Well-rounded traps pop. Long, defined lats create width in the back. And the erector spinae muscles snake down along the spine. His shoulders are wide, and his biceps pop. We all want a back like him (though none of us have come close).
We’re talking, of course, about Chris Bumstead (AKA CBum), 5-time Classic Physique champion.
If anyone knows how important a chiseled back is for scoring points on stage, it’s him. Defined abs and teardrops quads can get you far, but a strong back in the rear-double-biceps pose hangs the gold medal around your neck.
And now, he’s shared his secrets, giving us every detail of how he chisels and carves the most impressive back in bodybuilding: This is Chris Bumstead’s off-season back workout.
If you know anything about CBum, you’ll know he’s no stranger to hard work, and his back workout is no different. It’s heavy, it’s high volume, and it’s grueling, to say the least. But he knows more than anyone that if you really want to be the best, you need to show up and ‘do the work’–even when no one’s watching.
Have you got what it takes? We think so. But let’s see what you’ve got.
Put on your stringer vest, grab your lifting straps, and get your belt: We're about to share the top-secret, insider deets of CBums' back-day workout. And if you find yourself feeling like giving up at any point, just think to yourself, ‘What would CBum do?’ and we’re pretty sure you’ll make it through.
What You'll Find In This Article:
Who Is CBum?
Cbum’s Back Workout
What Is CBum’s Workout Routine?
CBum’s 2024 Training Techniques
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Who Is CBum?
If you’re already wrapped up in the bodybuilding world, CBum needs no introduction. But, in case you’re new around here, let’s do a quick rundown:
Chris Bumstead is a savage. The reigning 5-time Classic Physique champion is deemed a GOAT in the bodybuilding world, following in the footsteps of Golden Era athletes such as Arnold Schwarzenegger and Ronnie Coleman. Along the way, the 29-year-old Canadian has racked up a stellar social media following, well-loved for his down-to-earth videos of his life, training, and nutrition. He shows that winning isn’t easy and is vocal about his drive, discipline, and determination–showing the real work that goes into bodybuilding and inspiring fans and followers along the way.
In 2018, he shook the internet with a viral video of him removing his pump cover in the gym to show off his sculpted physique in his Gymshark tank. He became the face of Gymshark lifting. It’s been a while, and we’ve missed him, but CBum is returning to Gymshark (or Gymthark as Bumstead pronounces it), and his return is bigger than ever.
Now a dad, he juggles family life with his business ventures and training to bring home the Classic Physique title for the sixth time. And this time, he’s bringing us on the journey, sharing his off-season back workout to mark the reunion of CBum X Gymshark.
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Cbum’s Off-Season Back Workout
‘If you walk on stage and you’re winning from the front, and then you turn around and whack them from the back, they stop judging. That’s the goal this year: Make it easy for the judges.’
But how do you create a lat spread like Chris Bumstead? Well, according to CBum, this year, during his off-season training, he’s hitting back twice a week with ‘high volume, heavy-ass weight.’
Following a PPL workout split, CBum’s back workout falls on ‘pull day’–most commonly comprised of 5 or 6 back exercises, finished with a bicep exercise. He’ll also do some back exercises later in the week (for example, on leg day). That’s high-volume work, but if you want to turn heads when you pull off your pump cover in the gym, it takes more than a little hard work.
So, to give us an insight into what it takes to build a back like Bumstead's, he’s shared his thavage back workout with us. While we can’t guarantee an exact replica of CBum’s back upon doing these exercises, we can certainly learn a thing or two from his training.
CBum’s Back Workout:
Lat Pulldown
Bent Over Row
Chest-Supported T Bar row
Chest-Supported Dumbbell Row
Preacher Curls & Hammer Curls Tri-Set
1. Lat Pulldown: 2 Sets Of 10-12 reps
With no specific warm-up, the Chris Bumstead back workout begins with a pulldown variation, which allows him to warm up his back and stretch his lats: In this case, he uses the lat pulldown. As the name suggests, this mainly targets the lats, which are fundamental for developing a wider back and that signature bodybuilder V-shaped torso. Choosing cables or a machine for his initial exercise is a safer alternative to free weights, offering more stability, a guided movement pattern, and better muscle isolation to prepare the muscles for free-weight exercises to come.
CBum’s back day begins with two ‘hard-working sets’ of the lat pulldown, with the addition of time-under-tension (TUT) training this year. What does this mean? It means A fiery 5-second hold at the bottom of the exercise, pulling the bar into your chest, driving your elbows back, and squeezing your lats–yes, it burns!
When it comes to CBum’s preferred lat pulldown attachment and grip style, he switches between grips and attachments, sometimes varying them for each set within a workout. Research has found that a medium or wide-pronated grip should be used for maximum lat activation, with little difference in activation of the rest of the back between grips [1, 2].
