Certain Muscles Refuse to Grow

It’s simple, my biceps, chest, shoulders, and calves refuse to grow. Before you flame me for not doing [insert your favorite mass building program here] realize the only thing I have not tried is high volume. My back is huge, my triceps are great, my quads and hams are SOLID.

I know people who have never lifted in their life that have a better chest than me, and I know people who just do bench press that also have larger biceps than me. It’s ridiculous. What have I overlooked? Why do these muscles just refuse to grow in size, strengthwise they are slower than my other muscle groups, but mass-wise very little has improved since my first year of lifting.

Anything here, is helpful…if you want to recommend your favorite program, be my guest, but realize that most conventional workouts have done very little for me.

how much do you weigh, how tall are you and how long have you been working out? Also how much weight do you use for your chest exercises?

I wish I could get pictures up. I’m 5’8" about 178, been in the game for a measly 2 1/2 years, but I’ve given it my all and put on 40 lbs of muscle, fat, sinew and bone.

I haven’t max benched, and I know that’s the typical bodybuilder response, but the gym I was working with, and the trainer I had never had me max bench (he’s not a dumb trainer, directed me to this site!) Anyways i rep 150 like 10x, but with that said, benching never gave me chest work.
I just moved into college, and for chest I’ve been doing:

A (twice through):
dumbbell presses (no gym partner yet, no spotter) by 2RM etc i mean the heaviest weight i can get 2 reps with
1RM
2RM
3RM
4RM
5RM
6RM
no rest
dumbbell presses, palms facing in, elbows to the sides
1RM
2RM
3RM
4RM
5RM
6RM
60 seconds rest

B: (three times through)
standing military press
reprange: 8-12
15 seconds
decline pronated chest flys
reprange: 15-20
30 seconds rest

c: (4x through)
dumbell pullovers
reprange: 4-15
norest
abdominal vacuums
30 second hold
20 second rest
(5 seconds less rest each time through)

now obviously this workout wasn’t written by Chad Waterbury, it’s just the thing i did the first time i was in the college gym and ive been consistent with it for the last 2 weeks, and actually had the most growth ive ever had w/ my chest…more so than when id done hypertrophy or strength programs any help or criticism is APPRECIATED AND NEEDED.

Try consistent effort (longer than 2 weeks).

Most of this strength/muscle building stuff takes a good while.

[quote]WildShoe wrote:
It’s simple, my biceps, chest, shoulders, and calves refuse to grow. Before you flame me for not doing [insert your favorite mass building program here] realize the only thing I have not tried is high volume. My back is huge, my triceps are great, my quads and hams are SOLID.

I know people who have never lifted in their life that have a better chest than me, and I know people who just do bench press that also have larger biceps than me. It’s ridiculous. What have I overlooked? Why do these muscles just refuse to grow in size, strengthwise they are slower than my other muscle groups, but mass-wise very little has improved since my first year of lifting.

Anything here, is helpful…if you want to recommend your favorite program, be my guest, but realize that most conventional workouts have done very little for me.[/quote]

The problem is NOT your program. The problem is YOU! You have a bad attitude! People with bad attitudes focus on what they DON’T have or what’s NOT working …instead of what IS working and what they DO have.

Don’t be a n’t person( I can’t, won’t, don’t, not not not not) Yeah you’re NOT going to do jack shit with that attitude. Be a CAN doer. You can build all that shit …this aint rocket science and you have had good programs probably. Use a little positive reinforcement and some positive effort and I bet you change your entire outcome on those poor biceps, chest, and whatever else muscle you named in your bad approach. I bet even your muscles are laughing at you because they even know they can grow.

Your problem is YOU partna! Change that, everything else will fall into place.

merlin

Sorry, but, if I could I would post TC’s article on how the Law of Attraction is a joke. No matter how bad I WANT bigger biceps, the only thing that is going to get me there is hard work. It’s not that I’m not trying hard because I’ve given up, I’m concentrating on these muscles more than ever now, and I go into the gym like an animal and I leave like an animal, whether it’s a muscle group that grows well or doesn’t that I’m training. My problem is not my mental attitude MERLIN, my problem is that certain muscle groups aren’t being stimulated in a way that promotes muscle GROWTH. I’m getting stronger, even though these parts were always weak w/ me, they are getting stronger, but not larger, and it’s not that I haven’t given it enough time. I’ve can rep 40 lbs more than I could ever do once with a barbell curl, yet not matter what rep scheme, or tempo they are exerted with tehy do not increase in SIZE. They don’t adapt. So while I do the negative thinking, and get in the gym you can sit on your ass and positive think for me, and who knows, maybe you can create some hypertrophy through esp 1000 miles away.

