Note from JMax: This is part 2 of this article. If you haven’t read part 1 yet, be sure to go back and give it a look.
What About Exercise Selection?
Bearing in mind that each individual will have their own starting point, I will outline the exercises for each body part that I feel maximise the hypertrophy response, the intended mechanism of hypertrophy for each, and also the muscle length position that is being emphasised. In my opinion, we should look to keep the exercise pool as small as possible. It’s better to perform a few exercises with ruthless accuracy than a gazillion different exercises just for the sake of variety.
Quads:
Front Squat/Heels Elevated Goblet Squat
– Lengthened to Mid Position
– Mechanical Tension/Muscular Damage
Hack Squat/Pendulum Squat
– Lengthened to Mid Position
– Mechanical Tension/Muscular Damage
Leg Extension
– Mid to Short Position
– Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
As much as big bang, sexy compound movements are essential for creating the necessary mechanical tension, especially in the lengthened to mid position, there is no movement better for hitting the quads in the shortened position than leg extensions. They suck, but so do you unless you do these until battery acid is coursing through your veins!
Hams:
Romanian Deadlift (Banded for Intermediate/Advanced)
– Mid to Lengthened Position
– Mechanical Tension/Muscular Damage
Prone Single Leg Hamstring Curls
– Mid to Shortened Position
– Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
Seated Hamstring Curls
– Lengthened to Mid Position
– Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
Video Link: https://www.instagram.com/p/Bpcuyp-lDm6/
The reason for inclusion of a prone and seated hamstring curl is quite a mind blowing discussion. Without getting into the specifics, such as some of the hamstring muscles are biarticular vs single joint, different hamstring muscle lengths, and even the different resistance profiles of each, just know that you need to have both for optimal development. The best way to remember is with seated the hips are flexed, and with standing or prone the hips are extended.
Glutes:
Hip Thrusters & Glute Bridges
– Mid to Shortened Position
– Mechanical Tension/Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
Hip Extensions (45 degree or GHD)
– Mid to Shortened Position
– Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
It’s important to note that the glutes will also be highly involved in the hip hinge variations for hamstrings. For example, the hamstrings and glutes will both be hit pretty hard in their lengthened positions during RDL’s,
Chest:
DB Bench Press (Barbell if relevant)
– Lengthened to Mid Position
– Mechanical Tension/Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
Chest Focused Dips
– Lengthened to Mid Position
– Mechanical Tension/Muscular Damage
Machine Chest Press
– Mid to Lengthened Position
– Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
Cuffed Clavicular Pec Flys
– Mid to Shortened Position
– Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
The Pecs can be looked at, in very general terms, in 2 specific regions – The Clavicular fibres, and the Sternal-Costal fibres. Both act to adduct the humerus. The Clavicular fibres addiotionally act to internally rotate the humerus, whilst the Sternal-Costal fibres act to extend the shoulder. This is why the inclusion of Dips or shoulder extension focused variation, like a high to low fly or decline bench press, is so important for making sure your man-cleavage isn’t top heavy. The lower pecs need some love too!
Back & Lats:
Step Back Iso/DY Row
– Lengthened to Mid or Mid to Shortened Position
– Mechanical Tension/Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
Chest Supported T-Bar/BB/DB Row
– Mid to Short Position Position
– Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
Mag Grip/D-Handle Lat Pulldown
– Lengthened to Mid or Mid to Shortened Position
– Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
Long Rope Cable Pulldown/Pullover
– Lengthened to Mid or Mid to Shortened Position
– Metabolic Stress
One of the cool aspects of lats and mid-back is that you can easily add a lengthened position emphasis to most exercise variations. So really, based on your needs, you can place more emphasis where it is required. Generally speaking, we are very weak in the shortened position of most pulling movements, so it’s important to push your ego back down deep inside and choose a weight that successfully allows you to shorten the lats and midback when this is the desired outcome.
