Tag: back workouts
Nick Walker Shares Pro Tips for Building a Huge Back
Bodybuilder Nick Walker is switching gears in his training journey as 2023 Olympia is drawing closer. Walker recently went through a pull-day workout as a part of his preparation for the show and posted the video of this session on his YouTube channel.
Walker is an American professional bodybuilder and a top competitor in the IFBB Pro League’s Men’s Open division. He rose to prominence with a series of impressive performances in this first year of turning Pro. After making the debut with a fourth place finish at the 2020 Chicago Pro, Nick Walker snatched a win at the 2021 New York Pro, earning the maiden Olympia invitation in the process. He then became the 2021 Arnold Classic winner and rose to the contender’s status even before making the Olympia debut.
The fifth place finish at the 2021 Olympia was a great achievement given that ‘The Mutant’ was relatively new in the professional circuit. However, he decided to step away from the competition to improve his physique and take on the top crop.
Walker returned to competition at the 2022 Olympia and dominated the stage from prejudging to the finals. His effort earned him a podium finish as Walker stood third at the show. Walker’s most recent appearance came at the 2023 Arnold Classic in March. Although he was favored to become the two-time Arnold Classic champion, the New Jersey native lost to Samson Dauda by a razor thin margin.
Nick Walker will now attempt to dethrone Mr. Olympia Hadi Choopan and achieve the ultimate goal of his bodybuilding career at the 2023 Olympia. 16 weeks out of the show, he annihilated a pull day workout in the gym to prepare his physique for this task. So let’s see what Nick Walker’s current pull-day workout looks like.
Nick Walker goes through a pull-day workout
Back Workout
Cable Straight Arm Pullovers
Walker started the pull-day workout with this exercise. But instead of pulling the weight in line with the upper body, he pulled it back as far as possible to get maximum stretch in the lats. The 28-year-old employed slow movement in the eccentric phase to focus on the muscles.
“On this movement, I’m able to get a full stretch. It’s giving me more of a stretch than an actual pulldown would. So I think it’s very beneficial when you’re trying to grow your lats, 100 percent.”
Walker pushed through three sets of straight arm pulldowns adhering to 15 to 20 rep range and took to the next exercise.
Chest-Supported T-Bar Rows
The 2021 Arnold Classic winner followed up the cable machine exercise with one of his favorite back movements – the chest-supported T-bar row. Specifically, Walker likes to perform this exercise on the Atlantis plate-loaded machine as it offers different grips for variation. To put more emphasis on the stretch, he employed a wide grip in this training session.
After using explosive movement during the concentric phase, but similar to the previous exercise, the 28-year-old performed the eccentric phase at a really slow pace. He is a huge proponent of slow eccentric movements and advises to adapt them for maximum gains.
“You’ve got to realize that training in this fashion, you don’t need to do seven to eight exercises per body part,” Walker added.
He performed eight to ten reps in all three sets of this exercise and proceeded to do the next one.
Assisted Pull-ups
Pull-ups are arguably the best bodyweight compound exercise to build the upper body pulling strength. However, it is not a suitable exercise for beginners as it needs sufficient upper body strength. This is where assisted pull-ups come in handy. But professional bodybuilders have to focus on hypertrophy.
To eliminate the jerkin motion or momentum and to build mind-muscle connection many elite bodybuilders opt for assisted pull-ups. Walker’s weight is hovering in the 290 lbs range right now. He felt that doing assisted pull-ups was probably in his best interest and performed three sets of ten to 15 reps to stimulate the pulling muscles.
Wide Grip Seated Cable Rows
After working on the lats for the first few moments, Nick Walker advanced to doing the seated rows to work the upper back muscles. In between sets, Walker explained the main challenge of developing the back muscles. He feels that the back is a tricky body part to grow simply because you can’t see it. Experience has taught the 28-year-old to use moderate weight while focusing on the contraction and eccentric phase for the best results.
“Ever since doing that over the years, what was once a weak body part has become one of my best body parts.”
Finding the best rep range is also crucial as it may vary for each muscle group depending upon individual body type. Walker applied this same wisdom to seated rows as well and performed two sets of this exercise for 15 reps each. This movement served as the finisher to back exercises as Nick Walker shifted his focus to the biceps next.
Biceps Workout
Nick Walker’s arms training routine has changed significantly over time. A few years ago, ‘The Mutant’ dedicated a separate arms day in his routine and performed a few biceps or triceps exercises on other days. However, his current split of push, pull, and leg day does not have a full Arm day.
Instead, Walker performs two to three biceps exercises (for two to three sets each) on a pull day and follows the same method for triceps training on a push day. The 28-year-old feels that his arms are pretty dominant already and overdoing arms exercises may not be ideal from the aesthetic point of view. On this pull day, Nick Walker incorporated two variations of machine curls after finishing up with back exercises.
Seated Machine Curls
Walker first performed seated machine Curls to stimulate the biceps. He reiterated that his arms respond best to high volume for inducing hypertrophy and shared the ideal rep range for him:
“I specifically like to stay in the 12 to 20 range. More so 15 to 20 but 12 I am okay with. But I feel for biceps and triceps, I feel I got the most growth was definitely in the 15 to 20 range.”
Walker is a big believer of slow reps and that’s how he performs the arms exercises as well. Needless to say, they have responded well to this type of training. Additionally, Walker employed the myo-reps training method for doing seated machine curls to eliminate the junk volume and produce maximal muscle growth. He performed two sets of machine curls for 15 to 2o reps and proceeded to the final exercise of the day.
Cable Curls
Cable Curls concluded the pull-day workout for Nick Walker. He performed a few sets of this exercise and addressed a crucial problem that a lot of people face.
Walker stated that quite a few people experience the plateau in their fitness journey and fail to make gains in spite of adapting the best training methods. He attributed this to wrong exercise selection and advised:
“You’re probably just doing wrong exercises too. Find the exercises that you best connect with already and then do those methods. I guarantee you, you will transform.”
After doing three sets of cable curls for 10 to 12 reps with a slow eccentric phase, ‘The Mutant’ called it a day in the gym.
Overall, the workout included:
Nick Walker gives health update as he makes changes to diet and training for 2023 Olympia
Nick Walker is already leaps and bounds ahead in 2023 compared to his previous off-season. He admits having fallen into the ‘more, more and more volume’ mindset in 2022. But he has made the necessary adjustments and said:
“Now I’m paying more attention to just making the sets count. I think it has shown in my physique thus far. I think I have made quite some improvements in a short amount of time.”
