Getting upper back mass

machine528

machine528

Member
This has bothered me for years. My chest, my bi's my Tris, my legs and my abs are all developed. The one thing i have wanted is back thickness. What types of exersises will aid in developing a thick back.

MY current back workout.

Pull ups
2x10
Weighted pull ups
3x6-8 with a 35 pd plate

Barbell rows
4x10,8,6,4

front db shrugs
4x8

Rear bb shrug
4x10

weighted Hyper extensions or deadlifts
4x12,10,8,6
 
machine528 said:
This has bothered me for years. My chest, my bi's my Tris, my legs and my abs are all developed. The one thing i have wanted is back thickness. What types of exersises will aid in developing a thick back.

MY current back workout.

Pull ups
2x10
Weighted pull ups
3x6-8 with a 35 pd plate

Barbell rows
4x10,8,6,4

front db shrugs
4x8

Rear bb shrug
4x10

weighted Hyper extensions or deadlifts
4x12,10,8,6
Click to expand...


People mix up the meaning up pull-ups and chin-ups. To me, pull-ups are with your palms facing you. Chin-ups are with your palms pointing away from you.

So when you say pull-ups, which do you mean?
 
you have it backwards. Pullups palms are facing away. chinup palms are towards you. both widen lats. for upper back i would do deadlifts and pullovers.
 
Snatches- They work wonders for adding thickness
Deadlifts- Ofcourse
T-Bar Rows- Always good
Incline Shrugs- Works an odd part of your upper back.
 
Upper back thickness, definitely dead lifts.

Pull ups/chin ups, the primary difference in palms facing toward or away from you is grip strength. Palms facing you relies on heavy recruitment of the biceps and your flexors in their strongest position and palms away relies primarily on your forearms. As far as which back muscles they hit, not different enough to be able to build a different looking physique whether palms facing toward or away. Bottom line, the lats are performing a vertical resistance. The plan of motion for the muscle is up & down, how your hands are turned effects primarily grip strength (how easy or hard it is to hang on). More often then not, the average person can do more pull ups with palms facing them, it's because you're involving more biceps, not because your incorporating a different part of your back as oppose to palms away (which again, is a heavier reliance on forearms then bi's, which is why most people can't do as many pull ups with palms facing away). I said "most" so if your an exception, then you have great forearm flexor(s) strength, more power to you.

Side note: Your strongest grip position on the pull up is palms facing each other (like doing pull ups on parallel bars). This recruits the brachioradialus, which is generally much stronger then your flexors or extensors, and this is also why hammer curls are generally stronger then supinated bicep curls.
 
joeymutz said:
incline shrugs? hmmm never heard of them. how do u do them?
Click to expand...

Get an incline bench, drop your body onto the bench so your chest is pressed against it and start to shrug. It makes you pull with the spino portion of your traps rather then the medial or frontal, meaning you naturally pull more back and up, rather then just up. Deads tax this portion of your back pretty heavily. Jay Cutler does double Db lat rows on the incline bench to get more upper back depth
 
Everyone here sounds right. One Arm DB Rows on a bench is what I think made my back thick. It allows you a longer ROM, at least for me and I can really feel my back working.

I've always had a problem with BB rows though because its hard for me to feel my back working and I also have a habit of jerking my body slightly when I go heavy.

I can do more weight with DB Rows for some reason too. I can do around 100-110 DBs for reps but only like 185 on the bar and thats jerking it. I also have a bad left foot making it hard for me to balance though.
 
You could do a Fiber Damage/ Fiber Saturation protocol for a few weeks.

*Tempo is negative/pause/positive X means "explosive tempo"

Fiber Damage (2 exercises focused on slow eccentric & 1 exercise focused on a longer contracted pause) All exercises to failure.

Exercise #1 2 sets of 6-8 reps ** 4/1/X
Exercise #2 2 sets of 6-8 reps ** 8/1/X
Exercise #3 2 sets of 6-8 reps ** 1/4/1

** A few rest pauses could be added

Fiber Saturation (1 exercise designed to pump blood and send nutrients into the muscle - i.e. a pump set)

Exercise #4 1 set of 30+ reps 1/0/1

Protein shake prior to workout.
Sip BCCAs (plus carbs if on a bulk) throughout the workout. (Cit. Malate works well for energy)
Post workout nutrition.

Result = BOOM!
 
Screw the barbell rows, at least for me the only thing they got me was hurt. For upper back mass, I would suggest variations of the t bar row, and one arm dumbell rows. Of coarse as everyone said, heavy deads for overall strength and mass. To keep the upperback tight, pullovers and straight arm pushdowns (or whatever the hell they're called, if someone could enlighten me I'll rep you. I work out with a guy who's turning pro and we call it that push down thingy as we motion with our arms).
 
