Everyone has a muscle that is lagging behind the rest. For me it is my calf muscles but for others it is their biceps or their pecs or their deltoids. In this post I want to look at how to build up lagging muscles.

How to bring up lagging muscles

Having a lagging muscle is really annoying. For bodybuilders it makes your whole physique look uneven and it can even cause health problems. If you have one muscle smaller than the others it is likely that your body will be out of balance and you will probably have a pinched nerve somewhere.

So, if you want to build up one of your lagging muscles here are a few things you can do.

1. Hit that muscle first
The best time to hit lagging muscles is first in your workout when your body is fresh, you are full of energy and you are focussed. If you wait until later in your workout you are likely to only use a lighter weight because you are too tired to hit it with something that is going to make it grow.

2. Pre exhaust the surrounding muscles
One trick I was taught a few years ago is to pre exhaust the surrounding muscles so that they don’t “take over” during the exercise. For example, if your triceps are lagging behind everything else you might want to do a few sets of chest isolation exercises before you do bench press or dips so that your triceps are forced to do more of the work.

I am not really sure about this method as I have never stuck to it long enough to see any results. If anyone reading has I would love to hear about it in the comments.

3. Hit them with a different type of exercise
One of the best things to do is hit the muscle with a different type of exercise. You may have been using the same exercise for 10 years and have to face facts that it isn’t working. Try a new exercise - intense reps, 100 repetition lifts, super slow reps, martial arts, sprinting, etc. The new style of stimulation might be enough to get it up.

Conclusion on lagging muscles

I would love to hear about more methods of bringing up lagging muscles. Everyone has a different opinion about how to do this and some of the ideas are really interesting. If you can think of anything not mentioned above then leave us a comment.

Here at RMO we are always taking about lifting heavy weights and although I always tell people to start out slow we rarely talk about gym safety. In this post I want to look at a few dangers that you need to know about to make sure your weight lifting is safe.

1. Not warming up properly

Not warming up properly is one of the most dangerous things you can do. Many people jump into the weight rack without taking time to do cardio or a few light weights.

Even when people do warm up they rarely do it properly. I am of the opinion that a good weights warm up should consist of a bit of cardio as well as some light weights in the area you are going to be working out. If you are going to do bench press start with a few pushups to get the area ready.

Not warming up can lead to muscle strains, tears, etc. These can be very long injuries.

2. Lifting a weight you are not ready for

One of the most common dangerous things that people do in the gym is lift a heavy weight that they are not ready for. It is a very easy way to end up with a serious muscle tear or even worse. I have heard of people breaking bones, ripping tendons and even puncturing lungs by dropping a heavy weight on their chest.

Here is a video showing you what can happen when you lift a weight you aren’t ready for. Warning - this isn’t for the faint of heart.

3. Not using the equipment properly

Another common danger is when people do not use the equipment properly. I see this all the time at the gym and wonder how long it will be before someone has a serious accident. Only use the equipment for what it was purposely intended for. Anything else is just silly.

4. Not using proper technique

Technique is there for a reason. It stops you from getting injured and it helps you use the muscles in the correct fashion. When you lift with poor technique you run the risk of seriously injuring yourself.

Take a look at this bench press accident. The guy holds the bar improperly (no thumbs) and is obviously lifting a weight he cannot handle at all. Again, this video is not for those with weak stomaches.

Technique is the most important thing in bodybuilding. I have always and I will always say this. Make sure your technique is sound every time you lift a weight.

5. Abusing your body with drugs and supplements

Steroids, excessive protein, too many supplements… all of these things are bad for your body and are a serious danger. Part of gym safety is making sure that your internal body is taken care of. If you abuse your system with steroids and other similar products you will end up sick or dead.

Valentino will attest to this:

Can you think of any others?

top image: photo credit: magnetbox

Getting a huge back like Ronnie Coleman is the holy grail of bodybuilding. Having a huge back is a big advantage in bodybuilding contests and it is vital for any contact sport or martial art. A lot of power comes from having a strong back. In this post I want to look at how you can get a huge back like Ronnie Coleman.