At the time of recording this video, Walker was 16 weeks out of the 2023 Olympia. He spoke about the changes in his diet as well and said:
“We’ve upped the cardio and dropped food in terms of fats. We did drop the carbs just a little bit but not crazy but we did drop all the fats pretty much out of my diet except for Beef meals and a little almond butter before the diet.”
Nick Walker stated that his weight has already started to drop down, which is a positive sign. He feels that he has made a lot of progress during this off-season and he is confident that 2023 is going to be his year. Although ‘The Mutant’ is closer to the Olympia title than he has ever been, he will have to push aside elite competitors like Derek Lunsford, Samson Dauda, and reigning Mr. Olympia Hadi Choopan to take it home.
You can watch the full workout video here, courtesy of Nick Walker’s personal YouTube channel:
Published: 29 July, 2023 | 9:22 AM EDT
Andrew Jacked Sculpts His Massive Back 4 Weeks Out of 2023 Texas Pro
Andrew Jacked went through an intense back training session four weeks out of the 2023 Texas Pro. The Nigerian has been making steady progress under coach Chris Psycho’ Lewis’s guidance and the results are visible in his vastly improved physique. Although he is favored to win his next show, Andrew is not underestimating his competition.
Chinedu Andrew Obiekea is best known in the bodybuilding community by his stage name Andrew Jacked. The Nigerian bodybuilder’s emergence on the international bodybuilding scene has been quick and dramatic, to say the least. After making a name for himself in the regional bodybuilding circuits, the 37-year-old transitioned to NPC in 2022. His astonishingly aesthetic physique and insane size quickly became a talk of the town. What’s more interesting is that Andrew Jacked is unusually tall for the Men’s Open division but still has the size, proportions, insane x-frame to be a successful competitor in the weight class.
Andrew earned the IFBB Pro card with a win at the 2022 Arnold Classic Amateur. He won the 2022 Texas Pro and the 2022 Arnold Classic UK in the months that followed. The Texas Pro win earned him the ticket to 2022 Olympia and Andrew Jacked finished eighth at the show. This was his first run-in with the absolute elite competition that the division had to offer. It gave him the necessary experience to make progress in future appearances.
Andrew’s most recent stage appearance came at the 2023 Arnold Classic in March. He surged past many dangerous opponents to finish third behind winner Samson Dauda and Nick Walker. He will next compete at the 2023 Texas Pro in an attempt to get the direct qualification to the 2023 Olympia.
Andrew Jacked goes through a back workout
The 2023 Texas Pro will take place on August 18-19. Andrew Jacked recently went through a back training session to prepare for the show. He laid out the objective and training strategies and said:
“The goal now is to beat the Arnold look in everything – both size, conditioning, and whatever. So that we can see how my body can handle things leading up to the (2023) Olympia.
Although he is a massive favorite heading into the 2023 Texas Pro, Andrew Jacked is not complacent and he is preparing for the competition with utmost sincerity.
“Hopefully I get a ticket. I wouldn’t be cocky to say, ‘Oh, I’m definitely winning the ticket now’. Because everyone competing (at) Texas Pro is busting their a** out. Everyone is trying to make a statement. So I’ll put myself in the same category trying to make a statement. So yeah, it will be a battle.”
Andrew is training intensely for Texas Pro but he is not going full throttle, risking the body to get exhausted before Olympia. The video of his recent back training session was posted on Andrew Jacked’s personal YouTube channel. So without further delay, let’s check out how he put in the work under coach Chris ‘Psycho’ Lewis’s watchful eye.
Lat Pulldown
Andrew Jacked started the training session with medium neutral grip lat pulldown to work the latissimus dorsi muscles. Coach Lewis allowed him to do stretching in between the sets to get the muscles and joints warmed up and lubricated, eliminating the potential for injuries. He admitted that it was an unusual practice. But according to him, it is one of the things that he needs to do.
“After a while I’m going to cut that stretching out because I believe that when you stretch, you’re actually letting the blood and nitrogen that we’re trying to put in (the muscles),” Lewis added.
‘Psycho’ argued that if you get a good pump within the first 12 to 15 minutes of the workout, it can really through the whole session. Therefore Andrew Jacked performed a drop set of lat pulldowns next.
“(Andrew) will be rocking back and forth using the momentum but it’s fine. I’m only trying to get a pump. I’m not sculpting it,” Lewis added.
After putting up with a triple drop set, The Nigerian bodybuilder advanced to rows.
Incline Barbell Rows
Andrew Jacked next performed this horizontal pulling movement but instead of performing regular sets, Chris Lewis guided him to do static holds. They used an old-school setup of an inclined bench and loaded the barbell with plates and metal chains. The Nigerian bodybuilder did 15-second static holds with incrementally heavier weights.
“So what we’re going to do is we’re going to bring the weight up and contract his back. We’re going to be holding it and then dropping the weight. I’m going to add more weight. I’m teaching his body or his back to contract at the top of the movement, instead of the full range of motion,” Lewis said.
The legendary coach argues that using chains for adding extra weight to the barbell is good for adding load at the top of the movement, which is the full contraction point. After the static holds, they switched over to doing slow reps for a few sets, controlling the weight throughout the range of motion.
T-Bar Rows
Andrew Jacked proceeded to T-bar rows next. The coach explained that he is not a fan of new-age machines and prefers sticking to a barbell. According to him, it is the ‘best piece of equipment on the face of the planet’. Therefore, the Nigerian bodybuilder performed the exercise using the old-school setup of a barbell instead of using a T-bar row machine. He executed some excellent sets of the exercise under Lewis’s watchful eye and advanced to the next exercise.
Twisting Cable High Rows
Andrew Jacked performed a few sets of twisting cable high rows. But for the last couple of sets, Lewis loaded the weight stack with chains for the ‘weight and mental aspect’ of it. After pushing through all the sets of this back exercise, Andrew Jacked wrapped up the training session.
Overall, the workout consisted of following exercises:
Andrew Jacked has handled the pressure of being a hot prospect really well and transformed into a serious contender within a short period of time. The improvements made so far between the 2022 Olympia, 2023 Arnold Classic and the upcoming Texas Pro are an indicator of a bright future. It will be interesting to see how he performs in his next show.
