There are countless exercises you can perform to build size and strength in the back. When you train the right exercises the right way, you will build your ability to move significant amounts of weight, better protect your spine, and all-around improve your performance in everyday life. Here are 18 of the best back exercises to construct your workouts around.

Best Back Exercises

• Deadlift
• Pull-Up
• Inverted Row
• Suspension Row
• Bent-Over Barbell Row
• Single-Arm Dumbbell Row
• Wide-Grip Pulldown
• Neutral-Grip Pulldown
• Single-Arm Kneeling Pulldown
• Lat-Focused Seated Cable Row
• Chest-Supported Dumbbell Row
• Chest-Supported Machine Row
• Landmine Row
• Meadows Row
• Cable Upper Trap Shrug
• Cable Rope Pullover
• Face Pull
• Farmer’s Walk

Deadlift

The deadlift — a noble member of the “Big Three” powerlifts — is best known for its ability to add size and strength to the back and leg musculature. Although it doesn’t directly work the back muscles through a long range of motion, it places a significant amount of tension across the back and entire torso, making it a unique and effective exercise for building mass.

Deadlift technique is straightforward, but it’s a skill-based exercise that takes some understanding and practice to make it safe and effective within your training program.

How to Do the Deadlift 

Stand in front of a loaded barbell with your feet shoulder-width apart with the bar just a few inches from your shins — aligned over the knot of your shoelaces. Drive your hips back and allow your knees to bend slightly as you tightly grip the barbell just outside of shoulder-width with a palms-down grip. Keep your back and torso rigid and your arms straight. Push your legs into the floor as you simultaneously pull your chest and shoulders upwards to lift the bar as you stand up into a fully upright position.

Benefits of the Deadlift

• It works multiple muscles in your back, plus your glutes, hamstrings, and grip strength.
• When performed consistently, your strength can progress substantially, especially as your form improves.
• It’s an exercise that can be performed in many different rep ranges, allowing you to build muscle and strength across the upper and lower body.

Pull-Up

The pull-up provides a potent stimulus to the muscles across the upper body with little need for specialized equipment to get the job done. All you need is any bar that can support your body weight.

If you really want to get a lot out of the movement, control the eccentric (lowering) portion of the lift and focus on keeping your torso rigid throughout the entire range of motion.

How to Do the Pull-Up

Take a pronated (overhand) grip on the bar, slightly wider than shoulder-width. With your body hanging from the bar, ensure your core is engaged to keep rigidity in your torso while minimizing swinging.

To initiate the movement, contract the muscles of the upper and mid-back. Aim to bring your chin up to or above bar level. Drive your elbows down toward your pockets. If you’re on the heavier side or a beginner new to the lift, perform more sets with fewer reps as you build up your strength.

Benefits of the Pull-Up

• You can perform this exercise anywhere there is a pull-up bar, which can be in your doorway at home, in the park, or a fully equipped gym.
• Learning to control and manage your body weight is a great way to build up joint stability as you get stronger.
• You can work the muscles of your back and arms through a long range of motion while also challenging the muscles of your core.

Inverted Row

The inverted row can be an effective bodyweight exercise, particularly for beginners, because you aren’t required to lift your entire body weight. This makes it an effective choice to increase strength on the way to performing a pull-up.

The exercise is also extremely useful when training at home since it requires only a solid bar and a sturdy surface for support. This way, a bodyweight-only workout isn’t limited to only pull-ups to work your back.

How to Do the Inverted Row

Place a bar in a stable rack. Adjust the height of the bar so you can just reach it when lying on the ground. Lie under the bar and grab the bar with an overhand grip. With your arms locked, your body should be in a rigid plank position with a straight line from your neck to your heels.

Lift yourself by pulling your elbows toward the ground while driving your chest toward the bar. Control your body weight back down to the starting position.

Benefits of the Inverted Row

• The inverted row is great for beginners and intermediate lifters aiming to build overall strength and muscle in the upper and mid-back.
• This can be used as a progression to get you closer to performing your first bodyweight pull-up.

Suspension Row

The suspension row is another effective bodyweight movement that progresses the inverted row to another level. By quickly adjusting your stance and body position, you can immediately alter leverage to make the exercise more or less challenging as needed.

This is a great exercise for developing overall strength and body control while allowing for a less restricted arm path. This helps to prevent discomfort in the wrists, elbows, and shoulders.

How to Do the Suspension Row

With your feet at shoulder width, grab the handles and lean back into position. Adjust your body angle as needed to set the difficulty. The more vertical your body, the easier the exercise will be.

With your feet on the ground and your body set in a rigid plank position, drive your elbows back and pull yourself toward the handles. Don’t allow your elbows to flare out to the sides and don’t allow your shoulders to collapse forwards.

Benefits of the Suspension Row

• This is another effective movement that allows the lifter to progress toward their first pull-up.
• The exercise difficulty can be quickly and easily adjusted by repositioning your stance and body angle.
• The suspension trainer allows for a less restrictive arm path compared to a traditional barbell, allowing you to better adapt the row to your individual structure and reduce joint strain.

Bent-Over Barbell Row

The bent-over row can add a lot of versatility to your training program. It can be performed with a traditional barbell, a hex bar, kettlebells, or dumbbells. For more efficient skill development, stick with one variation for at least several weeks before switching it up.

The basic barbell row allows you to build strength across the upper and lower body. The muscles of the posterior chain (lower back, glutes, and hamstrings) work to keep your lower body stable throughout the movement, while the muscles of your upper back, mid-back, and biceps help row the bar toward your stomach.

How to Do the Bent-Over Barbell Row

Set up as you would for the deadlift, standing with your feet hip-width apart in front of a loaded barbell. If you have exceptionally long legs, you may need to place the barbell onto blocks to allow for a more comfortable starting position. Hinge at the hips and allow your arms to hang down.

Tightly grab the bar just outside of shoulder-width with an overhand grip. Drive your elbows back and up as you focus on pulling the bar toward your upper abs, between your sternum and belly button.

Benefits of the Bent-Over Barbell Row

• You can effectively train the muscles of the upper, mid, and lower back, as well as the glutes and hamstrings.
• Simple variations can be performed with kettlebells, dumbbells, a hex bar, cables, or a traditional barbell.
• Due to the demands of this movement, you can build up functional strength throughout your core and low back, helping you prevent injuries in your everyday life.

Single-Arm Dumbbell Row

This single-arm row variation was one of the most popular among Golden Era bodybuilders like Arnold Schwarzenegger for building muscle size and strength across the entire back.

It can also help you build arm and grip strength, as well as work on muscular asymmetries that may have developed from past injuries or time away from the gym.

How to Do the Single-Arm Dumbbell Row

Stand behind the head of a high-angle incline bench. Lean over and place one hand firmly against the top of the bench with the same-side leg forward, positioned under your shoulder.

Reach your free hand down to grab a dumbbell by your feet. Keep your palm facing your body as you drive the weight back and up until your elbow is even with, or just past, your torso. Control the dumbbell back down to the stretched position.

Benefits of the Single-Arm Dumbbell Row

• By working the body unilaterally (one side at a time), you allow for more versatility with your program design, with the added ability to address any muscular imbalances.
• In addition to building up muscle size and strength across the back, you will also improve your grip, which can carry over to any other movement that requires holding a weight.

Wide-Grip Lat Pulldown

Aside from the fact that you’re sitting while performing this move, a lat pulldown is essentially the same movement pattern as a pull-up. This makes the pulldown one of the most effective weight training (non-bodyweight) exercises to work towards a pull-up.

The cable’s constant resistance helps create a more stable environment while improving time under tension, which can lead to increased muscle size.

How to Do the Wide-Grip Lat Pulldown

Grasp a long bar attachment slightly wider than shoulder-width, with a palms-down grip. Sit down and set your legs securely under the thigh pads. Keep your core tight and your torso upright while pulling the bar down toward your chest.

Think of pinching your shoulder blades together in the bottom position. Resist the weight as you slowly return to the starting position.

Benefits of the Wide-Grip Lat Pulldown

• The cable’s constant resistance helps create a more stable environment while improving time under tension.
• This is a great exercise to strengthen your back, arms, and grip if you are working up to your first pull-up because you can progressively add weight and build strength.
• The wide, pronated grip allows you to emphasize the muscles of your upper back.

Neutral-Grip Lat Pulldown

This pulldown variation has you pulling with a neutral-grip (palms facing each other). This adjustment allows you to place more focus on your lats and biceps compared to your upper back.

A neutral-grip gives your arms a stronger biomechanical advantage by recruiting more biceps into the pulling motion, while the elbow position activates more back muscles. This allows you to move heavier weights more safely compared to other pulldown grips.

How to Do the Neutral-Grip Lat Pulldown

Grab a neutral-grip attachment (palms facing each other) and sit on the seat with your legs secured under the thigh pads. Keep your core tight and your torso upright while pulling the bar toward your chest.

Aim your elbows forward, not sideways, to ensure stress remains on the lats. Resist and control the motion back to the stretched position.

Benefits of the Neutral-Grip Lat Pulldown

• This exercise gives you a way to progressively work towards your first pull-up.
• The cable’s constant resistance helps create a more stable environment while improving time under tension.
• The neutral-grip puts you in a great position to bias the lats and biceps compared to the upper back, adding variety and customization to your back training.

Single-Arm Kneeling Lat Pulldown

This unilateral exercise can add variety to your back training. It works the lats through a long range of motion and challenges tissues the rear delts and teres major.

The kneeling position reduces lower back strain, encourages core stability, and ensures a long range of motion. This exercise is relatively advanced because it involves both upper and lower body positioning, so take time to nail down your setup and technique.

How to Do the Single-Arm Kneeling Lat Pulldown

Grab a single handle attached to a high cable pulley. Step back with the opposite foot and kneel on the ground, keeping your front foot flat on the floor. Squeeze the handle and drive your elbow toward your hip.

Control the weight when returning to the starting position. Maintain a kneeling position as your arm, shoulder, and back are stretched before performing the next rep.

Benefits of the Single-Arm Kneeling Lat Pulldown

• This exercise builds back and core strength with minimal lower back strain.
• The cable’s constant resistance increases time under tension throughout the range of motion.
• The setup of the exercise can be adjusted to an individual’s structure, by changing the cable’s height and distance from the pulley.