How To Do The Lat Pulldown With Regular Grip:
Set up the lat pulldown machine, sit down, and take hold of the lat pulldown bar with your hands slightly wider than shoulder width. Puff your chest out and retract your scapular. Rotate your elbows inward and create tension on the bar by pretending you are holding a pencil between your hands that you are trying to break in half.
Pull the bar down (leaning back slightly) by driving your elbows back and down towards your hips. Pinch your shoulder blades together as you pull down, and stop when the bar reaches your upper chest (not down to your belly button!).
Then, when extending the arms back to the starting position, keep the movement slow and controlled, resisting the urge to let the weight quickly pull you up.
Stop when your arms are fully extended before repeating the movement. Repeat for two sets of 10 to 12 reps.
CBum’s Tips:
Try to implement a controlled back-and-forth motion with the torso. When arms are fully extnded at the end of the eccentric phase, the torso should be upright, but when you pull the bar down to your chest, lean back slightly. This will ensure the lats are moved through their full range of motion.
At the end of the eccentric phase, make sure the arms are fully extended, consciously extending the lats fully before bringing the bar back down for another rep.
At the bottom of the concentric phase, focus on getting a good ‘squeeze’ in your back, consciously employing a mind-muscle connection.
2. Bent Over Row: 4 Sets Of 8-10 reps
Next up, CBum’s favorite back exercise: the barbell bent over row. This compound movement stimulates the whole back and is CBum’s ultimate ‘back thickness builder’.
By engaging both the lower and upper back, the barbell bent over row promotes balanced muscle development, ensuring complete symmetry of the back. Chris Bumstead does, however, like to emphasize the lats and lower back more than the traps in his bent-over row – helping him to build width and thickness in his lat spread. He focuses on ‘pulling the bar low into [his] hips,’ pulling his elbows back, and squeezing his back muscles at the top of the row. Initiating a short pause at the top of the barbell row's concentric phase (upward portion) will ensure mind-muscle connection and increase muscle time-under-tension (TUT) to maximize gains.
When it comes to grip position, CBum prefers to use a supinated (underhand grip), as this places more emphasis on the lower back and lats and ultimately allows you to lift heavier.
How To Do The Barbell Bent Over Row:
Set up a barbell on the floor or in a low rack. Take hold of the barbell with an underhand grip, slightly wider than shoulder width.
Stand tall, positioning the bar against your upper thighs with straight arms.
Retract your scapula (shoulders), bend the knees slightly, and hinge your hips until your chest is slightly above parallel to the floor (about 45 degrees). Ensure your scapula remains retracted, with a neutral spine, keeping your eyes focused directly on the floor in front of you, not on the mirror (as tempting as it may be)! Brace your core.
Row the bar towards the crease of your hips, pulling with your arms and driving your elbows back. Pause for a second, then slowly lower the bar back to the starting position by extending your arms. Repeat for four sets of 8 to 10 reps.
CBum’s Tips:
‘You want to try and keep your elbows as close to your body as possible’. Don’t go too narrow with the grip (it should be wider than shoulder width), and drive your elbows back (not out).
You may want to lift heavy but resist the urge to swing. If you find yourself ‘swinging’ and using momentum to drive the weight up, then you need to lower the weight (no ego lifting here!).
Remember to add a short pause at the top of the row and then lower the bar down slowly in the eccentric portion (downward phase) to increase TUT (this type of training is a big focus for CBum this year).
3. Chest-Supported T Bar Row: 3 Sets Of 10-12 Reps
The third exercise in his thavage CBum back workout is the T-Bar row machine with chest support, which effectively isolates the lats, rhomboids, traps, and, in particular, the rear delts, building shoulder and back mass.
The T-bar row is similar to the barbell row, but the stability of this exercise allows for fully focused contraction of the back muscles, removing involvement from other muscle groups. If you find your lower back hurting from bent-over rows or your hammies are tired from yesterday’s leg session, the t-bar row is actually a great replacement: ‘You can still move a lot of weight and build a huge upper back by doing high rows and avoid some injuries,’ Bumstead states.
Using a machine with chest support rather than free weights also has the added benefit of allowing heavier weight to be lifted, helping you put more load through the back muscles to increase hypertrophy. CBum implements a drop set for the final set, decreasing the load and performing as many reps as possible to failure to increase volume.
How To Do Machine, Chest Supported T Bar Rows:
Load up the T-bar row machine. Set up the machine so your feet can stand flat on the footpad and your mid-bottom of the chest rests on the top of the chest pad. You should be able to comfortably reach the handles.
Take hold of the handles that allow you to grip in a semi-pronated grip (these are the handles that put hands at a 45-degree angle, palms facing down, knuckles up, to target the mid back).
