Whether you want a wide back for aesthetic purposes or for improved functional performance, the bent over row is a classic exercise used to promote both a strong upper body pull and to build a prominent posterior.

The bent over row works both the muscles of the upper back, like the traps and rhomboids (those associated concentrically with scapular retraction), and the lats. But the degree to which we choose to bias the upper back or the lats can be modified depending on your goals.

How to Bias The Upper Back in Bent Over Rows

To bias your upper back more during a row, we want to work largely around protraction and retraction of the shoulder blades. With a rowing movement, this can be done by simply having the elbows further away from the ribs.

Upper Back Focused Bent Over Row Variation

Snatch Grip Barbell Bent Over Row

The snatch grip makes it much harder to keep the elbows close to the ribs, thus, by default, making it much easier to target the upper back. The Barbell also allows you to work bilaterally, with a stable load, allowing you to exert high amounts of force.

• Start stood upright with a barbell in your hands in a snatch grip.

• Bend over into your rowing position, the closer to parallel to the floor with your torso the better.

• Pull the barbell to your chest, squeezing your shoulder blades together as hard as possible, trying to get you elbows past the line of your torso.

• Slow reverse the movement to complete the rep.

How to Bias the Lats in Bent Over Rows

The Lats main function is to extend the arm, pulling it down and behind the torso. Thus, to target your lats more in a row, you want to use variations to allow you to keep the elbows tucked into the ribs, extending the forearm behind your torso.

Lat Focused Bent Over Row Variation

Dumbbell Bent Over Row

Dumbbells work great for being more lat focused with your rows because they allow a greater range of motion than a barbell when trying to ‘put the weights in your pockets’, where the barbell would otherwise be largely constrained by the bars path into the hips, limiting the extension at the arm greatly.

• Start stood upright with a dumbbell in each hand.

• Bend over into your rowing position, the closer to parallel to the floor with your torso the better, with your dumbbells hanging below your shoulders.

• Keeping your elbows tucked into your ribs, focus on pulling the weights towards your bum, as if trying to put them in your pocket.

• Slowly reverse the movement to complete a rep.

The bent over row is not only a classic exercise, but also an extremely versatile one, so don’t fall into the trap of always using bent over rows with the same goal in mind! Mix it up and build a strong back by targeting both the lats and the upper back!

Find out more about this fantastic exercise with our barbell row technique guide.

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Tags: Equipment > Bars and Weight Plates ; Equipment > Dumbbells ; Exercise Type > Strength