You may not give your back as much attention as your arms and chest, but a strong, muscular back is key for injury prevention and aiding your other lifts in the gym. Not to mention it helps develop that tapered V-shape many of us desire.
You don’t need a long list of complicated exercises either. In a recent YouTube video, renowned Strength Coach and Physical Therapist, Jeff Cavaliere, says you only need two – and no, it’s not the barbell bent-over row or pull-up.
Even better, all you’ll need is a couple of sets of dumbbells for these exercises – a heavy set and set that’s 20% lighter. “The truth is, when you understand how the lats work, you don’t need 10 moves, just two, done right,” says Cavaliere.
3-point dumbbell row
The 3-point row is a variation of the single-arm row but, rather than have your leg and hand supported on a weight bench, you place just one hand on the bench while your feet take a wide, stable stance. “The benefit of this position is now not only do we have our weight evenly distributed between our feet, but I can also position the dumbbell between my feet, so when I pull, I still keep the load pretty symmetrical.” The unilateral nature of the exercise also means you’ll build balanced muscular strength – big tick.
Cavaliere's top tip: Think about driving your elbow back and keeping it as close to the body as you can to the body, rather than simply lifting the arm, this will engage the lats more.
Dumbbell pull-over
Cavaliere says this is one of the most misunderstood and avoided exercises. “A lot of us avoid this exercise because we feel discomfort in the shoulder and that’s because of how we’re holding the dumbbell.”
His two big tips for performing this exercise correctly (and safely) are, firstly, to allow your elbows to flare out to the side when you extend the dumbbell overhead. “What that does is open up the shoulders, put them into external rotation, and makes the exercise a hell of a lot more comfortable.” Secondly, he recommends using a lighter pair of dumbbells. “It’s not about using heavy weight, but taking advantage of the stretch this exercise gives you in that bottom position.”
How to add these into your workout
You'll want to use your heavy set of dumbbells for the 3-point dumbbell rows, and then your lighter dumbbells for the pullovers. "The combination of the high tension stimulus from moving heavy weight on the one arm dumbbell row added with the stretch focused hypertrophy from the pullover makes this a powerful 1-2 punch that should be included in every dumbbell back workout that you are going to do," says Cavaliere.
What's also great about these two exercises is that they utilise the same bits of equipment, so you can stay in one place and knock them out pretty sharpish. For those short on time, we'd recommend performing them as a superset – so perform your heavy rows for anywhere between 6 to 8 reps, per side, then move straight into your light pullovers, aiming for 10-12 reps. Three rounds of this and you'll be well on your way to a bigger back.
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