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In
addition to strengthening your back, there are additional benefits to
working out this area. "The more you can strengthen your back, the better
your posture," says McDonald. However, one hour at the gym will not give
you instant proper posture. McDonald says it's important to be aware of
your posture for the other 23 hours of the day. Well, maybe not for the
entire 23 hours, but a good tip he offered was to set a time, say 2 p.m.,
when you will remind yourself to correct your posture. This way you will
be aware of your position more often.
The first machine McDonald
dragged me to (I say dragged because I have never worked out my back and
frankly I was afraid of these exercises) was the seated row machine.
Like many of the other back machines, this one has two grip
positions. One is to hold the handles with your knuckles facing each
other, arms side by side. This position works your lats or wing muscles,
which are the muscles that run from the back of your shoulder all the way
down the side of your back, and works the biceps as well. The other
position is much like that of riding a bicycle. With this position, you
work your lats as well as the small muscles in your upper back. McDonald
says it's a good idea to alternate these complimentary handle positions
either during the same work out or from one work out to the next.
To ensure good posture, try retracting the shoulder blades back
before even beginning the exercise. Once you are in a good posture
position, sitting at the machine with the weight and handle bars in front
of you, pull the handles in towards your chest. Remember to always be
thinking about the muscle you are using. In this case, it's your back
muscles.
To ensure you are working even the smaller muscles in
your back, try keeping your elbows up high when using the bicycle handle
position. While it is not wrong to drop the elbows, says McDonald, it will
not differentiate much from the other position if your drop the elbows.
This was a bit difficult for me, those darn elbows kept dropping down.
But, once I started concentrating on the muscle it became a bit easier.
Check out some exercise tips for these body parts:
Get your abs fit for summer
A challenge for your arms
Hamstrings, bun and thighs, Oh My!
Don't forget about your
chest
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