No matter what your motivation for wanting to engage in muscle building, you will reap considerable benefits from it. Doing it the right way is very important to avoiding injuries and keeping your routine going. Use the advice in the following article to find a great routine for you that will have you looking and feeling great.
Back Workouts for Width, Density & Strength
What's up, guys? Jeff here and I just finished a new back workout and figured, you know, this could be helpful if I could somehow retrace my steps, put it on video here for you guys so that you can learn and see from just one example of an ATHLEANX type training video and workout, how you can benefit much more than you might be benefiting now.
It all starts with the mindset when you go into your workout. First of all, I broke this workout down into zones. I tried to be very focused on an upper back zone and a mid to lower back zone. And when I say low back, I think that might be the most important zone that we're talking about because an underdeveloped low back, or a low back that doesn't get anyattention to in your major back workout, is going to undermine your ability to perform at your best through all of your other back exercises.
It's going to sap away all of your potential strength that you could be building on your big back exercises. So, I found a way to incorporate it into the workout itself so there's never an excuse of, 'Oh I don't have enough time to incorporate it, or I just didn't have enough time if I had to choose one or the other, I'm going for the big, wide lats and upper back, and skipping the low back.'
First of all, we target the mid back. And with the mid back, the first exercise up is a classic Lat Pull Down.
Again, here, we're working on sort of the width or the V Taper of the lats. And we do that by performing 3-4 sets, heavy, as heavy as I can control. Remember, it's not about momentum but controlling the reps. We move on from there to one of my favorite exercises, the Barbell Dead Row. This is just a classic power exercise starting from the ground up. It's a combination of a Row, it's a combination of a Deadlift.
The Barbell Dead Row is an awesome way to build back strength, but look at the key focus here. Look at the positioning of the low back. If the low back is not strong enough, can you see what would happen to your ability to actually lift heavy weights on the exercise itself? You're going to be limited. So, we want to make sure that we're working our low back and we're going to do that here in this indirect way, but watch more importantly where we go from here.
Once I'm done with those reps and sets, I go to the next exercise which is over at a Hyperextension machine. Here I'm demonstrating on a Glut Hand Raise, and we do a Static Hold, and we do a Y Raise.
Get the entire workout in the video above
Many trainers will advise you to change your workout routine every few months. You should however keep in mind that this is not necessary. If the routine that you are using is providing excellent results, then you should stick with it! Change your routine only if it is not giving you the results that you seek, or if you feel that you have gained most of the benefits from it.
Push all your exercises to near muscle failure. Each repetition needs to be pushed to a point where your muscle can not do one more set because of fatigue. It does not matte if you start light and increase to maximum weight, you need to make sure not matter what weight you are using you push to fatigue.
Try varying the order that you do exercises. People who workout typically do exercises out of habit. However, it is important that you switch the exercises around in order to promote additional muscle growth. Try reversing the order of your typical routine. This lets you do heavier weights on the exercises that you typically do last, which can increase the growth of those particular muscles.
Your diet is especially important on your lifting days. Approximately 60 minutes prior to exercising, consume calories. Don't overeat on workout days, but eat more than days that you aren't planning on weight training.
Knowing the number of sets that work for your body is vital for building muscle mass. Many experts recommend you do around twelve to sixteen sets for your large muscle groups, such as your back, chest, and legs, and about nine to twelve sets for your smaller muscle groups, such as your calves, shoulders, and arms. Although this might work for some people, this can cause others to overtrain or undertrain. This is why you must understand the way your body responds to workouts.
There are tricks to looking like you are bigger. You can achieve this by focusing your training efforts on your chest, shoulders and upper back. This creates the illusion of a smaller waist and a larger frame overall.
Eat plenty of protein when you are on a muscle-building regimen. Be sure to eat whole proteins with every meal. A good rule to follow is to ingest one gram of protein for each pound of body weight. Good sources of low-fat protein include fish, low-fat milk and lean red meats.
Muscle building and conditioning are great ways to lose weight, increase strength and get your body in top-notch shape. Hopefully the advice of this article has increased your knowledge and boosted your motivation. Implement these tips into your workouts and you will be stronger, healthier and looking amazingly fit in no time at all!