Hi Ed, here's my back workout.  My back is one of my strong points.  

I do chest and back on the same day, going back n forth b/n chest and back lifts.

1. Lat pulldowns(palms facing me, shoulder width)- 3 sets
2. Bent rows w/ 45lb bar and weights- 2 sets
3. cable rows-2 sets


That's it, nothing fancy.  I go heavy.  Of coarse, I go heavy on biceps too, and they don't grow nearly as well.  Just genetics I guess.

-Good luck

Chicken men?  I like the term lightbulbs.

Here's what I do for back.  I work-out twice a week.  At least once a week, I do my back work-out.  If during my second work-out, my back feels completely recovered, I'll do my back in my second work-out for the week.  In other words, play it by feel rather than by schedule.  I do this, because I've found that while I make less progress than doing it every work-out, taking it easy on upper back exercises is important since it's easy to hurt your lower back.

As to what exercises, my arms are so weak, I've never felt pullups or rows work my back at all.  Pullovers (lay w/ back on bench, hold a db with both hands, keep arms straight, and pull weight upwards using back muscles) used to work my back some, and seem to help w/ depth, but they haven't helped in a long time.  About 30 years ago, I ended-up strong enough so that it took so much weight on that excercise that it hurts my lower back and elbows to try to hold the weight.  With my build, deadlifts are almost 100% a lower back work-out and 0% legs.  So, I work lower back hard, and I simply can't work-out my upper back.  Sorry, can't help you with suggestions for what in particular to do.

Weak back?  Are your shoulders rolled forward from the imbalance?  When I first started lifting (about 40 years ago), I saw a lot of guys that had the problem.  Most of them did only bench and no back exercises.  Also, most of them developed shoulder problems, and it just looked funny.  So, work-out those posterior deltoids to help keep your shoulders back and to help prevent injuries.z

Yes I train my upper back once a week.  

For bent rows I meant using a barbell with whatever weight you want. Bend straight over, keeping your back straight, knees bent, and pull the weight up to your stomach.  Make sure and keep your shoulders pulled back, chest out,  and head up.  You should be able to set a coffe mug on your back w/out spilling it.  I usually work w/ at least 135lbs for this.  

You might try pullups/pulldowns with your palms facing you/shoulder width.  This seems to work my lats better.  

Remember, the wider your grip the less range of motion you're achieving.  I never bought into that whole wide grip=wide lats myth.  In fact, the wide grip seems to work the rear deltiods more for me, that's why I throw them in every once in a while to mix it up a bit.

-Good luck

yup i got chicken legs,but then again i'm 6' tall and weigh 170#.
most of those "lightbulbs" don't work legs because it expends to much time and energy to do so.
they have become so egotistically focused on upper body alone.
i am trying real hard with my legs first and beleive me it drains you doing a good leg routine and they hurt the longest after a good nausiating workout.
rescue93

I know folks that have the same situation as you ED.Not nesasessarly the back,but other body parts more developed than others.Everyone has their strong points,as well as their weak points.You just have to learn which is which and address the situation REALISTICALLY.[red]Start your routine with the back,when your your strongest.[b]Do more back.[/b]Personally I think ANY excersise less than 3 times a week  is lacking.[/red]

Deadlifts and power cleans are very good overall for power.  Power cleans are very good for your back, believe it or not.  Do those and you'll notice a significant increase in strength.  

Warning: Be careful while doing cleans.  Back in my powerlifting days I used to do those a lot, but I was forced to stop powerlifting indefinitely because of a pretty bad rotator cuff tear (mainly the supraspinatus tendon) that I got from just one sloppy movement. [:(]

My name is AR15fan and I'm a "chicken man".

Why? My training is goal oriented. For SWAT qual I have to be good at running, pushups, & pull ups. Extra body mass on my legs would only hurt those events.

For work I occasionally need to impose my will on others through physical force. Upper body strength helps with that. In fact it sometimes makes it unnecessary cause they size me up and decided it would be less painfull to comply. Big legs wont make alot of difference.

If I were working out for astetic reasons or for a body building competition, i would worry more about symetry.

PS..
Work on your back! I too used to neglect my back. I dont anymore and it has stabilised my shoulders, thickened my entire upper body, and made my max bench go up. I recommend lots of pull ups as the foundation of your back workout.

Back....close grip,palms in pullup/pulldown;wide grip,palm out pullup/pulldown;ROWSseated/bentover.Look on the [url]exrx.net[/url] site.You already know the form/variety/negatives... aspects of the exercise are important.AS for the regularity....this is just me but I alternate Chest,back,shoulders(CBS),ALL1day::::then arms+legs(AL) the next day, finishing every day with abs to exhaustion.Maybe 2 exercises per major body part.What ever works on that particular day.THE MORE YOU SWEAT,THE LESS YOU BLEED.