Lat-Focused Seated Cable Row

This seated row variation uses specific hand position, upper body position, and arm path to place a large amount of muscular tension on the lats.

By maintaining a slight forward lean and utilizing a neutral-grip, your body is in a better position to engage your lats during the movement and minimize the role of the upper back and traps.

How to Do the Lat-Focused Seated Cable Row

Sit in the cable row station with your feet on the platform and your hands grasping a wide attachment with a neutral-grip (palms facing one another). With your core tight and your torso position leaned slightly forward at the hip, pull toward the top of your abdomen.

Do not round your back. Control the weight as you return back to the starting position. In the stretched position, don’t allow the weight to pull you far forward out of a strong postural alignment.

Benefits of the Lat-Focused Seated Cable Row

• The cable’s constant resistance creates a more stable environment while improving time under tension throughout the range of motion.
• This variation is great for building size and strength in the mid-back.
• The neutral-grip allows you to emphasize the lats and biceps.

Chest-Supported Dumbbell Row

The supported position takes your low back out of the equation, giving you more stability to isolate the work to the muscles in your upper and mid-back.

This exercise can be performed with dumbbells or kettlebells in a prone position on an incline bench, or more horizontally in a cable station. Both will effectively place tension across your traps, rhomboids, rear delts, and lats, but may depend on your equipment availability.

How to Do the Chest-Supported Dumbbell Row

Lie face down on an incline bench set around 45-degrees. With a dumbbell in each hand, drive your chest into the bench while rowing the weight until your elbows are even with, or just past, your torso. Slowly lower the weight to a full stretch before repeating additional reps.

Benefits of the Chest-Supported Dumbbell Row

• The chest support takes stress off the lower back, increasing your ability to isolate muscles of the upper and mid-back.
• This movement encourages strict form and reduces the chance of momentum-based cheating.
• It’s easy to set up and only requires an adjustable bench and a pair of dumbbells or kettlebells.

Chest-Supported Machine Row

This machine-based variation has you pull the load toward your chest. Your general arm path will be similar to a seated row, which aligns the rowing motion with the muscles of the lats, rear delts, and upper back (traps, rhomboids, and teres major).

Your grip will have a significant impact on the muscles being biased during the exercise. A neutral-grip (palms facing each other) will focus more on the lats, while a semi-pronated grip (diagonally between palms facing down and facing each other) will focus more on the rear delts and upper back.

How to Do the Chest Supported Machine Row

Sit in the machine and grab the handles with your chest against the pad and your feet against the provided supports. With your chest pressed firmly into the pad, pull the handles toward you, extending your elbows behind your body. Control the weight as you return to the starting position.

Benefits of the Chest Supported Machine Row

• The machine provides a clear and consistent movement path, allowing you to focus more on the muscles working and less on maintaining a steady pulling position.
• The chest support and foot pads allow your entire body to brace more effectively, delivering more stability and allowing you to lift heavier loads.
• The multiple grip options allow for more individualization and control over what muscles are being emphasized.

Landmine Row

This bent-over barbell row variation is effective at placing tension across the traps, rhomboids, rear delts, and lats. This movement also recruits the posterior chain (glutes and hamstrings), low back, and abs for total-body stability.

The unique leverage moves the bar along a slightly angled path rather than completely vertical, which creates different muscular stress in the top position compared to dumbbell or barbell rowing movements.

How to Do the Landmine Row

Slide a barbell into a landmine attachment sleeve or wedge it into a corner of the wall. Stand over the barbell with one foot on each side, a few small steps behind the weight plates.

Position a landmine row attachment onto the front of the barbell and grasp the handles. If your gym doesn’t have a landmine row attachment, use a rope handle or V-bar attachment and place it around the bar just behind the weight plates.

Hinge at the hips and keep your legs bent. Maintain a tight core and a neutral spine. Pull your hands toward your waist. To increase the range of motion, load the bar with 10-pound or 25-pound plates instead of larger 45-pound plates.

Benefits of the Landmine Row

• This variation can be performed anywhere you have access to a barbell, whether locked in a landmine sleeve or wedged into a corner at your gym. 
• It challenges multiple muscles of the back, glutes, hamstrings, and abs.
• Different stances and body postures can be used (such as a more upright torso or more horizontal torso) to add variety with an emphasis on different back muscles.

Meadows Row

This exercise, popularized by the late bodybuilding coach John Meadows, has become known for its ability to build up thickness in the back — specifically the rear delts and teres major.

This exercise is unique in that it’s unilateral and has the lifter standing perpendicular to the barbell positioned in a landmine setup. The landmine alters your leverage during the lift, which places unique stress on the muscles.

How to Do the Meadows Row

Assume a staggered stance with your front foot perpendicular to a barbell loaded into a landmine sleeve. Hinge at the hips and grip the bar with an overhand grip, using lifting straps to secure your grip on the bar. Rest the elbow of your non-working arm on your front thigh.

Row the weight up at an angle, so your hand ends up just outside your chest and your elbow is pulled back. Lower the weight into a full stretch. Load the bar with smaller 10-pound or 25-pound plates to ensure a long range of motion.

Benefits of the Meadows Row

• The exercise builds thickness in the upper back by emphasizing key muscles, including the rear delts and teres major.
• The staggered stance creates a need to resist rotation of the torso, adding a challenge to core strength and stability.
• Because of the very stable base and strap-assisted grip, much heavier weights can be used compared to a dumbbell row.

Cable Upper Trap Shrug

Shrugs are typically performed with free weights such as dumbbells or a barbell. However, the movement can be optimized with the cable pulley because the angle of resistance from low cables matches the fiber alignment of the upper traps — on diagonal angle rather than strictly vertical — which increases muscle activation.

High-tension from the cables also means a more effective workout with relatively less weight, making the movement less stressful on joints and more stressful on the target muscles.

How to Do the Cable Trap Shrug

Stand in the middle of two low-cable pulleys, with your knees slightly bent and your hands firmly grasping a single handle from each pulley.

Keep your core stationary as you shrug your shoulders up and in toward your ears. Don’t swing your torso or drive with your legs. Control the weight as you slowly return back to the starting position.

Benefits of the Cable Trap Shrug

• The cable resistance allows a longer time under tension, creating a greater stimulus for muscle growth.
• This variation lines up the resistance with the muscle fibers of the upper traps, maximizing muscular tension while minimizing stress around the shoulder joint.
• The exercise delivers significant muscular stress without extremely heavy weights, making it ideal for lifters with joint pain.

Cable Rope Pullover

The cable rope pullover, sometimes called a stiff-arm pulldown, is great for placing tension strictly on the lats. It avoids the arms-overhead stretched position required for dumbbell pullovers, making this a great alternative for lifters with upper back or shoulder mobility restrictions.

Using a longer rope or strap allows each arm to move in a more individualized arm path, which creates even less strain on the shoulder joints and more muscular stress on the lats.

How to Do the Cable Rope Pullover

Stand in front of a high-pulley cable station, holding a rope attachment with both hands. Lean slightly forward and keep a soft bend in your arms. Keep your torso rigid and abs tight while driving your upper arms down. Pull the attachment toward your hips as far as possible.

Control the weight as you return back to the starting position. Don’t allow your arms to bend when lifting or lowering the weight.

Benefits of the Cable Rope Pullover

• The peak contraction of the movement creates extremely high muscle activation in the lats.
• This exercise is one of the few ways to effectively isolate the lats without involvement from other back muscles.
• It provides a more effective resistance compared to the dumbbell pullover because the cable resistance is constant throughout the full range of motion while a dumbbell pullover delivers less resistance at the top of the movement.

Face Pull

To facilitate increased growth and strength of larger back muscles, your smaller muscles often act as synergists. They add strength and stability to the joints connected to those muscles, which allows them to function optimally and efficiently. The face pull is effective for training the upper back muscles around your shoulder blades, helping improve postural strength and control.

Unlike several exercises on this list, the face pull shouldn’t be used to break any strength records. Go light with higher reps. As you build up strength, you can start to slowly increase the weight, but moving heavy loads is not the best use of this exercise.

How to Do the Face Pull

Attach a rope handle to a high-cable pulley and adjust it to near eye-level. Grab the rope with your palms facing each other. Take a few steps back so there’s tension in the cable and extend your arms in front of your body.

Pull the rope toward your face and flare your elbows out and back. In the contracted position, your wrists should be close to your ears and your elbows should be in-line with your shoulders

Benefits of the Face Pull

• The face pull increases your scapular strength and stability, which is crucial for upper back bracing during movements like the deadlift as well as overhead pressing.
• It works the muscles between the shoulder blades such as the traps and rhomboids, while also building up strength in the rotator cuff muscles, improving overall shoulder joint health.

Farmer’s Walk

This loaded carry isn’t a strict “back exercise,” but it’s effective for placing tension across the muscles of the upper and lower body simultaneously. The postural muscles of the spine, as well as the upper back and traps, are challenged to a very high degree.

When performed consistently, it can build grip strength, core strength and stability, and improves postural strength and control. This exercise mimics many activities performed in your daily life, and can be performed by all ages and experience levels.

How to Do the Farmer’s Walk

Find a stretch of open space, as long as possible, and walk while carrying a pair of dumbbells, kettlebells, or even a trap bar. Keep your hands at your sides and your shoulder blades pulled down and back, not shrugged up. Remain upright and don’t allow your back to round forward as you fatigue.

When walking with load in your hand, the challenge becomes maintaining a steady, upright position. Focus on taking slow, controlled steps while moving a straight line with total-body stability. Don’t allow the weights to make you drift laterally.

Benefits of the Farmer’s Walk

• Can easily be performed anywhere you have open space and weights to hold onto.
• It builds grip and core strength, while also improving postural strength and control.
• It can be easily adapted to training for conditioning or fat loss by increasing the total duration or length of the walk.

The Back Muscles

The back is made up of a group of muscles that work together to achieve a wide range of movement patterns. As such, certain muscles will be biased more or less depending on the exercise being performed.

The primary muscles when it comes to training the back include the latissimus dorsi (lats), teres major, trapezius (traps), rhomboids, rear delts, and erector spinae (lower back).