Well I dont think anything on you is huge, but from your statistics you have a base. At this point I dont think you need to isolate a specific muscle group to work on. Keep benching, no one who can bench 150lbs x 10 has a big chest. I do not think your program sucks, but I do think it is too complicated at this point. If I was in your position I would probably try a simple 3x8 or 4x6 scheme for awhile. I would also add in flies as the last exercise.

I understand what you are saying when you say the bench press does not work your chest. I was in that situation until I started putting up more weight and imagining the muscle group (in this case my chest) being worked during the set.

My current chest workout is as follows:

Dumbbell flat press
3x8 110lbs

Barbell flat press
3x8 235lbs (My chest is dead after the dumbbells)

Superset:
A) decline pullovers x8
B) incline cable flies x8
A)x8
B)x8
A)x8
B)x8 (sometimes burn out)

That is 12 working sets all for your chest, it gives me great results. It also hits your chest from multiple angles, with nothing too fancy.

[quote]WildShoe wrote:
Sorry, but, if I could I would post TC’s article on how the Law of Attraction is a joke. No matter how bad I WANT bigger biceps, the only thing that is going to get me there is hard work. It’s not that I’m not trying hard because I’ve given up, I’m concentrating on these muscles more than ever now, and I go into the gym like an animal and I leave like an animal, whether it’s a muscle group that grows well or doesn’t that I’m training. My problem is not my mental attitude MERLIN, my problem is that certain muscle groups aren’t being stimulated in a way that promotes muscle GROWTH. I’m getting stronger, even though these parts were always weak w/ me, they are getting stronger, but not larger, and it’s not that I haven’t given it enough time. I’ve can rep 40 lbs more than I could ever do once with a barbell curl, yet not matter what rep scheme, or tempo they are exerted with tehy do not increase in SIZE. They don’t adapt. So while I do the negative thinking, and get in the gym you can sit on your ass and positive think for me, and who knows, maybe you can create some hypertrophy through esp 1000 miles away.[/quote]

If I can’t shove some logic up your ass …maybe I’ll get our good buddy Vince Gironda to do it for you. You’d be surprised between the mind/thought processes and the STRONG correlation it has to muscle responses. Even Arnold should be enough proof for you. I could do some searching and show you some stuides or some very rarely talked about Gironda thoughts on the mind & muscle response. for now, just take my word for it. your attitude will keep you right where you are. You already proved that to yourself.

I will leave you with one thought. I had a very similiar problem that you have with weakpoints. Tried everything, wasn’t working no matter how hard I tried or worked. Something was holding me back, I figured out what it was and how to solve it. I had to change. You havn’t changed. You may be changing the reps or the exercise but you’re not changing the stimulus that will change the growth response.

I was desperate for anything. Not until I got my mind into the muscle and the mind into controlling the outcome of the nervous system and growth responses did I see a change. There are studies where people increased muscular strength in their hand muscles (never actually doing any exercises though) just by thinking about performing the reps over a trial period. The control group actually had as much progress as the actual group doing exercises. It all starts in the mind son. As you get older, you’ll understand this.

I might post a little bit of Vince Gironda for you later. This will blow your mind. They don’t come much better than him when it comes to training. The difference between the elite best and just good is in the mind. They have the ability be in the ZONE when lifting. Something you might want to also look into. Routines and exercises are just a side-show for what really happens when the muscle DECIDES to overcompensate.

I reiterate …You are your own problem!

merlin

Don’t take my word for it.

Take his.(if there ever was a holy grail, this may be the closest thing I’ve ever come across that would qualify)

(The Essence Of Bodybuilding) By Vince Gironda
–IronMan, May 1983

I have stated numerous times that champions obviously possess something that others do not. Even though training partners do the same routine set for set, rep for rep, they do not obtain the benefits of the champions.
I have observed champions train in a manner I do not approve, but they receive results that are phenomenal. What is it that they possess? Well, I will tell you, they are using mental suggestion (self-hypnosis).

When I first observed this, it puzzled me. The first time I noticed Walt Baptiste, former gym owner and magazine publisher from San Francisco (Body Moderne) touching his abdominals while backstage before going out to pose at several physique contests, he seemed to be saying something to his abdominals as he stroked them. He seemed to be sending a message into this body section, because I could actually see the ABS sharpen up and grow more outlined than his normal condition. I later discovered that Walt was sending mental images to his subconscious, to produce this phenomena.

