Someone, me thinks Patriot, asked me to expound upon my shoulder training philosophy and I agreed but I let it slip my mind. Apologies for the tardiness of the response but here we go!
The Beginning – do what everybody else does but just do more of it!
First, know that for much of my early bodybuilding career, I perceived my shoulders to be a “weak point” in my physique. To me, that was unacceptable because next to a small waist, “big shoulders” are perhaps the most important part of the illusion of bodybuilding. So initially, I watched a lot of guys with great looking shoulders and I noticed that they all seemed to press and press a lot. Like most guys, when training shoulders, much of my training revolved around some form of overhead pressing. I figured it was just a matter of time and that the progress would come if I stuck to the pressing. After 5 fruitless years of pressing and pressing and more pressing, I finally realized that my shoulders did not grow from pressing. Oh, I got stronger and stronger, but in terms of muscle size, quality, and development, my shoulders really showed little improvement. Sure, I could sit down and crank out 10 reps with 225 on behind the head presses but my development just didn’t seem to be moving forward. So I did what most guys do for lagging shoulders – I pressed even more! Behind the head press, in front of the head press, dumbbell press, Arnold press, Hammer press, you name it I pressed it! No results. The futility continued until 1991 when I finally decided that I had to try something different because pressing just was not helping the cause.
Enter Genetics!
As I started to study guys with great shoulders, I noticed that what I saw as “great shoulders” was really more than just muscle size. Great shoulders are made up of 4 distinct elements. The first 3 things are genetic – wide clavicles, round full muscle bellies and long points of insertion on the arm. The fourth is muscle size. The first 3 things, you are born with the last is the only one you can build. Very few guys actually have all 4 of these shoulder attributes. To see the best example of someone who possesses all 4 shoulder attributes look at pictures of Kevin Lavrone – perhaps the best pair of shoulders in bodybuilding ever. What you will see is a very wide clavicle with full melon-like caps that extend deep in the bicep attachment point. Of course, he has great mass to complement the superior genetics. Luckily, for those of us of average genetics, you don’t have to posse all 4 attributes to have decent looking shoulders.
The Plan & Program
Understanding a more about what I could control and what I could not control regarding shoulders forced me to realign my thinking about my goal for shoulders. I wanted to create a round –looking shoulder structure that was full and appeared that way from side-to-side and front-to-back. That meant I was dropping the pressing since it primarily hit the front delt. I was focusing on the side and rear delts in the hope of building up the ability to create the illusion of width and thickness in my shoulder structure.
I started doing a lot of dumbbell lateral work and a lot of rear delt work. In just a few months, I noticed huge improvements in my appearance. In fact, I stuck with that idea right up and through my last contest. It was at that show that I had more comments on my improved shoulders than anything else about my physique.
Twenty years later the routine is still very much the same. The only modifications involve the incorporation of the giant set approach for improved efficiency. Also, I feel compelled to tell you that this is the routine that I used today and I stole it from one of my personal benchmark bodybuilders Francis Bennefatto.
4 Giant Sets of
Combination Dumbbell side lateral raises/Dumbbell Front Raise: 12 reps X 35 lbs Dumbbells (performed in an alternating style: side rep then front rep back to side rep then front rep) one combo of side-front = 1 rep.
Supersetted with Seated Dumbbell Press: 12 X 70 lbs Dumbells
Supersetted with Dumbell side lateral raise: 12 reps X 35 lbs Dumbbells
4 Giant Sets of
Incline Rear Dumbbell raise 12 reps X 35 lbs dumbbells
Supersetted with Standing Cable rear delt raise 12 reps X 20 lbs each cable
Supersetted with seated dumbbell rear delt raise 12 reps X 20 lbs dumbbells.
So there is the routine. The goal with shoulders is to work on feeling each and every rep making a tight and forceful contraction. During the first exercise of combo side-front raise, you might feel like you can do more than 12 reps – don’t do 12 and move to the presses. You’ll understand why after you complete the first sequence 1 time.
