Help Building a Yoke

Training Bodybuilding
41

Some random thoughts on the topic…

Never did much direct trap work - or so I thought:
was/am a dedicated bent-over barbell rower - albeit, back in the day, with more upper back involvement than I’d thought. Got good traps as a result (and shitty lats).

Apart from that - if you’ve got good external shoulder ROM, do the BTN press, but I wouldn’t go below my ears. According to the majority of lifters, though, the shrug’s a tried and tested trap builder with way less injury potential than the BTN press.

Then there’s the deadlift: I know nobody deadlifting at least twice his bw for reps with good form who hasn’t got good traps.

Otherwise you could go the route of Pechnak Veluca. :wink:

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[quote]FattyFat wrote:
if you’ve got good external shoulder ROM, do the BTN press, but I wouldn’t go below my ears. [/quote]

I like these in the smith, as a finisher, relatively lighter weight.

I don’t get much trap activation from them though… Interesting.

43

[quote]Liv92 wrote:
Do you … use straps?[/quote]
Yes.

[quote]
Do you wait till your grip fatigues then use straps?[/quote]
Yes.

Yes. Well, let me qualify-- it makes sense to use straps when it makes sense to use straps. It doesn’t make sense to use them ‘right away’ if you don’t need them ‘right away’ (make sense?).

I do shrugs on my back day (as opposed to shoulders). I start all my exercises with no straps, but by the end of any particular movement, I’m using straps because I can’t get the reps I need before my grip fails and I don’t believe my lats should suffer because my grip is the week link.

I’ve just found that it works for me, though. Maybe it’s different for others.

44

Hise Shurugs? in addition to the usual Heavy BB shrugs, no one does heavy dumbell shrugs, I tend to like them better than BB shrugs

45

[quote]countingbeans wrote:

[quote]FattyFat wrote:
if you’ve got good external shoulder ROM, do the BTN press, but I wouldn’t go below my ears. [/quote]

I like these in the smith, as a finisher, relatively lighter weight.

I don’t get much trap activation from them though… Interesting.
[/quote]

Maybe due to the relatively lighter weight used?
The BTN press is no trap isolation movement, you get a lot of delt involvement, escpecially until you’ve got your arms to the full horizontal. After that, your upper traps start to contribute more until you go to lockout, where the traps bear the brunt.
If you restrict yourself to the upper 2/3 of the movement, your traps do a lot more work, of course.

But then again: if shrugs are doing the job, why risk injury doing the BTN press? :wink:

I guess, me doing the BTN press as the sole shoulder/yoke builder for a lot of years (heavy, frequently: multiple times a week, up to 1.25 of my bw for reps) did a lot to fuck up my shoulder health.

46

[quote]FattyFat wrote:

I guess, me doing the BTN press as the sole shoulder/yoke builder for a lot of years (heavy, frequently: multiple times a week, up to 1.25 of my bw for reps) did a lot to fuck up my shoulder health.

[/quote]

This is why I’m hesitant to load up on BTN presses lol.

Seemed to work pretty well for you though.

Good food for thought.

47

[quote]PB Andy wrote:

  1. Deadlift

  2. Power cleans

  3. BB or DB rows

  4. Neck Harness

  5. Shoulder girdle stuff: Face pulls, rear laterals, Joe DeFranco scarecrow, etc

  6. Optional: shrugs.

Credit to Jim Wendler on these suggestions. He has one big fucking yoke.[/quote]

I don’t do half that shit and have traps about that size.

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Shrugs have to be done heavy. I equate Traps to Calves in that you have to hit them heavy and hard. Honestly, i didnt really see good trap development until i was shrugging 500. First thing is first, learn how to properly shrug. No, bobbing your head back N forth is not a shrug. Nor is Shimmying your shoulders a shrug. Delts to Ears. If you arent using straps, id say you arent lifting enough weight. You’re training your traps, not forearm flexors.

