10 Best New Workout Shoes

Best New Workout Shoes in 2023

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Sculpting the Female Body: 5 Great Exercises for a Complete Back Workout

Shaping your back with weight training can completely change the way you'll look the next time you put on a bathing suit or backless dress.

The three muscle groups of the back are the trapezius (traps), latissimus dorsi (lats) and erector spinae or spinal erectors.

The traps are used to pull your shoulders up and back. By developing these muscles well, you are creating the top of the hourglass that most women strive for.

The lats are used to pull the arms down and back. Development of these muscles adds to the hourglass shape by reducing the bulk around your upper ribs and trimming the transition from shoulders to waist.

Most people assume that crunches and similar abdominal exercises are what will trim their waist. What they don't realize is that by not training their spinal erectors (in the back), they are really only giving their waistline fifty percent of the effort it is due. The spinal erectors are the two vertical muscles that lie on either side of the spine along the lower back and are used when straightening the back from a bent-over position.

Keeping these muscle groups in mind, here are five key exercises for sculpting a sensational back:

Seated Pulley Row

This exercise is a great overall back exercise and develops all of the back muscles as well as the shoulders and arms. Insure that you are using the V-shaped handle that provides for a narrow grip with your palms facing toward each other. Grasping the handle, place your feet against the foot bars and sit on the seat with your legs slightly bent. (Keep your legs bent in this way throughout the exercise.) Start the exercise by leaning forward toward the pulley to allow for a complete stretch of your lats. Pulling your elbows in against your sides, sit erect and pull in the handle to touch your upper stomach. A slight arching of your back, without sitting back past a 90-degree angle, will give you optimal results. Slowly return to the start point of the exercise without allowing the weights to slam back onto the stack and repeat the movement for the appropriate number of repetitions.

Barbell Upright Row

This exercise works those muscles that create the top of the hourglass: traps, shoulders and arms. Standing erect, assume a narrow grip (the distance of two thumb lengths apart) in the middle of a barbell with your palms facing your body. Start the exercise with the barbell across your thighs and your arms straight. Pull the barbell up vertically and close to your body by pulling your elbows upward and keeping your hands always below the level of your elbows. Once the bar reaches your neck level, pause momentarily for a full contraction of the traps and then, in a controlled manner, lower the bar back to the start position.

Stiff-Legged Deadlift

The Deadlift not only works the entire back, but it also helps to shape the hips and thighs. Stand with your shins just grazing the barbell. Bend down and grasp the bar with a comfortable, shoulder-width grip. (Remember to keep the bar close to your body at all times.) Using the power of your legs and back, stand up straight, lifting the weight from floor level. This is not a power move but one that should be done slowly and in a controlled manner, all the while keeping your arms straight and your back as flat as possible. Once the bar reaches your upper thigh with your arms extended, you have reached the top position of the exercise. Hold that position for a few seconds and then slowly lower the weight back to the start position, just short of reaching the floor. Continue, without touching the floor with the weight, for the appropriate number of repetitions.

Lat Pulldown

This exercise directly works the lats while providing additional toning to the shoulders and arms. It is quite easy to abuse this particular exercise with poor form, so remember that you will not receive the benefits of it unless you practice strict form throughout the exercise. While standing, take an overhand grip on the wide lat machine handle with your hand set just wider than the width of your shoulders. Keep this grip while positioning yourself on the seat and wedging your knees beneath the restraint rollers to keep your body firmly in position throughout the exercise. (You should never bounce up from the seat at any point in this exercise.) Keeping your back slightly arched and always working in a slow and controlled manner, pull your elbows down and back as you pull the bar down to slightly touch your upper chest. Hold that contraction for a moment and then return to the starting position without rising from your seat.

Hyperextension

Also called the Back Extension, this is an excellent exercise for cinching the waist and helping all of those crunches give you the waistline you really want. It also helps to firm the buttocks and thighs. Using the bench specifically constructed for this exercise, stand in the middle of it facing the larger pad with the smaller pads behind you. Gripping the handles in front of you, lean forward and adjust your body into a position with your hips across the large pad and the backs of your ankles under the smaller pads. Your upper body will be unsupported. Cross your arms over your chest or place your hands behind your neck and bend forward at the waist until your torso is hanging vertically toward the floor. Slowly bring your upper body upward, using only your back muscles, until your back is slightly more than parallel to the floor. To avoid compression of your vertebrae, do not overly arch your back. After reaching the peak, slowly return your body to the (vertical) starting position and repeat the movement.

By keeping good form while doing these exercises, no matter how much weight you use, you should see the top of that hourglass begin to take on a great new shape.