The 30 best back exercises

So that you don't get bored with the same exercises every week, we would like to introduce you to the 30 best exercises for the back muscles.

Exercise 1 - Deadlift
Since the deadlift is one of the king exercises of weight training, it is obvious that the exercise is on the one hand extremely effective, but on the other hand also very demanding. To perform this exercise correctly, stand shoulder-width in front of the barbell rack with your feet slightly rotated outward. Grasp the barbell a little more than shoulder width so that you can move it past your knees without bumping into it. Now bend your back and simultaneously bend your knees until the weight plates touch the floor. Then slowly return to the starting position. In each case, make sure to keep the bar as close to your body as possible and keep your lower back minimally arched throughout the entire movement to minimize stress on your spinal discs.

Exercise 2 - Pull-ups (with additional weight)
The easiest way to make pull-ups a little more challenging is to use an appropriate belt to which you can attach various weight plates. If you don't have any equipment available, you can also clamp a dumbbell between your legs. Once the weight is locked in place, grasp the chin-up bar with an overhand grip slightly wider than shoulder width and pull yourself up without swinging until your chin is above the bar. If you find in the second or third set that you can't complete another repetition, simply complete the exercise without the additional weight.

Exercise 3 - Romanian deadlift with dumbbells
In principle, the Romanian deadlift with dumbbells works similarly to the classic deadlift. Take two dumbbells in the upper grip. Bend your knees minimally and lean your upper body forward until it is almost parallel to the floor and you feel a pull in the leg flexors. The dumbbells should now be in the starting position just below your knees. From this position, you will now straighten up, making sure that your back remains straight and that you do not hunch over.

Exercise 4 - Pallor Press Iso Hold
In this admittedly somewhat bulky-sounding exercise, you take the handle of a cable pulley in both hands and stand sideways next to the device. From this starting position, pull your outstretched arms toward your belly button and hold the tension in your latissimus for three to five seconds. Once you have completed one set, switch sides.

Exercise 5 - Dumbbell rowing on the incline bench
Set the back of an exercise bench at a 30-45 degree angle and then lie chest-first on the exercise machine with two dumbbells in hand. Now position the dumbbells parallel to each other in a hammer grip and make sure your elbows are as close to your torso as possible as you pull the weights up. Once you have reached the apex of the movement, slowly lower the dumbbells again.

Exercise 6 - Tight pull-ups
Grasp the pull-up bar in an underhand grip and make sure that your grip is at maximum shoulder width. In the next step, tense your core muscles and pull yourself up without swinging until your chin is above the bar. Pay attention to a clean technique and avoid a jerky execution of the exercise in order to avoid injuries in the shoulder and skull area.

Exercise 7 - Trap Bar Deadlift
If your gym has such a special dumbbell bar, you should definitely take advantage of it, because due to the fact that the center of gravity of the loaded dumbbell is exactly in the center of your body axis, the muscles used in the course of the deadlift are loaded evenly. In addition, most athletes find it easier to hold the weight for longer periods of time with the help of the trap bar. The movement sequence, however, remains the same, so here again you have to make sure that you maintain a minimal hollow back in the area of the lower back.

Exercise 8 - Alternating dumbbell rowing
Make sure you are standing and bend your upper body forward so that it is almost parallel to the floor. Now perform alternating rowing movements with your arms. Make sure you keep your elbows cleanly along your torso.

Exercise 9 - Inverted Rowing
To perform this exercise, place a barbell bar in a power rack at about the height of your diaphragm. Then grasp the barbell a little more than shoulder-width apart and move your feet forward so that you hang under the bar with your arms extended almost parallel to the floor. Now pull yourself up and hold the position at the point of maximum contraction for two to three seconds before returning to the starting position.

Exercise 10 - Wide Cross Lift in Power Rack
Even though the movement sequence is identical to the classic deadlift, there are still some differences. As the name suggests, you have to grip the bar much wider, which puts even more strain on your latissimus. The optimal grip width is about one and a half times that of the classic grip position. For your safety, lock the bars of the Power Rack just below knee height so that you can put the weight down at any time without risk of injury.

Exercise 11 - Leg curls on the exercise ball
Lie on your back and place your feet on an exercise ball. Now stabilize your upper body with your arms. Now pull your lower legs towards your upper body, but with the upper legs forming a straight line. Hold the tension for two to three seconds and roll the ball back to the start position.

Exercise 12 - Wide pull-ups
In contrast to conventional pull-ups, in this case you grip the bar about twenty centimeters further out on each side in the overhand grip, which places the load focus much more on the latissimus.