LilPsychotic said:
Screw the barbell rows, at least for me the only thing they got me was hurt. For upper back mass, I would suggest variations of the t bar row, and one arm dumbell rows. Of coarse as everyone said, heavy deads for overall strength and mass. To keep the upperback tight, pullovers and straight arm pushdowns (or whatever the hell they're called, if someone could enlighten me I'll rep you. I work out with a guy who's turning pro and we call it that push down thingy as we motion with our arms).
Click to expand...

I really wanted to get into doing pull overs, but they don't seem to do it for me. I do feel a flare in my lats, but the concentration seems to be shared and dispersed into my chest too much. That narrow grip against the dumbbell creates too much of a contraction in my chest when I pull over. I do a wide grip barbell version on the decline bench and it seems to open up the lats a lot more "FOR ME" with VERY minimal chest contraction if any, but that's just me.

As far as the down thingy, "standing, straight arm cable pull downs." If you do them bent over you create a greater range of motion.
 
I love my back and yes it is def thick. Upper then tapers nicely, nowthat im done self indulging...haha:thumbsup:

Rack pulls= Awesome.
Face pulls with the rope=i just added them a few months ago and see nothing but progress and feel it for sure.

DB Rows on the incline are great also, as stated above.
Seated heavy rows. If you can find your weight of control but heavy for about 3-4 sets of 6 reps you'll be gold.
Hyper extensions for your lower back will help you tighten the lower up thus make your upper look thicker or wider.

ITs BBing its not about actuall size(but yes 90% of the time is) if you can creat an illusion itll help.

Good luck.
PS- a bak day ofr me looks like
Seated rows or deads.
DB rows or Bent BB rows.
Shrugs or face pulls
Pulldowns. Palms face in elbows within 2-3 inches of side when i pull down. Sometimes i go wide grip
Hyper extensions or Good AMs, if im feeling insane/dumb/frisky ill do both, just BECAREFUL how much back you do and always do lower last as you dont want to weaken the weakest part of your back then do deads...uggg.
 
VolcomX311 said:
I really wanted to get into doing pull overs, but they don't seem to do it for me. I do feel a flare in my lats, but the concentration seems to be shared and dispersed into my chest too much. That narrow grip against the dumbbell creates too much of a contraction in my chest when I pull over. I do a wide grip barbell version on the decline bench and it seems to open up the lats a lot more "FOR ME" with VERY minimal chest contraction if any, but that's just me.

As far as the down thingy, "standing, straight arm cable pull downs." If you do them bent over you create a greater range of motion.
Click to expand...

Those too! I forgot i do those sometimes but they hurt soooo gooooood. Really hits the lower width of the lat for me. I say a guy doing them, wondered what exactly what they hit, i found out real fast. These are also great for width, i wouldnt say thicknes though.
 
VolcomX311 said:
I really wanted to get into doing pull overs, but they don't seem to do it for me. I do feel a flare in my lats, but the concentration seems to be shared and dispersed into my chest too much. That narrow grip against the dumbbell creates too much of a contraction in my chest when I pull over. I do a wide grip barbell version on the decline bench and it seems to open up the lats a lot more "FOR ME" with VERY minimal chest contraction if any, but that's just me.

As far as the down thingy, "standing, straight arm cable pull downs." If you do them bent over you create a greater range of motion.
Click to expand...

When you do pull overs for back, you need to lay flat on the bench (as opposed to perpendicular to it, thats for chest pull overs), keep your arms straight with a slight bend at the elbows to ensure your not using your tris. You really have to stretch down, untill you feel it in your outer lats. Slowly pull up the dumbell while keeping your arms stiff until its directly over your eyeballs (you must not go any futher to avoid using your chest), repeat. Pull overs keep the lats tight, stabilizers strong, and should not be overlooked. Reps for setting me staight on the straight arm cable pull downs.
 
i was asking the same question for a while. Upper back and lower trap region the answer is:

Bentover barbell rows with limited range of motion. Almost as if your bending over and trying to shrug the weight. Also underhand grip and squeeze at the top.

Go to the cables and cross your arms and start them in the front position and then extend them back to your sides for your rear delts and uppder back lower traps.
 
Best thing I did to put mass on my back, including a ton on my overall body was HST, pull ups, deadlifts and seated GM...
 
dead lifts, pullups, T-Bar Rows, lat pulldowns and some rows (cable and machine) will help add thickness and mass to your back...

when you get the chance take a look at Ben White (2007 NPC USA- Super-Heavyweight and Overall) and his back!!!
 
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