I’m glad I discovered that video back when I first started training. 5 years later and I’m still doing pull ups. Safe to say my back is one of my best body parts since I’ve always done pull ups since the very beginning!
as a fat guy I Started doing pull ups thanks to your inspiration, from negatives and band assisted to 2-3 solid reps chin above bar. I always follow with PullDowns, Deadlifts and Tbar rows.
I just found out that I've been deceiving myself for a month doing wide grip pullups and making myself believe I was doing your super wide grip pullups... Today I finally tried the correct super wide grip pull up and holy shit they're amazing
At least you thickened up your upper back (normal wide will do that) I too made that mistake, now arms are on the edges of the pullup bar. The "armpit sensation" is on a different level eh!?
Thank you for all your advice Alex, I very been doing pullups alot and your videos are a go to for me , much appreciated , 200lbs and finally getting a strong 5x5 with 45lbs
@@AlexLeonidas my reasoning is the following , might be so wrong tho. I'm an early intermediate so I believe I could use a bit more volume as my total load isn't as heavy as advanced lifters. For pullups i try to get 0 RIR on the last set and progress with wave loading. Three sets would be more beneficial for me in terms of strength gains. For chest supported rows I could go a bit heavier volume for my relatively low total weights. (Might tune this back down to three sets tho) Diagonal rows I simply add as a bit extra volume.
if you want both, do a high row, unless they're isolateral which can make them more lat bias than any bilateral pull, which are amazing but they mess your lats up more than anything else.
Neautral bar pullups with my chest up as much as humanly possible hits my mid/upper back and rear delts like crazy, not to mention the teres and the lats nearer the spine. I think done this way they can definitely build thickness
I asked the same thing about pullovers, but then deleted it. Pretty sure it's vertical. Your upper arm path is almost identical to the bottom portion of a pull-up. Though, I'm open to being corrected.
@@Juneof1944 easily turned into lat isolation if you really want to. Rest muscles aren't hit sufficiently anyway . ( Pec squeeze at the concentric , never being able to reach anywhere near close to failure on triceps ).
@@Kyriakoskarystinos Just because you're hitting the lats the hardest doesn't mean it's not a compound. Is the bench press not a compound because it, far and away, hits the chest the most?
Doing a fullbody routine 3 day x week, I do Chin Up and dumbbell row First day, Barbell row second day, and N grip pull up with wide grip T-Bar row third day. What do you think?
yo Alex love the content. So you‘re saying even though I wanna emphasises upper back (I am an early intermediate and definitely got more width than thickness) I should do pull-ups before rows? I get they‘re more difficult but wouldn‘t starting with a row and hitting a pull-up/pulldown after that be better for my goals?
Hi, please can you help me out? I have an imbalance on my lats, I work out at home and have no machines at all. I know I should do unilaterally but I don't know what exercises to help fix it. Please assist me!!
Archer ring chins, high one arm inverted rows, one arm band rows, one arm cable pulls or laying rows (get the BOS attachment), and of course db rows. A million ways to solve this, and I train at home 9/10 times. No machines needed.
I like pendley style meadows rows and then stricter dumbbell rows with neutral grip. Both can be loaded up likw crazy and serve slightly different purpose.
Do you think splitting up vertical pulling and pressing on one day then horizontal pulling and pressing on another is a good way to split your upper body days?
Hey alex, recently i took a deload and came back with a new program with planned intensity and volume, doing 3x full body a week I dont feel much of a pump in them though. The soreness is also not that bad, i can recover and progress by doing 1-2 more reps in the next session. But is not feeling the pump a problem? Should i increase my sets? I do RPE 7-8, then as i approach the end of the mesocycle, i go RPE 9-10.
How do you reach a 225 bench without getting fat?? I'm 5'7 and 185 and only benching 165Ibs for reps...(i bench 2 sets 3x a week)... Should I switch to dumbells?? Ive been stuck and it sucks
@@AlexLeonidas nice. I've always done that too. It intuitively makes sense to me, but it's nice to hear that someone with a god tier back does the same thing. Especially because my back is my worst body part.
Rack pulls throw in as an ME lift, or as a secondary movement for something like a 2-3x3-5 or 5-8. Power shrugs I like to throw in as a secondary movement as well. Usually for 2-3 sets of 10-20 reps. A good protocol one of my clients had success with was 10,10,10+, if he got 14 or more on the last set, we would up the load the following week.
@@mertcandurak518 above the knee is just a for fun lift, do at your own risk, it’s not a great training stimulus unless your goal is to break the world record in the above the knee rack pull
Hey Alex I do ppl split and one guy recommended me to not train chest and then tricep but to do chest exercises one after another to keep intensity higher. Same for back. And supersetting chest and tricep If I want to do them together Is it true that it needs to be done like this?
