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Bodyweight Rows For A Bigger Back.
I’m a big believer of including bodyweight exercises in your workouts to help maximize muscle growth. Exercises where you move your entire body through space are much more demanding and provide a greater amount of nero-muscular activation then exercises where you just move your limbs.
This is why squats are harder then leg presses, pull ups harder then pull downs, etc.
One of my favorite bodyweight exercises for building a wide muscular back is chin ups or pull ups. For years my back workouts would often include up to 50 reps of pull ups. I’d do sets of 5-10 reps using different grips until I completed 50 total reps.
But this past January I suffered a serious muscle tear in my teres major and tricep tie in area and this has really hindered my back workouts. In fact I haven’t been able to do a full pull up with my bodyweight in over 7 months because it is just too much stress on my previously torn muscles.
I’ve been looking for an alternative exercise that combines the benefits of bodyweight movements and will still allow me to work my back intensely without over stretching my muscles. And the exercise that I came up with is bodyweight rows.
They are almost like doing an inverted push up. Bodyweight rows are to your back, what push ups are to your chest.
To set up for this exercise I like to use the smith machine and set the bar so that it is about waist height. I’ll then place a flat exercise bench about 4-5 feet away from the smith machine bar. The smith machine works best because the bar will be solid and stay in place during the entire exercise.
Get in position by gripping the bar with a slightly wider then shoulder width grip and place your feet on the exercise bench. Keeping your body straight, row yourself up until your chest touches the bar and then lower yourself to the starting position and repeat.
The benefits of this exercise is that it works muscles of the back hard and will allow you to perform more reps then you could with regular pull ups because the mechanics of the exercise place you in a stronger position and you are not lifting your entire bodyweight.
You should give bodyweight rows a try for your next back workout. They work great as either an overall back warm up exercise or as a finishing movement to really pump up the lats at the end of your workouts.
Duration : 0:2:23
[youtube lTf0k29BjiQ]
never understood …
never understood the need to get that BIG. Being in shape is one thing. Being huge with steroids is completely retarded.
i discovered and …
i discovered and have been doing the same kinda rows myself : )
Outstanding demo, …
Outstanding demo, and expertly explained! Thanks for sharing this.
i’ve been searching …
i’ve been searching for a way to work my lats at home. this looks great. I’m gonna try using my bench and bar… thanks
or u can make ur …
or u can make ur own :=)
why the gay smile?? …
why the gay smile??? and stay off steroids and you won´t blow up your skin just couse you grow too fast!
Hey man, I know its …
Hey man, I know its probably a bit late for this, and even though I’m no expert in working out I have been for about two years now. I work out completely at home and use no actual weights. What I suggest doing is getting yourself a pull-up bar which can be mounted to any door and just use a wide grip to work out your back. It really does wonders. Plus, you can also use it to work out your biceps with a closer grip. Trust me man, well worth it. Plus they come for like $20-30. Sometimes cheeper.
grouse man
grouse man
i had a red spot on …
i had a red spot on my left armpit and now i know it was a muscle tear beacause i did alot of pullups….ama try the bodyweight rows…
Yes, all rowing …
Yes, all rowing exercises work the biceps as secondary muscle groups.
do these work on …
do these work on biceps 2
Why don’t you buy …
Why don’t you buy some weights or equipment online?
Ha, not really. I …
Ha, not really. I was getting lunch there every weekday, so I had to walk there anyway. I haven’t been there in a while because the bars is freezing during the winter. The bars are a little thick, so when I tried to wear gloves, it was hard to hold on without slipping.
Yesterday I bought a six-pack of 1.5 liter bottled water. That was roughly 18 pounds, I think (each bottle is a little over 3 pounds). I used it to do light lateral rows.
The back is the hardest thing to work without weights.
Wow u rock, thats a …
Wow u rock, thats a strong will. I wouldnt workout if i had to go so far from home, so congratulations ^^ and good luck!
I live in a lttle …
I live in a lttle town in Germany with no weights and no fitness center. I found one small playground that had a wooden structure to climb with a few bars. Even though the bars are a bit thick, I did this exact same movement with a low bar and a plastic chair that’s always there. The only problem for me was that the bar is a bit low, so my back brushes the sand sometimes when I fully extend my arms. The playground is a mile from my apartment, so I get some walking/running in, too.
it’s amazing rly 4 …
it’s amazing rly 4 warm up or as finishing move
Great idea
Great idea