This is the back and biceps workout your goals have been looking for. It is a workout that will challenge you, deliver an excellent pump, and help you grow lean muscle in your back and biceps.
Why this back and biceps workout
Training back and biceps together is always a good idea. They are both trained primarily through pulling motions. A lot of exercises that train your back, inadvertently train your biceps as well. By training them together, you avoid overtraining and maximize muscle recovery.
This back and biceps workout is all supersets, which have many benefits such as the ones listed below.
- Saves time
- Increases intensity by adding stress to the fascia in the muscle
- Can promote metabolic adaptations (Similiar to HIIT)
- Can increase hypertrophy
- Easy to add into a push/pull split or another workout split
- This Workout is a favorite of IFBB Pro Jordan Wheeler and Sports and Fitness Digest founder Dominique Clare.
How does this back and biceps workout help build lean muscle?
This workout doesn’t specifically build lean muscle (no workout specifically does) but is still a great workout if you have a lean muscle goal. Because of the intensity required of this workout, it heavily impacts calorie burn, even after the workout. It will also promote muscle growth and that is important because you burn more calories and fat with increased muscle mass. That is why focusing on building muscle should always be the goal when lean muscle is the intended result.
In a study, people who regularly did more intense workouts that included supersets and resistance training burned 50,000 more calories a year on average. The end result contributed to better lean muscle mass (Kirk et al. 2009; Washburn et al. 2012).
The Workout
Superset 1
Bent over rows
Sets: 4
Reps: 10-12 reps
Tips: This is one where it is easy to go too heavy. Go lighter and focus on a full range of motion. No ego lifting in this workout.
Chin-ups
Sets: 4
Reps: 8-10+
Tips: Control your body and try not to use momentum to pull yourself up.
Superset 2
Seated cable row
Sets: 3
Reps: 10-12
Tips: Try not to rock your body to pull the weight.
Cable kayak row
Sets: 3
Reps: 8-10 each side
Tips: This one might feel awkward at first. Go slow and lower the weights. You will feel it when you are doing it right.
Superset 3
Wide lat pulldown
Sets: 3
Reps: 10-12
Tips: Pull the bar down to around your chin area and control the weight the entire time.
Cable hammer curl
Sets: 3
Reps: 12-15
Tips: Tighten your core and control the curl also going down
Finisher
Wide/narrow EZ bar curl
Sets: 4
Reps: 6-10
Tips: Don’t lose form at the end. It will be hard to finish so go lighter if you have to.
More about Jordan Wheeler
Jordan Wheeler is a Classic Physique IFBB Pro and Bluestar Nutraceuticals athlete. He is regularly seen on their social media channels. He is the founder of the “90-day cheat your way to chiseled program” and is focused on redefining the dad bod physique with his clients.
More about Dominique Clare
Dominique Clare is the founder of Sports and Fitness Digest. He is also a blogger and fitness coach. You may have seen him in fitness ads or on social media working with companies like MusclePharm, BPI Sports, and Gainful.