Tuesday, January 13, 2009

The Back Muscles

By Westy

The back has some of the largest muscles in the body. The back muscles support your posture and protect your spine. Some of the back muscles are part of the core muscle group that are so important for strength and conditioning. Back muscle building will help develop the V shaped body with sexy shoulders and a trim waist.

The muscles in the back overlap. The muscles in the lower part of your back are used to support you when you are standing up. The muscles in the upper part of your back are used to control the arms and shoulders. Your muscles in the back are easily overlooked in the bodybuilding routine, but they are a very important part of your overall good health.

The dead lift is great for back muscle building; it targets your lats, erector spinae, gluts and traps. The dead lift actually works 70% of all your muscles at the same time. In the dead lift exercise your lift the barbell off the ground and push it up. Form and technique are essential to learn before you begin using this exercise. There are also variations of the dead lift called the Romanian and the Stiff Legged Lift.

Another exercise that you can do is pull ups. These are a simple exercise and only require you to pull yourself up to chin level with an overhead bar. You can increase the workout by increasing the number of repetitions.

You can work your back muscles using the bar bell bent over row. To do this exercise, grasp the barbel and flex your torso forward. Make sure that your arms are extended fully and then pull the bar up to your chest and then back to the original position. This will also require you to have good form and technique to do it properly.

A sitting cable row will also help your back muscles and is done on a machine. Sit on the bench with your legs out in front of you. Grab the hand grips and pull toward you and then back. Your lower back and lats will benefit from this.

These back muscle exercises should get you started working out your back. It is very important that you learn the correct technique and form before you attempt these exercises.

The back is a very important part of your overall strength. Your strong back will help you through all parts of your workout. It is also important that you give your muscles a chance to rest in between workouts. - 15995

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