FORCE YOUR BACK TO GROW
If you want to refine and define your back, look elsewhere — because this hard-as-hell workout from Lawrence Ballenger is all about building ridiculous size.
You can say this about Lawrence Ballenger’s workouts: They’re absolutely relentless.
The 30-year-old MuscleTech Brand Ambassador expels every last ounce of effort from his first rep to his last, never sandbagging at the start of his workout even though he knows what’s to come by the end.
That’s the case with his brutal mass-building back regimen, a gauntlet of nine exercises with a set and rep scheme designed to deliver maximum shock — and maximum growth. “It’s so tough that when you’re finished, there’s no way you’ll need to do your back again for another week,” he warns with a chuckle.
Broken down into two parts, the routine begins with a focus on increasing overall thickness through the lats, mid- and upper back, with the latter portion of the session aimed at improving overall width. “I always recommend doing it in this order,” Ballenger says. “I notice that a lot of people don’t have a problem getting extra width in their back, but plenty don’t have that 3D effect with their back from the side or the rear. Concentrating on moves that add thickness gives you a fuller appearance.”
Here, step-by-step, Ballenger lays out the exercises, sets, reps and techniques he uses to build a back that’s impressive from all angles, starting with seated rows.
Exercise #1: Close-Grip Seated Cable Row
2-3 sets for 30 reps (warm-up), 4 sets of 10-15 reps (working)
“For the warm-ups, I’m using a light weight and focusing on bringing my shoulder blades together while getting a good squeeze,” Ballenger explains. “That’s important — most people forget to actively contract their scapulae. Try to pinch them together like there’s a pencil you’re trying to hold back there. I’ll have a partner sometimes put a finger on my spine as a cue. Think about the rep as two parts, first bringing the shoulder blades closer together and then pulling back with your elbows, keeping your arms tucked tight at your sides.”
During the working sets, Ballenger is pyramiding up the weight, while also making sure to maintain his body positioning to get the most out of the movement. “I lean back slightly so my torso isn’t at a 90-degree angle to the floor, but more like 70 to 80 degrees. That way, I’m not putting so much tension on my spinal erectors that they’ll burn out too early.”
Exercise #2: One-Arm Barbell Landmine Row (i.e., Meadows Row)
9 sets, pyramiding up for 5 sets of 10, then add five reps per set as you pyramid down for 4 sets (15, 20, 25, 30)
These bad boys — a favorite of IFBB pro and Mountain Dog founder John Meadows — are done with a barbell slid into a landmine on one end. (If your gym doesn’t have that, you can place the empty end of the barbell into a corner, or alternatively use a T-bar rowing station instead.) To get into position, Ballenger stands in front of the loaded end of the bar and turns so he is perpendicular to it, grabbing the end of the bar with a pronated (palms down) grip. He then bends at his hips so that his back is angled slightly higher than parallel to the floor, as if he was about to do a dumbbell row. (To see it, check out the short video on his Instagram page, linked here.)
“These are like dumbbell rows, except I feel like I can add more weight and that the stretch is a little bit better,” Ballenger says. “I start with one plate, grabbing the end of the bar with a strong grip. Then I row, bringing my elbow and shoulder blades back as my hand comes up toward my side. I’ll keep my other forearm on the same-side thigh for balance.” Ten reps on one side, and then he’ll switch positions so he’s facing the opposite direction for 10 reps with the other hand.
Each set, Ballenger slides a new plate onto the bar, and when he reaches a point he can no longer do 10 reps — often, that happens around five plates or so — he’ll start working his way back down a plate at a time. ‘I’ll do a set with four plates for 15 reps, then three for 20 reps, then two for 25, and finally one plate for 30,” he says. “Basically, each time I drop a plate I add five reps.” Between each set on the way up and down, he keeps his rest short, no more than 45 seconds.
Exercise #3: Bent-Over Barbell Row
1-2 sets for 8 reps (warm-up), 4 sets of 5 reps (working)
“Barbell rows are my heavy movement for the day,” Ballenger states. “I’ll start at 225 for 8 reps, and then maybe do another set around 300 before going to the working weight of 375. There, it’s 4 sets of five reps each.”
For those who may be wondering about “pacing” themselves at this point, the Chicagoan offers a stern warning. “People see how many exercises, sets and reps you have to do in this workout, and they’ll try to save something for the end,” he says. “But that’s not the purpose. You might start off with the first exercise doing the full weight stack on
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