Have You Been Overlooking This Great Exercise?

Tell an experienced Personal Trainer that you are having difficulties performing pull ups and he/she will know that scapular retraction training is required. Good scapular retraction offers stability to the shoulder joints which allows the necessary back muscles to engage correctly during the activity of the pull up. The Trainer will more than often prescribe the old and trusted Inverted Rows exercise to improve scapular retraction.

This exercise, along with incorporating the negative phases of several other exercises into your regular training will definitely help you to improve your pull up capabilities. Unfortunately though, this fantastic compound exercise for the back is often overlooked in everyday, regular training.

Here are 5 Reasons why you should make Inverted Rows an integral part in your training programs.

1.  Expensive equipment is not required

All you need is a securely fixed horizontal pole or bar of some description. These are easily found.

2.  They are ideal for everyone

Due to the fact that it’s near impossible to round the back during this exercise as opposed to other types of row exercises, even the novice can perform this exercise without compromising their back health.

3.  The muscle groups are worked differently

Pull Ups and Inverted Rows both target the same muscles – the traps, rhomboids, biceps, and core, but these exercises work the muscles from different angles to each other.  So, even if you are a whiz at Pull Ups, you are short changing your back muscles if you are only doing Pull Ups for your back workout.

4. You can gain better strength

Inverted Rows aid in improving the strength of a person’s scapular retraction. This usually spells an improvement to the amount of weight they are able to move.

5. Inverted Rows aid in the prevention of Injuries

Most daily activities involve the internal rotation of the shoulders which can lead to muscular imbalances that can result in chronic shoulder, neck, and upper back pain. Inverted Rows are ideal for strengthening the important back muscles to help maintain good balance of the upper body.

5 Quick Points on how to perform an Inverted Row:

1. Lie on the floor underneath a bar
2. Grab the bar using an overhand grip
3. Engage your abs and pull your chest up to the bar, while maintaining a straight body at all times.
4. At the top of the exercise contract your shoulder blades together for a count of two seconds before returning slowly to the starting position.

For further instructions on how to increase the effectiveness of this exercise, contact a Striders Personal Trainer today.