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Hey fellas,

I′m going to have a back workout tomorrow and can′t decide which back exercise I want to do. I′ve done close-grip underhand chins for a long time, but find it very hard to make any increases. Reverse-grip rows worked well, but it isn′t easy to do any kind of intensity-increasing technique with them.

From all of the underhand chins and deadlifts I′ve done, I have fairly good back thickness, but now I want to work on width. Viewed from the side, my back curves like a question mark, but doesn′t flare out much on the sides. I read everwhere that wide grip chins are best for width, but can′t seem to find any evidence for their assertions.

Analyzer, I know you are quite proficient in muscle physiology, so do you know if this is true?

Chris

Wide grip chins or pulldowns are inferior to close grip palms up pulldowns as they don′t provide as much pre stretch to the lats thereby ensuring a less intense contraction. They also place the biceps in their weakest position (the prone position). No exercise will specifically widen the lats. Properly performed lat exercises will however make the lats larger and thus somewhat wider. For more detail on this refer to any of Mikes books or if you don′t have them, you can read the information for free in Arthur Jones′s nautilus bulletins which are available for viewing on the I-A-R-T website under articles.

Adman′s correct. I would just stick the close-grip palms up chin-ups or pulldowns.

Darrell

chin ups will always be superior to pulldowns. It recruits the fibers in a different manner

I feel you pain on not being able to increase strenght on chins. They are a great exercise but hard to get stronger on.

Untill now!!!

whehter i did high volume or low volume chins. i never got stronger…..training to failure..

heres the solution

do multiple sets with sub failure.

i prefer rack chins(palms facing out) compared to regular chins. I feel them SO MUCH more in back.

i know this goes against HD but give it a try. very low intensity sets. overlaod on volume. then decrease some the volume, add some reps to your sets and then repeat.

Thank me later.

Yes, wide grip hits the teres major much more, a closer grip, with the back ARCHED is the best way to hit the lats. It′s not bad to develope the teres major but it will give you more width just in the arm pit area.

Hope that helps,

Az