The Ultimate Guide to Back Workouts: Build Width, Thickness, and Real Strength
A complete physique isn’t complete without a strong, thick, and wide back. You can have shredded abs, capped shoulders, or big arms—but if your back is underdeveloped, you’ll never look truly powerful from any angle.
Yet most lifters treat back day like an afterthought. They focus on chest, arms, or shoulders, and hit the back with a few sets of half-hearted rows. That’s a mistake.
In this guide, you’ll learn how to build a back that demands respect—with strategies, structure, and proven exercises for maximum width, density, and strength.
Back Muscle Anatomy: Know What You’re Training
A well-developed back is made up of several major muscle groups, each responsible for a different movement and appearance:
✅ Latissimus Dorsi (Lats)
- Function: Pull the arms down and back
- Importance: Creates the “V-taper” and back width
- Best trained with: Pull-ups, pulldowns, rows
✅ Trapezius (Traps)
- Upper traps: Elevate the shoulders
- Mid traps: Retract the scapulae
- Lower traps: Depress the scapulae
- Best trained with: Shrugs, rows, face pulls
✅ Rhomboids
- Function: Pull shoulder blades together
- Importance: Adds thickness between the shoulder blades
- Best trained with: Rows, face pulls
✅ Erector Spinae (Lower Back)
- Function: Spine extension and stability
- Best trained with: Deadlifts, back extensions, good mornings
✅ Teres Major & Minor / Rear Deltoids
- Assist in pulling and rotational movement
- Often undertrained—leads to weak upper back
- Best trained with: Rear delt flys, reverse pec deck, face pulls
Back Training Goals: Width vs. Thickness
If you want to build an elite back, you need to train with purpose.
🔹 Back Width = Lats
- Goal: A wide, V-shaped back that pops from the front and back
- Best Exercises: Pull-ups, chin-ups, lat pulldowns, straight-arm pulldowns
🔹 Back Thickness = Mid Traps, Rhomboids, Erectors
- Goal: Dense, 3D back from the side and rear
- Best Exercises: Barbell rows, T-bar rows, rack pulls, seated cable rows
A complete back workout targets both.
Top 10 Back Exercises for Mass and Strength
These exercises are proven to build serious size, strength, and definition.
Deadlift
- The king of full-body lifts
- Builds thickness from traps to glutes
- Best for: Strength, posterior chain development
- Sets/Reps: 3–5 sets of 3–6 reps (heavy)
Pull-Ups / Chin-Ups
- Bodyweight back builder
- Pull-ups = wider grip = more lats
- Chin-ups = more biceps + upper lats
- Sets/Reps: 4 sets to failure or weighted for 6–10 reps
Barbell Rows (Overhand or Underhand)
- Great for back thickness and mid-back activation
- Underhand hits lats more, overhand hits traps and rhomboids
- Sets/Reps: 4 sets of 8–10 reps
Lat Pulldown (Wide Grip)
- Ideal for isolating lats if you struggle with pull-ups
- Controlled movement = great mind-muscle connection
- Sets/Reps: 3–4 sets of 10–12 reps
T-Bar Rows
- Power movement for mid-back mass
- Allows heavy loading without stressing lower back like barbell rows
- Sets/Reps: 3–4 sets of 8–12 reps
Seated Cable Row
- Constant tension = excellent for building back density
- Use various handles (close grip, wide grip, neutral)
- Sets/Reps: 3–4 sets of 12–15 reps
Straight-Arm Pulldown
- Isolates lats with a sweeping, controlled motion
- Great for pre-exhaustion or finishers
- Sets/Reps: 3 sets of 15–20 reps
Face Pulls
- Targets rear delts and traps
- Improves posture and shoulder health
- Sets/Reps: 3 sets of 15–20 reps
Rack Pulls
- Deadlift variation emphasizing upper back and traps
- Allows heavier loads than full-range deadlifts
- Sets/Reps: 3–4 sets of 5–8 reps
Reverse Pec Deck or Rear Delt Flys
- Helps complete the upper back and deltoid tie-in
- Prevents shoulder imbalances
- Sets/Reps: 3 sets of 12–20 reps
Sample Back Workouts (by Level)
Beginner Back Workout (2x/week)
- Lat Pulldown – 3×10
- Seated Row – 3×12
- Dumbbell Deadlift – 3×8
- Straight-Arm Pulldown – 2×15
- Face Pulls – 2×20
Intermediate Back Workout (Heavy + Volume Days)
Day 1 (Heavy):
- Deadlift – 4×5
- Barbell Row – 4×8
- Pull-Ups – 3xAMRAP
- Face Pulls – 3×15
Day 2 (Volume):
- Lat Pulldown – 4×12
- T-Bar Row – 3×10
- Rear Delt Flys – 3×15
- Straight-Arm Pulldown – 3×15
- Rack Pulls – 3×6
Advanced Back Day (Complete Width & Thickness Focus)
- Pull-Ups (Weighted) – 4×8
- Barbell Rows – 4×10
- T-Bar Rows – 3×12
- Lat Pulldown – 3×15
- Rack Pulls – 3×5
- Rear Delt Flys – 3×20
- Straight-Arm Pulldown – 3×20 (burnout set)
Back Training Strategies for Lifters of All Levels
✅ Use a Mix of Angles and Grips
- Wide grip = lats
- Neutral grip = rhomboids
- Underhand = more biceps + lower lats
✅ Control the Eccentric
Don’t just yank the weight—control the negative phase to create more muscle damage and growth.
✅ Prioritize the Back Early in Your Workout
If your back is lagging, start with your hardest back movement before any other muscle group.
✅ Don’t Rely on Just One Movement
A strong back needs rows, pulldowns, pulls, and stretches. No single lift will do it all.
✅ Track Volume and Progress
8–16 hard sets per week is ideal for most lifters. Progressively overload over time—more weight, more reps, better form.
Common Back Training Mistakes
- Too Much Momentum – Swinging your body defeats the purpose of controlled back work
- Neglecting Rear Delts and Lower Traps – Leads to imbalances and poor posture
- Overemphasizing Deadlifts Alone – Deadlifts are great, but not enough for full development
- Not Feeling the Muscle Work – Use straps if grip is limiting, and master form before chasing weight
Final Takeaways: The Back Is Built, Not Born
A thick, wide back doesn’t happen by accident. It takes intentional training, consistent effort, and intelligent exercise selection.
If you want a physique that looks dominant from every angle—stage, gym, or shirtless—the back needs to be a top priority. With this guide and the back workouts included, you’ve got everything you need to train your back like a pro.