When training your back, you will be using both muscles anatomically located more superficially (like the lats and traps), as well as deeper (like the rhomboids or erector spinae) within the back and torso. The back muscles have many different functions and are designed to work in synchronicity with one another, or as a unit.

Latissimus Dorsi

Commonly referred to as the lats, the latissimus dorsi are most widely known for their role in adducting the arm toward the body (bringing the upper arm towards the body’s midline), as well as medially rotating the arm around the back of the body (similar to “opening your chest” during a stretch).

During back movements, the lats play many roles — most notably helping stabilize the pelvis and interacting with the abdominal muscles in everything from respiration, maintaining shoulder positioning, to protecting the spine. (1)

Teres Major

The teres major attaches on the upper arm, next to the lat attachment, and stretches across to the lower part of the scapula. Sometimes referred to as the “little lat,” this muscle, along with the teres minor, are not technically part of the rotator cuff but share many roles with the muscles of the rotator cuff when it comes to glenohumeral (shoulder) stabilization.

The teres major also assists the latissimus dorsi in adducting the arm (bringing it closer to the body), as performed during a lat pulldown motion. (2)

Trapezius

The trapezius is a big muscle that spans across the better part of your upper and mid-back. This muscle has three divisions — upper, mid, and lower — and each plays an essential role in stabilizing the shoulder blades.

All three sections of the muscle are hard at work during pulling movements to help maintain tension and stability in the back. (3)

Rhomboids

The rhomboids are positioned directly below the traps in the middle of the back (between the shoulder blades). Both the major and minor divisions of this muscle retract, elevate, and rotate the scapula.

Weakness or loss of function of the rhomboids can be a significant contributing factor to a winged scapula (when the shoulder blades “point” away from the body), which makes it even more important to keep these muscles strong and working properly. (4)

Rear Delts

Also known as the posterior deltoid, the rear delts primary function is to bring the arm back around the body (shoulder extension), assisting the lats and teres major.

A flared arm position, with the elbows aimed out to the sides, makes the rear delts a primary mover during an exercise. This type of movement is how the muscle plays a big part in your back strength and development. (5)

Erector Spinae

These muscles, also known as the spinal erectors, are positioned deep within the torso and are responsible for controlling the axial skeleton — which includes the skull, vertebral column, and ribs. The spinal erectors primarily control flexion/extension, side bending, and rotation of the spine.

The lower back, in particular, is critical for stabilizing the pelvis and spine during movements such as the deadlift or many bent-over movements previously explained. (6)

How Often Should You Train the Back

To optimize muscle growth, train your back two to three times per week, depending on how many total days per week you’re training. Since the back is filled with different muscle groups, all with different fiber alignments and jobs, it’s important to train the back using many different exercises and rep ranges.

Depending on your training split, each workout may include a different amount of training volume. Anywhere from 10 to 16 total sets per week is a great starting point. Advanced lifters could potentially exceed 18 to 20 sets per week, especially if their goal is to emphasize a specific part of the back over another.

To achieve this total volume, choose three to four exercises and divide the sets up evenly across your training week. It’s generally a good idea to have a balanced ratio of vertical pulls (pulldown or pull-up variations) and horizontal pulls (rowing variations) to ensure balanced development across the entire back.

How to Progress Your Back Training

Since the back can be trained with a wide variety of exercises, it’s possible to steadily add weight to each specific exercise every week. As little as two-and-a-half to five pounds per week can be a sufficient increase to stimulate growth when the sets are taken near failure.

For multi-joint (compound) exercises like the barbell row or deadlift, you can add slightly more weight more quickly compared to an isolation-based exercise like dumbbell pullover or cable rope pullover.

If you find any exercises require more time to improve your technique, be sure to perform those movements towards the beginning of your workouts to avoid training them when fatigued.

If you’re new to lifting in general, simply improving your technique in an exercise can lead to gains in strength and muscle size across a few months’ timespan. Keep in mind that whenever you add a new exercise into your routine, it will take your body a few weeks to get used to the new challenge and nail down the technique.

How to Warm-Up Your Back

One of the most effective ways to warm-up for any muscle group is going to be with the exercises you are performing in that day’s training session. For example, if you’re performing chest-supported rows, you can warm-up by performing reps with light weight and raise the intensity (load lifted) as you proceed toward your working sets.

This ensures that the appropriate muscles and joints are being primed, reducing the risk of injury and improving your overall training performance.

If you need additional time to warm-up, include exercises that work the muscles surrounding the joints you’ll be working in that session. For a back workout, that would include the elbow and shoulder joints.

Building a Complete Back

Designing a back workout doesn’t need to be an arduous process. To be effective, choose three to four exercises that train multiple muscle groups and progress them over time with varying rep ranges. Be sure to train the back both horizontally (with rows) and vertically (with pulldowns) for complete development. This detailed list gives you plenty of options to choose from, ensuring a bigger, stronger back in the long-term.

References

1. Jeno SH, Varacallo M. Anatomy, Back, Latissimus Dorsi. [Updated 2020 Aug 13]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2021. 
2. Barra-López, M. E., López-de-Celis, C., Pérez-Bellmunt, A., Puyalto-de-Pablo, P., Sánchez-Fernández, J. J., & Lucha-López, M. O. (2020). The supporting role of the teres major muscle, an additional component in glenohumeral stability? An anatomical and radiological study. Medical hypotheses, 141, 109728. 
3. Ourieff J, Scheckel B, Agarwal A. Anatomy, Back, Trapezius. [Updated 2020 Aug 22]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2021. 
4. Farrell C, Kiel J. Anatomy, Back, Rhomboid Muscles. [Updated 2020 Jul 27]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2021. 
5. Elzanie A, Varacallo M. Anatomy, Shoulder and Upper Limb, Deltoid Muscle. [Updated 2020 Aug 22]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2021. 
6. Modes RJ, Lafci Fahrioglu S. Anatomy, Back. [Updated 2021 Mar 27]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2021.

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The post The 18 Best Back Exercises for Width, Thickness, and Strength appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Having an impressive back is paramount when trying to develop an aesthetic physique. A V-shaped torso with a well-built back is an athletic and eye-catching look. And what about overall performance? The lower back, glutes, and hamstrings — collectively known as the posterior chain — provide a strong support and power base.

This is why most people should spend more time pulling. These different muscles of the back have different roles which respond better to diverse stimuli., so you’ll miss certain parts if you only do one or two pulling exercises.  Here are the eight best upper body pulling exercises for a complete back.

Best Upper Body Pulling Exercises

• Seated Cable Row
• Meadows Row
• Inverted Row
• Chest-Supported Row
• Face Pull
• Banded Dumbbell Pullover
• Banded Pull-Up
• Barbell Back Extension

Seated Cable Row

When most people think about targeting the lats, they usually picture a vertical pulling motion, like pull-ups or pulldowns. Yet, a properly executed seated cable row is one of the best exercises to emphasize the lats while minimizing involvement from other back muscles. Plus, you can eventually use a ton of weight.

Use a low pulley station and a neutral (thumbs-up), close-grip handle for this movement. The neutral grip combined with keeping your elbows close to your body helps focus on the lats and increase muscle recruitment. (1) Compared to a barbell row, the arms, lower back, and legs are less involved, allowing you to focus even more on the target muscle(s).

How to Do the Seated Cable Row

Sit at the low pulley station and grab the handle with a thumbs-up grip. Push your legs into the support platform while keeping a neutral spine. In the starting position, your knees should be slightly bent, and your chest puffed out (this helps to engage your upper back muscles for stability).

Imagine your hands are mere meaty hooks and pull hard with your elbows, without rounding your spine. The handle should nearly reach your abs in the peak contraction, and your elbows should be slightly behind your body.

Lower the weight slowly and let it stretch your back as far as possible, even letting the scapulae (shoulder blades) come forward. This extreme stretch is one way to hit the lats, trapezius, and rhomboids. (2) When lifting and lowering the weight, be mindful not to let the lower back round and not swing your upper body to cheat the weight with momentum.

Benefits of the Seated Cable Row

• The seated cable row allows potentially heavy loading, encouraging long-term progress.
• It reinforces strong posture by requiring upper-body control and spinal stabilization, while strengthening the upper back.

Meadows Row

This exercise is named after the late bodybuilding coach John Meadows, who popularized the movement. It uses a barbell landmine rather than a dumbbell and focuses on the upper back muscles — the lower traps, rhomboids, and even the rear delts. But don’t worry, it still works the lats as well.

The leverage of the landmine and the angle of movement allow for a unique stretch of the recruited muscles, which develops muscle mass.

How to Do the Meadows Row

Stand on one side of a landmine station in a staggered stance with slightly bent knees. Use your front leg as a support for the same-side arm. Keep your spine flat and remain bent at the waist. Use lifting straps to grab the barbell sleeve with a pronated (palm-down) grip. Because the sleeve is smooth and thick, the lifting straps will prevent grip strength from being a limiting factor.

Lift the weight by driving hard with your elbow. To emphasize the upper back, allow your elbow to flare out, rather than staying pinned to your ribs. Keep your torso flat, not rotated. Maximize the range of motion by using smaller 25-pound or 10-pound plates instead of 45-pound plates.

Benefits of the Meadows Row

• This unique row trains the upper back and lats with minimal lower back strain.
• As a unilateral exercise, it corrects strength imbalances and improves overall muscle development.

Inverted Row

This simple bodyweight exercise being “underestimated” is an understatement. Some hardcore gym-goers refuse to engage in bodyweight exercises once they get a taste of iron, but the inverted row is a fantastic exercise for any lifter.

Not only does it work the whole upper back and arms, but it also gives your lower back a rest. (3) It’s simple, effective, and can be easily adapted to any strength level or goal. Too hard? Set the bar higher or bend your knees. Too easy? Slip on a weighted vest and/or elevate your feet on a bench.

How to Do the Inverted Row

Position a stable bar (often a Smith machine) around waist height. The lower the bar, the harder the exercise will be because the more bodyweight you’ll be lifting. Lie under the bar and grab it using a slightly wider than shoulder-width grip, either pronated (palm-down) or supinated (palm-up). Squeeze your shoulder blades together and pull yourself up until your chest touches the bar.

