Posts tagged gym routines
The Importance Of Back Exercises In Your Bodybuilding Program
Increase muscle mass and functional strength are the two reasons of primary importance to get into bodybuilding. Most important in both cases is the development of core strength; the muscles of the abdomen, upper, middle and lower back.
Your back are the primary stabilizing muscles in your body, and the ones easiest to injure when lifting weights. From a biomechanical perspective, your back consists of the spine, the ribs, the scapula and the ligaments that string them all together, like parts of a mobile or kinetic motion structure.
Compression or rotation injuries are the ones that happens to the back most of the time when the soft tissues that provides flexibility to to the back get damaged. You should always be careful when lifting weights and you should always focus on isolating the muscle so you wont get injured, as a lot of injuries wont show up for years.
Traps, Lats, and Deltoids are some back muscle groups to work on, but take your time. Doing it slowly will prevent injuries. Sure, you are going to get a ripped back by overworking, but you should concentrate more on everyday strength over getting to big when working your back.
The traps muscles are the ones that form the bulk of your back. If you are looking to do Traps, then use a shrug motion, which has you taking dumbbells in each hand, and shrugging your shoulders up and down while you take a breath and then let them down while exhaling.
Another movement that helps the traps a bit (but mostly works on your deltoids) is a straight-arm lift. Hold a dumbbell in your hand with your elbow at your side, and your forearm out level with the map. Extend your arm until it's at shoulder height, in one fluid motion, and look down your arm at the dumbbell, like you're sitting on a pistol range. Then bring it down slowly. This will work on your deltoids and the yoke of muscle linking your shoulders.
To build up the lower trapezius muscle, you're going to want a sitting down 'V-bar pull down', where you're pulling down against resistance. This is better than a straight pull up because it isolates the muscle thoroughly.
Building definition, and most importantly, strength, in the lower back requires shoulder arches. Hold a light dumb-bell over the back of your neck and lay down on your front. With your hands clasped, arch your back, lift, and hold for a count of three, then lower slowly. Do these sparingly; it's very easy to overdo them.
Like all the exercises which help with muscle building, stretching and cardio exercise before and after are a must for maintaining flexibility.
Weight Training for Beginners, Pump Is Not Equal To Muscle Gain
Picture this scenario: you've been working in the gym for half an hour and after a really hard set of your routine on the bench your chest feels tight and engorged with blood. It feels great, healthy, powerful. "Pump", is how they call that feeling. If you have ever had the feeling, then you know great it feels. Arnold said it's like having sex (i'm not really sure if it's good in THAT level, but yes, it's an amazing feeling).
A "Pump" is nothing but the tight, blood-congested feeling in a muscle after it has been intensely trained. Muscle pump is caused by a rapid influx of blood into the muscles to remove fatigue toxins and replace supplies of fuel and oxygen. But it doesn't matter how great you feel, if the goal you're trying to reach is to build muscle.
A pump is in no way indicative of a successful workout. It doesn't mean it's bad for you to achieve one during your session, it's simply a natural result of intense weight training. But if you focus your workout in getting a pump instead of muscle gain, you are making a huge mistake, and it will tax you.
On countless occasions I've heard lifters raving about the massive pumps they get in the gym as they share methods for achieving the best pump possible. "Dude, this will give you a crazy pump!" If you have already been working out for a decent amount of time then you know exactly what I'm talking about. While a pump does feel extremely satisfying, just remember that it means very little in terms of muscle stimulation and growth.
A pump does not build muscle. If muscle pumps meant muscle growth, then super light weight, ultra high rep programs would be the most effective way to grow. But overloading and giving your body a reason to grow does. It's just a way to keep you training. Just that. If you really want to measure your achievements all you have to do is to keep a notebook and write down some numbers..
Keep a record of your workout (in terms of weight and reps), and compare them week after week. If you are increasing your resistance, if you can perform one or two extra reps, then you had a successful workout, it doesn't matter how far you were to achieve a pump.
Building muscle mass and strength is all about training with 100% intensity on every given set and then striving to improve from week to week. If you are able to consistently achieve this, your muscle size and strength will increase faster than you ever thought possible, with or without a pump.