Bracing your core, protract your shoulder slightly, then explosively row the weight up, pulling your elbows back and out and pulling your shoulders back.
Pause for a second, then slowly lower back down in a controlled manner. Repeat for three sets of 10 to 12 reps.
CBum’s Tips:
Coach, Justin King, notes, ‘Elbows should pull High. Focus on how far you can get [your shoulder blades] together with the elbow back’
Be conscious of the tempo, ensuring speed on the way up, and then control on the way down, extending your arms for 3 seconds.
Do this, and King confirms, ‘your rear delts will grow like crazy’.
4. Dumbbell Row: 3 Sets Of 10-12 Reps
Another favorite exercise that crops up time and time again in CBum’s back workouts is the dumbbell row.
The single-arm dumbbell row effectively isolates the lats, rhomboids, traps, and rear delts. Chris Bumstead takes a neutral grip (palms facing each other) and keeps his elbows close to his side to emphasize the lats more. A back workout is ‘a workout where you try and hit the back from different angles; different wrist positions’–and the pairing of these back exercises does just that.
How To Do The Single Arm Dumbbell Row:
Set weight bench to the flat position. Select a heavy dumbbell and place it on the floorr. Rest your non-lifting hand and the same knee on a bench. This keeps you balanced.
Place your opposite foot on the floor and take hold of the dumbbell in your hand.
Begin the row by bending your elbow and pulling the dumbbell up to your torso, squeezing your shoulder blade in as you do.
Pause, then lower the dumbbell to starting position, extending the arm, then repeat for 10 to 12 reps, then switch arms.
CBums Tips:
Focus on pulling the elbows ‘backward and up’ in an arched pendulum motion
’: ‘When the dumbbell comes down, let [it] naturally hang a little bit forward […] then pull the elbow back and up to engage the lats.’
You can also do these with a pronated grip and flared elbows out. This will target the upper and midback more.
5. Preacher Curls & Hammer Curls (Tri-Set): 3 Sets Of 10-12 Reps Each Exercise
CBum’s high-volume training approach often means hitting muscle groups more than once a week. CBum’s back day is no different, finishing off with a tri-set of three bicep exercises, three times round:
‘I typically do a triple set for biceps: Usually, I start with a reverse grip preacher curl and then a machine preacher or a hammer at the end.’
Today, CBum’s back workout finishes with:
Pronated preacher curls
Hammer curls
Supinated preacher curl
–‘back-forth, back forth – three times’.
Both exercises effectively isolate the biceps, with the positioning of the preacher curl minimizing the involvement of other muscles like the back and shoulders. This focuses all work through the biceps and means you physically can’t cheat (no swinging!), making the biceps work hard.
Using an overhand (pronated) grip preacher curl, the biceps are moved through two major functions (elbow flexion and supination of the forearm) to build strength. Using an underhand (supinated grip) will work the forearms more heavily, directly benefitting other exercises where grip strength is important, such as barbell rows, deadlifts, and pull-ups.
The neutral grip of hammer curls effectively targets the brachialis (a muscle located underneath the biceps), which is important for overall upper arm size and can make the biceps appear larger and more defined. It also engages the forearms and emphasizes the long head of the bicep to build all over the bicep size.
One thing’s for sure: You walk out of the gym not only with a pumped up back, but bulging biceps to show for it too.
How To Do Pronated Grip Preacher Curls:
Set up a bench at a slight angle (between 45 degrees and fully upright), or, if you have a preacher curl machine, adjust the height of the seat so the top of the pad sits just below your chest when seated.
Selected a suitable weight dumbbell and stand to the side of the side of the bench. Lift the arm holding the dumbbell over the top of the bench, leaning into it so your armpit rests around the top and your tricep rests on the seat back. If using a machine, sit down on the seat, press your torso into the pad, and move your arm over the pad so your tricep rests on the front of it. Your arm should be extended, holding the dumbbell.
Begin the curl: Bend your elbow and curl the dumbbell up to your shoulder. Pause at the top, squeezing your biceps. (Note: Your forearms should be the only thing moving in this exercise.)
Lower back down to start position, slow and controlled, arms fully extended.
Repeat for 8-12 reps for three sets.
To switch to supinated grip, simply flip your hand over so your palm faces up and perform the same steps as above.
How To Do Hammer Curls:
Pick an appropriately weighted dumbbell and hold it in a neutral grip (thumb facing up, palm facing into your body). Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, arm extended, and dumbbell next to your thigh.
Brace your core, keeping your chest up and shoulders back. Curl the dumbbell up, bending at the elbow, moving only your forearms, and keeping your elbow tucked into your side.
Bend your elbow as far as possible until your thumb is close to the shoulders, palm still facing in.
Squeeze your bicep, pausing for a second, before lowering back to the starting position.