Lower yourself with control. To reap the most benefits, keep your body as tight as possible. Contract your glutes and abs, and keep your entire body straight throughout each rep. Don’t let your scapulas move around as you stretch at the bottom. Let’s stay tight and work on core stability.

Benefits of the Inverted Row

• The inverted row will build total-body strength and stability because the body must be stabilized during the exercise.
• It improves scapular strength and health, which benefits posture.
• It’s relatively easier than a pull-up, so it’s an excellent place to start with bodyweight pulling exercises.
• For a bodyweight exercise, it targets the upper back more than the pull-up.

Chest-Supported Row

If you’re an older lifter or anyone who’s suffered injuries over the years, chances are you’ve tweaked your lower back at some point, and the mere reading of this article is making your spine itch. Well, do not fret. There’s a heavy-duty exercise that won’t bug your lower back.

Even if you don’t have back problems, the chest-supported row is valuable. It prevents any form of cheating and won’t tax your spinal erectors, which leaves them fresh for your squats and deadlifts. There’s minimal chance of shifting the stress of the exercise onto the wrong muscles.

How to Do the Chest-Supported Row

Some gyms are equipped with a machine specially designed for this exercise. Otherwise, use an incline bench and set it at around a 45-degree angle. Lie against the bench with your chest at the very top and your head above.

Assume a stable position with your feet and brace your core. You won’t be moving your body during the lift, apart from your arms and shoulder blades. Grab a pair of dumbbells or kettlebells and start rowing, driving your elbows up hard. Squeeze as hard and high as you can, then slowly lower the weight to a full stretch.

To emphasize the lats, use a neutral-grip (palms facing each other) and keep your elbows close to your body. For more upper back involvement, assume a pronated grip (palms down) and let your elbows go to the sides.

Benefits of the Chest-Supported Row

• This chest-supported row has no lower back involvement, which prevents back pain and fatigue.
• The strict movement prevents momentum and cheating. You only work the desired muscles and the perfect technique is reinforced.
• It works the lats, lower traps, and rhomboids.

Face Pull

Do you know what can put a roadblock between you and your goals? Injuries. The body needs a strong, balanced foundation to perform and be healthy, but many people spend more time performing pushing exercises than pulling. This can open the shoulder joint to an increased risk of injury when the body’s internal rotators (chest, anterior deltoids, and lats) overpower the external rotators (rotator cuff and posterior deltoids).

Coupled with a lack of development of the shoulder blade stabilizers (like the trapezius and rhomboids), this can create muscular imbalances and persistent injuries. Enter the face pull. A favorite in performance-based strength circles, this exercise works all the neglected little muscles contributing to shoulder health. (4) It’s also a nice rear delt builder and targets the traps and rhomboids in a unique way.

How to Do the Face Pull

Clip a rope attachment to a pulley set around chest-level. Grab the rope with your thumbs facing you and pinkies facing away. Extend your arms, keeping a slight bend in your elbows, and step back until the weight plates are slightly lifted.

Bending your knees for stability, flatten your spine, and puff out your chest. Pull the weights to your forehead-level. Each hand should end up on the side of your face (hence the name). Pause for a second in the contracted position, then slowly lower the weight back to its initial position.

Avoid flexing your arms using your biceps, but instead pack your shoulder blades together and pull with your elbows. Your arms will bend naturally. If you’re a bodybuilding enthusiast, think about performing a “back double biceps” pose. 

Benefits of the Face Pull

• This cable movement works the upper back, rear delts, and rotator cuff.
• It’s very efficient at improving shoulder health and promoting joint longevity.
• It’s equally useful at improving posture, especially kyphosis in the thoracic spine (being slouched over).

Banded Dumbbell Pullover

The pullover is a classic exercise, older than the sport of bodybuilding itself. However, its main target muscle has been the subject of debate for just as long. Is it an exercise for the chest or the back? It actually works both, according to science and experience. (5)

Biomechanically, the lats are main arm extensors of the arms and shoulders, but the chest (and long head of the triceps) also contribute to that movement in certain ranges of motion. If you perform the exercise in a back workout, especially with your lats already pumped and fatigued, you’ll certainly feel them working.

The added band compensates for the lack of gravity-induced tension in the top position of the exercise. This allows more time under tension and muscle growth because the exercise now delivers both a great stretch and a hard contraction.

How to Do the Banded Dumbbell Pullover

Lie on a flat bench with the top of your head at one end, your upper body fully supported, and your feet planted on the ground. Do not lie sideways across the bench like some lifters perform the movement. Place a dumbbell on the ground behind your head. Attach one end of a resistance band to the dumbbell and the other end of the band to a stable rack, extremely heavy dumbbell, or have a partner hold it in place.

Grab the dumbbell with the palms of your hands on the underside of the weights around the handle. Place the dumbbell over your head with slightly bent arms. Don’t let your glutes leave the bench as lower the weight behind your head into a deep stretch.

Pull it back to the starting position against the band tension. Do not actively bend your elbows because it will shift the workload off the back and onto the triceps.

Benefits of the Banded Dumbbell Pullover

• The pullover targets the lats, chest, and shoulders.
• The movement can help to build your mind-muscle connection for the lats.
• The deep range of motion provides a great stretch upper body which improves thoracic (upper back) and shoulder mobility.

Banded Pull-Up

The pull-up might be a staple exercise for back development, but can you do more than a few? And can you do enough of them with perfect form? Enter the resistance band.

A light resistance band allows you to squeeze your muscles harder, because it offers slight help, and it allows you to really focus on feeling the lats. It’s easier on the joints as well because shoulder joint stress is reduced in the bottom position, where the band offers the most help.

For the muscle-focused lifter, it has another advantage. Compared to a lat pulldown, the pull-up involves movement at your lower body, which recruits a lot of core work for stability. (6) Now, unless you’re freakishly strong, an experienced gymnast, or a calisthenics aficionado, chances are you lack some control over your lower body during the pull-up.

This can make it less efficient for back development. The band takes care of this and guides you upwards like you’re on a rail. This provides more control and improves the mind-muscle connection with your back.

How to Perform the Banded Pull-Up

Secure a resistance band on top of a rack and stretch it down so you can step into it. The resistance of the band should allow you to complete 10-15 reps before muscle fatigue. Grip the bar palms-down, slightly wider than your shoulders. Keep your elbows in front of your body and start pulling yourself up.

It’s crucial that you keep an arched chest and not let it collapse by rolling your shoulders forward — this would shift the stress of the movement from the back muscles to the shoulder joints, possibly causing injuries. Think about leading with your chest to the ceiling. Lower yourself to a dead-stop hang for maximum stretch.

Benefits of the Banded Pull-Up

• The pull-up is one of the most efficient back-building exercises that activates multiple muscles in the back. 
• The resistance band allows the lifter to focus more on the back involvement and less on total body rigidity.
• The band’s assistance allows beginners to perform pull-ups and experienced lifters to perform high-rep pull-ups in a fatigued state.

Barbell Back Extension

We’re keeping the best for last. At least, the most underrated back exercise there is. Every gym bro is eager to pummel their lats and traps. But the vast majority discard lower back training. It’s treated as an afterthought, a muscle group sufficiently stimulated by lower body exercises, or it’s simply avoided because of an already aching spine.

But what many fail to understand is that the lower back is arguably the most important muscle group in the body, along with the other core muscles. It supports our spine — the center of our entire musculoskeletal system. Having a weak spinal region is like having a tree with a soft trunk.

Research has shown that people with back problems simply had less spinal muscle mass and strength. (7) Having a strong lower back will make you stronger, healthier and more resilient overall. (8)

Also, a muscular lower back (called a “Christmas tree” in bodybuilding circles) is just impressive-looking and aesthetic. The back extension also strengthens your glutes and hamstrings, and can drive up your deadlift and squat to unprecedented levels.

How to Do the Barbell Back Extension

Be sure to warm-up thoroughly and practice proper form at all times. Adjust a 45-degree back extension bench so that the top of the pad is just below your waist. Secure your ankles in the ankle pads and place your thighs on the upper pads, while keeping the legs straight.

Hinge forward at the hips and grab a barbell with a palms-down grip. Keep your arms straight and your spine neutral from your tailbone to your neck. Flex your abs and pinch your shoulder blades together. Lift the weight by squeezing your glutes until your entire body is in a straight line.

Don’t allow the weight to rest on the ground in the bottom position. Perform controlled reps and do not jerk the weight. If the position hurts the back of your knees, set the waist pad a bit higher and point your toes slightly out.

Benefits of the Barbell Back Extension

• The back extension builds the entire posterior chain: your lower back, glutes, hamstrings, as well as working the lats and upper back statically as stabilizers.
• The movement is one of the best exercises for building and maintaining a healthy and strong spine.
• It has tremendous carryover to squats, deadlifts, and strength in general.

The Back Muscles

The back is a complex array of several muscles, and one should know their purposes and apply different strategies for each part as they respond better to certain stimuli. Unfortunately, some muscles of the back are unknown or neglected by many lifters, which can lead to imbalances or suboptimal performance. Here are the most important back muscles.

Latissimus Dorsi

This is the largest muscle in the upper body, and one of the strongest. Commonly known as “the lats”, they play a key role in spine and arm movements. They help extend and stabilize the spine and, with the help of their little brother, the teres major, they move the arm downward. They also help to move and rotate the shoulders.

The lats are “the” pulling muscle. Whenever you’re pulling with your arms — during pull-ups, pulldowns, or rows — they are involved in some way, but humerus depression (when your upper arms are brought towards your ribs) is what will really hit them. This is why the cue of “pulling with your elbows” is so efficient to target the lats.

Trapezius

The trapezius is another one of the strongest muscles in the body. It goes from the middle of the spine to the bottom of the cranium, and laterally across both scapulae (shoulder blades).

It is made of three distinct parts with each serving a different function on the scapulae: the upper fibers are used for elevation, the middle fibers retract the scapulae, and the lower fibers depress it. Whenever your shoulder blades are engaged, the traps are, too.

When most people say that they are working their “traps,” they usually mean working the upper section while performing shrugs (scapular elevation). For overall back aesthetics and strength, you should also address the medium and lower fibers.

