How to Cure Big Arms/Small Back Syndrome

[drtbear1967]

<!-- react-text: 40 -->How to Cure Big Arms/Small Back Syndrome<!-- /react-text -->

<!-- react-text: 43 -->Do your arms take over during back training? Then you need to try this exercise.<!-- /react-text -->
<!-- react-text: 46 --><!-- /react-text -->
<!-- react-text: 48 -->When doing an exercise aimed at building the back, the activation of the biceps should be minimized. But this isn't easy to do when you have overpowering arms that "take over" during back work. Here's an exercise to help fix that. It can be used both to bring a lagging back up to par and to "teach" your body to properly activate the muscles of the back during heavy pulling movements.<!-- /react-text -->

<!-- react-text: 51 -->High Pulley Cross-Rowing: This is a good exercise for the whole upper back musculature with a focus on the rhomboids, rear deltoids, and lower fibers of the traps. The first key point is to "open up" (stretch) your back in the starting position and to squeeze your shoulder blades together at the fully contracted position. The second key is to keep the elbow bend to a minimum during the pull to minimize biceps involvement. This angle should be anywhere between 100 and 135 degrees, depending on your limb length.<!-- /react-text -->

<!-- react-text: 54 -->Low Pulley Cross-Rowing: This variation is performed the same way as the preceding exercise; the only difference is that we'll use a low-pulley position instead of a high-pulley one. This will put more emphasis on the rhomboids and rear delts, as well as the upper and middle fibers of the traps.<!-- /react-text -->

 

[Big Beef]

I see people using poor form on back excerises every day I'm at the gym. Just pulling it any way they can. Good post

 

[BigZ]

What about small arm/small back syndrome? Just kidding..

I think in any case, you have to try to feel the muscle you're trying to activate. I had a lot of difficulty getting certain muscles to grow because I wasn't doing that. I still do in some regards to my biceps which tend to not activate as much because the brachialis takes over.

 

[Big Beef]

What about small arm/small back syndrome? Just kidding..

I think in any case, you have to try to feel the muscle you're trying to activate. I had a lot of difficulty getting certain muscles to grow because I wasn't doing that. I still do in some regards to my biceps which tend to not activate as much because the brachialis takes over.

Agreed. My biceps need a boat load of work. I used to have a tendency to curl my wrist, putting the tension on my forearm instead of my bicep.

You can show a video or picture of how to do an exercise with good form, but it's hard to explain how to push, pull & squeeze only one muscle while not using the others. Maybe that's why it's so hard to pick up on

 

[drtbear1967]

I learned to not grip with my thumb, I keep it on top of the bar or handle so as to not engage the biceps and be forced to pull with my back. And squeeze like you trying to make orange juice in the morning.

 

[BigZ]

I recently tried that--damn, that really works! It's funny how small things like that changes it completely.

 

[Masher59]

I learned to not grip with my thumb, I keep it on top of the bar or handle so as to not engage the biceps and be forced to pull with my back. And squeeze like you trying to make orange juice in the morning.

Yup I use versa grips and only hook my fingers over the rubber leaving the thumb out. Another tip is to train the shit out of your bis before you start back, now they are smoked and less likely to become overly involved in the back movement. And that damn squeeze, you just have to imagine a walnut back there taped to your spine and you are trying to break it open every rep. One other thing in that full stretch you should feel the lowest part of the lats down in the lower back engage first then as the rep proceeds you feel a wave come up the back to the top then the big squeeze.

 

[Big Beef]

I think I'll try working bi's before back next time & I see if I like it

 

[drtbear1967]

I never get a huge back pump, but the next three days I am so sore that I know I did it some good. Arms never bother me afterward so I know they didn't do the work.