I learned that you can actually produce the desired condition by picturing in your mind what you wish to manifest. He also breathed deeply and regularly in through his nose and out through his pursed lips. As you know, this type of breathing is employed between sets prior to repeating the next set. At this time, the mechanism employed should be to picture in your mind a clear image of the muscle or area of the body you wish to develop, and hold the image throughout the performance of that set.

Walt promoted the first Mr. California Physique Contests, in which I placed second and third several times. He later gave up his gym and opened a chain of yoga studios in the San Francisco area.

The technique of mental suggestion is what all physical culture writers are trying to explain when they throw that nebulous term “concentration” at you. They seem to recognize that concentration is necessary, but do not know how to trigger the mechanism that produces the phenomenon. The subconscious believes any thought you perceive, and stores it. It accepts everything that is thought or spoken by you or another, if you accept it as truth.

But it must be repeated again and again until the subconscious accepts it as fact. Then it will produce the condition pictured in your mind.

This procedure is what I maintain is used by the champions, whether or not they are aware of it. They are convinced of a successful outcome.

This awareness is more important that any steroid drug, any diet plan or supplement, or any exercise routine ever conceived. I have observed bodybuilders who take steroids and receive no benefits. They take unimaginable amounts of supplements and constantly try new routines, but are not getting results, and never will until they discover that what I have written here is the true essence of bodybuilding. For years I have been asked by my fans to write the secrets of the champions, and here you have it.

merlin

I strongly apologize for being curt w/ you. You have made a good point, I misread your point, if I don’t believe the growth can occur, it probably won’t. I will be more positive and use visualization. With that said, are there any tips on developing the mind-muscle connection? Posing? Flexing? I know this is akin to me asking you how I can dig-deep or try harder in ym workouts, in that it may not be something you can teach, but you claim that it just clicked for you. How did you build that connection up?

[quote]WildShoe wrote:
I strongly apologize for being curt w/ you. You have made a good point, I misread your point, if I don’t believe the growth can occur, it probably won’t. I will be more positive and use visualization. With that said, are there any tips on developing the mind-muscle connection? Posing? Flexing? I know this is akin to me asking you how I can dig-deep or try harder in ym workouts, in that it may not be something you can teach, but you claim that it just clicked for you. How did you build that connection up?[/quote]

I learned this first through concentration curls of 50 painful reps(the first 20 may have been bearable). I had the most pathetic biceps you ever saw. My gym partners would make fun of them. I just never wanted big arms at the time. And by thinking that …I sure as heck didn’t have any. I worked them the same as every other muscle too. No growth. I have arms now and a strong point, but that was done through the mind and that CONCENTRATION technique that i used that gave me control to this day.

Tricks. Actually touch your muscle when lifting. Feel the actual fibers pulling apart and comming together as you fill them with blood. Its sick …but picture the blood flowing in the muscle, (ARNOLD used to picture his arms growing insanely huge and have hallucinations or something).

Vince made a huge point. The subconscience mind. It is in control partner. There are so many tricks. I’ve tricked myself mentally into doing reps almost double what i would have done by believing i could do that number. Remember the mind controls the nervous system, that controls your MUSCLES. Most people think this is Hocus Pocus because they don’t realize this is NOT seperate. You don’t Bench Press that weight up without a command from your thoughts first, then it hits the muscle.

Literally get your mind into the muscle, BELIEF, POSITIVE outcomes, even unrealistic goals…make your SUBconscience believe all this bullshit. It does this all the time anyway all the bullshit you told it that it can’t do, change that fuck with it…tell it you got the badest ass chest you’ve ever seen, fuckin huge, like two sandbags on your chest…see what happens. I’ve actually lifted heavier weights by bulking up on clothes and pretending i was that big and heavier than i was …this trick i came up with myself. my mind believed i was that bulky so it thought it could lift heavier …it did.

You really have to use you IMAGING! Mental pictures.

HERE’s a tip. Champions will menatally picture them receiving an award many times, long before they ever do it. Power lifters already visualized themselves doing every step of the lift in their mind before they even touched the bar …many, many times.

The mind is huge. Think about this, if ARNOLD had some other thoughts and not to be just bigger than life(his were always way beyond easy or average or ordinary) …would he have ever created some unimaginable things?

I truly believe you really are what ever you think you are(you control your POTENTIAL). If you believe you are a pussy or bad genes or can’t grow or will fail…sure enough you will! …you will find ways to make that true. Your body will just make sure of it …you sent the message to the brain…the brain will take care of the rest.

