resistance band back exercises · resistance band workout · resistance bands · 1 comment · Dec 19, 2022

10 Powerful Resistance Band Back Exercises

by Priya Samuel

Resistance bands are the bomb when it comes to strengthening your often-ignored back muscles.

Exercising your back muscles using resistance bands can help improve your posture, prevent back pain, stabilize your spine, increase flexibility, and improve your physique (think a rocking V-shaped torso).

In this blog, we’ll show you 10 powerful resistance band back exercises that’ll work those back muscles to the max! We’ll also answer some frequently asked questions and share some tips about resistance band back exercises.

10 Powerful Resistance Band Back Exercises

Here are some great resistance band exercises that target your entire back (upper back, middle back, and lower back).

1. Reverse Grip Pull-Up with Resistance Band

Muscles worked: Latissimus dorsi, trapezius, biceps.

How to perform

Loop a resistance band around a bar to create a hanging loop.
Grip the bar with your palms facing you and hands closer than shoulder-width apart.
Place your feet in the band and lower your body until your arms are straight (you should be hanging from the bar). This is the starting position.
Now raise your body until your chin is at the height of the bar.
Slowly lower back down to the starting position.
Perform 6-10 reps.

Tip

Don’t grip the pull-up bar too tightly; just enough to stop you from falling.

2. Straight Arm Pushdowns

Muscles worked: Latissimus dorsi, rhomboids, posterior deltoids, triceps.

How to perform

Secure a resistance band to a pull-up bar or a door frame.
Grab the band in both hands high enough so that you have sufficient tension in the band as shown in the video.
Stand a little away from the band and then bend forward a little. Keep your back straight, core engaged, and chin up. This is the starting position.
Now pull the band all the way down till your hands touch the sides of your hip.
Pause for a second before returning to the starting position.
Perform 10-15 reps.

Tip

Don’t use your triceps to execute this movement. Keep your arms straight and push straight down and back so that your lats are actively engaged.

3. High to low kneeling banded row

Muscles worked: Latissimus dorsi, mid trapezius.

How to perform

Loop a resistance band around an anchor point.
Kneel with your right leg on the floor and your left leg up.
Hold the other end of the band in your right hand, gripping it as shown in the video. The band should have a slight amount of tension in the starting position.
Now pull the band driving your elbow behind your body as far as possible.
Squeeze for a few seconds and then slowly return to the starting position.
Perform 10-15 reps before switching sides.

Tip

Maintain an upright torso. Other than your pulling arm, no part of your body should move.

4. Lat pulldown

Muscles worked: Latissimus dorsi, shoulders, biceps, forearms, and core.

How to perform

Secure a resistance band to a pull-up bar or a door frame.
Get down into a kneeling position and hold the band in both your hands as shown in the video. This is the starting position.
Keeping your core engaged and your back straight, pull the band down all the way such that your elbows reach behind your back.
Squeeze your back muscles for a second before returning to the starting position.
Perform 10-15 reps.

Tip

Focus on pulling your elbows down. This will ensure that your lats are properly engaged as opposed to your biceps.

5. Superman lat pulldown

Muscles worked: Latissimus dorsi, mid and lower trapezius.

How to perform

Secure a resistance tube close to the bottom of a door using a door anchor.
Grab both the resistance tube handles one in each hand.
Lie down with your face towards the floor.
Position yourself far enough away from the door anchor so that you can extend your arms out in front of you and still have enough tension in your band. This is the starting position.
Keeping your glutes engaged, simultaneously raise your arms, legs, and chest off the floor.
Now pull the band by extending your elbows back towards your hips and squeeze your shoulder blades together.
Pause for a moment before bringing your arms back in front of you.
Now bring your arms, chest, and legs back to the starting position.
Perform 10-15 reps.

6. Single arm low row

Muscles worked: Latissimus dorsi, trapezius, rhomboids

How to perform

Secure a resistance band to a low anchor point, just a little higher than knee level.
Get into a staggered stance with your left foot in front of the right one.
Grip the band with your right hand with your palm facing up and your elbow close to your body.
Keep your chin up, and chest up with a little bit of an arch in your back. This is the starting position.
Slowly pull the band till your elbow reaches behind your back.
Pause for a second before returning to the starting position.
Perform 8-10 reps before switching sides.