A huge back is part illusion

The first thing you need to understand is that having a huge back is part illusion. If you want to look like you have a huge back for a bodybuilding contest you need to make sure your waist is small. You also need to make sure your lateral deltoids are large and protruding as this will make your back look bigger than it really is.

In this post, however, I will not be looking at these elements. Rather I will be looking at how you can train your back muscles to make them as big and as strong as possible.

What muscles are involved in training for a huge back?

Before I can say how to train for a huge back you need to know what muscles are involved. If you do not know this aspect really well your back training will be like looking for a needle in the dark.

Primarily we will be focussing on two muscles:

• the latissimus dorsi; and
• the rhomboids

These muscles make up the majority of the back and when developed properly give the back a very nice and large shape. It is particularly important to train those lats in order to create the much sought after V-taper.

Getting huge lats

First in your back workout you will want to hit your lats. The lats muscles run down the side of your back from the shoulders to just under the ribs and when developed look like a cobra from behind. For your lats you will be doing two exercises and two only. These are the kind of lats development and are all you need for now.

1. The pull up or chin up
The pull up or the chin up is the best exercise there is for developing your lats. If you have underdeveloped back muscles it is very likely you will not be able to do many chin ups. Most people at my gym use the assisted chin up machine because a regular chin is too hard. This is weak.

When you are doing the chin up you should do it as slow as possible and by tensing the back muscles throughout the whole movement. Make sure the decline is slower than the incline. You should imagine you are pulling with your elbows as this will allow you to target the lats much better.

Once you can do a few sets of 10-15 reps you should start adding weight to your waist when you do the exercise. This is the number one best method of developing a huge back.

2. Bent over rows
The next exercise you can use for developing huge lats is the bent over row. This is like a weights version of the chin up and targets the lats and rhomboids really well.

Again, make sure you start off with a light weight and get the technique working really well. Lift with your elbows. Squeeze the muscles at the top of the movement. Stretch them at the bottom. Keep your head facing up and make sure your back is straight. This is very important.

Getting huge rhomboids

Second in your workout you want to hit the rhomboids and the traps. They are hard to isolate so you need to work them in big compound movements.

1. The deadlift
The deadlift is the king of bodybuilding exercises. It works all of your back, shoulders as well as legs and abs. However, it is really good at hitting the inner and upper back and makes for some huge mass if done right.

The deadlift is not easy to do though. It takes years of practice and supervision. Start out with a light weight again and work your way up. Make sure you are tensing your back muscles at the top of the motion. For safety’s sake many people place the bar on the ground at the bottom of each repetition.

I highly recommend everyone reads up as much as possible on the deadlift as they can. You do not want to take this exercise lightly.

Here is a video of our man Ronnie Coleman doing a big deadlift.

2. The lying bar row
The next exercise we will do is the lying bar row. This is where you lay face down on a bench with the barbell underneath the bar. You then do a “reverse bench press” style movement by lifting the bar to your chest or upper stomach. Often at the gym you can hear the bar crunching into the bottom of the bench as the big guys pump out set after set of these.

Experiment with different grips and different widths. Again, take it slow and make each lift controlled.

How many sets should I do?

I get asked this question all the time. How many reps and how many sets should I do to get huge? Well, the answer is not as black and white as you might think.

Sometimes when I go to the gym I am on fire. I may have a lot of energy or something but it seems like I could workout for hours. On these days I do more sets than normal - it seems to take more to exhaust my muscles.

It really is up to the individual. If you can do 15 sets without getting too tired and sacrificing good form then you should do it. See how your muscles respond over a few weeks and if it is not working for you, change.

It is important not to overtrain. I like to workout hard and fast for no more than about 45 minutes at a time. If I go longer than that a seem to lose a lot of contraction strength and it is more like I am going through the motions of the exercises as opposed to actually doing them.

So, instead of relying on someone elses guidelines of how many sets and reps why don’t you just load up some heavy bars (when you are ready) and experiment with your own body. After all, you know yourself better than anyone else!

top image:vucut