Posterior Deltoids

This relatively small muscle, one-third part of the larger shoulder muscle, the posterior (or rear) deltoids run from the upper side of the scapula to the humerus bone on the back of the arm.

Their main functions are to rotate the arm externally, extend the arm, and bring it down alongside the body. Neglecting this muscle will result in “sloped,” hunched-over shoulders. But more importantly, the rear deltoids are important for shoulder health and stability.

Rhomboids

Along with the teres, trapezius, and posterior deltoids, the rhomboids create “the upper back.” These muscles work together in an overlapping function to control scapular movement. The rhomboids particularly work to rotate, elevate, and retract the scapulae.

Erector Spinae

The erector spinae, or spinal erectors, are a paired column of muscles running from the sacrum up to the base of the skull. It is possibly the most important muscle in your body (after the heart, of course) because it supports the base upon which all other bones, organs, and muscles are attached.

Along with the abdominal muscles, the diaphragm, and the pelvic floor, they form the “core muscles.” Any movement that engages the core or the spine in any way recruits the spinal erectors.

How Often Should You Train the Back

Your back is large and can handle a lot of work. Unfortunately, many people have an unbalanced workout routine and insufficient pulling work can result in postural problems and strength plateaus.

While you can hit the back, in some way, every day for health or performance goals, a proven hypertrophy (muscle-building) plan is to hit the back one to three times a week for a total of 12 to 20 working sets. For muscle growth, include the back in a pulling workout with the biceps, as part of an upper body session, or in a full-body workout.

Total volume-per-session should be adjusted depending on your split. If you target the back once a week, 10 to 12 sets should be enough, but if you hit it twice or thrice, the total work done each week can increase as you reduce the volume in each workout.

For instance you could do six or seven sets for the back, followed by other upper body muscles (chest, shoulders, triceps, and biceps) for two upper-body workouts per week. With a full-body approach done three times per week, six sets for the back in each session would work well.

How to Progress Your Back Training

The back is composed of many different muscles with different purposes, so you will have to adopt different strategies depending on your objectives. Larger muscles, like the lats, can progress faster than others. A prime mover is guaranteed to elicit more force than a more postural muscle.

Track your progress on the big compound exercises, and add weight (and/or reps) from week to week. The quality of execution is paramount, so keep the weekly weight jumps conservative, around five to 10 pounds.

Certain muscles will respond better to different rep schemes and techniques. The lats and the erectors grow well with pretty basic work with heavy weights and low to moderate reps. The rear delts and upper back muscles often respond better to a higher rep range (15-30 reps). The upper back muscles also benefit from increased time under tension with the use of mid-rep pauses, for instance.

The back as a whole can be a pretty difficult area to feel, so do not hesitate to use the “isolation sandwich technique” — doing a compound (multi-joint) exercise, followed by an isolation (single-joint) exercise, then another compound movement. This can be an efficient way to improve the mind-muscle connection.

How to Warm-Up Your Back

Warming-up both your upper back and lower back is a good way to minimize any potential injury risk. It’s also a good idea to warm-up your triceps, because many lat exercises put the triceps under a stretch and you want to avoid strains and tears. Grab a light resistance band and try this circuit:

• Band Pull-Apart: Take a resistance band with a palms-down grip, holding the band at arms-length in front of your body. Keep a slight bend in your arms while pulling both hands back in line with your shoulders. Pause when the band touches your chest before returning to the starting position. Perform 10 reps before moving to the next exercise.
• Scapular Pull-Up: Hang from a pull-up bar with an overhand grip and your arms straight, as if you were ready to perform a pull-up. Without bending your arms, pull your shoulder blades down and back. Your body will raise slightly. Think of doing a “reverse shrug”. Slowly let your scapulae come back up to a stretch. Perform 10 reps before moving to the next exercise.
• Iso-Hold Row: Loop the resistance band around a stable rack at chest-level. Grab it using a neutral (thumbs up) grip and step back from the rack. Pull the band with your elbows close to your body, until your hands are just under your chest. Don’t allow your shoulders to rise up. Once you reach the peak contraction, hold it for 15 seconds before moving to the next exercise.
• Band Triceps Pushdown: Attach the resistance band to a point over your head. Grab the band with a thumbs-up grip using both hands. Keep your elbows fixed at the sides of your body and bring your hands down by extending your arms until fully locked out. Return to the starting position, resisting the band tension. Only your forearms should move. Perform 20 reps before repeating the first exercise. Do this circuit a total of three times.

Building a Complete Back

You can’t just do one back exercise and call it a day. You have to use different angles and techniques to cover all the muscles of this complex region. These exercise options will allow you to create a workout that will ensure each back muscle is properly addressed, for a complete development without wasting your time by pummeling the same muscle group or ignoring others.

References

1. Leslie, Kelly. L. M. BSc (Hons); Comfort, Paul MSc, CSCS*D The Effect of Grip Width and Hand Orientation on Muscle Activity During Pull-ups and the Lat Pull-down, Strength and Conditioning Journal: February 2013 – Volume 35 – Issue 1 – p 75-78 doi: 10.1519/SSC.0b013e318282120e
2. Paine R, Voight ML. The role of the scapula. Int J Sports Phys Ther. 2013 Oct;8(5):617-29. PMID: 24175141; PMCID: PMC3811730.
3. Fenwick CM, Brown SH, McGill SM. Comparison of different rowing exercises: trunk muscle activation and lumbar spine motion, load, and stiffness. J Strength Cond Res. 2009 Mar;23(2):350-8. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0b013e3181942019. PMID: 19197209.
4. Niederbracht, Yvonne; Shim, Andrew; Sloniger, Mark; Paternostro-Bayles, Madeline; Short, Thomas. Effects of a Shoulder Injury Prevention Strength Training Program on Eccentric External Rotator Muscle Strength and Glenohumeral Joint Imbalance in Female Overhead Activity Athletes, Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research: January 2008 – Volume 22 – Issue 1 – p140 – 145. doi:10.1519/JSC.0b013e31815f5634
5. Eduardo Borges, Bruno Mezêncio, Rafael Soncin. Resistance training acute session: pectoralis major, latissimus dorsi and triceps brachii electromyographic activity. Journal of Physical Education and Sport. Published June 2018. doi:10.7752/jpes.2018.02095.
6. Hewit, Jennifer. A Comparison of Muscle Activation during the Pull-up and Three Alternative Pulling Exercises. Published 2018/11/02. Journal of Physical Fitness, Medicine & Treatment in Sports. doi:10.19080/JPFMTS.2018.05.555669
7. Yaprak Y. The effects of back extension training on back muscle strength and spinal range of motion in young females. Biol Sport. 2013 Sep;30(3):201-6. doi: 10.5604/20831862.1047500. Epub 2013 Jul 22. PMID: 24744489; PMCID: PMC3944566.
8. María Moreno Catalá, Arno Schroll, Gunnar Laube and Adamantios Arampatzis. Muscle Strength and Neuromuscular Control in Low-Back Pain: Elite Athletes Versus General Population. Frontiers in neuroscience. Published 03 July 2018. doi:10.3389/fnins.2018.00436

Featured Image: Paul Biryukov

The post The 8 Best Upper Body Pulling Exercises appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Here are some ab workouts to get your midsection in shape while your diet does its job. Whether you’re training in a fully equipped gym or at home with the bare minimum, when it’s time to reveal your new look, you’ll have the shape and muscularity ready to show off.

Best Ab Workouts

• In the Gym
• At Home
• For Functional Strength
• With Bodyweight

Ab Workout in the Gym

Most commercial gyms are stocked with countless ab machines and other core training equipment. The options may seem overwhelming, but you can benefit from training your abs with a variety of angles for complete development.

Instead of throwing in a few sets of simple crunches and calling it a day, hit your abs with a comprehensive plan to get well-rounded results from high-intensity training.

The Complete Ab Workout

Take advantage of some of the most common pieces of ab equipment found in a typical gym. Pay special attention to execution and treat your abs as you would any other body part. Too many lifters dismiss ab training as an afterthought and rush through exercises without focus or intensity.

Roman Chair Leg Raise

• How to Do It: Climb into a Roman chair (also known as a dip/chin station or hanging leg raise station) and support your bodyweight using the elbow pads with your upper body against the back pad. Tilt your pelvis forward slightly and bend your legs. The more your legs are bent, the less challenging the exercise; the more they’re straight, the more difficult the movement becomes. Raise your legs up until they are even with your waist before lowering them back down. Move slowly and use control throughout the entire rep.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 10-15
• Rest Time: 30 seconds between sets.

Hyperextension Bench or GHD Sit-Up

• How to Do It: Sit “backwards” on a horizontal hyperextension bench or GHD (glute-ham developer), facing upwards with your shins fixed under the pads and your legs relatively straight. Cross your arms over your chest and keep them in place to avoid swinging for assistance. Lean back slowly until your torso is almost parallel with the floor and you’re facing the ceiling. Contract your abs to curl your upper body into an upright position.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 15
• Rest Time: 20 seconds between sets.

Cable Woodchop

• How to Do It: Attach a single handle to a high cable pulley. Stand sideways to the handle and grab it with both hands. Keeping your arms slightly bent, bring the handle down and across your body until it’s at your waist on the opposite side. Slightly twist your torso and crunch down towards the handle using your obliques (side ab muscles). Slowly return to the starting position. Perform all reps for one side before flipping your stance to work the other side.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 10 per side.
• Rest Time: None

Machine Crunch

• How to Do It: Sit in a crunch machine and grab the handles above your head. Focus on contracting your abs by bringing your ribcage and pelvis together. Pause in the crunched position and squeeze your abs before returning slowly to the starting position.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 10-15
• Rest Time: 20 seconds between sets.

Ab Workout at Home

Even in the smallest home gym, there are plenty of ways to get an effective ab workout. Exercise balls and resistance bands are convenient, space-saving staples.

All it takes is some creativity to create a great program. While basic bodyweight exercises are one option, increasing the challenge using the most simple equipment can deliver better results.

The Home Gym Ab Workout

This simple and effective at-home workout uses just an exercise ball and resistance bands for a serious ab session. This lets you work the abs with more intensity than basic bodyweight exercises and without breaking the bank on any specialized equipment.