You can watch the full video here, courtesy of Andrew Jacked’s personal YouTube channel:
Published: 28 July, 2023 | 9:04 AM EDT
Chris Bumstead All Excited To Train In His Private Gym – “Dreams Do Come True”
Chris Bumstead is all set to take his game a notch up with his personalized gym that is nearing completion. In a recent back workout video posted on his YouTube channel, CBum gave a tour of this gym and spoke about the potential benefits of having one for yourself.
Bumstead is the foremost representative of Canadian bodybuilding. He has a global appeal among bodybuilding fans due to his insanely aesthetic physique. Since winning the Classic Physique Olympia title in 2019, CBum has honed his physique further and further to defend his top spot at 2020, 2021, and 2022 Olympia.
While most champions would attempt maximum title defenses in their capacity, CBum has a very clear plan of action. He intends to win only a couple of more Classic Physique Olympia titles and move on from competing. A few other trophies like the prestigious Arnold Classic Physique would have looked good on the champion’s shelf. However, collecting Olympia trophies is the only competitive goal for the 28-year-old.
CBum is currently in the middle of his off-season and making gains before the start of his 2023 Olympia prep. Although he will be a massive favorite heading into the show, CBum will not leave any stone unturned.
Apart from his bodybuilding schedule, Bumstead is working on his new gym. He showed the progress they have made so far before the workout and gave a tour of the gym in making. So without a second’s delay, let’s see how Bumstead is achieving back growth this off-season.
Chris Bumstead shows his personal gym
At the beginning of the video, Chris Bumstead talked about the progress of his personal gym which is being built at the moment. He gave a brief tour of the place and stated that a personal space would really help him focus on training and content creation.
“Everyone has the dream to have their own gym. I didn’t think I would get one because I didn’t think I would ever want to run a gym… Coz I knew a lot of hell went into it and you don’t make a lot of money for it.”
He further stated:
“But I am super grateful right now to be in the opportunity to be able to build it for myself and literally, just like, use it for content and prepping for Olympia. So I think this is going to be something that, really like, puts me on a straight focus drive this year at the Olympia.”
Bumstead can do without the company of a lot of people when he is training. Additionally, he feels a lot more comfortable making videos and talking into a camera when there aren’t many people around. So he expects the training as well as the YouTube content to be far better when his gym becomes operational in a few weeks’ time.
“Super pumped, excited… Dreams do come true. There’s a lot of things I’ve wanted in my life but gym is one of those things where you come her, shut off, put everything away and just kill yourself in the gym,” CBum concluded.
A place customized to meet every personal requirement will definitely add more quality to Bumstead’s training sessions. So the task of dethroning the champ might be a little more difficult for the opponents as Bumstead intends to prep for the 2023 Olympia in his new personal gym. After showing the gym around, Chris Bumstead proceeded to perform the off-season back workout at the local gym.
CBum goes through a back workout
Lat Pulldown
CBum’s workout started with this lat-focused vertical pulling movement. This compound exercise primarily works the latissimus dorsi muscles in the back. It helps build a wide back and imparts that much desired ‘tapering down into the waist’ look as a result.
Bumstead used extremely heavy weights in the first set and tried to control the negative/eccentric phase of the rep as much as he could. He reduced the weight for the second set and paused at the bottom of the first five reps so as to get a good squeeze.
Another benefit of this method was that it helped him make the second set equally difficult in spite of using lighter weights. The 28-year-old felt a good pump in the muscles after ripping both sets and moved on to the second exercise.
Incline Dumbbell Rows
Bumstead next took to this free-weight horizontal pulling exercise. Incline dumbbell rows work all the major pulling muscles in the upper body like latissimus dorsi, teres major, teres minor, trapezius, and biceps brachii. Performing rows on an incline bench uses gravity to maintain focus on back muscles.
Since the person is in an inclined position with chest pressed against the bench, it is not possible to rely on momentum or sway back and forth to pull the weights when the reps get difficult. As a result, only back muscles have to be utilized to lift weights without any assistance.
CBum cranked out a few good sets of incline dumbbell rows and took to another highly effective rowing movement next.
T-Bar Rows
In a world where you were forced to incorporate only one rowing exercise in your training routine, T-bar rows would be your best bet. This compound movement is an effective back builder that enables growth in terms of muscle and strength gain as well as density.
Chris Bumstead warmed up with a couple of sets first. He then got a few heavy sets of T-bar rows under the belt and moved on to the next exercise.
Seated Rows
The Classic Physique Olympia champion took to one more rowing exercise and performed seated rows. He did the exercise on a Prime plate-loaded rows machine to add more stimulus to the back muscles. Seated rows work almost all the muscles in the middle back region and also help with improving upper body posture.
Bumstead demolished some good sets of seated rows and took to a lat pulldown variation next.
Reverse Grip Lat Pulldown
Bumstead took the next stop at the Hammer Strength plate-loaded machine and performed reverse grip lat pulldown. The reverse grip targets more of the lower lats as the upper arms are closer to the body. Additionally, this variation also engages the biceps due to a reverse grip and enables pulling heavier weights in comparison to the traditional lat pulldowns.
CBum performed this exercise maintaining a good tempo and jumped into a cable machine exercise next.
Superset – Banded Cable Lat Pullovers and Barbell Curls
Bumstead finished the back workout with this superset. He mentioned that he is working on improving mobility these days and also explained the reason for performing reverse grip lat pulldown instead of regular grip for the previous exercise.
“Underhand grip pulldown machine because sometimes the pulldown bar breaks my wrist. I am working on mobility. So I am doing 10 sets of superset – biceps curls and lat pullovers. Just going back and forth 10 reps ish… until I die. So hopefully getting a hundred reps of each and then that’s it,” CBum stated.
After pushing through all the sets within this superset in rapid succession and minimal rest periods, Chris Bumstead called it a day in the gym.
Overall, the workout included:
Chris Bumstead is all set to start the competition prep for the 2023 Olympia soon. Training in his personal gym will definitely help him maintain focus and add more wrinkles to the game. If he stays healthy and continues to increase the training intensity, we will certainly see him wear the Classic Physique Olympia crown for the fifth time.
You can watch the full workout video here, courtesy of Chris Bumstead’s personal YouTube channel:
Published: 2 July, 2023 | 9:05 AM EDT
Michal Krizo Smashes A Punishing Back, Shoulders And Triceps Workout
Michal Krizo has turned down the training intensity just a little bit after emerging victorious at his most recent Pro show appearance. But he is still active and tackled a back, shoulder and triceps exercise in the gym.
