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Key Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
1:13 Quick Lat Facts
1:47 Latissimus Dorsi Anatomy
2:17 Movements & Isolation Lat Exercises
4:07 Region-Specific Hypertrophy
5:04 Compound Lat Exercises (Pull-Ups, Lat Pulls, etc.)
6:45 Injuries & Mobility (Lat Stretching & Myofascial Release)
7:34 How to Access the Extended Mastery Version (Free Month)
8:03 Hypertrophy Total Back Program & Fitness-Tip Friday
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Did you know that the latissimus dorsi (aka the "lats") have inner and outer regions, and studies show they can be preferentially trained? And that if all you’re doing to work your lats are lat pulls, pull-ups, and straight-arm pull-downs, you’re only significantly engaging the middle region, and leaving massive "side-lat" gains on the table?" Or did you know that lat mobility training can prevent shoulder dislocations, relieve rotator cuff pain and even resolve lower back pain?
Well in this episode of my 5-Minute Muscle Series I’ll be going over absolutely everything you need to know, including a lot I guarantee you did not know, about training the largest back muscle - the latissimus dorsi or “lats”!
QUICK FACTS
-The lats cover more surface area on the body than any other muscle
-The medial fibers are mostly oriented horizontally, while the lateral fibers are mostly oriented vertically, which affects how they behave
-The lats are made up primarily of type 2 muscle fibers, so heavy, powerful, or explosive contractions will work them best
-There are more movements that work the lats than any other muscle in the body
-In some people, the lats are actually attached to the pecs or biceps, forcing those muscles to work together even more than they normally do
ISOLATION EXERCISES
-Because its origins are behind their insertion point on the arm, when the lats contract they perform shoulder extension. So exercises that pull the arm back from out front will target the lats. However, most people do these pull-downs with their arms pronated, when using a neutral arm actually activates the lats more
-Since its origins are also medial to their insertion, the lats also perform shoulder adduction, so exercises that pull the arm from the side back to a neutral position will target them as well. And again a neutral grip engages the lats the most.
-Because the lats wrap around the inside of the humerus, they also internally rotate the arm. So all internal rotation exercises work the lats, however doing the internal rotation with your shoulder abducted to the side targets the lats significantly more than when it’s adducted.
-Since the lats have origins that are below their insertion, they also perform shoulder depression. So exercises that pull the shoulders down also engage the lats. However shoulder depression works the lats best when the arms are fixed overhead, and the motion is angled backwards.
-Since the lats have origins that are below their insertion on the side of the body, they also perform lateral flexion of the spine. So exercises that pull the upper body to the side also target the lats.
REGION-SPECIFIC HYPERTROPHY
Studies show that the lats are functionally separated into two main regions, medial and lateral, or inner and outer. And each of the movements we just went over engages one region more than the other. The movements that preferentially work the inner lats are:
-Shoulder extension
-Shoulder adduction
-And internal rotation
While the movements that preferentially work the outer lats are:
-Shoulder depression
-Lateral flexion of the spine
-And Anterior pelvic tilt and lower spinal extension
So you can see that the only lat exercises that most people do (pull-ups, lat pulls, and straight-arm pull-downs) ALL preferentially target the inner lat region. While if you want to widen your back and get that lateral lat definition, you need to target the outer lat region!