Banded Crunch

• How to Do It: Wrap the center of a resistance band around a stable object around waist-height. Lie on the floor in front of the band and hold both ends near your shoulders. With your legs bent and feet flat on the ground, crunch your upper body to pull the band. Hold the top position for one second before returning down slowly.
• Reps and Sets: 3 x 10
• Rest: 20 seconds between sets.

Exercise Ball Leg Raise

• How to Do It: Lie on the floor with your arms flat and your hands next to your hips. Squeeze an exercise ball between your feet and calves. Lift your legs to raise the ball up and over your pelvis, then lower it close to the floor. Don’t allow the ball to touch the floor until the entire set is completed.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 10
• Rest: 20 seconds between sets.

Banded Twist

• How to Do It: Secure a band to a stable, upright object around waist-height (heavy table, chest or dresser, etc.). Stand sideways to the band and grasp it, keeping your elbows by your sides bent at 90-degrees. With your hips and feet stationary, “pull” the band by twisting your upper body while actively contracting your obliques and abs for stability. Return to the starting position. Repeat all reps for one side before switching.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 10 per side.
• Rest: None

Ab Workout for Functional Strength

Crunches and sit-ups are great for ab development, but they aren’t the only tools to use. Some lifters and athletes can benefit from more “functional” ab training — which translates to fewer static movements and more exercises that engage the core in motion. (1)

This requires a more “total-body” approach to training your abs. It not only will be a unique training experience, it’ll also force you to adapt to various angles not achieved through traditional strength training methods.

The Athlete’s Ab Workout

For a functional ab workout, you may need to shift your mindset on how to perform some of these movements. You’ll be coordinating stability, balance, and explosiveness to stimulate your abs in new and different ways.

This approach to ab training involves more than just your abs, which helps to carryover to strength in other exercises, while building a stronger complete core.

Plank

• How to Do It: Lie on the floor face-down, supporting your body on your elbows and toes. Maintain a straight line from your feet to your shoulders. Contract your abs and stabilize your entire midsection. Hold this position and maintain head-to-to tension for the duration of the exercise.
• Sets and Reps: Three sets of 30 seconds per set.
• Rest: 30 seconds between sets.

Medicine Ball Sit-Up Throw

• How to Do It: Sit on the ground in the top of a sit-up position with your knees bent, feet flat on the floor, and your upper body near your thighs. Have a partner stand two to three steps away holding a light medicine ball. Have them gently throw you the medicine ball. Catch the ball at chest-level, lower your upper body to the floor, and immediately reverse direction, coming up to toss the ball back to your partner.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 8
• Rest: 30 seconds between sets.

Russian Twist

• How to Do It: Take a medicine ball and assume a sit-up position. Straighten your legs and pick your feet off the floor. Only your glutes should be touching the ground. Twist your upper body from side to side, touching the ball to the floor on repetition.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 20 touches to the floor (10 per side).
• Rest: 60 seconds between sets.

Bodyweight Ab Workout

The great thing about ab workouts, unlike many other body parts, is that they’re easy to adapt to wherever you end up and can be done anywhere, anytime.

If you’re home, on the road, or even in the office, an ab workout is only limited by your imagination. You can get a lot done with no equipment.

The Bodyweight-Only Ab Workout

Some equipment can be useful, but you don’t need any “stuff” to get a good ab workout. The plan below allows you to train your abs directly and effectively wherever you may be.

Floor Crunch

• How to Do It: Lie on the floor with your knees bent at 90-degrees and feet flat on the floor. Cross your arms over your chest and slightly tuck your chin. Raise your upper body while keeping your lower back in contact with the floor. Squeeze at the top and then slowly return to the starting position.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 20
• Rest: 30 seconds between sets.

Partial Lying Leg Raise

• How to Do It: Lie on the floor and place your hands flat under your glutes to relieve pressure from your lower back. Keep a slight bend in your knees while slowly raising your legs up until they are about 45-degrees from the floor (roughly halfway to a vertical position). Slowly return to the starting position.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 20
• Rest: 30 seconds between sets.

Three-Way Plank

• How to Do It: Begin on the ground supporting your body on your elbows, forearms, and toes. Maintain a straight body position without sinking or arching your lower back. Hold for 20 seconds. Rotate to one side by shifting your weight to one shoulder and forearm and stacking your feet on top of each other. Don’t allow your hips to sink down. Hold the position for 20 seconds before rotating to the opposite side and holding for 20 seconds. Holding each position — center, one side, and opposite side — completes “one rep.”
• Sets and Reps: 3 sets of one rep.
• Rest: 30 seconds between sets.

Muscles of Your Abs

The abdominals are more than just the “six-pack abs” you might hope to see in the mirror. They consist of a group of muscles, some visible and some equally important below the surface. It’s important to know that the actual “six-pack” separation is determined by fibrous tissues, not any actual muscles, and they can’t be specifically trained.

This is why, no matter what exercises or diet are used, some people may not be anatomically capable of building six or eight separate abdominals. Regardless, hard training and a cleaned-up diet can help reveal how your own abs will look.

Rectus Abdominis

This muscle group is best known as the coveted six-pack (or eight-pack, if your genetics allow it) that plenty of people desire. It originates from your ribs to the front of your pelvis. It helps keep your body stable and brings your ribs and pelvis closer when contracted, like during the classic ab crunch or sit-up exercise.

Transverse Abdominis

This muscle is found underneath the rectus abdominis and helps to stabilize the trunk. It’s an important postural muscle working to provide tension, stability, and support for the upper body. They also help to maintain internal abdominal pressure, which offers support for the spine.

External Obliques

This pair of muscles sit on each side of your rectus abdominus, above the hips. They run from the sides of your body towards your midline, working to rotate your trunk and “crunch” sideways, as well as stabilize your body during those types of twisting movements.

Internal Obliques

This pair of muscles sit below the external obliques and also sit on the sides of your rectus abdominis. They also help rotate and twist your trunk, flex or “crunch” sideways, and provide overall stability.

All About Abs

Whether you have little to no equipment or you’re training at a traditional gym, hitting your abs is possible wherever you are, no matter your goal. All it takes is some discipline, organization, and a consistency. Follow these workouts and you’ll improve your abs in no time. But if you really want to see them shine, you’ll still need to clean up your diet.

References

1. Kibler, W. B., Press, J., & Sciascia, A. (2006). The role of core stability in athletic function. Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.), 36(3), 189–198. https://doi.org/10.2165/00007256-200636030-00001

Featured Image: Hananeko_Studio / Shutterstock

The post The Best Ab Workouts at Home, for Functional Strength, and More appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Exercise choice can dramatically influence overall results, especially when it comes to training the chest. Between myths about “targeting” different parts of the chest, training too heavy, or over-stressing shoulder and elbow joints more than pectoral muscles, many lifters are lucky to end up with a well-designed program. However, luck has a way of evaporating when you lean on it too often. Below, we list 12 of the best chest exercises to build your chest program around.

Best Chest Exercises

• Flat Barbell Bench Press
• Guillotine Press
• Barbell Pullover
• Low Incline Dumbbell Bench Press
• Decline Dumbbell Bench Press
• Decline Dumbbell Flye
• Dip
• Sliding Push-Up
• Hand-Release Push-Up
• Cable Crossover
• Smith Machine Incline Press
• Medicine Ball Chest Pass

Flat Barbell Bench Press

If you’re reading a list of the “best chest exercises” and don’t see the classic bench press, your instinct might be to close the page and move on. This founding member of the big three powerlifts is also a time-tested bodybuilding staple.

The versatility of the bench press, which makes it well-suited to building strength as well as muscle size, makes it a key player in many chest-building workouts. Very minor technique adjustments can shift the emphasis towards size or strength, so it’s important to know how and why you’re performing the exercise to get maximum results.

How to Do the Flat Barbell Bench Press

Lie on a bench with your feet flat on the ground. Your glutes and shoulders should never leave the bench during the exercise. Maintain a slight arch in your lower back. For optimal recruitment of the pec (chest) muscles, grab the bar with an overhand grip slightly wider than shoulder-width. A closer grip de-emphasizes the pecs and instead prioritizes the triceps. (1)

With your elbows slightly bent, pinch your shoulder blades together while staying on the bench. Straighten your arms to unrack the barbell and “pull” the weight from over your face to above your upper chest. Lower the bar to mid-chest level while aiming your elbows at an angle between your feet and shoulders. Briefly pause in the bottom position before pressing up. In the locked out position, the bar should be above your upper chest or neck.

Benefits of the Flat Barbell Bench Press

• It trains the chest through a complete range of motion, with assistance from the shoulders and triceps, making it an efficient upper body exercise.
• It’s sport-specific for competitive powerlifters and has carryover to any athletes (especially those in contact sports) who can benefit from upper body pressing power.
• You can load the barbell with a significant amount of weight relative to other chest exercises, making it suitable for very long-term progress.

Guillotine Press

The intimidating-sounding guillotine press (sometimes called a “neck press”) was popularized by bodybuilding coach Vince Gironda in the 1960s. It applies specific technique adjustments to the standard flat barbell bench press to place even more muscular stress on the pecs.

This increased muscular stress means less weight can deliver more results. In fact, the guillotine should not be performed with heavy weight, since it would lead to excessive joint strain. It can be an excellent addition to a chest-building workout, but lifters with pre-existing shoulder issues may have trouble performing the exercise properly.

How to Do the Guillotine Press

Lie on a flat bench with your feet flat on the ground. Keep your glutes and shoulders touching the bench. Flex your abs to flatten your lower back into the bench. Grab the bar with an overhand grip, nearly as wide as possible. Unrack the bar by pressing upwards, and pull the bar to a position above your neck.

As you lower the bar, keep your elbows pointed directly out to each side. This will drastically increase the stretch on the chest muscles. Keep the bar in line with your neck as you lower it as far as possible. Press upwards immediately after reaching maximum stretch.

Benefits of the Guillotine Press

• Targets the chest without the need for relatively excessive weight, reducing wear and tear on the joints.
• Emphasizes the chest while minimizing recruitment of the triceps and shoulders.