It’s not an overstatement to say that Michal ‘Krizo’ Krizanek is the face of Slovakia’s bodybuilding community. The 33-year-old bodybuilder has established himself as a worthy competitor in the IFBB Pro League’s Men’s Open division. He now awaits his second opportunity to elevate into the top echelons or Olympia competitors.
Krizo made a name for himself in the IFBB Elite Pro League where he dominated with insane muscularity, sheer size and muscle definition. He eventually made the switch to NPC and kickstarted the Olympia campaign. After earning the IFBB Pro card with a dominant win at the 2022 Amateur Olympia Italy in October, he made a quick turnaround and won the 2022 EVLS Prague Pro. The show was an Olympia Qualifier and Krizo got his first big opportunity to compete on the grandest stage of bodybuilding.
However, competing against the best is easier said than done. In spite of huge expectations, Krizo only managed to secure a twelfth-place finish at the 2022 Olympia. But the relatively inexperienced Krizo gained valuable experience and started the 2023 competitive season with an impressive win at the 2023 Empro Classic Spain Pro that took place from June 16-18 in Alicante, Spain.
He is now taking a break to let his body recover from the intense prep. However, the Slovak is active in the gym and does not want to lose touch with his craft.
Michal Krizo went through a back, shoulder and triceps training session in the gym and answered some interesting fans’ questions as he trained. So without further ado, let’s get to know more about Krizo through the summary of this workout and Q&A session.
Michal Krizo goes through a back, triceps and rear delt workout
Lat Pulldown
Lat pulldowns primarily target the latissimus dorsi, the large fan-shaped muscle in the back. Krizo started his training session with this movement and performed a few good sets to set the tone of the workout.
Bent Over Dumbbell Rows
If you want your back to grow, you have to row. While vertical pulls like lat pulldowns build a wide back, horizontal pulls/rows give it the thickness it needs. This results in the overall development of back muscles. Bent-over dumbbell rows work all the pulling muscles in the upper body and hence they should be a part of your back training schedule without a doubt. Krizo got some solid sets of this exercise under his belt and walked over to the seated rows machine.
Seated Cable Rows
Krizo took to this rowing movement next to work the upper posterior chain of muscles. Seated cable rows work latissimus dorsi, rhomboids, traps as well as spinal erectors, and contribute greatly to building upper body strength. Additionally, it is a potent way of improving upper body posture, especially in people that have slouched shoulders due to prolonged hours of desk/computer work.
The 33-year-old annihilated all the sets of this exercise to shift his focus on working the shoulders next.
Seated Dumbbell Rear Lateral Raises
Rear delts are a crucial muscle group for maintaining postural health, lifting posture as well as aesthetics. However, it is difficult to isolate it unless targeted with specific exercises. This could be the reason why posterior/rear delts often get neglected. Rear lateral raise is one of the best ways to isolate this muscle group. Krizo performed some good sets of this exercise and shifted his focus to working the triceps with the next couple of exercises.
Triceps Rope Pushdown
This isolation exercise served as the first tricep builder in the Slovak’s training routine. Rope pushdown is effective for building strength and muscle while working all three triceps heads. Krizo cranked out a few good sets of the exercise and carried on with his training session.
Seated Overhead Cable Triceps Extensions
The long head of the triceps is most active when the arms are overhand and the triceps are in the stretched position. Overhead tricep extension is an isolation movement that works the triceps from a stretched position and helps build size and strength.
There are many ways of performing this exercise but dumbbell and cable machine variations are the most common. Krizo capped his workout with the cable overhead triceps extensions. Cable machines keep the muscles under tension throughout the duration of the movement. Additionally, the cable moves along a fixed axis, which eliminates the need to control the weight. Together, these two factors contribute greatly to muscle hypertrophy. After pushing through some heavy sets of this exercise to add the last bit of stimulus to the muscles, Krizo wrapped up the training session.
Overall, the workout included:
Krizanek answers fan questions during the workout
Fans are often fascinated by the sheer size of bodybuilders and rightfully so. Open division competitors are some of the biggest human beings you would ever come across and a fan tried to address his curiosity by asking Krizo about his on-stage and off-season weight.
Krizo stated that he was actually 125 kg (275 lbs) during the 2022 Olympia and might have been 122 kg (269 lbs) at the time of recording the video. However, those are just estimates as the 33-year-old is not obsessed about maintaining a certain weight.
“I am only gonna tell you the estimates for both. Because I didn’t weigh myself because I compete the Open class. I don’t carry a scale with me. It’s useless for me.”
He further stated:
“We don’t know or aim for weight. It’s just about looking better, harder. Also, doesn’t even have to be much bigger. Just more quality.”
Krizo’s favorite cheat meal
A stringent diet that does not necessarily satisfy the taste buds is an inseparable aspect of bodybuilding and the one that’s probably most difficult to adhere to. However, it is equally important to indulge in your favorite food once in a while even if you’re Michal Krizo. But what does he like to eat the most? Here’s the answer:
“It changes all the time but I like rice pasta with quark, vanilla sugar and butter. And what else? This is my favorite,” Krizo answered a fan’s question.
But how often does the Slovakian bodybuilder indulge in his favorite cheat meals? Well, there isn’t a set pattern to it, at least in the off-season. Krizo eats cheat meals pretty much whenever he wants during the off-season.
“I don’t go 100 percent on the nutrition now (during off-season). But I try to eat around 70 percent clean.”
But competition prep is a different story as he restricts his favorite meals to Saturday and does not deviate from his diet for the rest of the week.
What are his thoughts on moving to the USA for training?
Krizo comes from a tiny nation in Eastern Europe. While most people from these and many other parts of the world would jump at an opportunity to migrate to the United States for the perceived benefits of it, Krizo thinks he has everything he needs in his motherland. So when he was asked by a fan if he would move to the USA, Krizo replied:
“Not yet. Not this year… I don’t see a reason (in the future either).”