Hey Alex, since I haven't been here in ages, I have a question. Your training used to be focused around building specific muscle groups (back, neck ect). Since then, you have even competed in bodybuilding. Does the book include the more recent approach your training has evolved to?
Was updated in December of 2019, so we're talking 3 years in the past of no changes. Still works but my system is quite different now, for my current needs. 2 sets with different exercises.
Do you think, especially the lower traps, the infraspinatus and the teres are muscle groups, which have potencial on even the Most advanced nattys? Because Most row Just 45 to 90 degrees and dont do high rows?
I do, and in these last few years those areas have thickened up quite a bit for me. I believe this is due to hitting new angles and getting a lot stronger.
@@AlexLeonidas OK interesting. I Hope including a high row and lower trap shrugging(the First Part of a pull Up) can give me Some new visual growth because i have done Just normal machine rows barbell row etc and lat pulldowns especially pull ups,
Wait, am i wrong or is it just that the closer the elbow is to you body the more its width and further away means more thickness, regardless of direction of pulling?
Generally, closer to your body means more lat recruitment, thus more width. It's more complicated than that, though. For instance, the standard lat pulldown (overhand, elbows way out to the sides) absolutely hammers the teres, which contributes to width (tbh, that technique should really be called a "teres pulldown"). Conversely, Yates row - a narrow-grip barbell row with a relatively upright torso, something like 30-45 degrees of lean as opposed to the standard 90-ish - is excellent for upper back thickness, especially traps (waaay better than shrugs, IMO).
Imo if ur doing the rows with flared elbows for traps ur good. I think if ur targetting lats with the rows u might be doing a little too much for them.
I still rememeber your 'bench and pullups' arc from a while back. Really made me see the true potential of pullups!
Ah yes, with the two montages that came out in the same year! Been specializing since late 2017
I’m glad I discovered that video back when I first started training. 5 years later and I’m still doing pull ups. Safe to say my back is one of my best body parts since I’ve always done pull ups since the very beginning!
Making those 150’s look light brother 💪💪
Heaviest they go in this gym! Will need a custom heavier set soon 💪💪
Width:
Shoulder adduction; example: wide grip pullup
Shoulder extension; example: close grip row/pulldown, straight arm pushdown
Thickness:
Scapular retraction; example: rows, especially wide grip rows to chest
RDLs and SLDLs can make you pretty thick too
@@iangraham-white5717
Use those for your gorilla glutes and hamstrings, they are not back exercises although they will contribute to some growth
@@iangraham-white5717 RDL and SLDL hit the spinal erectors, lower back.
@@iangraham-white5717 DL better
@@iangraham-white5717how so?
Horizontal trains my ego and vertical humbles me. The perfect sinergy
😂 this is so true
there is good carryover between the two unless the person particularly lacks in one area. at least in my personal experience.
It's the opposite for me lol. I'm stronger at vertical
as a fat guy I Started doing pull ups thanks to your inspiration, from negatives and band assisted to 2-3 solid reps chin above bar. I always follow with PullDowns, Deadlifts and Tbar rows.
I just found out that I've been deceiving myself for a month doing wide grip pullups and making myself believe I was doing your super wide grip pullups... Today I finally tried the correct super wide grip pull up and holy shit they're amazing
At least you thickened up your upper back (normal wide will do that) I too made that mistake, now arms are on the edges of the pullup bar. The "armpit sensation" is on a different level eh!?
That Leonidas Strong shirt is badass
Today volume workout
Wide weighted pullups 4×8
Dead dumbbell row 3×10
Wide grip band row 3×33 (light×2)
Band face pull 3×33
@@unovabased44 its simple 🤷♂️
@@unovabased44
That is ok volume, three back exercises and one rear delt exercise.
the second exercise is with bands and 30+ reps. im pretty sure thats only positive for recovery and blood flow@@unovabased44
@@unovabased44 I just do 3 sets of pullups for back and thats it, is that good? (3x a week)
bet you don’t go to failure on half of those sets… way too much
Thank you for all your advice Alex, I very been doing pullups alot and your videos are a go to for me , much appreciated , 200lbs and finally getting a strong 5x5 with 45lbs
Very good Alex l do this for years one vertical with low reps like 5-8 and than horizontal with high reps 8-12 and variations of this
Loving the shorts recently man.
Great video mr destiny
Thanks OG Matt!
Thank you for validating my lifting routine 🙇♂️🙇♂️🙇♂️
I like to do pull-ups. Rows. Then Pull-overs. Not sure what the later is for but it gets my back pumped like nothing else.
I do the same it works.
What about
1. Pullups 3sets
2. Stable rows 4sets
3. Diagonal pulls 2sets
4. Reverse pec deck 3sets
Reverse pec deck is awesome it’s been blowing up my upper back
Fantastic exercise selection, I just don't get the varying sets. I would do 2 sets for every exercise.