TIPS: Slow isolation for feel…not for size…although size does come from this. This is where you learn to feel the muscle working. Calves are big on this. They are tough but if you get it set in your head (i’m going to make them grow, put them thru unbarable pain, they will Grow!) think PAIN is good. The more pain you put on that muscle the more it will respond & grow. If you take pain as a negative you will quit. Use pain as a positive. Trick your brain. Jack up your pain tolerance …do it mentally.

The calves have so many nerves in them and they will just hurt like hell, you can increase your pain tolerance here…use this muscle. See how many reps under pain you can put them thru. I guarentee you will quit before your calves do. Those muscles are tough as hell and recupe fast. Most people have no clear understanding of calve training and the pain it may take to make them grow…lots of nerves. You can get used to this though. This will make alot of your other exercises easier …compared to the hell you went thru on calves.

Go bust out a set of donkeys for 100 reps. Use a weight you think you could get 50 reps with. I promise you you’ll quit …your calves wont. They got walking to do tomorrow…they will be fine. They won’t break, you will though.

Then everything about the subconscience(transformation) & flexing(control) & mental imaging(building what it sees) .

merlin

If you are into that, look up Dr. Jack Singer. There is a write up on him in the archives, and I’ve used his c.d.s with good results.

Remember the mind controls the nervous system, that controls your MUSCLES.

If those are your own words, they should be the next StrongWords quote, seriously, people have told me about this mind-muscle connection, but I just couldn’t grasp that, I just knew what feeling “in the zone” was like. Your statement is probably one of the most powerful I’ve read on weightlifting, Arnold couldn’t have put it better, well done.

[quote]merlin wrote:
WildShoe wrote:
It’s simple, my biceps, chest, shoulders, and calves refuse to grow. Before you flame me for not doing [insert your favorite mass building program here] realize the only thing I have not tried is high volume. My back is huge, my triceps are great, my quads and hams are SOLID.

I know people who have never lifted in their life that have a better chest than me, and I know people who just do bench press that also have larger biceps than me. It’s ridiculous. What have I overlooked? Why do these muscles just refuse to grow in size, strengthwise they are slower than my other muscle groups, but mass-wise very little has improved since my first year of lifting.

Anything here, is helpful…if you want to recommend your favorite program, be my guest, but realize that most conventional workouts have done very little for me.

The problem is NOT your program. The problem is YOU! You have a bad attitude! People with bad attitudes focus on what they DON’T have or what’s NOT working …instead of what IS working and what they DO have.

Don’t be a n’t person( I can’t, won’t, don’t, not not not not) Yeah you’re NOT going to do jack shit with that attitude. Be a CAN doer. You can build all that shit …this aint rocket science and you have had good programs probably. Use a little positive reinforcement and some positive effort and I bet you change your entire outcome on those poor biceps, chest, and whatever else muscle you named in your bad approach. I bet even your muscles are laughing at you because they even know they can grow.

Your problem is YOU partna! Change that, everything else will fall into place.

merlin[/quote]

Merlin,

I suppose you might mean well by this motivational speech. The point is he is talking in retrospect. I seriously doubt it is a self-fullfilling prophecy as you make it sound.

If the problem really is “him” and his “attitude”, then why does he have good triceps, back and legs? Wouldn’t he not see ANY progress whatsoever?

You said absolutely nothing useful in your lecture to him.

What this guy needs to hear is ideas from people who had similar struggles, not a knee-jerk berating of his supposed negative attitude.

[quote]MytchBucanan wrote:
merlin wrote:
WildShoe wrote:
It’s simple, my biceps, chest, shoulders, and calves refuse to grow. Before you flame me for not doing [insert your favorite mass building program here] realize the only thing I have not tried is high volume. My back is huge, my triceps are great, my quads and hams are SOLID.

I know people who have never lifted in their life that have a better chest than me, and I know people who just do bench press that also have larger biceps than me. It’s ridiculous. What have I overlooked? Why do these muscles just refuse to grow in size, strengthwise they are slower than my other muscle groups, but mass-wise very little has improved since my first year of lifting.

Anything here, is helpful…if you want to recommend your favorite program, be my guest, but realize that most conventional workouts have done very little for me.

The problem is NOT your program. The problem is YOU! You have a bad attitude! People with bad attitudes focus on what they DON’T have or what’s NOT working …instead of what IS working and what they DO have.