Michal Krizo attributes improved conditioning to cardio and diet
Michal Krizo’s conditioning came under heavy scrutiny when he showed up for his first pro bodybuilding show – the 2022 EVLS Prague Pro. The Slovakian bodybuilder managed to grab a W at the show but had a lot of scope for improvement in that area. However, he showed up with great conditioning at the 2023 Empro Pro. A fan asked Krizo how much cardio did he do during the competition prep. Krizo replied:
“20 minutes cardio on a stationary bike. I wouldn’t do cardio when I trained legs. Plus, posing for half an hour every day in the evening after the workout, which is even more than doing cardio.”
Incorporating cardio really differentiated Krizo’s 2023 Empro Pro competition prep from his Olympia prep. He also made quite a few changes to his training routine and trained every body part at least twice a week. The results showed primarily in his back. Although he might have had the separation in the back muscles already, improved conditioning made it more visible on stage.
“Also very important was fixing my digestion. That was probably the main issue so that everything works the way it should. If the digestion isn’t good, then the physique won’t be either,” Krizo said while answering a question about the difference in his prep for 2022 Olympia vs 2023 Empro Pro.
What’s next for Krizo? Maintenance or bulk and cut?
Having earned the direct qualification to the 2023 Olympia, Krizo now has to utilize his time in a smart way to improve his standing and become a top contender. But fans wonder – how is he planning to approach the next few months – Whether he will be bulking or cutting? Whether he will just maintain the physique that he now has? Here’s Krizo’s answer:
“It’s off-season now. I’ll be resting until the end of July. Then I’ll jump into diet. I might try to gain a bit at the start, during, maybe the first month. But only quality and then hardcore diet all the way to the Olympia. Tow months of hardcore diet for sure.”
Krizo intends to work a lot on presentation and bring the best version of himself to the 2023 Olympia stage. It will be interesting to see how much ground he covers to go up against the top contenders of the division.
You can watch the full workout and Q&A video here, courtesy of Michal Krizo’s YouTube channel:
Published: 28 June, 2023 | 9:19 AM EDT
Michal Krizo Endures a Punishing Back Workout 3 Weeks From 2023 Empro Classic Pro Spain
Bodybuilder Michal ‘Krizo’ Krizanek is pushing his limits to bring home the 2023 IFBB Empro Classic Pro Spain trophy. The event is an Olympia qualifier, and Krizo will look forward to securing the direct invitation to the 2023 Olympia with a statement win at the show.
Krizo is a Slovakian bodybuilder that has captured the imagination of bodybuilding fans and emerged as a hot prospect in the Men’s Open division of the IFBB Pro League. After making a name for himself with a series of dominant performances in the IFBB Elite Pro League, Krizo switched to NPC to kick off his Olympia campaign. He became an instant sensation due to his massive and aesthetically appealing physique, musculature, and insane vascularity.
Krizo earned his IFBB Pro card with a thumping victory at the 2022 Amateur Olympia Italy and returned to the stage a few weeks later to compete at the 2022 EVLS Prague Pro. Although he won the pro debut and secured a direct qualification to the 2022 Olympia, the Slovak’s conditioning was heavily criticized.
He returned to the drawing board and worked hard to perform on the grandest stage of bodybuilding. Krizo finished 12th at the 2022 Olympia and admittedly failed to beat the most elite competitors the Men’s Open division had to offer.
However, he is now training hard to secure the second Olympia qualification of his Pro career within a year of turning pro. Under bodybuilding coach Alexander Hlobik’s watchful eye, Krizo performed an intense back workout to build his back. So without further delay, let’s see how the coach guided Krizo through the training session.
Michal Krizo goes through a back workout
Assisted Pull-Up
Krizo started the training session with this machine exercise. The pull-up is an excellent compound movement that helps improve upper body strength and muscle mass. While it is an advanced movement, a professional athlete like Krizo is expected to perform the exercise unassisted. However, the application of assisted pull-ups goes beyond just the inability to perform them unassisted.
Assisted pull-ups take the momentum out of play and help focus more on the back muscles. The two-time 212 Olympia champion Shaun Clarida is one of the huge proponents of performing assisted pull-ups over regular bodyweight pull-ups.
Krizo performed a few sets of assisted pull-ups under coach Hlobik’s guidance and got the blood flowing into the muscles for the heavy workout that followed.
Reverse-Grip Lat Pulldown
The 2022 EVLS Prague Pro winner performed the reverse-grip lat pulldown as the next compound exercise of the day. A reverse grip engages the lower lats more since the arms are closer to the body. Additionally, you tend to pull the weight using your biceps, which allows you to lift more weight.
Krizo got a few sets of reverse-grip lat pulldowns under his belt and followed his coach to the next exercise.
Seated Row
Coach Hlobik instructed Krizo to perform the seated rows next, and he did this exercise to work the latissimus dorsi, rhomboids, trapezius, and erector spinae muscles. After doing some solid sets of rows, Krizo moved on to the next exercise.
Hammer Strength Plate-Loaded Low Row
Krizo took to the low rows on an iso-lateral plate-loaded machine next. Low rows work the rhomboid, lower trapezius, and latissimus dorsi muscles in the back. Focusing on these muscles is important not only for athletes but also for an average person who spends long hours at his work desk every day. (1) Together, the target muscles of low rows are important for maintaining a good upper body posture.
The mass monster performed a few unilateral sets of this exercise and jumped into the next exercise.
Reverse Pec Deck Fly
Posterior deltoids, or rear delts, are a small muscle group on your back. It is one of the most difficult muscles to activate as there is always a possibility that more dominant muscles like lats and rhomboids might take over the movement. Reverse pec deck flyes are one exercise that can target the rear delts effectively. Krizo got a few sets of this movement under the belt and went on to perform the next exercise.
Neutral-Grip Unilateral Lat Pulldown
This lat movement on a plate-loaded machine followed next. The close grip heavily stimulates the upper back muscles and rhomboids and also emphasizes arms and biceps brachii.
After pushing through some heavy sets of the movement to fatigue the lats and upper back muscles, the Slovakian bodybuilder moved on to the day’s final exercise.
Bent-Over Straight Arm Pulldown
Krizo put an end to his workout with this lat-building exercise. In addition to building the lat strength and size, straight arm pulldowns also increase scapular strength and stability. It is essential to maintain a safe lifting posture. (2) Apart from the lats, this exercise also works the posterior deltoid, teres major, and triceps muscles.
The 2022 EVLS Prague Pro winner annihilated some sets of bent-over straight-arm pulldowns with rope attachment to add the last bit of stimulus to the back muscles. Following this, he called it a day in the gym.