@@AlexLeonidas my reasoning is the following , might be so wrong tho. I'm an early intermediate so I believe I could use a bit more volume as my total load isn't as heavy as advanced lifters.
For pullups i try to get 0 RIR on the last set and progress with wave loading. Three sets would be more beneficial for me in terms of strength gains.
For chest supported rows I could go a bit heavier volume for my relatively low total weights. (Might tune this back down to three sets tho)
Diagonal rows I simply add as a bit extra volume.
I'm going to town on the chest expander for upper back. Glad you recommended them!
Yes, this is exactly the rule i follow and apply to my clients!
I like to round the upper back on meadows & DB rows for the extra stretch. Feels insane
Really hits different. I have such long arms the dumbbells touch the ground if I really let my arms hang stretching my back
Meadows rows are awesome. Started doing them recently, don't think anything else has hit my rhomboids so hard. Crazy stimulus on rear delts too.
if you want both, do a high row, unless they're isolateral which can make them more lat bias than any bilateral pull, which are amazing but they mess your lats up more than anything else.
Neautral bar pullups with my chest up as much as humanly possible hits my mid/upper back and rear delts like crazy, not to mention the teres and the lats nearer the spine. I think done this way they can definitely build thickness
Simple tip: do everything
This
1. t bar row
2. pull up
3. machine row
Hey Alex, do you consider pullovers as a vertical pull or its own movement pattern? And what about adding shrugs as your 3rd back movement?
I asked the same thing about pullovers, but then deleted it. Pretty sure it's vertical. Your upper arm path is almost identical to the bottom portion of a pull-up. Though, I'm open to being corrected.
He's talking about compounds in this video . Pullover is isolation.
@@Kyriakoskarystinos
an isolation that hits your pecs, triceps, serratus, and lats, among others?
@@Juneof1944 easily turned into lat isolation if you really want to. Rest muscles aren't hit sufficiently anyway . ( Pec squeeze at the concentric , never being able to reach anywhere near close to failure on triceps ).
@@Kyriakoskarystinos
Just because you're hitting the lats the hardest doesn't mean it's not a compound. Is the bench press not a compound because it, far and away, hits the chest the most?
my upperback is both thin and narrow LMAO time to do more back days
Quality content
On all levels
Thank you very much!
Doing a fullbody routine 3 day x week, I do Chin Up and dumbbell row First day, Barbell row second day, and N grip pull up with wide grip T-Bar row third day. What do you think?
yo Alex love the content. So you‘re saying even though I wanna emphasises upper back (I am an early intermediate and definitely got more width than thickness) I should do pull-ups before rows? I get they‘re more difficult but wouldn‘t starting with a row and hitting a pull-up/pulldown after that be better for my goals?
Thanks man
Hi, please can you help me out?
I have an imbalance on my lats, I work out at home and have no machines at all. I know I should do unilaterally but I don't know what exercises to help fix it. Please assist me!!
Archer ring chins, high one arm inverted rows, one arm band rows, one arm cable pulls or laying rows (get the BOS attachment), and of course db rows. A million ways to solve this, and I train at home 9/10 times. No machines needed.
@AlexLeonidas thank you so much, u my inspiration dude. I will definitely try this.
Much love ❤️
Just deadlift and pulldowns nothing fancy n nothing to get confused 😅
I've been doing pull-ups, Chinups and neutral grip pull ups and then BB rows, I've gained bunch of width
Was that alex leonidas or bald omni man with that durag on😂?
Invited to the cookout brotha👍
Confused, is th dumbell row for lower lats for width?
I like pendley style meadows rows and then stricter dumbbell rows with neutral grip. Both can be loaded up likw crazy and serve slightly different purpose.
The real question is which is more chad? Dumbbell rows or meadows rows?
@@iangraham-white5717 unstoppable force vs immovable object situation
Alex would chest expander replace an extra row if looking for thickness or would you do 1 pull-up 2 rows AND chest expander?
In my opinion, it could replace a row. If you did 2 vertical pulls, 1 horizontal.. then the expander motion right after covers the thickness demand.
pain and pleasure.
Do you think splitting up vertical pulling and pressing on one day then horizontal pulling and pressing on another is a good way to split your upper body days?
Is starting off back day with 10 sets of 10 bodyweight pull-ups totaling 100 with equal sets of neutral and overhand grip overkill ?
Or upright Rows? (Arent these also a vertical pull just different direction)
Can it be lat pull down and single arm dumbbell row and lastly pullovers?
That's an easy recovery combo, I like it.
Hey alex, recently i took a deload and came back with a new program with planned intensity and volume, doing 3x full body a week
I dont feel much of a pump in them though. The soreness is also not that bad, i can recover and progress by doing 1-2 more reps in the next session. But is not feeling the pump a problem? Should i increase my sets? I do RPE 7-8, then as i approach the end of the mesocycle, i go RPE 9-10.
