One of the most popular and fairly new bodybuilding class people compete in is called physique. If you were to look at all the top competitors, you would notice something similar. They all have extremely broad shoulders and V-shaped torsos. They really have figured out the best workout for lats. With some of the top 3 placed competitors, it really is amazing how big the lats are and how small it makes their waste look.
I want to share what I have found to work the best over the years if your goal is to have bigger lats. There is one competitor in the history of bodybuilding known for the best when it comes to the best lats. His name is Dorian Yates.
In this article, I will share with you some important lessons I have learned about building lats. Hopefully, this takes your lats to another level!
WHERE & WHAT ARE THE LATS
The more technical name latissimus Dosi which in Latin means ” broadest of the back.” Latissimus = broadest, and dorsum = back. The lats are large muscles found on the back side of your body. The lats attach to the lower and mid-back, pelvis, and the inside of your upper arm.
In the picture with Dorian Yates, you can see how the lats are on the side (lateral) of the back (dorsal). This Is how they got their name. Lats are very important and play an essential part in the three lifts that build the most muscle.
I wrote an article about these 3, and you can check it out here three best workouts.
The purpose of the is to help stabilize and protect your spine. Also provides strength to your back and shoulders. Another important role is in your posture and how they support it. They also help out a little bit in the movement of your shoulders.
By far, they are the largest and main muscle in the back. This is why it’s imperative to do the best workout for back mass if you want that V shape.
WHICH IS THE BEST OF THE LAT EXERCISES
When it comes to most workouts, you choose either a pull or a push workout. The bench press or doing push-ups would be great examples of push workouts. Think of rowing a boat when it comes to pull workouts.
Pulling workouts are by far the best when it comes to the lat exercises.
So which pull workout is the best, you may be wondering? In my opinion, and many fitness experts over the years… THE BARBELL DEADLIFT! It’s not only the best lat exercise for mass but one of the best overall exercises in general.
However, you don’t see many people doing it in the gym, partly to do with it taking the effort to set up. Many people also think it’s a dangerous workout, partly true if you don’t know what you’re doing.
HOW TO DO THE BARBELL DEADLIFT
You probably have a pretty good idea based on the photo above. Form for the deadlift is extremely important, though. Starting with your stance and how you grip the bar.
- Add a safe weight to the barbell and roll it up against your shins. Your feet should be shoulder-width apart.
- Bend your knees and hips and with an overhand grip like in the picture, grab the bar a little wider than shoulder-width. Your hands should be just outside your legs.
- Start to pull your torso up and thrust your hips forward. Make sure you are keeping your lower back in a natural arch position while doing this.
- Stand up while keeping the barbell close to your body.
- Once you have stood all the way up, you can lower the bar to the ground, which will be your first rep.
Make sure you’re looking forward during this upper body lift to keep your head in a neutral position.
TIP: Try going shoeless for this lift. Shoes can tilt you slightly forward and throw off your movement. I also do squats barefoot, or another great option is chuck Taylor converse shoes.
THE BEST WORKOUT FOR LATS USING A PULL MOTION
.WIDE GRIP LAT PULL DOWN
This is perhaps one of the best lat exercises for the lower lats. It is one of the most popular exercises for working your lats. It can be done with a machine or with a resistance band. To do the exercise correctly, sit with your thighs under the pad and your hands gripping the bar in front of you. Keep your back straight and slowly pull the bar down to the middle of your chest. Pause briefly and then slowly return to the starting position.
HOW IT’S DONE
- Grab the bar with an overhand wide grip, as shown in the picture below. Your knuckles should be facing up. This is the standard position, although there are a few different variations.
- Exhale while you pull the bar down to around chin level. Try and keep your torso stationary. I see a lot of people lean way too far back. Leaning back slightly is ok though. This is your stopping point when you can’t move your elbows back anymore.
- With the bar close to your chin, you now slowly return the bar to the starting position in a controlled manner.
- Do this for however many reps you desire. I mention in a few of my articles the phases for reps. You can comment below if you have any questions about which is best for your goals.
BENT OVER BARBELL ROW
If you are looking for one of the best lat exercises for the upper back. I highly recommend you give this one a try.
HOW IT’S DONE
- After you have loaded the barbell up with your desired weight, stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your shoulder blades back. Lean forward from the waist and bend your knees. Keep your back straight.
- Grab the bar with your hands facing down by your side a little wider than shoulder-width. At this point, your arms should be hanging straight.
- Keep your shoulder blades together and your core tight as your row the weight up to your sternum. Once you touch the sternum, you can slowly lower the weight to starting position with a smooth range of motion. This counts as one rep.
SEATED ROWS
HOW IT’S DONE
- Pull the weight and handle towards your lower abdomen. You should pay close attention to your momentum and try not to use your torso as a way to pull the weight backward with your arms.
- Keep your back straight and squeeze your shoulder blades together with your chest out as you perform the row.
- Finally, return the weight to your starting position while keeping your back straight. Repeat for however many desired repetitions you prefer.
Important: Your back should not be rounded or bent during these lat exercises. Keep it straight and your shoulder blades back!
SOME MORE COMMON BEST LAT EXERCISES
Another great exercise for your lats is the straight-arm pulldown.