49

[quote]Professor X wrote:

[quote]PB Andy wrote:

  1. Deadlift

  2. Power cleans

  3. BB or DB rows

  4. Neck Harness

  5. Shoulder girdle stuff: Face pulls, rear laterals, Joe DeFranco scarecrow, etc

  6. Optional: shrugs.

Credit to Jim Wendler on these suggestions. He has one big fucking yoke.[/quote]

I don’t do half that shit and have traps about that size.[/quote]

I thought your advice was to watch what the guys with big traps do and follow that, rather than listen to some random guy spouting what he read on another site. So, the poster put up a program recommended by a guy with big traps and now you’re saying it doesn’t count because he doesn’t train to be a body-builder?

Would any advice that differed from what works for you be acceptable to you? Just because your program has clearly worked for you doesn’t mean that 1) it will work for everybody and 2) no other program will work.

50

[quote]ag918w35 wrote:

[quote]Professor X wrote:

[quote]PB Andy wrote:

  1. Deadlift

  2. Power cleans

  3. BB or DB rows

  4. Neck Harness

  5. Shoulder girdle stuff: Face pulls, rear laterals, Joe DeFranco scarecrow, etc

  6. Optional: shrugs.

Credit to Jim Wendler on these suggestions. He has one big fucking yoke.[/quote]

I don’t do half that shit and have traps about that size.[/quote]

I thought your advice was to watch what the guys with big traps do and follow that, rather than listen to some random guy spouting what he read on another site. So, the poster put up a program recommended by a guy with big traps and now you’re saying it doesn’t count because he doesn’t train to be a body-builder?

Would any advice that differed from what works for you be acceptable to you? Just because your program has clearly worked for you doesn’t mean that 1) it will work for everybody and 2) no other program will work.[/quote]

Wait, are you really asking why would you listen to someone who is big and trains like you will train? That needs an explanation?

I am also commenting on SOMEONE ELSE writing what SOMEONE ELSE does WHO ISN’T THEM when that very person may not even recommend doing the same if they were here themselves.

Ask Jim Wendler if he thinks you should do all of that just for direct trap growth. Don’t listen to some OTHER GUY on the internet acting like he is speaking for the man.

Most of the guys here don’t have really big traps yet are speaking for other people and acting like they do.

Bottom line, Jim Wendler didn’t write that advice to you. You didn’t even ask Jim Wendler. Some random guy who isn’t big spoke for Jim Wendler and you ate it up. How the hell does that make sense?

51

neck harness the shit out of your neck

52

Of all the times I’ve seen people do shrugs in the gym I’ve never seen any of them with good trap development. I feel like any row, deadlift and power cleans are much more effective.

Not saying shrugs don’t work, I’m just not a fan.

53

[quote]waylanderxx wrote:
Of all the times I’ve seen people do shrugs in the gym I’ve never seen any of them with good trap development. I feel like any row, deadlift and power cleans are much more effective.

Not saying shrugs don’t work, I’m just not a fan.[/quote]

How many people do you see with good traps period? Hell, even on this site how many people here really have stand out trap development that really looks like they pout some time into it?

Really. How many?

Let’s post pics for confirmation.

Most of the people I see doing shrugs aren’t going that heavy…or they cheat too much…or they haven’t even been lifting that long.

While we’re at it, I don’t see anyone with huge traps who focuses intently on deadlifts and rack pulls either.

54

[quote]Professor X wrote:
While we’re at it, I don’t see anyone with huge traps who focuses intently on deadlifts and rack pulls either.[/quote]

Strongmen…All of them have huge Yokes, and I don’t see any of them doing much if any shrugging and deadlifts/rack pulls and just lifting heavy compound movements in general is what they focus on.

At the end of the day, I think lift heavy on everything, eat correctly and you’ll build up your yoke.

55

[quote]austin_bicep wrote:

[quote]Professor X wrote:
While we’re at it, I don’t see anyone with huge traps who focuses intently on deadlifts and rack pulls either.[/quote]

Strongmen…All of them have huge Yokes, and I don’t see any of them doing much if any shrugging and deadlifts/rack pulls and just lifting heavy compound movements in general is what they focus on.