Overall, the workout included:
Krizo will look forward to elevating his career to the next level in the 2023 competitive season. Empro Classic Pro Spain will take place on June 18th. It will be interesting to see how he paves the way to the top of the Men’s Open division.
You can watch the full workout video below, courtesy of Michal Krizo’s YouTube channel:
Published: 30 May, 2023 | 9:01 AM EDT
Chris Bumstead And Flex Lewis Decimate A Back Workout
Chris Bumstead continues to push himself by working with the finest individuals in the bodybuilding industry. Recently, CBum partnered with legendary bodybuilder Flex Lewis for an intense back workout to get one more step closer to the fifth Classic Physique Olympia title.
Canada’s finest Chris Bumstead is one of the most popular active bodybuilders on the planet. He has achieved the distinction by proving his worth in the competition. Since winning the Classic Physique Olympia title at the 2019 Olympia, the 28-year-old phenom has defended it with an iron will at the 2020, 2021, and 2022 Olympia.
Bumstead’s time in competitive bodybuilding is nearing the end as he intends to defend the Olympia title a few times before calling it a career. He entered the 2022 Olympia competition with a torn bicep and spent the first couple of months recovering from the injury.
As a part of his off-season effort, the Classic Physique kingpin joined veteran bodybuilder Flex Lewis for a back workout. Lewis is best known for his dominant title reign in the 212 division that saw him secure the 212 Olympia crown seven consecutive times from 2012 to 2018.
Lewis briefly considered a move up to the Men’s Open division but it never came to fruition. He announced retirement from the sport in May 2022 and has significantly downsized since. Successful business ventures like the famous Dragon’s Lair gym have kept Lewis busy and he is often seen helping active bodybuilders achieve their competitive goals as well.
Lewis and Bumstead went through the training session at the Dragon’s Lair gym. The video of this session was posted on CBum’s personal YouTube channel. So let’s check out how the bodybuilding greats worked towards building their backs.
Chris Bumstead and Flex Lewis go through a back workout
The back workout consisted of a total of four exercises – one vertical pull and three horizontal pull (rows). Vertical pulls like lat pulldowns primarily target latissimus dorsi (lats) – the large fan shaped muscle in the back. These movements are primarily responsible for building a wide back by developing the lats.
Horizontal pulls or rows are essential for giving thickness to the back. As a result, a training routine that emphasizes both types of movements is the key to complete back development.
Chest Supported Rows
CBum and Lewis kicked off the session with chest-supported seated rows on a plate-loaded machine. This compound movement engages many different muscles in the upper body which makes it efficient for building upper body strength and muscle mass.
Bumstead and Lewis started out light and slowly added more weight to the subsequent sets after sufficiently warming up the muscles. Following some solid sets of the exercise, they took to the second exercise of the day.
Chest Supported T-bar Rows
The bodybuilding community commonly accepts that rows are the best compound movement for building a 3D back. However, there are endless variations to choose from and they all deserve a place in your back routine. But if you could choose only one, our team at Fitness Volt would recommend T-bar rows.
T-bar rows work many different muscles like latissimus dorsi, trapezius, rhomboids, posterior deltoids, biceps brachii and erector spinae. These factors make it a classic back builder. Bumstead and Lewis cranked out a few sets of this exercise on the chest supported T-bar rows machine and jumped into the next exercise of the session.
Arsenal Strength Iso Lat Pulldown
Following the two major rowing movements, CBum and Lewis took to the first and the only pulldown movement of this training session. They got some heavy sets of Lat pulldown under the belt using Arsenal strength lat pulldown machine. Both weight arms of this machine attach to separate weight stacks independently. This helps create balance in both sides of the body as the person cannot pull the weight by using the favored side of the body.
The bodybuilder duo destroyed the sets of lat pulldown with incrementally heavier weights and took to the finisher of the day.
Seated Cable Rows
The back workout concluded with this rowing movement. The training partners called it a day in the gym after doing a few sets with slow and controlled motion.
Overall, the workout included:
Chris Bumstead has openly admitted that being a dominant champion comes with immense pressure. He is not untouched by the fear of losing his top spot. However, if he surrounds himself with the right people and keeps company with people like Flex Lewis who have been there, and done that, CBum can maintain the correct mindset to realize the dream of retiring on top.
You can watch the full workout video here, courtesy of Chris Bumstead’s personal YouTube channel:
Published: 19 May, 2023 | 9:01 AM EDT
5 Back Workouts for Women: Bring the SexyBack!
Most women want an hourglass figure. However, some girls mistake an hourglass figure for a tennis racket figure. These ladies spend considerable time working on their booties but almost always overlook a vital aspect of achieving their dream figure — a shapely back. Ladies that want to rock a strapless dress or tank top must prioritize training their backs. Plus, a shapely back can add to your physique aesthetics by making your waist look smaller.
To build a curvy figure, you must incorporate back workouts into your training regimen. Your back workouts should have a balance of rowing exercises, such as barbell rows, dumbbell rows, seated cable rows, and horizontal pulling movements, such as lat pulldowns, pull-ups, etc.
After your legs, your back is the second-biggest muscle group, meaning your back workouts will be as brutal as your lower body training sessions. Plus, since it is a large muscle group, it will help burn more calories than the small muscle group workouts. If you feel fresh and energetic after a back workout, know that you didn’t go all-out in that training session.
Unlike smaller muscle groups like the biceps, which have only two muscle heads, your back consists of several muscles, such as the latissimus dorsi, rhomboids, teres major and minor, trapezius, posterior delts, and erector spinae. Furthermore, your back is divided into two portions — upper and lower. You must train your back from different angles, using different grips for overall posterior chain development.
In this article, we go over the back anatomy, the five best back workouts for women, the importance and benefits of building a strong back for women, and tips to make the most of your workouts.
Back Anatomy
Understanding your back anatomy can help you program an effective back workout and ensure there are no weak areas in your back. Here are the back muscles you should know about for building an eye-catching backline:
Back Anatomy Muscles
Latissimus Dorsi
Latissimus dorsi, or lats, are the biggest back muscle. A pair of developed lats can accentuate your V-taper. They are located on both sides of the middle and lower back and are responsible for moving your arms down and toward the body.
Teres Major and Minor
These are present at the back of the shoulder and are responsible for rotating the arm and stabilizing the shoulder joint.
