Joseph Baena has never tried to hide the bodybuilding influence of his dad, Arnold Schwarzenegger. The actor and fitness fanatic regularly shares his old-school, Golden Era-inspired training sessions on social media – and his latest back day looks like it could have been lifted straight from the Austrian Oak’s own workout diary.
Heavy rows, plenty of pull-ups, a focus on stretching the lats and, most tellingly, a lot of chat about actually feeling the muscles working.
No unnecessarily complicated movements, just four bodybuilding staples and a shedload of back-building volume.
‘The back is my favourite body part to train,’ Baena explained alongside the workout. ‘Filling out the lats, rear delts and traps can completely change your physique.’
Hard to argue. If you’re after a wider, thicker upper body, Baena’s session covers pretty much every base.
Joseph Baena’s Back Workout
1. Pull-Up x 5 sets of 10 reps
Baena kicks things off with 50 total pull-ups, using the movement almost as much to prepare his shoulders and back as he does to build his lats.
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‘I start with this to warm up. Pump up the lats and gives me a nice stretch for the shoulders,’ he says.
Rather than prescribing 5 sets every time, Baena’s real target is simply 50 total reps, taking as many sets as necessary to get there.
2. T-Bar Row x 4 sets of 10 reps
Next up, it’s time to start shifting some serious tin.
‘This is probably my favourite exercise ever,’ says Baena. ‘So good for building thickness in the back and it’s an exercise you can really go heavy on.’
With the pull-ups taking care of plenty of vertical pulling, heavy T-bar rows add a horizontal pull, hammering the lats alongside the traps, rhomboids and rear delts.
3. High Cable Row x 3 sets of 10-12 reps
Baena changes the angle again, rowing high with his elbows flared to put more emphasis on the upper back.
‘Traps and rear delts totally engaged,’ he says.
He also offers a warning for newer lifters: don’t blindly imitate the exaggerated forward stretch he uses between reps.
‘If you’re a beginner, just stay upright and pull the weight with the elbows flaring up.’
Build the foundations first. Then you can freestyle.
4. Single-Arm Pulldown x 3 sets of 10 reps each side
Finally, Baena goes unilateral.
‘I don’t normally do these, but feel it’s necessary to even out the activation in the lat if I feel like one side is lacking in size or engagement,’ he explains.
Working each side of the body independently can help you concentrate on creating equal contractions on both sides rather than allowing your stronger side to dominate.
And that concentration is a key part of Baena’s approach.
‘The mind muscle connection is a real thing and for bodybuilders it’s a necessity,’ he says.
Even if stepping onto a bodybuilding stage isn’t on your agenda, Baena argues that learning to deliberately flex and engage the muscles you’re trying to train can help you recognise when your technique needs adjusting.
Heavy weights, big stretches, plenty of volume and an unapologetic focus on the pump.
Like father, like son.
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With almost 18 years in the health and fitness space as a personal trainer, nutritionist, breath coach and writer, Andrew has spent nearly half of his life exploring how to help people improve their bodies and minds.
As our fitness editor he prides himself on keeping Men’s Health at the forefront of reliable, relatable and credible fitness information, whether that’s through writing and testing thousands of workouts each year, taking deep dives into the science behind muscle building and fat loss or exploring the psychology of performance and recovery.
Whilst constantly updating his knowledge base with seminars and courses, Andrew is a lover of the practical as much as the theory and regularly puts his training to the test tackling everything from Crossfit and strongman competitions, to ultra marathons, to multiple 24 hour workout stints and (extremely unofficial) world record attempts.
You can find Andrew on Instagram at @theandrew.tracey, or simply hold up a sign for ‘free pizza’ and wait for him to appear.