Barbell Pullover

The barbell pullover is one of the oldest exercises a lifter can do, with weightlifters in the late-1800s advocating the exercise. It’s also one of the most confusing exercises. Rarely do lifters argue over which muscles are trained by a specific exercise, because there’s almost always a clear-cut answer, but the pullover is constantly at the center of an ongoing “chest exercise or back exercise” debate.

The pullover actually works both the chest and lats (back muscle) at the same time, but many studies, along with many anecdotal reports from lifters over the decades, support the pullover as a very effective chest exercise. (2)(3) If your lats “take over” during the exercise and you cannot feel your pecs working, perform the exercise at the end of your chest workout when the pecs are pre-fatigued. (4)

How to Do the Barbell Pullover

Hold a small barbell with an overhand grip slightly closer than shoulder-width. Sit on a bench and rest the bar across your legs. As you lie flat onto the bench, “kick” the weight into a position over your face and straighten your arms. Plant your feet securely on the ground.

Keep your glutes on the bench. Lower the weight towards your head, descending nearly in line with the bench if your shoulder mobility allows. Pause very briefly in the stretched position before pulling back to the starting position. Maintain a slightly bent elbow position during each rep and do not actively bend at the elbows to lower the weight.

Benefits of the Barbell Pullover

• Targets the chest, lats, and shoulder muscles.
• Emphasizes the chest with limited triceps recruitment.
• The pullover is an effective stretch for the lats, as well as the shoulders, and can improve shoulder mobility over time.

Low Incline Dumbbell Bench Press

Chest training often incorporates a variety of angles to optimally address both the “upper chest” (clavicular head of the pecs) and the “mid or lower chest” (sternocostal head of the pecs). These different parts of the chest muscle will be more thoroughly addressed in a later section.

Inclined chest exercises will target the upper pecs. However, a relatively low angle is ideal because an excessively inclined angle (more vertical than horizontal) will reduce chest activation and increase shoulder activation. (5) Dumbbells allow a deeper stretched position and/or more range of motion at lockout, compared to a barbell.

How to Do the Low Incline Dumbbell Bench Press

Set an adjustable bench to a low incline — the second hole on an adjustable bench or place two bumper plates under one end of a flat bench. Grab a pair of dumbbells and sit on the bench with the weights resting on your legs. Lie back onto the bench while “kicking” the weights into a straight-arm locked out position above your chest.

Angle your hands slightly towards your feet by rotating your wrists outwards. Neither your palms nor your thumbs should be directly pointed towards each other. Maintain this hand position throughout each rep. Lower the weights under control, reaching a stretched position with the weights near your chest. Press upwards, bringing the weights close together in the top position.

Benefits of the Low Incline Dumbbell Press

• The incline angle optimizes upper chest recruitment without excessive shoulder activation.
• Exercise variety (incorporating angles and different implements) has been shown to improve training results. (6)
• Dumbbells allow more freedom for the wrist, elbow, and shoulder joint compared to a barbell, making the exercise less stressful to the joints.

Decline Dumbbell Press

Decline bench press variations are often believed to emphasize the “lower pecs” due to arm position. However, the “lower pecs” aren’t one separate muscle, they’re only part of the larger pectoral (chest) muscle.

A decline angle has been shown to activate the chest comparably to the flat bench press, while recruiting less shoulder muscle, so decline pressing is an excellent option for lifters with shoulder pain (7) Using dumbbells instead of a barbell also allows a greater range of motion which can translate to a greater muscle-building stimulus.

How to Do the Decline Dumbbell Press

Adjust a flat bench to elevate your hips above your head. Take a pair of dumbbells and sit on the bench with the weights resting on your legs. Lie back onto the bench while “pulling” the weights into a straight-arm locked out position above your chest. Be sure to hook the bench with the back of your knees to prevent your body from sliding downwards.

Angle your hands slightly towards your feet by rotating your wrists outwards. Maintain this diagonal hand position for each rep. Your elbows should maintain a slight angle between your shoulders and feet. Pause briefly in the stretched position before pressing to the starting point. On the last rep of any set, lower the weights into the stretched position and perform a “curl” by bending at the elbows to lower them to the floor before getting up from the bench.

Benefits of the Decline Dumbbell Press

• Dumbbells reduce joint strain by allowing more individualized movement of the wrists, elbows, and shoulders.
• The decline angle trains the chest with limited shoulder stress.

Decline Dumbbell Flye

The dumbbell flye is an effective isolation (single-joint) exercise to activate only the chest muscle with minimized involvement of the shoulders and triceps, compared to compound (multi-joint) bench press variations which recruit all three muscles. This makes it an excellent addition to any workout focused specifically on training the chest.

The decline position takes advantage of gravity in the locked out position for increased muscular tension. On a flat bench, the weights offer limited resistance at the top. With a decline bench, the muscles are more highly activated to support the load.

How to Do the Decline Dumbbell Flye

Set an adjustable bench to a slight decline angle. Take a pair of dumbbells and sit on the bench with the weights resting on your legs. Lie back onto the bench while “pulling” the weights into a straight-arm locked out position above your chest. Be sure to hook the bench with the back of your knees to prevent your body from sliding downwards.

Maintain a slight bend in your elbows throughout the exercise. Begin with your palms facing each other. Lower the weights towards the ground while keeping your hands in line with your elbows. Don’t allow the weights to rotate your arms towards your head. In the bottom position, the weights should be near chest-level. Contract your chest to “pull” your hands back to the starting position.

Benefits of the Decline Dumbbell Flye

• Isolates and emphasizes the chest with limited activation of the shoulders and triceps.
• Decreased shoulder joint strain compared to pressing.

Dip

The dip, along with the pull-up, have both been called “the upper body squat” because of their potential for building size and strength. Makes you think that a program focused on squats, dips, and pull-ups would be great for adding a bunch of muscle and getting really strong, right? Yep, right.

Dips, specifically, are an excellent way to target the chest, shoulders, and triceps using only your bodyweight, making it ideal for lifters with limited equipment. It works the muscle through a long range of motion and has the potential for adding significant weight by using a weighted vest, dip belt, or dumbbell held with the legs.

How to Do the Dip

Begin at the top position on a set of dip bars with your arms locked out. To ensure optimal chest recruitment, lean your upper body forward during the movement. Keeping an upright torso will reduce chest activity and increase focus on the triceps.

Bend your arms to lower your body as far as your shoulder mobility allows. Pause briefly in the stretched position to further increase muscular stress before pressing up to lockout.

Benefits of the Dip

• The bodyweight exercise can be performed with minimal equipment.
• Assesses and builds shoulder mobility during the exercise.
• Bodyweight exercises are often seen as more “functional” than using free weights or machines, contributing to total-body performance and joint health. (8)

Sliding Push-Up

The basic push-up can be an effective introductory exercise for new lifters, but it can be difficult to progressively overload. Rather than adding weight, specific push-up variations can provide an effective training stimulus for continued size and strength.

The sliding push-up is an advanced variation which allows the pec muscles to work through an extremely long range of motion, moving the arms inwards during the exercise rather than remaining static. This inward motion has been shown to significantly increase muscle activation in the chest. (9)

How to Do the Sliding Push-Up

Take a pair of furniture sliders, or towels on a tile or wood floor, and set up in a push-up position with your hands on the sliders and nearly touching each other. Maintain a straight line from your heels to your neck.

Lower your body under control until your chest almost touches the ground while allowing your hands to “slide” outwards. In the bottom position, your arms should be well beyond shoulder-width. While pressing upwards, pull your hands together until they nearly meet in the starting position.

Benefits of the Sliding Push-Up

• Increased chest activation compared to basic push-ups.
• Allows intense training with limited equipment.
• Push-up variations train abdominal and total core stability while also targeting the chest.

Hand-Release Push-Up

The hand-release push-up was popularized by CrossFit as a way to achieve consistent, unquestionable depth during high-repetition push-ups.

The hand-release push-up manipulates the “stretch-shortening cycle,” which is a way muscles are recruited to provide force in response to being in a stretched position. (10) While the hand-release push-up does require a full range of shoulder mobility, it also recruits the chest muscles more significantly than standard push-ups.

How to Do the Hand-Release Push-Up

Begin in a standard push-up position, on your hands and toes with your hands just outside shoulder-width. Maintain a straight line from your heels to your neck. Lower your body until your chest touches the floor.

Briefly lift your hands off the ground and pull your shoulder blades together, allowing your entire upper body to rest on the ground. Immediately replace your hands just outside shoulder-width and press up to lockout.

Benefits of the Hand-Release Push-Up

• Increased chest activation compared to basic push-ups.
• Allows intense training with no equipment.
• Push-up variations train abdominal and total core stability while also targeting the chest.

Cable Crossover

The cable crossover is a time-tested chest exercise, often used by bodybuilders to “carve detail” into the chest muscles. That’s not actually a thing because “detail” is only achieved by lowering body fat to reveal muscular development.

Because the cable provides constant resistance, the muscle is worked completely through the complete range of motion, compared to dumbbell flyes which provide varying intensities due to leverage changing relative to gravity. Basic flat dumbbell flyes become less difficult as the weight moves from horizontal to perpendicular. Cable pulleys bypass that limitation.

How to Do the Cable Crossover

Stand in the center of two high cable pulleys with single-handles attached to each side. Grab the handles and begin with your arms at shoulder level and your palms facing forward. Keep a slight bend in your elbows while pulling your hands to meet at belly button-level.

Pause briefly to maximize the peak contraction before returning your hands to the starting position.

Benefits of the Cable Crossover

• Isolates and emphasizes the chest with little to no activation of the shoulders and triceps.
• The cable pulleys apply constant tension to the chest, increasing the muscle’s total time under tension and leading to increased growth.

Smith Machine Incline Press

The Smith machine has earned a relatively unfair reputation as being ineffective for muscle growth or, worse, dangerous for joint health. That mindset comes primarily from improper exercise form or loading, as well as the machine’s design which uses a fixed path and requires less joint stabilization.

The Smith machine press has been shown to activate the chest to a nearly identical degree compared to the flat barbell bench press while reducing shoulder muscle recruitment. (11) When combined with an incline angle to emphasize the upper chest, the Smith machine incline press becomes an extremely efficient chest exercise.

