Subject: Re: Smaller Lats on one side From: "Jim Lancaster" Date: Tue, 21 Mar 2000 06:16:05 -0800 Jon, here's a portion of an article from Testosterone, "The Top Seven Upper Back Exercises" by Charles Poliquin: 5) One-armed eccentric chin-ups I find this one particularly good in overcoming sticking points in strength development for the lats. For this exercise, I like to use one of those assisted chin/dip units like the ones made by Cybex Eagle or Atlantis. Depending on the brand of machine that you use, you may be supported at the knees or the feet. For the purposes of this exercise, it matters little which one you use. Pull up with two arms, pause, and slowly transfer the load to your non-dominant arm. From this point, lower yourself under control until the lats and elbow flexors of the working arm are fully stretched. Reset your dominant hand on the handle and pull yourself up for another repetition, and repeat the process until you reach eccentric muscle failure. Initially, I recommend that you use very slow eccentric lowering, as in 8-10 seconds per rep. If you're unable to go down that slowly, you've achieved eccentric muscle failure. The stronger you get on this exercise, the lighter you're going to make the weight stack that's assisting you through the concentric range. I hope, however, that this last fact doesn't come as any shocking revelation to any of you out there. For this exercise, I prefer to prescribe at least six sets of two to four repetitions per set. Warning: If you experience shoulder discomfort at the bottom of the range of motion (the hanging position), it's a warning sign that you may have less than optimal shoulder mechanics. You may want to consult a shoulder specialist that can evaluate and correct your shoulder mechanics.