Back Width VS. Back Thickness, Can There Actually Be A Difference?

[slobberknocker]

Can you actually train for one, without training for the other? I mean, a lat is a lat, right? If you make your lats bigger and stronger, they'll be both thicker AND wider, right?


Please correct me if I'm wrong, because I really don't know. I'm asking out of curiosity. Thanks.

 

[satchboogie]

bump that one.

 

[Thaibox]

a lat is a lat, right?

Your back is comprised of three main muscles...traps, erectors, and lats. The traps go much further down your back than most think, they aren't just the little bumps next to your head. So

You can have dominant erectors(that make up the central thickness) and traps and not have very good lats. Personally, I have very large erectors and decent traps, but my lats are kind of high, so I don't I have the width I would like, but the thickness is there. Yes you can train one more than the other.

 

[slobberknocker]

OK, thanks for explaining that. I didn't know that.

 

[Jxaxsxe530]

good explanation. i too have some crazy back thickness, but lats aren't too impressive

 

[Vortexx]

I developed relatively easily pretty long and wide lats. I thought that was pretty cool, until I saw some dude with crazy lats AND thick lower traps/spinal erectors, turned out that I had been neglecting the following exercises (you know the weak lower back excuse):
- Deadlift
- Bent tow
- T-bar row
- pulley row

Now I have a seperate ROW and CHIN/PULLDOWN day and thickness slowly starts to catch up....

What really improved my back development is doing 1 1/4 reps on some pulling exercises, pull/row/chin the elbows behind the back and slowly release the rep for only one quarter of the motion, this will keep your back muscles under tension, now squeeze again for a peak contraction and now FULLY return to starting position, this counts as one rep, try it, you like it.