The barbell row has produced many strong backs. And yet it’s an exercise that’s very rarely done correctly in the gym, mostly due to ego. One of the most frequent problems that people experience with barbell rows is that the lower back gives up quickly. During barbell rows, your spine must be in a perfect […]
The battle between pull-ups and chin-ups has been going on for a long time. There are famous defenders of both camps. For example, the author of Starting Strength Mark Rippetoe has been known for his chin-up affection while other gurus such as Pavel Tsatsouline prefer pull-ups. Which one is easier on the joints? People who […]
The Yates barbell row is an ego exercise that allows you to lift a lot of weight because the range of motion (ROM) is reduced. In a sense, the movement is an equivalent of the partial bench press. Since the goal of exercising is not to lift the most weight over the shortest ROM, this exercise […]
The deadlift involves the largest muscles in your body – back, hamstrings and glutes. Consequently, you are lifting a lot of weight, which puts stress on the elbows since your arms connect you to the barbell. The combination of heavy weight and an improper technique could result in a bicep tear. The main reasons for […]
The deadlift is a complete back exercise. It works every muscle in your back from the low spinal erectors all the way to the traps and neck. Nobody can hide from the deadlift. Big or small, all muscles are caught, cooked and owned. When people hear the statement above, they often reply by saying “But […]
The trap bar deadlift and the regular Olympic bar version may look identical to the untrained eye, but they’re not. The trap bar deadlift combines a quarter squat and a deadlift. When you are in the ‘trap’, you are still pulling the weight, but your back is more upright, and as a consequence, your quads […]
The deadlift is a brutal exercise that can make a tough guy scream like a baby away from the tit. As a bonus, you often get bleeding shins. Why? The friction between the skin of the shins and the bar during the ascend causes wounds. Is this any good? Believe it or not, the fact […]
One of the main reasons why bodybuilders experience persistent and often chronic wrist and elbow pain during pull-ups is an improper alignment of the joints. When your elbow, wrist, and shoulders are not in an optimal position to take the load during the exercise, the connective tissues are irritated. One of the ways to fix that would […]
The pull-up is a fundamental pulling exercise that strengthens the back region with a higher emphasis on the latissimus dorsi muscle. The movement is most commonly performed on a horizontal pull-up bar or gymnastic rings. Horizontal bars vs. Rings Pull-ups on a bar are the most popular version of the exercise. The advantages of the horizontal […]
The term “Christmas tree lower back” is a bodybuilding slang describing lean and detailed spinal erectors around the lumbar area. When the fat around the lower back region is reduced to a minimum, the area resembles a Christmas tree. The term emerged in the 70s after Sammir Bannout brought the idea of back conditioning to […]
Big arms may be cool, but big lats are what separates the little boys from the men. Developing your latissimus dorsi will have a more profound effect on how you look than adding an inch to your arms. Here’s a list of the most effective lat exercises for natural bodybuilders. 1.Pull-ups (all variations) The pull-up […]