Don’t be a n’t person( I can’t, won’t, don’t, not not not not) Yeah you’re NOT going to do jack shit with that attitude. Be a CAN doer. You can build all that shit …this aint rocket science and you have had good programs probably. Use a little positive reinforcement and some positive effort and I bet you change your entire outcome on those poor biceps, chest, and whatever else muscle you named in your bad approach. I bet even your muscles are laughing at you because they even know they can grow.

Your problem is YOU partna! Change that, everything else will fall into place.

merlin

Merlin,

I suppose you might mean well by this motivational speech. The point is he is talking in retrospect. I seriously doubt it is a self-fullfilling prophecy as you make it sound.

If the problem really is “him” and his “attitude”, then why does he have good triceps, back and legs? Wouldn’t he not see ANY progress whatsoever?

You said absolutely nothing useful in your lecture to him.

What this guy needs to hear is ideas from people who had similar struggles, not a knee-jerk berating of his supposed negative attitude.

[/quote]

You’re Wrong…

Now get lost!

[quote]WildShoe wrote:
Remember the mind controls the nervous system, that controls your MUSCLES.

If those are your own words, they should be the next StrongWords quote, seriously, people have told me about this mind-muscle connection, but I just couldn’t grasp that, I just knew what feeling “in the zone” was like. Your statement is probably one of the most powerful I’ve read on weightlifting, Arnold couldn’t have put it better, well done.[/quote]

I don’t need a Strong Words quote, thanks. I suppose I’m not the only person who ever stated it that way, probably been done before.

Glad you saw the light. You are healed!

I got to admit, using Vince Gironda as a reference to back up my statements & experiences was kinda like cheating though.

Carry on…

merlin

[quote]MytchBucanan wrote:

You said absolutely nothing useful in your lecture to him.

[/quote] Did you NOT read the strong words for today? You should have payed attention.

“All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident.” �??Arthur Schopenhauer

merlin

[quote]MytchBucanan wrote:
<<<>>>

If the problem really is “him” and his “attitude”, then why does he have good triceps, back and legs? Wouldn’t he not see ANY progress whatsoever?

<<<>>>

What this guy needs to hear is ideas from people who had similar struggles, not a knee-jerk berating of his supposed negative attitude.

[/quote]

I think you both have points. He probably developed the negative attitude through failure to achieve satisfactory results in these groups meaning he is not necessarily an innately self defeating person as Merlin is suggesting.

On the other hand the self defeating attitude now exists and at the very least will do nothing to contribute to overcoming his problems and there is no doubt that mental determination the refusal to accept no for an answer is half the battle in this game.

On the actual methodology front, whatever you’re doing now, do the opposite. If you’re pummeling the livin hell out of those groups with volume and frequency try some HIT techniques. If you’re pushing to failure or beyond all the time try Waterbury’s maximum recruitment deal with more volume further from failure etc. Something will get them moving.

Also, hold your breath, make sure you’re eating enough and consistently. It is unusual for somebody to have a bunch of stubborn groups like you’re saying, normally it’s one or maybe two, so I’m inclined to believe that it has something to do with your methods.

However, if you DO have a bunch of stubborn groups like my lateral delts, which isn’t impossible then you have your work cut out for you, but it can be overcome.

Currently my exercises are lasting 45 minutes as opposed to the usual hour, but between warming up and finishing exercises my true workout time is only really 30 minutes. Is it bad to “wind-down” after HIT, does this defeat the “growth mechanism”?

What I’m currently doing is slightly heavier weights, less reps, less rest. I used to just start heavy and work lighter in my workouts w/ moderate rest.

So I assume today I’ll start to switch it up w/ Chest, Biceps and Shoulders. I’ll use Waterbury’s Maxixmum Recruitment.

Thanks for the advice.

The problem is NOT your program. The problem is YOU! You have a bad attitude! People with bad attitudes focus on what they DON’T have or what’s NOT working …instead of what IS working and what they DO have.

Don’t be a n’t person( I can’t, won’t, don’t, not not not not) Yeah you’re NOT going to do jack shit with that attitude. Be a CAN doer. You can build all that shit …this aint rocket science and you have had good programs probably.

Use a little positive reinforcement and some positive effort and I bet you change your entire outcome on those poor biceps, chest, and whatever else muscle you named in your bad approach. I bet even your muscles are laughing at you because they even know they can grow.

Your problem is YOU partna! Change that, everything else will fall into place.<<

Oh give me a break with this philosophy crap already will ya. I wrote to musclemag once about a routine that wasn't getting results and they said I had a bad attitude and bad routine. Well, I got the routine out of one of their back issues...

