Many athletes think that in order to develop back muscles, it is enough to pull hard on pulling machines or pulleys. But just as with bench press movements where it is not enough to "push", the same is true for building up back muscle mass. So pulling hard without proper technique is not the most effective way to build a large, massive back.
The right technique to build up your back muscles
To build up your back with the horizontal pull exercise, it is necessary to respect the following instructions:
- Maintain your curves
- Tilt your chest slightly forward
- Loosen your shoulders at the beginning of the movement
- Retract and lower shoulders at the end of the movement
- Limit the bending of the arm
- Stop the pull when the back is fully contracted
Practical tip for the pull-up exercise
The trick to this exercise is to visualize the movement in 2 continuous phases. The first phase is done by pulling with the shoulders (backwards and downwards), while the second finishes the movement with the arms.
The technique to be corrected
In case the athlete is positioned as below, the technique has to be corrected:
- The upper back is rounded
- Shoulders are forward
- Shoulders not moving
- Bust is tilted back
- Arms flexed to maximum Grip touches stomach or pectoral muscles