Repeat for 8-12 reps for three sets
CBum Tips:
Focus on mind-muscle connection: Squeeze as hard as possible at the top of the concentric portion. ‘If you’re doing 130lb or 30lb, you should get fatigued just as quickly. Squeeze as if the weight is impossible, even if it’s not that heavy.’
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What Is CBum’s Workout Routine?
Some say CBum has a ‘genetic gift’ – he doesn’t deny it – but he also follows a rigorous training plan, strict diet, and a ruthless mentality to ‘do the work.’
While those of us aspiring to build and sculpt our physique like Chris Bumstead may look to his training style as the ‘classic’ bodybuilding method, CBum’s workout split is actually considered unconventional. He follows an 8-day Push-Pull-Legs training split, which usually looks something like the following:
Day 1: Legs: Quad dominant
Day 2: Push Day: Chest, with a little bit of triceps
Day 3: Pull Day: Back, with a little bit of biceps
Day 4: Rest
Day 5: Shoulders, with a little bit of chest
Day 6: Legs: Hamstring dominant, with a little bit of back
Day 7: Arms
Day 8: Rest
But why is this PPL split so successful? Well, CBum’s training split means he’s never training the same muscle group on consecutive days, allowing for adequate recovery. What he does do, however, is focus on ‘high volume’ training–similar to what Arnold did back in the day. Much research has been done into this, finding a dose-response relationship between training volume and hypertrophy, so by incorporating several different exercises to hit each muscle group with a high number of reps, he can maximize his gains [3].
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There’s no secret recipe for sculpting a back like CBum. But there are some training techniques he’s implementing this year to build even more intensity in CBum’s back workout ahead of his 2024 season:
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Get The Work Done: But Enjoy The Journey, Not Just The Result
It’s high volume, it’s heavy, and it sure isn’t easy. But you may be surprised that Chris Bumstead’s back workout is nothing fancy: There’s no secret recipe, groundbreaking training technique, or shortcut to building a trophy-winning sculpted back. It comes down to tried-and-true techniques, a strong mindset, and hard work.
There’s also no guarantee that by following this back and biceps workout, you’ll see results even near Chris Bumstead’s level. In fact, CBum says:
‘The most important factor is finding what works best for you and what you want to do. At the end of the day, most of us are in great damn shape, and we're not here just to like be healthy or lose weight; we're here because we want to be. We enjoy it, love what we're doing, and want to see results. So make sure you're not doing a program just because I'm doing it, and someone said it's the best – make sure it's what's best for you.’
CBum’s back workout may or may not build the back of your dreams: But if you take anything from his training, it should be his determination, mentality, and unyielding hard work:
‘At the end of it all, you may just find that the trophies and money were never the prize you wanted but rather the journey, the mentality you built along the way with everything you ever needed.’
‘Don’t be a skinny b***h’ - Chris Bumstead, 2024: Head to the Gymshark Training App to access full back-building workouts and record your sets, reps, and weights along the way.
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WRITTEN BY: Alex Kirkup-Lee
Alex is an inhouse Content Writer for Gymshark’s Health & Conditioning categories. A qualified Personal Trainer, CrossFit Level 1 and Functional Fitness Coach, Alex is experienced in training clients from a range of sporting backgrounds. With a passion for functional training, her favorite workout is anything that includes deadlifts, rowing, or wallballs.
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References:
Lusk, S.J., Hale, B.D. and Russell, D.M. (2010). Grip Width and Forearm Orientation Effects on Muscle Activity During the Lat Pull-Down. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 24(7), pp.1895–1900. doi:https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0b013e3181ddb0ab.
Signorile, J.F., Zink, A.J. and Szwed, S.P. (2002). A comparative electromyographical investigation of muscle utilization patterns using various hand positions during the lat pull-down. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, [online] 16(4), pp.539–546. Available at: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12423182/.
Schoenfeld, B.J., Ogborn, D. and Krieger, J.W. (2017). Dose-response relationship between weekly resistance training volume and increases in muscle mass: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of sports sciences, [online] 35(11), pp.1073–1082. doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/02640414.2016.1210197.
Martins-Costa, H.C., Diniz, R.C.R., Lima, F.V., Machado, S.C., Almeida, R.S.V. de, Andrade, A.G.P. de and Chagas, M.H. (2016). Longer repetition duration increases muscle activation and blood lactate response in matched resistance training protocols. Motriz: Revista de Educação Física, 22(1), pp.35–41. doi:https://doi.org/10.1590/s1980-65742016000100005.
Schoenfeld, B.J. and Grgic, J. (2020). Effects of range of motion on muscle development during resistance training interventions: A systematic review. SAGE Open Medicine, 8(8), p.205031212090155. doi:https://doi.org/10.1177/2050312120901559.
