| |
|
|
LatsLatissimus Dorsi)
include Teres major and Teres minor. Lats are a very
important part of a person's physique. They add width to the body and give
it that “V” look. It's a very big muscle and it can handle a lot of weight
and resistance training. Lats tie in with all the other muscles in the
back, especially the rhomboids which are in the middle of the back. A lot
of exercises that primarily hit the lats, will work either the traps or the
rhomboids as well. There is a wide variety of exercise you can do for your
“wings” but try not to go for more than four, three should be enough. A lot
of exercise for back can be done on machines because it is not a
particularly easy muscle to reach without them.
|
 |
Try these and see what grows:
Pull-ups
Lat Pull Down |
Seated Cable Rows |
Bent Over Barbell Rows |
|
Bent Over Dumbbell Rows |
Iso-Lateral Low Row
Pull Over|
|
|
|
Pull Ups
(Chin ups) are most definitely
the best possible exercise for your lats if done properly. First of
all, always use the widest overhand grip possible that will not restrict
your range of motion. If you do pull ups reaching the bar behind your
neck, then you will involve your traps as well. That's why I prefer
this version of pull ups to the one where the bar is in front of your face.
When you do front pull ups, the bar should touch the top of your
chest and you should go all the way down, into the darkness. Then pull
yourself all the way up, reaching to save your life. If you do it the other
way, make sure the bar touches the top of your traps or at least the bottom
of your neck. Never swing or jerk your legs, that will just take the
emphasis of your lats. However if you don't have a spotter, you might have
to resort to cheating to complete the last few reps to squeeze out just a
little bit more intensity (don't make a habit of it though). Pull ups are
best done first in your regular back routine. They are a good warm up and
finish up exercise. You can do these with weight after a sufficient warm
up, but I don't recommend you add any weight until you can do at least 12
pull ups. Use a slow to moderate speed when doing these.
*You can also use monkey grip to involve
your lats (thumbs on top of the bar, not under). [TOP]
|
|
|
Lat Pull
Down.
If pull ups aren't the best exercise for lats then
this is. Most gyms are equipped with a lat pull down machine that will
allow you to work with weight heavier than your own. It's a lot like pull
ups, the only difference being you pull the weight to yourself as opposed to
being pulled. The best way to do this exercise is using the same grip as
pull ups. However you can also do pull downs with a close underhand grip,
that will include your rhomboids more, but you will no longer grow your lats
outward, they will just get thicker. I suggest doing 3 sets of close grip
after doing 4 or 5 of wide grip. This is one of the very few exercises that
I do on a machine, free weights are always superior. [TOP]
|
|
|
Seated Cable Rows.
Works your lats in much the same way as close
underhand grip lat pull down. To get as much of your lats involved as
possible, pull the weight toward you stomach or even your crotch (basically
just keep it low). In this exercise its easy to let your arms and shoulders
do the work, but don't. Concentrate on your back, and make sure not to
swing back and forth, that will work your lower back. Stay upright, you may
tilt back slightly. [TOP]
|
|
|
Bent Over Barbell Rows.
Works not only your lats, but almost your
entire back. Should be done with legs bent, about ¼ squat, back straight,
almost arched and leaning forward a lot, almost parallel to the ground. If
you pull the bar into the middle of your stomach or lower you will develop
the lower part of your lats. If you pull the bar into the upper part
of your stomach or close to your chest, you will train the upper part
of your lats. That's the way I do them (upper), I feel it adds much needed
width to my back. You must go all the way down and feel the stretch. At
the top you should touch your body with the bar. This is a basic compound
movement and its one of the basics for building a strong muscular back.
[TOP]
|
|
|
Bent Over Dumbbell Rows.
Most of the time, when an exercise can be done with either a barbell or a
dumbbell it is listed here under one exercise and the differences are
explained in the paragraph. This exercise is so different from bent over
barbell rows that it has to be discussed separately. It isolates the lat
very nicely from the rest of the muscles in your back. Your best bet is to
do this exercise with one knee and one arm on the bench. The other leg is
supporting your body against the ground and the same side arm is holding the
dumbbell. Without swinging, at any pace, bring the dumbbell up and pull it
in close to your body at shoulder/chest or chest/stomach level, slowly lower
and repeat. Make sure lats are doing the work, not shoulders and arms.
This exercise should not be done in the same work out as Barbell Rows. The
two are interchangeable and should be switched from work out to work out. [TOP]
|
|
|
Iso-Lateral Low Row.
Another machine exercise that works your lats. It isolates them pretty
well. Use any grip and just row your ass off. [TOP]
|
|
|
Pull Over.
Last but not least we have this exercise. Most use it for chest and
triceps, but here is how to isolate your lats with it. Lie on a bench but
perpendicular to it. Only the upper part of your back and your shoulders
should touch it. Legs on the floor with a dumbbell standing upright on the
opposing side. For the first rep, your spotter could help you get the
dumbbell up, or he could just hand it to you. Arching your back slightly,
lower the weight as far as it will go, trying to reach the floor. With arms
as straight as possible (almost at lockout). Bring the weight up above your
head. Don't go much further in that direction, this will lower intensity
since no muscle work is done if you move the weight back and forth above
your chest. You should concentrate on your lats throughout the entire set.
A bonus of this exercise is that it also works the hard to develop Serratus
muscle (a muscle on the sides of your ribcage, a part of the midsection).
Also your ribcage volume increases. This is a very important exercise, but
much neglected. When was the last time you saw someone do it in the gym? [TOP] |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