This routine takes me about 25 minutes to complete and my shoulders are always blistered afterwards. Give it a try and report back!
The Beginning – do what everybody else does but just do more of it!
First, know that for much of my early bodybuilding career, I perceived my shoulders to be a “weak point” in my physique. To me, that was unacceptable because next to a small waist, “big shoulders” are perhaps the most important part of the illusion of bodybuilding. So initially, I watched a lot of guys with great looking shoulders and I noticed that they all seemed to press and press a lot. Like most guys, when training shoulders, much of my training revolved around some form of overhead pressing. I figured it was just a matter of time and that the progress would come if I stuck to the pressing. After 5 fruitless years of pressing and pressing and more pressing, I finally realized that my shoulders did not grow from pressing. Oh, I got stronger and stronger, but in terms of muscle size, quality, and development, my shoulders really showed little improvement. Sure, I could sit down and crank out 10 reps with 225 on behind the head presses but my development just didn’t seem to be moving forward. So I did what most guys do for lagging shoulders – I pressed even more! Behind the head press, in front of the head press, dumbbell press, Arnold press, Hammer press, you name it I pressed it! No results. The futility continued until 1991 when I finally decided that I had to try something different because pressing just was not helping the cause.
Enter Genetics!
As I started to study guys with great shoulders, I noticed that what I saw as “great shoulders” was really more than just muscle size. Great shoulders are made up of 4 distinct elements. The first 3 things are genetic – wide clavicles, round full muscle bellies and long points of insertion on the arm. The fourth is muscle size. The first 3 things, you are born with the last is the only one you can build. Very few guys actually have all 4 of these shoulder attributes. To see the best example of someone who possesses all 4 shoulder attributes look at pictures of Kevin Lavrone – perhaps the best pair of shoulders in bodybuilding ever. What you will see is a very wide clavicle with full melon-like caps that extend deep in the bicep attachment point. Of course, he has great mass to complement the superior genetics. Luckily, for those of us of average genetics, you don’t have to posse all 4 attributes to have decent looking shoulders.
The Plan & Program
Understanding a more about what I could control and what I could not control regarding shoulders forced me to realign my thinking about my goal for shoulders. I wanted to create a round –looking shoulder structure that was full and appeared that way from side-to-side and front-to-back. That meant I was dropping the pressing since it primarily hit the front delt. I was focusing on the side and rear delts in the hope of building up the ability to create the illusion of width and thickness in my shoulder structure.
I started doing a lot of dumbbell lateral work and a lot of rear delt work. In just a few months, I noticed huge improvements in my appearance. In fact, I stuck with that idea right up and through my last contest. It was at that show that I had more comments on my improved shoulders than anything else about my physique.
Twenty years later the routine is still very much the same. The only modifications involve the incorporation of the giant set approach for improved efficiency. Also, I feel compelled to tell you that this is the routine that I used today and I stole it from one of my personal benchmark bodybuilders Francis Bennefatto.
4 Giant Sets of
Combination Dumbbell side lateral raises/Dumbbell Front Raise: 12 reps X 35 lbs Dumbbells (performed in an alternating style: side rep then front rep back to side rep then front rep) one combo of side-front = 1 rep.
Supersetted with Seated Dumbbell Press: 12 X 70 lbs Dumbells
Supersetted with Dumbell side lateral raise: 12 reps X 35 lbs Dumbbells
4 Giant Sets of
Incline Rear Dumbbell raise 12 reps X 35 lbs dumbbells
Supersetted with Standing Cable rear delt raise 12 reps X 20 lbs each cable
Supersetted with seated dumbbell rear delt raise 12 reps X 20 lbs dumbbells.
So there is the routine. The goal with shoulders is to work on feeling each and every rep making a tight and forceful contraction. During the first exercise of combo side-front raise, you might feel like you can do more than 12 reps – don’t do 12 and move to the presses. You’ll understand why after you complete the first sequence 1 time.
This routine takes me about 25 minutes to complete and my shoulders are always blistered afterwards. Give it a try and report back!
