Row Right: Get More Bang for Your Back
by Mike Robertson

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Big backs are way cool. Whether
it's the back of a bodybuilder like Dorian Yates or Ronnie Coleman, a
powerlifter like Ed Coan, or an Olympic lifter like Pyrros Dimas, big
backs are a byproduct of moving heavy iron for an extended period of
time. You can't pump and cramp your way to a big back. One
of the all-time great movements to develop your back is the row. In
fact, it's so good I devoted an entire article to the row and its
variations in Wanna Grow? Gotta Row.
While I gave some great tips on proper execution, I've come to the
realization that tons of people still don't understand how to row
correctly.

The functional anatomy Rowing
variations will develop three primary muscle groups: the middle
trapezius, the rhomboids, and the latissimus dorsi. For the sake of
brevity, let's examine the muscles of the mid back (middle traps and
rhomboids), as they are typically our primary target. Note that in the above paragraph I did not
mention that the spinal erectors are targeted here. This may come as a
shock to many who are writhing around instead of performing a clean,
strict row, but we'll get into that later. Just remember that the
target is the mid-back and we're good. When rowing, the primary
movement we're looking for is scapular retraction, or a pinching
together of the shoulder blades. In fact, as you'll see, focusing on or
visualizing the movement of the scapulae during a row is a sure-fire
way to help improve your performance.

Performance and Execution This
is where things get fuzzy. I can't tell you how many quirky variations
of rows I've seen in the gym. Regardless, there's a right way and a
wrong way to row. Hopefully this next section will help. Regardless
of which bilateral rowing variation you've chosen (bent-over, low
cable, inverted, etc.), the basic principles must always be adhered to.
Start with your elbows extended and allow your shoulder blades to
protract, or "drift," to get a slight pre-stretch on the middle traps,
rhomboids, and lats. From the stretched position, think about pulling through
your elbows and actively squeezing the shoulder blades back and
together. As you perform this part of the movement, make sure to stay
tall and don't lean back! If you have to lean back, chances are the
weight is too heavy. As you return to the starting position,
think about allowing your shoulder blades again to "drift' and glide
around your rib cage until you get a stretch in the mid-back and lats.

If
you're performing a single-arm/unilateral variation, performance should
be identical. One flaw you'll see quite frequently, however, is where
someone substitutes torso rotation for scapular protraction and
retraction. Keep the torso rigid throughout. Whether you're using a
unilateral or bilateral exercise, the key to proper execution lies
within the shoulder blades. If you can imagine your shoulder blades
gliding from front to back, you'll be that much closer to performing a
flawless row.