Rhomboids
They are located on your upper back underneath the trapezius muscle and between the shoulder blades. They help maintain a good posture and stabilize your shoulder blades.
Erector Spinae
These are a group of muscles present on both sides of the spinal column. As their name suggests, they help maintain an erect spine and allow for bending and twisting movements. The erector spinae is also referred to as the lower back.
Posterior Deltoids
Although the posterior or rear delts are located on your back, they are mostly trained in a shoulder workout. They help move your arm backward.
Trapezius
The trapezius muscle is located over the back of the neck and shoulders and extends down to the middle of the back. It helps moves the head and shoulder blades. Many people train their traps in a shoulder workout.
Best Back Workouts For Women
Our goal with these workouts is to build a toned back that looks amazing and improves your overall health and fitness. We have included five workouts in this article for ladies at different experience levels. The resistance band back workout is perfect for when you don’t have access to a gym.
Beginner Back Workout For Women
Women that are just starting their fitness journey should perform foundational exercises that will help them build a solid base and improve their mind-muscle connection. Your focus with this workout will be to drill each movement until you know them, like the back of your hand.
Seek expert advice to learn the correct technique for performing these exercises. Hiring a personal trainer can expedite your learning process, lower your risk of injury, and fast-track your progress.
Advanced Back Workout For Women
Ladies with at least a few months of lifting experience should graduate to the advanced back workout. Use an assisted pull-up machine or a spotter if you cannot perform bodyweight pull-ups.
You’ll also be doing rear delt flyes for the rear delts and barbell shrugs for the trapezius muscle in this workout. Expect this workout to take between 45-60 minutes. However, keep your rest durations between sets limited to 30-60 seconds to maintain a high training intensity.
Machine-Only Back Workout For Women
Machines follow a fixed movement trajectory, which can help you focus on establishing a mind-muscle connection and achieve muscle-ripping pumps. Plus, machine workouts take less time than free-weight workouts, which is a boon for lifters on a tight schedule.
You can swap the GHD back extension with a conventional back extension if you lack the posterior chain strength to perform the exercise. Focus on contracting your muscles with each rep to get the most out of this workout.
Resistance Band Back Workout For Women
The resistance band back workout is an excellent place to start for beginners and when you are traveling. Contrary to what most people think, you don’t always need free weights or machines to build a chiseled physique. Resistance bands help maintain constant tension on your muscles throughout the motion, helping induce hypertrophy.
We recommend using loop bands for this workout; grab the heaviest bands you can find. Furthermore, you’ll be performing a higher number of reps in this workout than in the other workouts to ensure you’re not leaving anything in the tank.
HIIT Back Workout For Women
HIIT, or high-intensity interval training, workouts consist of short periods of high-intensity exercises followed by periods of rest or lower-intensity exercises. A HIIT workout aims to push your body to its maximum capacity in a short period. It is a great training protocol for breaking through strength and muscle plateaus. Furthermore, it is perfect for folks that can only dedicate 30 minutes to a training regimen.
You’ll perform five rounds of this HIIT workout. Do each exercise for 30 seconds and rest for 10 seconds after completing a movement. You are allowed a 60-second rest after completing each round.
Read more: HIIT Workouts for Women: 6 Best Workout Plans, Benefits, and Pro Tips
Back Workout Tips For Women
Follow these tips for carving a head-turning back:
Focus on Form
Beginners must prioritize lifting with the correct form instead of chasing heavy weights. Using a picture-perfect form maximizes an exercise’s muscle and strength-building potential and reduces the risk of injury.
Plus, focus on contracting your target muscles with each rep. Going through the motions for the sake of it won’t cut it. Slow down your rep tempo if you have trouble establishing a mind-muscle connection.
Progressive Overload
Progressive overload is the name of the game when it comes to building muscle mass. You could make your workouts harder and increase your training volume and intensity by lifting heavier, doing more sets and reps, shortening your rest duration between sets, or incorporating advanced training techniques like super sets, drop sets, intraset stretching, rest-pause sets, etc.
You must gradually increase the demands placed on your muscles. It will challenge your muscles to adapt and improve, leading to gains in strength, muscle size, and overall fitness.
You Don’t Have To Reinvent The Wheel
Many exercisers tend to do too much too soon. These people think that doing out-of-the-box exercises will speed up their progress. However, this is not the case. You don’t have to join a cult or follow a charlatan to build a chiseled back. The exercises mentioned in this article are all you need to develop a shapely back.
Nutrition and Sleep
You cannot out-train a bad diet and recovery program. You must back your workouts with a balanced diet to optimize muscle growth. Further, a seven to eight-hour sleep is a must as it allows your body enough time to rest and recuperate between workouts.
Since the back is a large muscle group, perform one of the workouts mentioned in this article weekly. As you gain more experience, you could perform two weekly back workouts to expedite your back growth. However, avoid doing more than two back workouts a week as it increases your risk of overtraining.
Change Grips
Performing the same exercise with a different hand grip can target your muscles differently. For example, you could do a barbell bent-over row with an underhand or overhand grip. You could also perform the seated cable row with a supinated, pronated, or neutral grip to train your back from different angles.
Why Building a Strong Back is Important For Women?
Incorporating back workouts into your training regimen entails the following advantages:
Improves Aesthetics
Building a bigger back can add to your physique aesthetics. It can create an illusion of a smaller waist and broader shoulders, which are essential features of an hourglass figure. A diced back will also make you look stunning in backless dresses and tank tops.
Promotes a Better Posture
Most of us spend the majority of our days hunched over a computer or phone screen. Training our backs can help improve our posture by strengthening the muscles responsible for maintaining a proper upright position. Plus, back exercises can increase back flexibility and mobility, which can help pull the shoulders back, open up the chest, and align the spine in its natural S-shape curvature.
Helps Burns Calories
Your back is the second-biggest muscle group. Performing an intense back workout that involves compound (multi-joint) exercises can spike your heart rate, helping you burn a decent amount of calories. Plus, back workouts help increase overall muscle mass and boost metabolism, both of which lead to a higher calorie expenditure even when you are physically inactive. However, if your goal is to burn more calories, you should follow the HIIT back workout listed in this article.
Boosts Functionality
Most back exercises are functional movements that improve overall strength, mobility, and stability. Your back plays a crucial role in many everyday activities, such as lifting, carrying, and bending, as well as in sports and other physical activities. Balanced back workouts improve your performance in all these activities while reducing your risk of injury.