A good back routine is hard to find for most people, since for most, your grip will fail long before the muscles of your back will. There is just more mass there to do the work.

I keep my back routine very simple, using 3 exercises once a week.

Wide grip chins to open the session. Hands facing away and approx. 1 grip width outside your shoulders. Really try to focus on your back.
3 sets to failure.

I then move to a deadlift to focus on my lower back. Focus your efforts on your back, feel the muscle that is working.
4 sets pyramiding up in weight and down in reps.(12,10,8,6)

I finish my back routine with a rowing movement. One armed dumbells, bent over row, or seated cable rows. Once again, really focus on your movement and your intended goals.
3-4 sets (decided by feel) again pyramiding weight up and reps down.

I am blessed with a good looking back and cursed in that I have yet to find a back routine which allows me to thoroughly fatigue the muscle. However I continue to make progress, so the effort in my mind is not wasted.

Somone out there is bigger than you (or really coked up) and if you have to fight them strong leggs will make all the difference. But whatever works.

Heck, just about everyone out there is bigger than me. I'm a little guy, but I'm wirey.

...One word, Genetics.  The chicken men you speak of have the upper body genetics, but lack the legs.  Others will have huge quads and a smaller upper torso.  Another example, is calves.  Caucasians tend to have bigger calves.  Ok, now what do we do to maximize what we were given.  If you want to increase mass the first thing is diet.  In a nutshell:

1.  Diet: ensure you are getting the proper amount of Protein.  Your body can only absorb so much at one time.  General rule of thumb is 20-30 grams per sitting.  You want to get at least 1 gram per pound of muscle weight.  This means that you will have to split up your meals to at least 5...spread out every 2-3hrs.  Ensure you also get the proper carb to fat ratio as well, and pound the water.  Water is needed to push the glycogen(sp) from the carbohydrates into your muscles.  If you are not doing this correctly you will look and feel "flat", not to mention weak.  In addition, take a good multi-vitamin and mineral tablet once in the morning and again once at night.

2.  Training:  If you are not genetically blessed in the area you want to improve the results will not come easy.  Stick with heavy basic movements.  Some power lifting routines are good.  You will hear some people say that power lifting routines will give you a bigger waist.  This is untrue...once you diet for a competion your waist will shrink right up.  The weight should be heavy enough to where you are straining to get the 6th rep in unassisted.  Keep the reps low 6-8 repetitions.  Work the inner and outer portions of your back.  If you can get to that 8th rep unassisted...you need to increase the weight.  Don't be concerned with "shaping" exersices...again, basic heavy movements.  After a few weeks, you may find that you will platau(sp), ...not feeling sore anymore, or your muscle gains have stopped.  This is when you need to switch your routine and do different "heavy basic" exercises.  This will shock your muscles into new growth.  I used to train back and biceps.  I hit my back first...and then concentrated on my biceps.

3. Supplements:  I have been out of the circut for some time now, but can say from personal experience that a lot of the supplements out there are a waste of money (during my time).  The supplements I am refering to are the kind from GNC, etc...  If you have taken any kind of protein powder or weight gainer, you may have found that your urine was a funny color, or smelled funny.  This is because its going right through your system and your body is not absorbing it.  The powders are good if you do not have a meal prepared or do not have time to make one (something is better than nothing).

    Personal example...first competition, took a lot of supplements and cut back on my food.  Result muscles shrunk to the point where I had to compete in the Lightweight class.  Competitions, thereafter I focused on proper combinations of food and discarded the supplements so I could eat more.  Result...I was just as ripped, and ended competing and winning the Middle Weight class.  Lesson learned from all this is you can't substitute a good diet with supplements.  Another benefit is I never felt weak or flat.  Usually, before a competition, the competitors are weaker to a degree than they were lets say 10-12 weeks ago.  I was just as strong if not stronger right up to the point of stepping on stage.

RLTW

Do chin ups...as many as you can in as many sets as you can! Do them twice a week(you need rest on the other days).
Want strong legs? Do wind sprints. At least 3x100 yard sprints(you must build up to 8 sets of sprints once a week). Forget weights for the legs. You may develop imbalances in the muscle groupings which will affect your combat mobility(ie. a hamstring injury when you sprint for cover).  Train as you fight, fight as you train.
In a real fight, you will need speed and power.
The sprints will also condition your heart(don't forget to run/jog).
Big muscles are for dummies who want to present more of a target to their opponents. It is better to be fit and strong, mean and lean.
If you do chin ups, you'll get a strong back and arms simultaneously.