Exercise 13 - Single arm T-bar rowing
For single-arm T-bar rowing, place weight on only one side of the barbell bar so that the resulting construction looks like a large T from above. Grasp the barbell with one hand just below the placed weight plates and get into a stride position with your back slightly bent. Now proceed as with dumbbell rowing and gently pull the weight upward, again naturally bringing your elbow as close as possible to your torso.

Exercise 14 - Rowing on the cable
Mount a parallel grip on the cable pulley and stand wide-legged in front of the machine. Now take the handle in your hand, step back a good meter and slowly pull the handle towards your chest. To optimally hit the back muscles, the upper edge of the handle should be at the level of your nipples.

Exercise 15 - Inverted rowing with the suspension trainer
The technique of inverted rowing with the help of the suspension trainer is congruent with the execution on the power rack.

Exercise 16 - Burpees
In the starting position, stand up straight and then get into the squat position. As soon as you reach maximum flexion, let your legs shoot backwards and stabilize yourself in the push-up position. Then, pull your legs back up and perform a stretch jump. That was one repetition.

Exercise 17 - Supermans on the gym ball
Position your feet on an exercise ball and assume the push-up position. Now tighten your legs, but keep them stretched so that the ball rolls forward and your upper body rises up. Hold the tension briefly and then roll off again.

Exercise 18 - Butterfly Reverse
Position the back of a weight bench at a 30-degree angle and lie chest-first on the bench. Now take two light dumbbells and position them on your outstretched arms in front of your chest. Now bring your arms up to your sides as if you were going to do a wing stroke. Make sure that you get the strength from the depth of your back and the back of your shoulder and not from your neck.

Exercise 19 - Cleans
Assume the starting position of the deadlift and make sure you have a stable stance. Now push your hips explosively forward and catapult the barbell upward. As you move, raise your elbows and rotate your palms inward so that the bar ultimately rests on your shoulder and chest muscles as well as on your fingertips. Now grasp the bar again and return to the starting position in a controlled manner.

Exercise 20 - Hyperextensions
Position your feet in the device provided on the machine and cross your arms in front of your chest. Then bend forward until your legs and torso are at a 90-degree angle. Then slowly straighten up again until your body forms a straight line. If the exercise is too easy for you, you can also use weight plates as additional weights.

Exercise 21 - Rowing on the cable in a sitting position
Basically, the technique of cable rowing in a standing position also applies here. Just make sure that you lean back slightly during the entire exercise so that the spine is relieved to some extent and the back muscles can work optimally.

Exercise 22 - Standing Butterfly Reverse
Of course, the technique is not very different from the execution with the help of a bench, but this, in turn, does not mean that there is nothing to pay attention to. The most important thing is to focus on a clean execution, because this exercise can easily tempt you to fall back on the supportive power of the swing.

Exercise 23 - Aquaman
First lie flat on the floor and then lift your left arm and right leg as far off the floor as you can. Hold this position for two to three seconds and then switch sides.

Exercise 24 - Superman
Again, first lie flat on your stomach, but lift both arms and legs off the floor at the same time. Hold this position for a while and then start again.

Exercise 25 - Pull-ups on the suspension trainer
The technique is also the same when performing pull-ups on the suspension trainer. However, due to the instability of the slings, the exercise is much more demanding, as numerous auxiliary muscles are recruited to stabilize your body and keep it in balance.

Exercise 26 - Squats
Even though squats are primarily a thigh development exercise, they also do a great job of building a strong back. Grasp the barbell as wide as possible and position this on your neck and posterior deltoid muscle. Now bend down as far as you can, making sure your lower back stays straight and your knees don't stick out past the tops of your feet. Next, push off the ground with your thighs and consciously push your hips forward to return to the starting position.

Exercise 27 - Rowing on the suspension trainer with internal rotation
The only difference from normal rowing on the suspension trainer is that the deliberate internal rotation of the wrists during the movement activates additional muscle strands, which is beneficial for the overall effectiveness of the exercise.

Exercise 28 - Leg lift on the exercise ball
Lie with your hips on an exercise ball and support yourself on the floor with your forearms. Stretch your legs straight out and lift them so that your lower back is under tension. Hold the position briefly and lower your legs again.

Exercise 29 - Barbell rowing in underhand grip
Unlike classic barbell rowing, in this case you grip the bar in an underhand grip. Apart from that, the technique is the same.

Exercise 30 - Bent forward rowing to the neck
As the name suggests, in the course of this exercise you don't pull the barbell to the belly button but to the neck or collarbone. Since the center of gravity shifts significantly forward, it is necessary to reduce the training weight a little to relieve the intervertebral discs and shoulder joints. Also make sure that you do not work with momentum.