Q&A for: 8-Feb-06
1313. Q:
I have a very big unbalance on my arms, my biceps are fairly developed but mi triceps are just flat. When I stand in front of a mirror flexing a double arm biceps, my arms show a nice peek on the biceps but the lower part of my arms looks just flat. How can I develop my triceps in order to have a peek that matches my biceps? I get really confused when I try to identify the triceps heads, which head should I pay more attention to in order to achieve my goal? I am currently following your 4 day split program. Thnx.
A:
When you flex your biceps your triceps are by definition extended and vice versa, so it's impossible to simultaneously have both the biceps and the triceps peak on the same arm. Flexing the triceps requires straightening your arm completely with no bend at the elbow. Even then, the bicep peak will be significantly larger than the triceps peak -- that's just the anatomy of our bodies.
As far as which tricep head to focus on, don't worry about it. If you start thinking too much of that you'll lose the forest for the trees. Focus on the core triceps exercises which are close-grip bench press, skullcrushers, overhead dumbbell press (you can find all three on my Essential Exercises page in the arms section, and mix in some cable pressdowns and occasional light work like kickbacks. But you will gain the most tricep mass overall (again, don't worry about which head is which) from using your triceps in the regular bench press plus those first three exercises. A lot of people make the mistake of doing only cable pressdowns when the best mass and strength builders are freeweights.
And as with any other time you are trying to gain muscle, nutrition is extremely important. Most and fastest muscle mass will be gained when bulking up and gaining weight. The flip side is that gaining weight too fast (or through junk food) will also result in new fat. You can read all about it in my Nutrition article.
1314. Q:
Due to a left shoulder injury I'm unable to perform lateral side raises without experiencing an unconfortable pain on mi shoulder joint. I can do DB presses fine but I can't go too heavy or I get that same joint pain. Can you recommend some excercises I can do for bulking up my delts having this problem?
A:
Sorry, you won't be able to and you shouldn't try to bulk up your shoulders while they're injured. Shoulder injuries tend to linger, are easily aggravated and in worst case will be stuck with you for life! Don't take chances by stressing an injured shoulder. I strongly recommend you see a physical therapist about it and follow his or her directions.
If you absolutely cannot see a therapist, then cut out ALL shoulder-specific exercises and go only light on bench presses till the shoulder fully heals. Additionally, do not bend your elbow more than 90 degrees on bench presses or row exercises -- this means not lowering the bar all the way to the chest during bench press.
I know this is not what you want to hear, but take however long it takes till your shoulder is fully healed. Good luck!
1315. Q:
Fast Ways to exercise abs
A:
The most basic and effective ab exercise is the crunch, found at the bottom of my Essential Exercises page. But keep in mind that all the crunches in the world will not give you an abdominal six-pack as long as there's a fat layer on your stomach. The only way to lose that stomach fat layer (and it's not easy) is to lose fat overall. Please read my fat loss article to learn how.
1316. Q:
What Is A Crunch
A:
The most basic and effective ab exercise is the crunch, found at the bottom of my Essential Exercises page. But keep in mind that all the crunches in the world will not give you an abdominal six-pack as long as there's a fat layer on your stomach. The only way to lose that stomach fat layer (and it's not easy) is to lose fat overall. Please read my fat loss article to learn how.
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