J.C. Leach
Today I wanted to give a little insight on something that I believe is overlooked in the gym. The back. Too often people focus on attaining the “beach body” that they forget about the overall balance, in a workout regiment, that is needed to achieve the physique everyone is looking for.
I mentioned balance. It is important that you get an even workout for each body part. A good rule of thumb to know for the back, is to do counteractive lifts. By this I mean if you do flat bench one day, before you do flat bench again you should do seated rows. It is the same idea just reversed. Chest exercises are all in the pushing or pressing motion, while back is the opposite pulling or rowing motion. Doing body weight lifts are still my favorite things to do. Pull-ups are probably the best single, overall body workout. They include so many different muscles that doing only a few can make a huge difference in whatever you are trying to accomplish. So try starting off with them and ending with a few more.
Here are a few lifts that I prefer:
Pull-ups
Seated rows
Reverse flys
Body rows
Lat pull downs
Shrugs
Upright rows
Power cleans (for the experienced lifter)
Doing these or a few of these in a day will give you a much stronger back.
Now something that is a little more important and even less known is the core. There is a huge misconception of what the core and what core strength really is. I would say that about 75% of physically active people don’t fully understand it. When you think of the core what do you think of? Abs right? Well that is ONLY half of it. The lower back is just as important as the abdominal muscles, and just like your upper back, it needs to be as strong as your abs.
Here are a few core workouts that involve the lower back:
Front stabilizers or planks
Side stabilizers or planks
Reverse hypers
Incorporating these into an everyday ab routine would help tremendously with things like lower back pain. Remember to always stretch first and don’t leave out the cardio. Also, don’t forget the balance of the workout. It will benefit your physique and overall health.
Today I wanted to give a little insight on something that I believe is overlooked in the gym. The back. Too often people focus on attaining the “beach body” that they forget about the overall balance, in a workout regiment, that is needed to achieve the physique everyone is looking for.
I mentioned balance. It is important that you get an even workout for each body part. A good rule of thumb to know for the back, is to do counteractive lifts. By this I mean if you do flat bench one day, before you do flat bench again you should do seated rows. It is the same idea just reversed. Chest exercises are all in the pushing or pressing motion, while back is the opposite pulling or rowing motion. Doing body weight lifts are still my favorite things to do. Pull-ups are probably the best single, overall body workout. They include so many different muscles that doing only a few can make a huge difference in whatever you are trying to accomplish. So try starting off with them and ending with a few more.
Here are a few lifts that I prefer:
Pull-ups
Seated rows
Reverse flys
Body rows
Lat pull downs
Shrugs
Upright rows
Power cleans (for the experienced lifter)
Doing these or a few of these in a day will give you a much stronger back.
Now something that is a little more important and even less known is the core. There is a huge misconception of what the core and what core strength really is. I would say that about 75% of physically active people don’t fully understand it. When you think of the core what do you think of? Abs right? Well that is ONLY half of it. The lower back is just as important as the abdominal muscles, and just like your upper back, it needs to be as strong as your abs.
Here are a few core workouts that involve the lower back:
Front stabilizers or planks
Side stabilizers or planks
Reverse hypers
Incorporating these into an everyday ab routine would help tremendously with things like lower back pain. Remember to always stretch first and don’t leave out the cardio. Also, don’t forget the balance of the workout. It will benefit your physique and overall health.
Well said. A couple of months ago I was getting a massage and the therapist who worked with UofU football, and the Hockey team from the 90's. Having worked on many athletes, the most important thing she said to do was maintain balance of the back and shoulder to chest and abs. She said that a person will eliminate pinched nerves, herniated discs, and a number of other painful injuries by balancing things out.
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