To do this exercise correctly, attach a resistance band to a sturdy object and stand facing it. With your palms facing down, extend your arms out in front of you. Slowly pull the band down to the middle of your chest, pause briefly and then return to the position you started.
The hex bar deadlift is another great exercise for targeting your lats.
To do this exercise correctly, stand with the hex bar at your feet and grasp it with an overhand grip with your hands shoulder-width apart. Bend at your hips and knees and explosively lift the bar as you drive through your heels. Keep your back straight and lower the bar back to the ground under control.
This is one of the best lat exercises, in my opinion. You can lift a lot of weight with the right range of motion.
The Sumo deadlift is also a great exercise for working your lats.
To do this exercise correctly, place a barbell on the floor before you and stand with your feet a little wider than the normal deadlift. Bend your hips and knees and grab the bar with an overhand grip, hands shoulder-width apart. Keeping your back straight, lift the bar as you exhale and drive through your heels until you stand upright with the barbell against your thighs.
Lower the barbell back to the ground under control. The Sumo is one of the best lat exercises for lifting heavy weight.
Finally, another great exercise for targeting your lats is dumbbell rows.
To do this exercise correctly, place one knee and hand on a bench and hold a dumbbell in the other hand with the arm extended straight down towards the floor. Keeping core engaged, Row dumbbell up towards chest while keeping elbow close to the body, pause, then lower Dumbbells back to starting position.
ARE PULL-UPS A GREAT EXERCISE FOR LATS
The pull-up is one of the best exercises for working your lats. It’s a compound exercise that also works your biceps, shoulders, and core. To do a pull-up, grip the bar with your hands shoulder-width apart or closer together and hang with your arms straight.
Pull yourself up until your chin is above the bar, and then lower yourself back down. Repeat for as many reps as you can. I always keep track of how many pull-ups I do and the amount of rest in between.
The pull-up is an excellent exercise for building your lats because it’s a compound movement that recruits multiple muscles in your upper body. It also challenges your strength and endurance, so it’s a great workout for overall fitness. If you’re starting out, you can do assisted pull-ups using a band or machine to help you get up to the bar. As you get stronger, you can gradually decrease the assistance until you can do unassisted pull-ups.
Maybe you want to try and break the pull-up world record? The most pull-ups done consecutively were 651 by a man named Kenta Adachi in Japan in 2022. Fifteen years prior, Kenta was only able to do twelve pull-ups in total.
In 24 hours by a female, the pull-up record is 4,081 by a woman named Paula Gorlo from Poland in 2021. That is absolutely amazing how many pull-ups she was able to complete.
DIFFERENT VARIATIONS OF THE PULL-UP
There are many different types of pull-up exercises that you can do. Exercises with weights can add more resistance and make the exercise more challenging. However, if you are a beginner, you may want to start with exercises without weights. You can buy a bar for very cheap online for pull-ups to place in between your doorway.
Some of the most popular exercises without weights include:
1) Standard pull-ups – This is the most basic type. You need to hang from a bar with your hands shoulder-width apart and then pull yourself up so that your chin touches the bar.
2) Close-grip pull-ups – This exercise is similar to the standard one, but you must place your hands closer to be about 6 inches apart. This will target your biceps more than the standard exercise.
3) Wide grip pull-ups – This exercise is similar to the close grip one, but you will need to place your hands further apart so that they are about 12 inches apart. This will target your latissimus dorsi muscles more than the close grip exercise. I love the wide-grip pull-ups because I can attach some weight or hold a dumbbell between my feet to make it more challenging.
4) Chin-ups – This is another basic pull-up type done with a supinated grip (palms facing you). You will need to hang from a bar with your hands shoulder-width apart and then pull yourself up so that your chin touches the bar.
LAT EXERCISES YOU SHOULDN’T BE DOING
The lat exercises you should not do are the ones that put a lot of stress on your back. If you do these exercises in bad form, you can injure yourself. Some of these exercises include the barbell row, lat pulldown, and seated cable row.
Lat exercises can be a great way to improve your back strength and posture, but only if you do them correctly. Unfortunately, these lat exercises can cause injury if done wrong.
The first lat exercise to avoid is the Lat Pulldown Behind the Head. This exercise puts a lot of stress on your neck and can easily lead to injury. Instead, try the Lat Pulldown in Front of the Head, which is a safer option.
Another dangerous lat exercise is the Lat Pullover. This exercise can cause shoulder injuries if done incorrectly. Instead, try the Seated Row or Standing Cable Row for a safe and effective lat workout for your upper body.
FINAL WORD
With all these workouts, you must be doing them in controlled, slow movements. This is much more beneficial than using momentum to get a heavier weight. If you really want to start doing Barbell deadlifts but are a little intimidated or worried about hurting yourself. I would recommend maybe getting a few personal training sessions.
Your lats do much more than sitting on your back. During lifts like the bench press and squat, they also play huge roles even though they are not directly worked. I would recommend that you start doing some barbell deadlifts. Take two days to rest off in between workouts because it is a very taxing workout on the body, like the squat. You will notice your back muscles start to grow.
“Training gives us an outlet for suppressed energies created by stress and thus tones the spirit just as exercise conditions the body.”
– Arnold Schwarzenegger
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