If you want to stand out on the Mr. Olympia stage, a thick and detailed back is essential for success. In a recent YouTube video shared on July 23, 2025, Martin Fitzwater and Brett Wilkin focused on lat density during their back workout ahead of the 2025 Mr. Olympia.
Last season, Fitzwater turned in a shocking debut performance at the Mr. Olympia. He ultimately earned fourth place and used that momentum at his next show. He claimed gold at the EVLS Prague Pro against Chris Bumstead in the Open division. As a result, Fitzwater secured his early entry to the Mr. Olympia. He hoped to extend his winning streak at the Pittsburgh Pro, but was outgunned by Derek Lunsford and Nick Walker.
Brett Wilkin also went after his Olympia qualification early. He was one of the first athletes to qualify for the prestigious event following his triumph at last year’s Legion Sports Fest Pro. With both IFBB Pros focused on their next showings at Olympia, they walked fans through how they approach training.
Martin Fitzwater, Brett Wilkin Push for High Volume During Back Workout Ahead of 2025 Mr. Olympia
Find their exercise selections from the YouTube video below:
- Lat Pulldown (Mag Grip)
- Plate Loaded Row
- Low Cable Row
- Premier Strength Angle Row
- Cable Pulldown
Lat Pulldown (Mag Grip)
Fitzwater and Wilkin spice up lat pulldowns with a mag grip, which helps them focus less on squeezing with the hands and more on pulling through the lats.
“We’re using what normally is referred to as a mag grip. It’s going to put you more at a neutral position and give you less focus on squeezing with your hands and forearms and rather pulling through the lats,” Fitzwater said.
Plate Loaded Row
Since Fitzwater’s and Wilkin’s back weakness is lat density, they are using the plate-loaded row to tax the fibers that wrap around the rib cage.
“Brett and I’s weaknesses in our back are our lats mostly. Our upper back is pretty developed. So, now it’s just a lot of focus on building lat density.
We get them filled up with blood on those lat pulldowns, get some damage on the fibers that are going up and now we’re getting some damage on the fibers that kind of wrap around the rib cage. Our main focus is lats,” he said.
Low Cable Row
Ben Chow chimed in and noted that Fitzwater stays upright during low cable rows to focus mainly on rear delt and teres work.
“You’ll see when Martin does it. He sits upright that way we target from the upper back to the rear delt, the teres, and that upper trap and mid-trap area there. Primarily, we’re trying to hit that rear delt and teres area.”
Premier Strength Angle Row
Fitzwater doesn’t train traps anymore and shared a cautionary tale about Branch Warren:
“Rear delt teres, barely much trap because I don’t need trap. And I work them too hard, I’ll just have a trap headache for three days after that. You know how Branch has two lumps on the back of his skull? It’s from his traps being so tight that it literally pulls on the tuberosity on the back of your skull.”
Cable Pulldown
Using a bench alongside a cable machine, Fitzwater, Wilkin, and Chow finish off by stretching the lats through cable pulldowns. They moved on with a posing session before calling it a day.
“We’re finishing things off with a pulldown. We did a bunch of rowing motions, really got those lats fired up and now the main focus is to stretch them out and get some more blood in there. So, we made our own variation here.”
In addition to the back, arm growth has become a top concern for Wilkin. He recently showcased his superset-focused arm workout to build evenly balanced biceps and triceps, explaining, “I like to train my arms a certain way. I like to totally tax one side before I move on to the other.”
Martin Fitzwater and Wilkin believe these types of training sessions set the foundation for success. The 2025 Mr. Olympia is set for October 10-13 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Watch the full video from the Muscle and Strength YouTube channel below:
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