At the end of the day, I think lift heavy on everything, eat correctly and you’ll build up your yoke.[/quote]

Meanwhile, out of the hundreds of people on this site training like “strongmen”, how many have developed HUGE traps?

Yes, lift heavy is the answer and training them directly is as well. Nothing hits them DIRECTLY more than shrugs and how many people shrugging over 500lbs without complete reliance on straps have small traps?

56
57

[quote]SteelyD wrote:

I swear to God, I saw you posted a video on my iphone but I can’t view them on there, anyone who posts a video I get just a blank comment box for their post. Anyways, I knew you posted this before I saw it. Haha

58

[quote]austin_bicep wrote:

I swear to God, I saw you posted a video on my iphone but I can’t view them on there, anyone who posts a video I get just a blank comment box for their post. Anyways, I knew you posted this before I saw it. Haha[/quote]

Get off my wavelength!!! :wink:

59

[quote]Professor X wrote:

[quote]PB Andy wrote:

  1. Deadlift

  2. Power cleans

  3. BB or DB rows

  4. Neck Harness

  5. Shoulder girdle stuff: Face pulls, rear laterals, Joe DeFranco scarecrow, etc

  6. Optional: shrugs.

Credit to Jim Wendler on these suggestions. He has one big fucking yoke.[/quote]

I don’t do half that shit and have traps about that size.[/quote]
That’s good, I am glad for you (truly). Some may not have that luxury of getting big traps from just shrugs, though.

60

[quote]Professor X wrote:

[quote]ag918w35 wrote:

[quote]Professor X wrote:

[quote]PB Andy wrote:

  1. Deadlift

  2. Power cleans

  3. BB or DB rows

  4. Neck Harness

  5. Shoulder girdle stuff: Face pulls, rear laterals, Joe DeFranco scarecrow, etc

  6. Optional: shrugs.

Credit to Jim Wendler on these suggestions. He has one big fucking yoke.[/quote]

I don’t do half that shit and have traps about that size.[/quote]

I thought your advice was to watch what the guys with big traps do and follow that, rather than listen to some random guy spouting what he read on another site. So, the poster put up a program recommended by a guy with big traps and now you’re saying it doesn’t count because he doesn’t train to be a body-builder?

Would any advice that differed from what works for you be acceptable to you? Just because your program has clearly worked for you doesn’t mean that 1) it will work for everybody and 2) no other program will work.[/quote]

Wait, are you really asking why would you listen to someone who is big and trains like you will train? That needs an explanation?

I am also commenting on SOMEONE ELSE writing what SOMEONE ELSE does WHO ISN’T THEM when that very person may not even recommend doing the same if they were here themselves.

Ask Jim Wendler if he thinks you should do all of that just for direct trap growth. Don’t listen to some OTHER GUY on the internet acting like he is speaking for the man.

Most of the guys here don’t have really big traps yet are speaking for other people and acting like they do.

Bottom line, Jim Wendler didn’t write that advice to you. You didn’t even ask Jim Wendler. Some random guy who isn’t big spoke for Jim Wendler and you ate it up. How the hell does that make sense?[/quote]
My point is that while shrugs are kick ass, I just don’t think they are the best for a lot of people, regardless of how many bodybuilders you see doing them. I see some bodybuilders doing a lot of things in videos I wouldn’t want to do at my stage for growth.

Secondly, when I was actually focused on getting big and was eating enough to grow, I found nothing better for my traps than 3-5 rep power cleans. I always felt shrugs weren’t as effective. In fact now that I remember, my traps were always ridiculously sore when I did cleans, not shrugs, and that to me means that it is a more effective exercise for that body part,

Now I have to eat/train to stay in a weight class (231 lbs) but I still think I have some decent traps for not eating nearly enough. I’ll try to get a pic in the next few days.