And many may ask, why the D-handle for pulldowns? In my opinion, the wrists are not created to stay fixed through the entirety of a pulling movement per se. Additionally, most people will find handles that allow a little rotation way more comfortable. I do like MAG grips and Prime Handles also, although my only issue is many beginners to intermediates don’t actually have the finger flexor strength and endurance to benefit fully. D-Handles are a cheap alternative that can be used to modify many other pulling movements, like the T-Bar Row for example.
Shoulders:
Seated Wide DB Shoulder Press
– Lengthened to Mid Position
– Mechanical Tension/Muscular Damage
Cuffed Crucifix/Lying Lateral Raise
– Mid to Shortened Position
– Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
Rear Delt Cable Row
– Mid to Shortened Position
– Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
Pec Dec Rear Delt Flys
– Mid to Shortened Position
– Metabolic Stress
How much overhead pressing you should have in your program depends on quite a few considerations. Are shoulders a weak or a strong point? Do you already have a lot of horizontal pressing in your program? For me, shoulders are a strong point and were exposed to a lot of overhead work through CrossFit and Weightlifting. So at the moment I am literally doing no overhead pressing, and instead focusing volume on lateral and rear delt work to build more of a rounded cap to the shoulder. Ultimately, you have to look at the current balance of your shoulder and plan accordingly.
Arms:
Seated Incline DB Bicep Curl
– Lengthened to Mid Position
– Mechanical Tension/Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
Cable D-Handle Bicep Curls
– Lengthened to Mid Position
– Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
Seated/Standing Crossed Cable Tricep Extension
– Mid to Shortened Position
– Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
Standing Long Rope Cable Tricep Extension
– Lengthened to Mid Position
– Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
Most guys want to build bigger canons. Contrary to popular belief, short head focused work is actually the opposite of what you want to focus on for the biceps if increasing size and accentuating the bicep peak is your goal. The long head of the bicep creates the majority of the size and peak of the bicep, so for the most part and at least initially, I would place more or all of the direct bicep work to variations that focus on the lengthened to mid position. It’s also where most men tend to be weak, as they tend to avoid locking out and really milking the lengthened position.
For triceps, it depends on the individual. I do often find most do well with a balance between lengthened and short position work. Crossed cable variations for the short position I’m finding most effective both with myself and clients at present. The use of Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) can also be a great way to avoid excessive soreness and increase recovery, so worth keeping in mind.
Calfs:
Seated Calf Raise
– Lengthened to Mid and Mid to Shortened Position
– Mechanical Tension/Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
Toe Press (Leg Press or Machine)
– Lengthened to Mid and Mid to Shortened Position
– Mechanical Tension/Muscular Damage/Metabolic Stress
The calf complex is an intricate muscle group to train, and really requires a lot more intensity and precision than most afford to it. Time must be spent in both the fully lengthened and fully shortened positions, like I mean 2-5 second pauses in those positions. Plantar-flexing as hard as you can to fully shorten, and dorsi-flexing to fully lengthen. No momentum or bouncing should occur at any point of the movement. The sets are long and painful so require a hell of a lot of focus. This is why I like machine calf work for most people. Allows you to get locked, braced and stable so you can dial in on exactly what your working.
Wrapping Up
I’m afraid this is not an article on programming, so I’m not going to provide arbitrary sets, reps, execution points etc without doing a thorough assessment of an individual. What I hope this article inspires is a provocation of considered thought towards 2 key questions:
- What does the ultimate male physique look like to you?
- The approach to programming should not be taken lightly, and many considerations need to be made when it comes to appropriate exercise selection.
The exercises listed for each muscle group above are by no means gospel, but should give some idea of the principles we are looking to follow to realise some serious gains. By following the mechanisms of hypertrophy, you can certainly put together a pretty decent program with the right knowledge. Of course if you want someone to do it for you… well, you can find my contact details below!
About the Author
Ross Gilmour is a specialist in applying broad movement principles and methods to specific clients and contexts. The precision of execution is an absolute non-negotiable! Programming in order to build strength, add muscle or improve athletic performance is a real passion of his. Ross also gets an immense sense of reward from helping active populations recover from injury, bridging the gap between rehab and performance.
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