Your lats are important for maintaining control and connection...
Your lats are important for maintaining control and connection with the barbell through the entire pull.
Weak lats result in the athlete:
1. Shifting out of position early.
2. Leaving the bar out front.
3. Potentially not connecting at the hips.
For the most part, if your lats are strong enough, they should kick in automatically if your starting position is set-up well. If they’re not, then extra brain power and physical effort is needed to keep that bar in tow. Lester Ho is here to walk us through an exercise that will help make sure your lats isn’t the weaker link.
By @lesterhokw:
Accessory Work: The Pendlay Row.
A typical exercise I prescribe is the Pendlay Row. I use it to not only build better engagement but also build better awareness that you actually have lats.
Points of Performance:
1. Start with weight on the ground. Ensure that lower back is engaged and bar is centred under the torso.
2. Set the shoulder blades and keep the lats engaged even before bar breaks off the ground.
3. Keep torso rigid and actively pull the lats to perform the movement rather than hinge at the hips and pull the chest up too much. An indication is when you lower the bar you don’t drop your torso too much.
I tend to go anywhere around 8-12 reps for these and not too heavy with it to avoid using too much of my hips or lower back. I also use straps to allow me to loose up my arms and grip so that I can get more out of my upper back.
One of the many exercises to wake your lats up and make them more aware.
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