Cavaliere recommends starting back workouts with an “ignition” set.
Jeff Cavaliere, the founder of Athlean-X, is a renowned fitness expert with decades of experience training professional athletes. From 2006 to 2009, he served as the strength coach and head physical therapist for the New York Mets, honing his sports performance and injury prevention expertise. Known for his science-backed workout strategies, Cavaliere has earned widespread acclaim for delivering highly effective and results-driven fitness programs.
| Jeff Cavaliere (Fitness Trainer) | ||
| Weight | Height | Date of Birth |
| 173 lbs | 178 cm | 06/28/1975 |
| Occupation | Era | Nationality |
| Fitness Trainer | 2000s, 2010s, 2020s | American |
Jeff Cavaliere recently shared his ultimate workout for building a broader, stronger back on YouTube. A well-developed back enhances your ability to lift heavy objects, improves posture, and reduces the risk of injury. Explore Cavaliere’s expert tips for back building below.
Jeff Cavaliere’s Effective Rep Training
You don’t have to worry about maxing your reps for each set when performing practical rep training. It’s only about the number of adequate reps. So after the initial set, which you determine by the weight you use on that first set, you also choose how many effective reps you want.
Jeff Cavaliere’s Exercises for a Wider Back
- Barbell Rows (ignition set of twelve & twenty effective reps with 15 to 30 seconds rest)
- Seated Cable Rows (ignition set of twelve & twenty effective reps with 15 to 30 seconds rest. Ten effective reps with elbows high & ten effective reps with elbows low)
- Lat Pulldowns (ignition set of eight & ten effective reps with 15 to 30 seconds rest)
- Dumbbell High Pulls (ignition set of twelve & twenty effective reps with 15 to 30 seconds rest)
- Underhand Grip ROM Pulldowns (ignition set of eight & ten effective reps with 15 to 30 seconds rest)
Barbell Rows
According to Jeff Cavaliere, the first exercise should be a compound lift, and we start with a barbell row. Sticking to the twelve-rep max load for your ignition set and performing twenty effective reps is essential. Remember, the ignition set doesn’t count. It sets the stage for the subsequent twenty effective reps after your 15 to 30-second rest.
Perform barbell rows as a barbell dead row: lift the barbell initially like a deadlift, then complete the row from your knees upward. With this, you’re allowed some additional momentum to compensate for fatigue, which will eventually set in.
Seated Cable Rows
The goal of performing the seated cable row is to perform to failure. He takes us through every rep and its effect on the back. To begin the exercises, he places his elbow high to work the rear delts and upper back and does twelve reps. He refers to this first set as the ignition set. “They don’t count towards what they want to work towards, because what we want is effective reps,” said Cavaliere.
Jeff Cavaliere advises when performing this exercise to rest 15 to 30 seconds for an effective rep strategy. Your next set is where you count the reps after your first ignition set. The ignition set only kick-started the entire process and bypasses all those initial reps that don’t contribute to the overall force generation of the muscles you’re training.
However, another way you can do the seated cable row is by placing your elbows lower so it can target the lats more. Remember, go for twenty adequate reps after your ignition set of twelve reps. However many sets it takes you to do it. Your twenty effective reps should be with tens reps in your elbow’s high position. This targets the upper back and posterior delts, and ten reps of elbows low in a position target the lats.
Lat Pulldowns
When performing lat pulldowns, you can go heavier with weights. You don’t have to use your twelve-rep max as your ignition set. Make your ignition set an eight-rep max count, and you can make your effective rep number ten.
You can do the lat pulldown using a slightly wider than shoulder-width length while using an overhand grip (1). Like the first exercise, your effective reps count after your ignition set. Ensure you get ten effective reps at the end of this exercise.
“You can use some heavier weights on the ignition set to kind of set the stage for fewer effective reps but still very difficult, high tension productive reps,” explained Cavaliere. “Why do we use it here? Because on the lat pulldown, if needed, we can safely get more momentum and full body momentum to get that down.”
Dumbbell High Pulls
This is one of Jeff Cavaliere’s favorite upper back exercises, and he considers it a good classic pulling exercise. He commends using a twelve-rep max for weights and aiming for twenty effective reps. “Remember, on the high pull, this is not an effective upright row. This is actually with your thumbs pointing up higher than your pinkies.”
ROM Pulldowns
When performing the ROM pulldowns, we flip the grip to an underhand grip and ensure the elbows get out in front. Using a narrow grip and getting a good stretch on the lats for every rep is also essential.
“It’s almost lingering in that stretched position at the top. You can go with actually an eight-rep max here if you wanted to because once again, you have the opportunity on a pulldown to utilize a little momentum to do 10 effective reps in here total.”
Conclusion
Jeff Cavaliere says training with effective reps is the best way to build a wider back.
“If you want to have the most effective back workout, then you have to train with effective reps.”
So before beginning your back workout, pick a back exercise with a reasonable initial rep max (between eight to twelve) and then time your rest between sets effectively.
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Reference
- Andersen, V., Fimland, M. S., Wiik, E., Skoglund, A., & Saeterbakken, A. H. (2014). Effects of grip width on muscle strength and activation in the lat pull-down. Journal of strength and conditioning research, 28(4), 1135–1142. https://doi.org/10.1097/JSC.0000000000000232
