Back Day Workout

Pulling workout (back day)

Enough of me bashing the bench press and  the multi-week volume training workouts. To my readers I am going to provide a workout system to use for the results I have been talking about. This is not "my" system, it is the system. Sooner or later someone would figure it out, truth has a tendency to reveal itself over time. That being said there are techniques now included in the program that I wouldn't have thought of ten years ago, and ten years from now there will most likely be more. One thing will be the same however, the base skeleton of the program.
     The split is based on push-pull system split. Pull day is basically back day in bodybuilder terms. Yet for athletes and non builders we want to train movements, all muscles involve(primary, secondary, supporting and antagonist)  to produce an overall and balanced strength, speed, coordination and hypertrophic increase. As such rarely will isolation exercises be performed with this group except to address weaknesses or deviations.
     First the bodybuilding "back day", biceps and forearms can be performed after or next day. This workout should be used when needing to add mass ASAP or with bodybuilders of course.

BODYBUILDING BACK WORKOUT-[athletes]

Warm up- see General warm-up and perform
                       lat pulldowns set of at least 20 performed "warm up" style. Up to 3 sets if necessary
                       light pressing movement same as above
Determine what is more important to focus on, thickness when viewed from the side (Rows) or lat spread (vertical). That is the exercise that is first.
Lets assume thickness is the goal, first exercise will be a heavy horizontal row. Yates rows, named after the great Dorian Yates, allow heavy weight and will add thickness and separation in upper back

Yates rows
warm up
WARM UP 1-weight that allows you to complete 20-40 reps easy
WARM UP 2-weight where you feel burn at about 15, but are able to finish 20 easy
SET #1- 3 to 12 reps in good form to failure, add cheat reps, static hold and slow negative at end[overhand grip and no negative during near season for athletes]
SET #2-overhand pullups to failure, with forced rep, static hold and slow negative on last rep

(once 10 reps are reached add weight)[no negative for athletes and add weight after 20 reps] Video above is great visual and will help with mind muscle connection.
Set # 3- dumbbell rows-free standing or supported, whatever allows focus on upper back muscles. 5-20 reps to failure[athletes free standing]
SET #4- pullups parallel or underhand grip to failure, partials and static hold to finish.
Set #5-(SUPERSET see video 1below) straight arm pulldowns 12-20 reps immediately[athletes fast on concentric, bands good]  followed by partial pullups or pulldowns
Set #6  hi rows 5-12 to failure followed by rear delts to failure with partials and static hold at the end.[bands on 2nd set good and fast on concentric]

Document every set, preferably with video, weights and reps minimum.
perform every 7-12 days 
follow typical bodybuilding eating techniques, athletes and civilians included.
Take as much time in between sets, up to 5 minutes, as needed.
Hanging stretches with various hand grips, upper back, forearm and bicep  stretches after. Don't half ass them! Treat each stretch like a set and focus

Congratulations! Your on your way to much improved back, with weekly results now!
For visual help check video 2 below

Basic pull day workout- for general health, seniors or maintenance.
SET #1-Pulldowns or pullups to failure. when able to perform pulldowns with close to bodyweight start pullups.
SET #2- rows to failure- cable or barbell, unilateral (one hand at a time) preferred.

As you can see the basic workout is brief, no more than ten minutes including warm ups. There really is no excuse for the grandparents or the lazy.  Even the bodybuilding is only six total sets taking no more than 40 minutes including workouts. Athletes can use that extra time for practicing skills or active recovery.


VIDEO 1 superset example and explanation

Video 2 Bodybuilding back workout

You now have one the best back/lat building resources anywhere, to make even better will answer all questions related to training also. Just leave comment in remarks section!

The Bodybuilding Warm Up

Often overlooked or at best glanced over by most lifters, the warm-up is vitally important to not just injury prevention, but also performance, gauging progress, assessing tight or injured areas,  quick blood flow/cardio method . The method I use is thorough and specific. Lets assume its shoulder day.

I. The full-body warm up- this gets the overall temperature up which lubricates joints, opens vessels and gets the body primed. I perform a series of jumping jack like drills I got from Parisi Speed school because of the brevity and effectiveness. My clients can do them in their sleep. A treadmill or elliptical will also work with emphasis on the arm movement since its shoulder day. 3 minutes would do it.
 II. The antagonist warm-up: The antagonist is the muscles that directly opposes the muscle being worked, or basically the opposite movement of what is being worked. The purpose here is to warm up the entire joint complex and all muscles surrounding it also to get blood flow to the entire joint area(s) being worked.
 Since shoulder day consists of moving arms vertically upward during resistance, the antagonist warm-up is moving arms downward against resistance.
  Rep range- for the antagonist 20-40 reps easy all the way through the last one.

Exercise:                      Antagonist exercise
chest press                   rows
shoulder press              pulldowns (cable or machine)
pullups                         shoulder press
leg extensions               leg curls
tricep exercise              curls
crunches/ raises            hyperextensions
                              
III. Rotator cuff (pushing day) warmup- Inner and outer rotations with extremely light cable or resistance bands.
IV. The specific warm-up
Rep range of motion- starting with 20-30% of actual weight, start in what I call "pain and pop free reps". That means that the motion is performed in a range of motion where there is the minimum amount of pain or popping of joints, this could be a 3 inch range of motion. After 5 or 10 reps increase the range, repeat until full range of motion is achieved.
rep range- a minimum of 20 reps, the main rule is that the last rep be easy, it is just a warm-up. The minimum is 20 reps, with the goal of reaching 50-100 with the last rep being easy. For instance, on chest day if the  first exercise is dumbell incline press and the max weight being lifted is 100 pounds, then 30 pounders for 20-60 repetitions   The second set would be 50-60% of maximum weight, for 10-30 reps. Getting 20-30 reps with this percentage of weight is challenging to say the least, so it is important to remember that this is a warm up, so the last rep should always be easy. If you start at ten reps, try to add a rep every week or two, eventually your warm-ups will be impressive in themselves. One of my favorite things to to do in the gym is getting under 135 on the incline and knocking out 70 quick reps. A bonus is that this works the slow twitch fibers that are in every muscle, will help muscular endurance and deliver a pump thats mandatory to start the heavy workout ahead.
Gauging your progress and even how you feel that day is done during warm ups also. For a myriad of reasons you might not be at full strength, have a pinch or ache in the joint, or you might be feeling extra strong. In any case adjust your workout accordingly and take notes. Why did your shoulder have that twinge? Why was your endurance down? Why are feeling like you can lift the whole gym today? Take notes to avoid the bad and promote the good.