Common Rowing Mistakes As I stated before, the row should
be an extremely easy exercise, but very rarely do I see people
performing it correctly. Maybe I'm just a stickler when it comes to
technique, but I also expect that if you include an exercise in your
program, you actually want to get certain benefits from its inclusion!
Rhomboid dominance This
is quite common, and something I've only recently started to notice
following a lengthy discussion with Bill Hartman. When you see someone
who is rhomboid dominant try to row, they are constantly holding a
slightly retracted scapular position. Instead of allowing the
rhomboids, lats and middle trapezius to stretch at the beginning and
end of each repetition, they maintain a slight retraction. A
verbal cue may be all that's necessary. If not, try using a partner's
hands to "guide" the scapulae into protraction. More times than not,
though, you'll need to drop the weight and groove your technique from
there.
Johnny Biceps We've all seen
this guy before. He's got huge friggin' arms and he wants to use them
on every single exercise, even ones where he shouldn't be emphasizing
them! Instead of pulling cleanly through the elbows, Johnny
Biceps wants to "curl" the weight instead of row it. This is very easy
to spot as there's minimal retraction at the midpoint, and quite often
this person can't even get their hands to the chest/abdomen.
To
rectify this, have Johnny relax his biceps and instead think about
driving the elbows back. This simple cue will generally help to engage
the appropriate musculature while disengaging the biceps.
Hinging at the lumbar spine I'm
going to say this once and for all: this is a weight-lifting row, not a
rowing exercise. If you're flexing and extending your lumbar spine
while rowing in the weight room, let me forward you my contact
information because you'll be needing some low back rehab in the future! When
I was coming up I frequently saw magazines like Flex and Muscle and
Fitness where the "pros" (who probably didn't even write the article),
advocated flexing the lumbar spine forward to get a pre-stretch, and
then extending the lumbar spine to help initiate with retraction.
Last
time I checked, rows were a mid-back exercise, not a low back exercise.
Leave the low back out and focus on developing the appropriate areas
and you'll be just fine.
Leanin' back worse than Fat Joe Leaning
back when rowing is generally seen when someone has too much weight on
the bar (or machine), and instead of retracting at the midpoint, leans
back with their upper torso. This gives the appearance (and to some
extent the feel) of scapular retraction, but is in fact a compensation
that should be addressed.
Don't lean back: you may end up looking like Fat Joe. If
this person is doing everything else right, just drop the weight a
little bit and cue them to focus on staying tall and retracting versus
leaning back at the midpoint. With good cuing and less weight, this
problem is easy enough to solve.
Note:
For extremely high-level strength athletes, there is some leeway with
regards to this tip. I'll concede there can be some very slight
cheating, but this should be reserved for the advanced trainee. Of
course, if you're 130 pounds dripping weight, you're not advanced and so you don't need to worry about this technique. Leave it for the big dogs. And
for those of you who caught the Fat Joe reference, let me say this once
and for all: dude can't rap worth crap, but he'll continue to get paid
as long as he keeps Lil' Wayne on his albums. Just my $0.02.
Torso rotation on unilateral variations Torso
rotation, our final flaw, is only evident in the unilateral variations
due to the rotational forces produced. In this case, the trainee has a
tendency to rotate around either the upper thoracic, or in some cases,
the lower lumbar vertebrae. This is typically seen in someone who has
poor scapular control/stability.
To
correct this flaw, think about "locking down" the entire torso, making
it as rigid as possible. From this position, focus on allowing the
scapulae to glide into protraction and retraction. Dropping the weight
is pretty much inevitable here.

A Progression to Get that Row up to Snuff If
you know anything about me or my training philosophy, you know I like
to have a progression or rationalization for everything I do. If you
can't rationalize why you're doing something, why are you doing it? And
along those same lines, if you're weak as a kitten you don't need to
progress into the most difficult variations of any exercise. Whenever
you're working on technique, always utilize the exercise that's the
simplest to perform from a complexity standpoint to ensure that you're
doing it correctly. In other words, if you aren't strong enough to do
an inverted row yet, don't do it! Start with a lower level exercise
like a low cable row to hone your technique and develop the appropriate
musculature. I
think it's interesting that even my really out-of shape clients can
almost always do body weight drills for the lower body, but quite a few
middle-aged men can't do one single pull-up, inverted row, or push-up!
Understand that body weight exercises for the upper and lower body are
different beasts, and treat them that way. Progressing on
rowing exercises is pretty easy. I'll have my clients start with a
low-level exercise like a low cable or supine row in the beginning to
make sure they're performing the exercise correctly and without
compensation. Once they've mastered this, we can either progress to a
higher weight or transition them to body weight variations such as
inverted rows, dependent upon their goals. For higher level athletes
who aspire to more than body weight mastery, you'll eventually need to
come back to the big, basic rowing variations and start piling on the
weight to build the back you desire.

Conclusion As
I stated in the beginning, big backs are way cool. While some guys like
to brag about their arm size, a big, strong back is silent evidence
that you've paid your dues with the iron. No bragging required. Now go pay your dues.

About the Author
Mike
Robertson, MS, CSCS, USAW, is the President of Robertson Training
Systems and the Director of Custom Athletics in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Mike received his master's degree in sports biomechanics from the Human
Performance Lab at Ball State University.
To learn more about Mike, visit his website and be sure to check out his books at the Online Store.



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