Tip

Ensure that there is no slack in the band in the starting position.

7. Lawnmower row

Muscles worked: Upper back, middle back, lower trapezius, latissimus dorsi

How to perform

Step onto the middle of a resistance band such that it is underneath the arch of your left foot.
Use your right hand to grab the end of the band that is lying to the left of your left foot as shown in the video.
Keeping the pressure down on your left foot and with your back flat, take your right foot out behind you in a long stance. Place your left hand on your knee for support. This is the starting position.
Now pull the band behind you as far as you can, squeezing your shoulder blades as you do so.
Pause for a second before returning to the starting position.
Perform 10-15 reps before switching sides.

Tip

Keep your active arm tight to your body as you pull.

8. Zeus rows

Muscles worked: Lower and middle trapezius, rhomboids.

How to perform

Loop a resistance band around a high anchor point.
Kneel with your right leg on the floor and your left leg up.
Wrap both your hands around the resistance band with a narrow grip as shown in the video.
Angle your body forward with your arms out in front of you holding the band. This is the starting position.
Now pull the band towards you until your elbows are by the side of your chest.
Squeeze your back muscles for 1-2 seconds before returning your arms to the starting position.
Perform 10-15 reps.

Tip

Ensure that you hold the band with a narrow grip to actively engage your rhomboids and trapezius.

9. Archer pull

Muscles worked: Latissimus dorsi, middle and lower trapezius, biceps, posterior deltoids, core.

How to perform

Use a light resistance band for this exercise.
Hold the band around the middle portion with your right hand.
Grab the other end of the band with your left hand with the band placed across your palm as shown in the video.
Grip the left hand and make a fist. Aim that arm up (as if you were going to pull a bow). This is the starting position.
Take a wide stance. Keep your right elbow close to your body and pull back as far as possible. Your right hand should come to the side of your chest.
Pause for a second before returning to the starting position.
Perform 8-10 reps and then switch sides.

Tips

Keep your front arm straight to ensure stability.
Pull back from your elbow and not your arm so that you feel the contraction in your back muscles.

10. Wrap-around row

Muscles worked: Lower and middle trapezius muscles, rhomboids.

How to perform

Step into a resistance band with both your feet wide apart and bend forwards.
Crisscross the band in front of your knee level and grab the band with both hands as shown in the video. This is the starting position.
Now pull the band until your elbows reach out behind you. Your arms will uncross as you do so.
Squeeze your back muscles for a second before slowly returning to the starting position.
Perform 10-15 reps.

Check out our resistance band exercises for abs, chest, shoulders, biceps, triceps, and legs right here!

Frequently asked questions

1. Can you build your back with resistance bands?

Yes, you can.

Resistance bands are very effective for building your back due to various reasons.

Resistance bands recruit all the major back muscles including your lats, traps, rhomboids, erector spinae, teres major and minor, etc.
You can target your back from any angle and shock your muscles differently as bands use tension to create resistance rather than gravity.
There is constant tension on your muscles throughout the range of motion that causes larger muscle growth.
They don’t put much stress on your spine, unlike free weights.

2. How do I tone my back with resistance bands?

To tone and build your back muscles, you need to subject your muscles to a longer time under tension. This can be done by performing longer sets with short rest times. A 2:1 ratio of work to rest ratio would be ideal.

Other ways to tone your back muscles include maximizing your pump by focusing on your isometric squeezes and inducing muscle ‘damage’ by focusing on the eccentric phases of every exercise.

Read more about how to build muscle using resistance bands here.

3. How do resistance bands target back fat?

You can’t target fat in any particular location of your body using resistance bands, free weights, or any other gym equipment for that matter. Where your body loses or stores fat is dependent on your genes, hormones, sex, and other factors.

Having said that, resistance bands help you build muscle that burns more calories which in turn reduces the overall body fat percentage which could also include your back fat.

Tips while using resistance bands for back exercises

Focus on the mind-muscle connection when you perform resistance band back exercises. For instance, while doing rows, use your back muscles instead of letting your arms do all the work.
To modify your band’s resistance, you could either step closer to or away from your anchor or grip the band at different points.
Don’t let the band snap back inward. Focus on bringing the band back in a slow and controlled manner.