I have been lifting for about 9 months and I do a back workout at least once if not twice a week. However, I have winged scaps from bad computer posture over the years and working to correct this.
I currently do 3x10 each of cable rows, t-rows, and rear delt machine.
However, I am beginning to feel this may not be an adequate back workout and would like to hear what you guys would recommend for a good overall quality back workout that would emphasize the rhomboids, middle and lower traps?
are you in physical therapy? i am no expert but going towards entering physical therapy school...did your condition result from work related tasks on the computer? if so i believe you should be covered right? anyway if i was a physical therapist i would probably suggest stregnthening your core muscles in order to balance out your posture( stability exercises, abdominal work, lower back work) if your condition is not that serious and you are just trying to build up muscle then add some deadlifts and bent over rows, and pullups!
__________________
Age=19 5\'5\" 156 lbs bf=10% Current Goal-Reach 163-165, and train to make a d-1 baseball team.
Originally posted by mikeden: I have been lifting for about 9 months and I do a back workout at least once if not twice a week. However, I have winged scaps from bad computer posture over the years and working to correct this.
I currently do 3x10 each of cable rows, t-rows, and rear delt machine.
However, I am beginning to feel this may not be an adequate back workout and would like to hear what you guys would recommend for a good overall quality back workout that would emphasize the rhomboids, middle and lower traps?
1) Ask Bill Hartman, aka the smartest man alive, this question.
2) Bill once told me to work on contracting my scapulae with isometric holds, 30 seconds for each set for three weeks, then 3 seconds for each set for 3 weeks, it worked! When you do a rowing movement, pretend there is a tin can between your shoulder blades and you are trying to crush it. This is the only advice I could give you on this stuff and it comes straight from what Bill Hartman told me to do.
3.) You could also check out t-nation.com and do a search for the neanderthal no more program.
My condition is not entirely work related, it started before hand as I am still a student but it's from too much improper posture at the computer. My PT told me that I need to work the rhomboids, middle/lower traps and serratus anterior to correct the winged scaps.
A couple of questions:
1) Do you suggest chin-ups or pull-ups? (I can't do a pull-up or chin-up without the assisted weight machine)
2) Would you do t-row, cable row, rear delt machine and pull-ups during the same workout?
3) How frequent and how many isometric scap retracting reps should one do?
None of this will really help scapular winging. The work for the traps is great but chances are the rhomboids are really tight and the serratus is quite weak. You need to really focus on strengthening them.
Search www.t-nation.com for scapular winging and look at some of the results. Don Allesi has written a couple articles over there on the subject.
Danny
__________________
Limitations are for people who have them.
Based on the responses, the serratus anterior is a very important scap retractor as well as the rhomboids and middle/lower traps and thus a weak serratus anterior is usually a cause of scap winging? Does the serratus have a more prominent role in scap retraction than the rhomboids and middle/lower traps?
The serratus anterior doesn't retract the scapula. It holds the scapula against the chest wall. So as the scapula wing outward the serratus should pull it back, but when they are weak and cannot fire properly its ends with the scapula jutting out too much.
There are others but this one was the first I found. Another great exercise is what Bill Hartman calls a Dip plus. Get in a dip position and instead of doing the full rep shrug your body upward. Its a very short range of motion.
Danny
__________________
Limitations are for people who have them.
Danny is right on, as usual. You can also do a Pushup Plus--from the top of a pushup position, keep your arms straight and "shrug" up and down. You'll feel it in your serratus.
Also, there's a good series of articles called "Neanderthal No More" also on t-nation.com. Try doing a search for it.
Linear Mode
