elitefts athlete Joe Sullivan has been dealing with a lat activation issue. After talking with his physical therapist, he’s been given the A-OK to do certain lat isolation exercises.
One such exercise, which is shown here, is the quadruped row. While he isn’t certain of the person who came up with the exercise, he knows it’s been popularized by Chris Duffin, who did 120 pounds or so on them.
The quadruped row is in a bird-dog position (for those of you less familiar with yoga, think of what Dug from Pixar’s Up does when he says, “POINT!”). It looks cool on Instagram and will probably get you views if that’s your thing, but it’s also using the entire torso in an action of rowing — you know, pulling your elbow back — and using your lat muscles. You’re also forcing yourself to brace laterally and resist rotation laterally.
It’s not just isolating the muscle and waking it up — it’s isolating the muscle under systemic load, which is arguably more beneficial for powerlifters because they’re never just isolating the lats. Instead, they’re isolating the lats while using everything else and being mobile as well.
"Sometimes you actually have to think like an athlete even though we’re all dumb weightlifters."
Get in that bird-dog position and try to make sure you’re not extending and are in neutral tension in the glute you’re raising. Lock the back in place, fill the abs with intra-abdominal pressure, and row.
Once you're finished with your sets and reps, switch sides, and repeat.
