When it comes to upper back exercises at home, it’s very important to understand what muscles you’re working. This will allow you to get the results you want, and decrease your risk of injury. The best way to do this is to learn how to properly perform the exercise, then work them into a routine. You don’t need to worry if you have limited space in your home because all of these exercises can be safely performed with only a little room.
1. Pull ups
Pull ups can make all of the difference in a person’s fitness routine. Attach our pull up bar to a door frame and you’ve got everything you need for an efficient and effective workout. Not only are pull ups fun to do, but they also work both your upper and lower body at once, getting you a complete upper body workout that is impossible to match. But why should you try pull-ups in the first place? It all boils down to how well they work your actual muscles.
Here is how you do pull up:
- Start by holding the bar with your palms facing away from you and your arms fully extended.
- Bend your knees and bring your feet up behind you so that your whole body is hanging from the bar.
- Slowly pull yourself up until your chin is over the bar.
- Lower yourself back down to the starting position.
Do as many repetitions as you can, and then take a break. Remember to breathe while you are doing pull-ups, and focus on contracting your back and shoulder muscles as you pull yourself up.
Pull ups work a variety of muscles along with their natural range of motion and accentuate the coordination between multiple groups. The muscles they hit include shoulders and shoulder blades as well as your back, arms, triceps, and chest. So why is this so great? A good pull up routine can increase your muscular endurance and strength, boost your metabolism by forcing you to hold more calories in preparation for the exercise you’re about to take part in, help build your endurance to last longer in intensive sports practice and even improve hand-eye coordination. And the best part about all of this is that pull ups use little to no equipment, requiring only a bar from which to hang and supporting weight from your body.
2. Chin ups
Chin-ups can be considered one of the most overlooked exercises for building a muscular and aesthetically pleasing back. It’s a no-brainer that chin-ups are beneficial because they allow you to lift more weight than your standard pull up and are also safer on your shoulder joints. And here’s the ultimate bonus: chin-ups work the upper back (shoulders and rhomboids) like no other exercise, while also activating the biceps, triceps, and lower back to help you get that full lat spread look.
To do this exercise:
- Start by gripping the bar with your palms facing you and your hands shoulder-width apart.
- Hang from the bar with your arms fully extended and your feet off the ground.
- Pull yourself up until your chin is over the bar.
- Lower yourself back to the starting position.
Why do chin-ups? Because they’re awesome. Plain and simple. If you’re doing this exercise for back development, it serves as the pinnacle of upper body pulling exercises. It’s better than lat pulldowns, bent-over rows, inverted rows, and every other torso-flexion style exercise you can do in the gym. These are humungous compound movements that put more emphasis on the lats at the bottom of the movement, while also working to build up your lats and teres major further up in the range of motion.
3. Dumbbell bent over rows
The dumbbell bent-over row is mainly a back and bicep exercise but it can be an abdominal workout too. It mainly works the latissimus dorsi, which is the broadest muscle of the back. This is the muscle that gives us that V-taper when we have wide shoulders and a thin waist.
Here is how you do dumbbell bent-over rows:
- Start by holding a dumbbell in each hand with your feet shoulder-width apart.
- Bend at the waist and let the dumbbells hang down in front of you.
- From this position, row the dumbbells up to your chest, making sure to keep your back straight.
- Return the dumbbells to the starting position and repeat for reps.
Overall this exercise is a great way to work the back muscles and the biceps at the same time. Although it is mostly used as a back muscle exercise, it also works the biceps a great deal. You must keep your torso upright throughout the lift or you will change the focus of the exercise. This is not so much an isolation movement, but one that works many different muscles all at once.
4. Dumbbell shrugs
The dumbbell shrugs weight training exercise is one of the best exercises you can do to develop your traps and other muscles in the upper shoulders, particularly the medial and lateral deltoids. Dumbbell shrugs also work the spinal erectors, rhomboids, and trapezius. You might be asking if there is a difference between dumbbell shrugs and barbell shrugs. The answer is no; they are the same. A dumbbell shrug is just a barbell shrug performed with dumbbells instead of a barbell.
Here is how you do this exercise:
- Start by holding a dumbbell in each hand with your feet shoulder-width apart.
- Let the dumbbells hang at arm’s length by your sides, with your palms facing your thighs.
- Keeping your back straight and your knees slightly bent, raise your shoulders as high as you can.
- Hold for a count of one, and then lower your shoulders back to the starting position.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
So, if you want to improve your traps and build strong upper shoulders, then consider adding dumbbell shrugs to your workout routine. The best part is that they can also be performed with either light or heavyweights. Doing them correctly is critical for getting the most benefit from them though. Make sure that when you do the exercise, you let your shoulders “run back” behind you and squeeze your upper back muscles at the top of each rep.
5. Dumbbell upright row
Upright rows are one of the most popular upper body exercises there is. For many people they are a staple part of their workouts. Mainly because they work the shoulders well and you can handle some weight on them. They also work the triceps, traps, and lower back pretty hard too which always comes in handy. Dumbbells make upright rows so much easier, as long as you’re doing it right!
To do dumbbell upright row:
- Start by standing up with a dumbbell in each hand, feet shoulder-width apart.
- Bend your knees slightly and hinge at your hips so that your torso is leaning forward at about a 45-degree angle.
- Let the dumbbells hang down in front of you, palms facing your thighs.
- From here, lift the dumbbells straight up to the side of your chest, leading with your elbows.
- Squeeze your shoulder blades together at the top of the movement, then slowly lower the dumbbells back down to the starting position.
If you’re having trouble with upright rows, try the following tips to see if that helps. Don’t press your arms forward, squeeze your shoulder blades together, think about pulling your arms straight back instead of up, and do make sure you keep your wrists straight. Also, make sure you start with light weights until you get the hang of it and gradually work up to heavier ones.
Conclusion
The upper back exercises at home that have been covered are some of the best for those who have limited space and equipment. They can be added to another workout routine or done on their own. For those with basic equipment, pull-ups and rows are great options to perform. Lifting weights is not always necessary to get the results you need, so if you don’t have a lot of equipment, take advantage of the many exercises that can be performed at home!