Having a strong back and a proud look, many men and women dream of it. To complement your regular workouts, you need to choose specific exercises that will give you the results you want.
The basic tip is to opt for polymuscular exercises, i. e. those that use as many muscles as possible. You should also add a proper diet to your sessions. Once the muscle has been strengthened and worked, you can move on to the actual isolation and get better results.
The deadlift
Extremely popular with bodybuilders, the deadlift involves a total of four muscle groups:
- the large back muscles,
- lumbar muscles,
- trapezius muscles,
- the muscles of the lower limbs (the quadriceps, the hamstrings and the glutes).
Ideally, a back session should be combined with a leg session.
The deadlift is considered to be an amplitude exercise. However, it should be noted that the areas of stress and tension vary from one morphology to another. If the pain is felt in the gluteal and ischial areas, it is better to opt for another variant of the deadlift, one with a lower amplitude.
This is the case with the Romanian deadlift, where the bar is raised 10 to 15 cm. During this exercise, the glutes and ischios feel less tension. However, the lumbar vertebrae are put under more strain.
Pull-ups
Pull-ups are one of those bodybuilding exercises that can be performed anywhere with a single barbell. They come in many variations to suit the needs of everyone.
Upright pull-ups
The vertical pull-up is especially suitable for beginners. With a vertical pull-up machine, you can adjust the load to your level and perform a correct and efficient movement.
The horizontal pull
The horizontal pull-up helps to work the back. It complements the pull-ups as well as the chin-up, making it an essential exercise for those who want to build up their back muscles.
One of the particularities of the horizontal pull-up lies in the fact that it requests several muscles simultaneously. This is the case for the large back muscles, the large and small round muscles, the rhomboids and the lower trapezius muscles.
Another point: you can carry out this exercise on different bars: bar in neutral grip, straight bar, rope, handles. . . On the other hand, you will also have to think of different grips: tight, wide, pronation, supination. . . The goal: to stimulate as many muscles as possible.
How and when to take L-Carnitine?
L-Carnitine plays a role in muscle recovery and therefore indirectly has an essential role in sports performance. It is recommended to consume a dose of 1000 to 3000 mg with each intake of L-Carnitine. It can be taken during meals, before and after training.
When combined with carbohydrates, its ergogenic (doping) powers are increased tenfold. You can therefore swallow your L-Carnitine supplement with a small amount of fast-acting carbohydrates to increase the results of its action on your body. Maltodextrin or 60 g dextrose is more than enough. Note that L-Carnitine can also be combined with Whey Protein or BCAA's for more effects.
Rotary chest press
The bent-over chest rowing is a mass-builder. It mainly involves the lower trapezius, the rhomboids and the lower back muscles.
To perform this exercise successfully, your hands should be pronated or supinated. You can also use dumbbells on one side.
Cable pullover
The high pulley pullover is also known as the "finisher". This name is due to the fact that it usually ends a training session. More concretely, it is an isolation exercise whose purpose is to increase tension and sensation.
The high pulley pullover differs from other back exercises in that it does not involve the arms or biceps. The long part of the triceps is used a little. On the other hand, all the fibres of your large back will be heavily used. The same applies to the outer fibres.
A word of warning: there is no need for heavy pulling as this can damage your shoulders.