Someone's freakin attitude has jack shit to do with whether or not certain exercises are effective for them. Get your head out of your ass. Save the tony robbins plattitudes for the seminar.

How are you going to tell him to focus on what's working and not to focus on what's not working? His problem IS the stuff that's not working. Good lord. 

Maybe it is him in the sense that genetically those body parts are not where he got the potential. If this is the case, then just get used to it because it cannot be changed no matter what any so-called doctor or degreed pro here tells you. Aint gonna make a difference.

You say your biceps, chest, shoulders, and calves aren't any good yes? Ok, look at your rest periods between sets...60 seconds on a 3 rep max? Come on...what is this cardio or lifting weights? Slow it the hell down...try 3 minutes between sets or more and keep the weights 90%+ of your 1RM for sets of 1-4. If you're getting 6 reps you're using too light a weight for it to be incuded in what looks like a hybrid strength routine. 

Your chest isn't getting any better most likely because you're taking the pecs out of the game, largely, with what must be the elbows-tucked power lifting bench style which relies on triceps , delts, and lats...along with some pectoral. 

Try fingers-inside-the-rings-elbows-90degrees-incline press, or , using the same form, flat barbell press to the neck. Nothing works for making the pecs pop like the neck press and the incline (for me , anyway).

For shoulders, try the bradford (or rainbow) press..or the 'W' press. Biceps, you either have them or you don't. I knew a guy who was 5-9, 230 and could rep 315 behind the neck press and b4nch 440lbs for easy reps, BUT his arms..while huge...really had no peak at all. He'd always ask me how I got mine to look like they do- and mine were like 3 inches smaller than his. It's all genetics. 

Avoid ALL isolation shits like concentration curls, and do stuff like body-drag curls, hammers, and regular old barbell curls but the thing here is forget about reps- use something heavy. Heavy, heavy, heavy- learn it because all the pump shit in the world isn’t going to get you those arms.

If you insist on feeling this worthless pump, then AFTER your power routine, add in some sets of 60-70% 1RM high rep stuff just to make yourself feel better and to satisfy the russian conjugate guys.

People are going to tell you that bench press is all you need for the triceps and I’m going to tell you that they are full of it. Hit some heavy JM Presses (but do them right- go to youtube.com and do a search and look for the black & white video of blakely explaining them and demonstrating. 99% of everybody on youtube showing how ‘strong’ they are in the JM Press are just doing a retarded version of the close grip bench press and bragging as they do the movement entirely wrong), then move on to close grip bench and vary your hand spacing and how far you bring it down (do full range, 1/2s, 1/4s…use a book wrapped in a towel on your chest if you have no boards).

Most important thing is the weight you are using. If you find that your triceps dominate but you have a weak bench, forget about tucking the elbows, and leave them at 90 degrees until your pecs start responding- and they will respond.

Calves are not hard to develop. Just remember, light weight mega reps will get you nowhere. Again, it’s heavy weight on the calf raise- point toes in and then alternate with toes out on next set. Keep doing this. You don’t need anything fancy for the calves, and they can be worked a lot- more frequently than you usually read, so hit them every other day if you want until you start seeing results.

One last point about the shoulders- I don’t know it for a fact but I suspect your grip width on the overhead presses might be too narrow and this means you are using a lot of triceps in the movement. Use a wide grip- as wide as you can and forget about behind the neck- keep it in front and do them standing.

If you have to use pussy weight, then do it, who cares, you will get stronger in time and get the development you want. Nevermind any other movement besides the barbell overhead press in all of its variations- that means no dumbbell side raise, no reverse fly, no front barbell raise. Forget that crap.

Lastly, in case you forgot, dont mix up the rep scheme like you’re doing including reps of 5 and 6. Save the 6-10 rep ranges for the pump stuff AFTER the main work with 90%+ is done with. Like you do your 10 sets of 2-3 on the bench then if you want to throw in 2 sets of high rep crap go on ahead and do it.

Don’t mix it all together like that because you’re falling below your maximum threshold there and it’s a waste of time. REST BETWEEN SETS- none of this 60 second junk.

If you’re using the weight you’re supposed to then there’s no way in hell you’ll be recovered enough in 60 seconds to hit the 90%+ level for your next set for the number of reps you need. Just won’t happen. Did I also see a 30 second rest in there somewhere?? Wherever you got that idea you need to forget it. Save the 60 second rests for the high rep stuff at the end.

“It’s your attitude”…I’m still laughing at that one.