I hit a 225 bench !!
Grats on the big 2 plate mark!!
Are you running any particular program?
How do you reach a 225 bench without getting fat?? I'm 5'7 and 185 and only benching 165Ibs for reps...(i bench 2 sets 3x a week)... Should I switch to dumbells?? Ive been stuck and it sucks
what if i can't do pullups since i have a shoulder condition that prevents me from doing overhead movements. Are rows enough by themselves?
What are your thoughts on varying your grip for each set?
I personally do this on pullups. 1 set chin, 1 set super wide. Then I switch to lat pulldowns.
@@AlexLeonidas nice. I've always done that too. It intuitively makes sense to me, but it's nice to hear that someone with a god tier back does the same thing. Especially because my back is my worst body part.
Are rack pull and power shrug 3 compounds included? How can we include them?
Rack pulls throw in as an ME lift, or as a secondary movement for something like a 2-3x3-5 or 5-8. Power shrugs I like to throw in as a secondary movement as well. Usually for 2-3 sets of 10-20 reps. A good protocol one of my clients had success with was 10,10,10+, if he got 14 or more on the last set, we would up the load the following week.
@@mertcandurak518 above the knee is just a for fun lift, do at your own risk, it’s not a great training stimulus unless your goal is to break the world record in the above the knee rack pull
Im struggling with finding a way to do stable rowing, I dont got anywhere to support my chest and it takes quite a toll on my legs
Hey Alex I want to be wide but also yoked, what should my back/pull day look like?
1 vertical pull, 1 horizontal, pullovers, rear delts, and shrugs for traps
Hey Alex I do ppl split and one guy recommended me to not train chest and then tricep but to do chest exercises one after another to keep intensity higher. Same for back. And supersetting chest and tricep If I want to do them together
Is it true that it needs to be done like this?
Depends. Don’t work tricep at all before pressing, do pressing first. But you could do tricep before flys, as you don’t really use triceps on flys
Hey Alex, since I haven't been here in ages, I have a question. Your training used to be focused around building specific muscle groups (back, neck ect). Since then, you have even competed in bodybuilding. Does the book include the more recent approach your training has evolved to?
Was updated in December of 2019, so we're talking 3 years in the past of no changes. Still works but my system is quite different now, for my current needs. 2 sets with different exercises.
Got it, thanks man
Yo Alex what are your thoughts on sldl to build posterior chain?
Great for more hamstrings and spinal erectors. For glutes, I prefer RDLs.
When will you release your book?
No date as of yet
Do you think, especially the lower traps, the infraspinatus and the teres are muscle groups, which have potencial on even the Most advanced nattys? Because Most row Just 45 to 90 degrees and dont do high rows?
I do, and in these last few years those areas have thickened up quite a bit for me. I believe this is due to hitting new angles and getting a lot stronger.
@@AlexLeonidas OK interesting. I Hope including a high row and lower trap shrugging(the First Part of a pull Up) can give me Some new visual growth because i have done Just normal machine rows barbell row etc and lat pulldowns especially pull ups,
Why are you doing rows at the rack?
Efficiency, and I don't need a bench for stability.
@@AlexLeonidas bothering other people though? No? They can't approach and take/leave their weights.
What about ATK rack pulls?
Best row variations to build thickness?
dumbbell rows
Do rack chins count as vertical or horizontal?
Diagonal but it's going to be more lat but I would consider it a vertical pull
I do 2 of each on pull days
Wait, am i wrong or is it just that the closer the elbow is to you body the more its width and further away means more thickness, regardless of direction of pulling?
Generally, closer to your body means more lat recruitment, thus more width. It's more complicated than that, though. For instance, the standard lat pulldown (overhand, elbows way out to the sides) absolutely hammers the teres, which contributes to width (tbh, that technique should really be called a "teres pulldown").
Conversely, Yates row - a narrow-grip barbell row with a relatively upright torso, something like 30-45 degrees of lean as opposed to the standard 90-ish - is excellent for upper back thickness, especially traps (waaay better than shrugs, IMO).
in 2024 who wants to be “wide”? we thicc bois now WE ROW FOR HOES!!!
For the algorithm
I wish they had 150 cause highest gym is 125 i curl that ez 😂i don't touch pullups or chin ups i shud tho
However Alex does it, it's all for thickness. 😳
Do you think its risky to do dumbbell rows with lighter weight after doing 5 sets of 100 lbs weighted pull ups ?
Imo if ur doing the rows with flared elbows for traps ur good. I think if ur targetting lats with the rows u might be doing a little too much for them.
Nope, just to say I hit the 150s at the END of my workout. DB rows are one of the safest variations you can do, even without chest support.