STRONG BACK, STRONG PERSON (PART-1)

STRONG BACK, STRONG PERSON (PART 1)
By Shane Robert

Bill Starr, the eminent writer of all things strength, once told a story of going to the world weightlifting championships sometime in the 1960’s. Apparently, the Soviet lifters (as this was still when the Soviet Union existed) would greet their fellow competitors with a hearty hug. This hug, however, was not merely a grand gesture of peace and brotherhood. In fact, it was, in Starr’s words, rather more of a hug with a grope.

The Soviet lifters were (likely) not perverts, or at least perversion wasn’t their purpose in this particular instance. According to Starr, they were sizing up their competition by feeling the thickness and depth of the other lifters' lower backs; if the erector muscles of the lower back were thin and underdeveloped on a lifter it was believed that they were not much of a concern in the competition. Given the Soviet dominance of that era, I think it’s safe to say that most of the backs they felt were not up to standard. 

As I understand it, Mr. Starr was known, from time to time, to exaggerate for literary effect; so it’s possible that this story isn’t 100% true. I don’t care whether it is or not. I love it because it could be true. Regardless of its veracity, the moral remains the same — a strong back makes a strong person.  

You can’t cheat your way to a strong back. I have seen wide backs that don’t look strong despite their size. The lats, I think, can respond quite well to fluff and pump training and still grow wider. To get a back that looks strong and is strong, the kind of back that has depth and ridges like the Soviets were groping, takes a lot of heavy and hard training. For a weightlifter, years and years of snatching, cleaning and high pulling absolutely contribute to this, as well as variations of the squat. For the average person, it likely isn’t worth devoting the time required to learn the Olympic lifts (even though I love them), so snatching and cleaning are out. Of course, everyone already knows that they should be squatting.

Deadlifting is given a lot of credit as a back builder. I won’t disagree with that, but I do think it takes more than just deadlifts to get the kind of lumbar density we are after, not least because an ideal deadlift doesn’t use the back as the prime mover. Adding in other exercises for the erectors will carry over to a better deadlift. And squat. And basically make everything in life better.

There are 3 movements that I think are invaluable in the quest for a back like the Grand Canyon:

• 45-Degree Back Extensions
• Round Back Good Mornings with a safety bar or buffalo bar
• Farmer Walks 

I have long been a fan of any kind of back extensions, including the traditional 90-degree version. I came to prefer the 45-degree version for the simple reason that it is much easier to load. It is still kind of annoying to load as the weights increase to great high numbers, but the 90-degree is nearly impossible at pretty small weights without training partners, which I rarely have. Over time, I learned that the 45-degree version offers advantages over the 90. Firstly, the range of motion is generally greater on 45-degree extensions which means greater work and hypertrophy. Secondly, it’s simpler to bias pure back extension or more hip extension than the 90-degree version. With the latter, you have to move your body into a position on the bench that the bench wasn’t designed for and it can feel awkward; the 45-degree extension simply requires extending the pad up or down. Third and lastly, the 45-degree extension is much more comfortable. Doing 90-degree extensions with sore quads is a test of pain endurance and, for the biological males amongst us, there can be some real issues with anatomy and pad placement. 

Round back good mornings are one of the long list of verboten exercises from the past which is a real shame. I think they have great value if you aren’t a jerk and start too heavy. I prefer them with a cambered or buffalo bar, though a safety squat bar can work. A regular barbell can work as well, however it tends to roll and is much more uncomfortable. The advantage of the buffalo bar, besides not rolling, is that the weights swing forward as you bend down, forcing your whole back, not just the lumbars, to work to fight into the upright position. The execution is simple, bend over and go as low as you possibly can. I try to think, “touch your face to your knees.” If you’re using a safety squat bar, make sure to remove the handles to ensure as much ROM as possible, and consider turning it upside down. You will feel parts of your back working that you didn’t even know existed.  

Farmer walks are often associated with big strong traps. While that’s true, and awesome, I find them to be incredible for lower back size and strength. Ideally, you will have access to farmer’s handles or a trap bar so you can really load these up. Of course, kettlebells or dumbbells will work in the beginning, though dumbbells are kind of annoying because they hit your legs. Just a few sets of heavy farmers will work your whole back, from your tailbone to your ears. As a back exercise, I think it’s acceptable to go heavier than your grip allows and use straps. 

In part 2 I will go into more detail on how to properly perform these movements and how to incorporate them into a training program.