How to Do the Smith Machine Incline Press

Position an inclined bench under a Smith machine and ensure that the bar is in line with your collarbones. Grab the bar with a wider than shoulder-width grip. Unrack the bar and lower it until you feel a maximum stretch across the chest.

Press up immediately and smoothly. To maintain muscular tension, stop just short of lockout in the top position before beginning the next rep.

Benefits of the Smith Machine Incline Press

• Allows the upper chest to be targeted with decreased shoulder recruitment.
• The Smith machine allows lifters to bench press safely without the need of a spotter.

Medicine Ball Chest Pass

Medicine balls are often used in athletic or conditioning-based workouts, but can serve an important role for building muscle, strength, or power.

The medicine ball chest pass allows an explosive movement which has been shown to increase chest activation as well as boost strength when followed by heavier lifting. (12)(13) This makes it an efficient stimulus for building size and strength.

How to Do the Medicine Ball Chest Pass

Stand several steps away from a sturdy wall, with your feet shoulder-width apart and legs slightly bent. Hold a medicine ball in both hands, with the ball touching your chest. Quickly and forcefully throw the ball forward, not upwards, into the wall.

Carefully watch for the ball’s rebound. Pick up the ball (don’t try to catch it). Take a moment to set up the starting position before repeating. Note: To ensure explosive power, use a light medicine ball. For example, 10-15 pounds could be used by experienced lifters.

Benefits of the Medicine Ball Chest Pass

• Increases chest activation during exercises performed shortly afterwards.
• Develops explosive power which transfers to bench press strength.
• Recruits the legs, core, and upper body with an emphasis on the chest muscles.

The Chest Muscles

The chest has multiple heads, or sections, which can be emphasized by understanding their purpose and choosing specific exercises to target each separate section. Unfortunately, some lifters have misinterpreted the muscle’s design, which has made their chest workouts much more complicated than is necessary.

Pectoralis Major

The pec major is the primary chest muscle. While it’s one specific muscle, it consists of two separate heads — the clavicular head (upper chest) located in the upper quarter of the chest near the collarbone and the sternocostal head making up the entire remaining part of the chest.

There’s no anatomical evidence for a “lower chest,” “inner chest,” or other popular subdivision of the muscle. Only the upper pecs have been shown to be emphasized separately, specifically from exercises performed at an incline, due to the separate attachment point of the clavicular head.

The pecs work to bring the arms in towards the body’s centerline, seen when the arms are extended in a flye or press and brought above the chest, for example.

Pectoralis Minor

The pec minor attaches to the shoulder blade and is heavily recruited to bring the scapulae (shoulder blades) forward, particularly in the lockout position of presses. The pec minor is not visible or often directly targeted, but plays a key role in overall shoulder health.

Serratus Anterior

The serratus is a small series of muscles that sit alongside the ribs. Like the pec minor, they attach to the scapulae and help to control scapular movement. The serratus are also heavily recruited at the end portion of the locked out position.

How Often Should You Train the Chest

While chest training is popular, it shouldn’t be overemphasized relative to other body parts. Excessive chest or shoulder training may exacerbate postural problems unless balanced by comparable back training. (14)

However, for optimal muscle growth, one to three properly programmed workouts each week can be an effective approach for muscle growth. Ideally, the chest should be trained in a workout including the shoulders and triceps, the upper body, or the entire body.

Each training split would require a different approach to total volume (sets and reps), using lower volume for the chest when more body parts are trained in a single workout. For example, you may perform a total of 14 sets for the chest, followed by shoulders and triceps; or you might perform six sets for chest, preceded by back and followed by shoulders, triceps, and biceps (for a complete upper body workout) and repeat that upper body workout several days later.

How to Progress Your Chest Training

Because the chest can be effectively trained with a variety of compound exercises, it’s possible to progress steadily by adding weight to those exercises each week.

Dumbbell pressing exercises, for example, don’t necessarily accommodate adding 10 to 20 pounds per dumbbell each week. Those weights would quickly become dangerously unwieldy and strength levels don’t typically progress that fast. Increasing five to 10 pounds per dumbbell could be maintained for a longer period.

The nature of isolation exercises, being single-joint, doesn’t blend effectively with using heavier weights. To encourage joint safety and to maintain stress on the target muscle, focus on adding a rep (or several reps) on exercises like flyes or cable crossovers.

One reliable approach with chest training is to perform a compound exercise (like a press or dip) for lower reps with a heavy weight followed by moderate to higher reps with moderate weight using a mix of compound and isolation exercises.

How to Warm-Up Your Chest

All chest exercises involve the shoulder joint and, because the shoulders can suffer from significant wear and tear, a thorough warm-up is an essential first step to any chest workout. Take a light resistance band and perform this basic warm-up circuit before any chest training.

• Cat/Camel: Begin on your hands and knees with your arms straight. Look up to the ceiling while sinking the arch of your spine downwards. When you’ve reached as far as your mobility allows, reverse direction by driving into the ground through your straight arms. Look down to the ground while rounding your spine in a deep curve. That’s one full rep. Perform five reps before moving to the next exercise.
• Band Pull-Apart: Take a resistance band with a palms-down grip, holding the band at arms-length in front of your body. Keep a slight bend in your arms while pulling both hands back. Pause when the band touches your chest. Return to the starting position. Perform 10 reps before moving to the next exercise.
• Band Dislocate: Widen your grip on the resistance band to well beyond shoulder-width. Begin with the band at your waist. Keep your arms straight while raising the band above your head, reaching as far back as possible. When your shoulders have reached their full range of motion, return to the starting position. Move at a slow and controlled pace in each direction. Perform five reps before moving to the next exercise.
• Push-Up Plus: Begin in a classic push-up position, on your hands and toes with your hands just outside shoulder-width. Maintain a straight line from your heels to your neck. Lower your body until your chest nearly touches the floor. Press upwards under control. After locking out in the top position, continue pressing with straight arms and allow your shoulder blades to round forwards, before reversing the process to lower your body. Perform five reps before repeating the first exercise. Do a total of three complete circuits.

Building a Complete Chest

Chest workouts don’t need to be overly complicated with a half-dozen exercises “attacking” the muscle from every potential angle. However, efficient chest training also shouldn’t be overly minimalistic with just one exercise to train the entire pec. By sorting through the exercise options you’ve just learned, you can design a complete workout that delivers size and strength without wasting time in the gym and without beating up your body.

References

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2. Marchetti, Paulo & Uchida, Marco C.. (2011). Effects of the Pullover Exercise on the Pectoralis Major and Latissimus Dorsi Muscles as Evaluated by EMG. Journal of applied biomechanics. 27. 380-4. 10.1123/jab.27.4.380.
3. Borges, Eduardo & Mezêncio, Bruno & Pinho, João & Soncin, Rafael & Barbosa, João & Araujo, Felipe & Gianola, Fabio & Amadio, Alberto & Serrao, Julio. (2018). Resistance training acute session: pectoralis major, latissimus dorsi and triceps brachii electromyographic activity. Journal of Physical Education and Sport. 18. 10.7752/jpes.2018.02095.
4. Gentil P, Oliveira E, de Araújo Rocha Júnior V, do Carmo J, Bottaro M. Effects of exercise order on upper-body muscle activation and exercise performance. J Strength Cond Res. 2007 Nov;21(4):1082-6. doi: 10.1519/R-21216.1. PMID: 18076251.
5. Rodríguez-Ridao D, Antequera-Vique JA, Martín-Fuentes I, Muyor JM. Effect of Five Bench Inclinations on the Electromyographic Activity of the Pectoralis Major, Anterior Deltoid, and Triceps Brachii during the Bench Press Exercise. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020 Oct 8;17(19):7339. doi: 10.3390/ijerph17197339. PMID: 33049982; PMCID: PMC7579505.
6. Baz-Valle E, Schoenfeld BJ, Torres-Unda J, Santos-Concejero J, Balsalobre-Fernández C. The effects of exercise variation in muscle thickness, maximal strength and motivation in resistance trained men. PLoS One. 2019;14(12):e0226989. Published 2019 Dec 27. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0226989
7. Lauver, Jakob & Cayot, Trent & Scheuermann, Barry. (2015). Influence of bench angle on upper extremity muscular activation during bench press exercise. European journal of sport science. 16. 1-8. 10.1080/17461391.2015.1022605.
8. Harrison, Jeffrey. (2010). Bodyweight Training: A Return To Basics. Strength & Conditioning Journal. 32. 52-55. 10.1519/SSC.0b013e3181d5575c.
9. Melani A, Gobbi G, Galli D, et al. Muscle Activation in Traditional and Experimental Barbell Bench Press Exercise: A Potential New Tool for Fitness Maintenance. Sports (Basel). 2019;7(10):224. Published 2019 Oct 17. doi:10.3390/sports7100224
10. Seiberl W, Hahn D, Power GA, Fletcher JR, Siebert T. Editorial: The Stretch-Shortening Cycle of Active Muscle and Muscle-Tendon Complex: What, Why and How It Increases Muscle Performance?. Front Physiol. 2021;12:693141. Published 2021 May 20. doi:10.3389/fphys.2021.693141
11. Schick, E. E., Coburn, J. W., Brown, L. E., Judelson, D. A., Khamoui, A. V., Tran, T. T., & Uribe, B. P. (2010). A comparison of muscle activation between a Smith machine and free weight bench press. Journal of strength and conditioning research, 24(3), 779–784. https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0b013e3181cc2237
12. Davies G, Riemann BL, Manske R. CURRENT CONCEPTS OF PLYOMETRIC EXERCISE. Int J Sports Phys Ther. 2015;10(6):760-786.
13. Wilcox, J., Larson, R., Brochu, K. M., & Faigenbaum, A. D. (2006). Acute explosive-force movements enhance bench-press performance in athletic men. International journal of sports physiology and performance, 1(3), 261–269. https://doi.org/10.1123/ijspp.1.3.261
14. Lynch, S. S., Thigpen, C. A., Mihalik, J. P., Prentice, W. E., & Padua, D. (2010). The effects of an exercise intervention on forward head and rounded shoulder postures in elite swimmers. British journal of sports medicine, 44(5), 376–381. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsm.2009.066837

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