikes, sorry, I didn't see the part where you said you didn't want thickness. Oops. Ignore what I posted until you need to get a thick back, stick with the others when they say free-weight chins. Sorry!
i did one arm row on the cable machine yesterday, it worked good, i got a great pump from it, i'd do 3X12 on each arm
peace
To get wide, chins are by far best exercise to do, then bent over rows, and deads work your whole back, just at top pull shoulder blades together, you'll be store the next day
Deadlifts from the knees, set up the safety pins on the squat rack so the bar sits at your knees height, this will aloow the maximum involvment of the upper back and not lower back, this will allow you to deadlift much heavier weights and as silverfox pointed out pull your shoulder blade together at the top of the movement, the bend over rows and chins...in my opinion that is a winning combination...XXL
Chins for thickness?? Conventional belief is that chins / pulldowns add width. Rowing movements add thickness (if you don't believe me, find a powerlifter, admire his thick back and then ask him how he got it).Quote:
Originally posted by TheChosen1
If you're able to do chins, then those are the best recommended routine for lat thickness. If not, heavy pulldowns.
Big Dan, why don't you want thickness??
Wide-grip pullups are the best for a wide back. Deadlifts don't just hit the lower back and legs, but every pulling muscle. Obviously, that means that your lats will be worked out. But I believe that the deadlift doesn't exactly hit the lats well enough to promote serious growth for them. They do provide an excellent trap workout and is the best overall exercise. Stick to wide-grip pullups and rows for a wide and thick back.
I'm a 130 pound ectomorph and for some reason my back looks pretty good, it's not f#cking amazing, but for how much weight I pack around it's good. my best guess is that it's just cause I'm lean. I wish it were insanely ripped like mikes :D