Help Alleviate Lower Back Pain
Training your spine-supporting muscles (erector spinae) in your back workout can help alleviate and reduce the risk of lower back pain, especially in women with large breasts or those that remain seated for most of the day.
FAQs
How can women build a toned back?
Building a chiseled back requires following a balanced back workout focusing on building muscle mass and strength. Perform one of the workouts given in this article weekly for 12 weeks to see noticeable back development. You could also switch between the workouts to add variety to your training regimen.
Should men and women follow different back workouts?
No exercise is gender specific. The workouts in this article can be used by men and women alike. With that said, girls don’t need to worry about building a cobra back like their male counterparts. The ladies don’t produce enough testosterone to build the same amount of muscle mass as men.
How to program a back workout for hypertrophy and strength gains?
The number of sets, reps, and exercises you perform and your workout intensity will depend on your training goals. Perform 3 sets of 8-12 reps of an exercise and rest 60-90 minutes between sets if you want to build muscle mass. On the other hand, do 3-5 sets of 1-5 reps of an exercise with 2-5 minutes of rest between sets if you want to maximize strength. [1]
Wrapping Up
To carry the heavy burden of the world, you must have a strong back. The five back workouts for women listed in this article will help improve your posture, boost your functional fitness and calorie expenditure, and enhance your physique aesthetics.
These workouts are apt for women of any experience level. Furthermore, the HIIT back training session is great for ladies on a tight schedule. Pair these workouts with a balanced recovery program for optimal results. Best of luck!
References
Krzysztofik M, Wilk M, Wojdała G, Gołaś A. Maximizing Muscle Hypertrophy: A Systematic Review of Advanced Resistance Training Techniques and Methods. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019 Dec 4;16(24):4897. doi: 10.3390/ijerph16244897. PMID: 31817252; PMCID: PMC6950543.
Chris Bumstead Builds A Beastly Back In Off-Season Training
Chris Bumstead is making the most of his time in the gym to stay ahead in the Classic Physique division. Recently, he annihilated a back training session in the gym with the goal to bring ‘a thick back this year’.
The Canadian IFBB Pro bodybuilder has risen to the status of the greatest active bodybuilders with a string of dominant wins on the grandest stage of bodybuilding – The Olympia. After snatching the Classic Physique Olympia title from rival Breon Ansley at the 2019 Olympia, Bumstead has defended it successfully in 2020, 2021 and 2022.
The 28-year-old has been undeterred in the face of adversity and persevered over difficult situations. Fellow Canadian bodybuilder and long-time friend Iain Valliere has coached CBum for the majority of his career. However, the duo mutually decided to end the client-coach relationship before 2022 Olympia so Valliere to focus on his own career in the Men’s Open division.
Even if it was difficult, they swallowed the bitter pill and CBum entered the 2022 Olympia under famed coach Hany Rambod’s guidance. In spite of having suffered a bicep tear, Bumstead managed to bring the Sandows trophy home for the fourth consecutive time.
The champ took his own sweet time after the show and went through the treatment to heal the bicep completely. Having recovered, he is now slowly intensifying the off-season training for the 2023 competitive season.
His recent back training session was a part of this effort and Bumstead tackled it with furious intensity. The video of this session was posted on CBum’s personal YouTube channel. So let’s end the wait and take a look at the exercises he did to build a thick and wide back.
Chris Bumstead goes through a back workout
Bumstead usually prefers to start the training session with cable lat pulldowns or dumbbell exercises to warm up the back muscles before doing the heavy work. However, it was an unusually busy day in the gym and he had to stay away from the cable machine or dumbbell area to save on time. As a result, he started the training session with an unusual warm-up movement.
Hammer Strength Underhand Grip Pulldown
The 28-year-old headed to the machine area. He then went on to do the underhand grip pulldown on the plate loaded machine to warm up the lats before jumping into the heavy movements.
“Avoiding the cable dumbbell area for now. For the first time in my life I’m warming up on something other than cable pulldowns,” Cbum stated.
Bumstead performed multiple warm-up sets of this exercise unilaterally and tackled other heavy movements in the workout as he went along.
Incline Dumbbell Rows
Incline dumbbell rows are among the most effective ways to focus on the muscles and build a thick back. The exercise uses gravity to avoid other muscles from compensating for the back muscles during the lift. Since the chest is supported on the backrest of the bench toward gravity, the back muscles are forced to do all the work required for lifting the dumbbells. Hence, it helps with back development more effectively.
“I’m doing these with 85 (lbs dumbbells) right now given that I am weaker but it’s also lighter… And just squeezing full like deep range of motion like arching my back and pulling back further and pulling my elbows back as far as I can feel good. (The back’s) going to be thick this year…” CBum said.
CBum performed some solid sets of this exercise to get a good pump in the back muscles. He then jumped into the next one.
Machine Rows – 2 variations
Bumstead next performed rows on the Hammer Strength Iso-lateral rows machine. Both weight horns of the machine move independently. This enables removing strength imbalances, if any. CBum pushed through a few sets of the movement using slow and controlled motion. He then took to another variation of machine rows. He performed the exercise on a selectorized machine with a swivel handle and pushed through a few sets of the movement.
Superset – Neutral Grip Lat Pulldown and Bent Over Straight Arm Pulldowns
CBum wrapped up the training session with this superset. He performed the neutral grip lat pulldowns first and superset the movement with bent-over lat pulldowns. Bumstead used a band attachment for doing the bent-over straight-arm pulldowns. Lat pulldowns primarily focus on the latissimus dorsi muscles. On the other hand, straight-arm pulldowns target the latissimus dorsi and the teres minor muscles. Both these muscles are responsible for extending the arm, which happens to be the primary action of this movement.
Chris Bumstead performed all the sets of these exercises in rapid succession with minimal rest periods. Following this, CBum wrapped up the training session and headed back home with exhausted back muscles.
Overall, the workout included:
Chris Bumstead plans to defend the Classic Physique Olympia title a few more times and walk into the sunset. As a result, he is training hard to stay ahead of the curve and fight off hungry, young contenders like Ramon Rocha Queiroz and Urs Kalecinski. If he continues to get better, he can definitely retire as a reigning champion of the world when it is time to walk away.
You can watch the full workout video here, courtesy of Chris Bumstead’s personal YouTube channel:
Published: 22 April, 2023 | 9:03 AM EDT