Frank Sepe and Don Saladino recently took Sleeveless on the road, hitting the iconic Bev Francis’ Gym in Syosset, NY. This episode featured the world-renowned experts and trainers showing you how to build a big back, and no rep was spared. They began the session with the basic lat pulldown.
“First set is for warming up. We got the old-school straight bar. Love this bar,” Sepe said. You can use whatever long cable attachment your gym has for this exercise. You’ll notice that they are saving time by having the next person go as soon as someone else finishes. Rest is minimal, and it saves time in the gym.
After the pulldowns, they move on to T-bar rows. Both men had different methods to their madness. Sepe was more upright, while Saladino was bent over slightly further.
“I like a little hinge,” he said off camera. After a couple of working sets, they opted to go with lighter weight for higher reps at the end. The third exercise was another lat pulldown, but the machine handles spread apart as you go down. Sepe threw in a couple of partial reps at the end, in tribute to his friend and former Arnold Classic Men’s Physique champion, Andre Ferguson.
“Partial reps for my man, Andre.”
The old-school themed workout also included wide grip seated rows, straight arm pulldowns, and low cable seated rows.
Build a Big Back Workout
Wide Grip Lat Pulldowns – 5 sets of 12-15 reps*
T-Bar Row – 2 sets of 10-15 reps. 1 set of 30 reps.
Rear Lat Pulldown Machine – 3 sets of 10-15 reps (with partials)
*Last set should be a drop set. Start with heavy weight, and reduce it upon reaching failure.
Do you need more Sepe and Saladino in your fitness life? Then, follow the Muscle & Fitness Instagram page every Tuesday at 10AM Eastern time to catch new editions of Sleeveless. Make sure you subscribe to the M&F YouTube channel for more great workouts like this one.
