Horizontal pulls and rows

f you can bench press your bodyweight ten times but can’t do the strict inverted row ten times, then your relative strength sucks, and so does your back development… probably.

Every time you do an extra set of bench presses without also adding an extra set of horizontal rows, you’re becoming more structurally unbalanced. Not only will your body start letting you down, it’ll actually refuse to build size and strength in the exercises or muscles you care about most.

If you’re structurally unbalanced, the muscles pulling your shoulders and scapula in one direction are proportionally weaker than the muscles pulling them in the opposite direction. This not only includes your prime movers, like your pecs versus your mid-traps, but your shoulder stabilizers as well. Your muscles need to be strong in all directions. And arguably, it’s the ones you see the least that need the most attention.

Bottom line? You need to be doing more horizontal pulls and rows to even that out. Inverted rows are your prescription. Pick one of these options and get to work.