A few months back I posted the before-and-after pictures of a client of mine who went through a back and shoulders specialization program. You can take a look at those results here. Suffice it to say, the results were obviously impressive ... to the point that on one forum, another competitor called them dishonest, suggesting trick photography, or photoshop, etc. I guess we should take that as a compliment since it suggests the results were just that good.

Here's another example of a client of mine who underwent a similar programming set up – that is, a dedicated period of time where we specifically specialized on back and shoulders, while putting the rest of the body... read more 6 comments

Time for another random one today ...

1. I first saw this dynamic warm up exercise on a blog post by Tony Gentilcore and it's probably my favourite upper body warm up movement. It's called the Side Lying Windmill and here's a few points Tony makes about this movement. I do it as below but with my knee resting on a foam roller.





 

What Does it Do: We actually get a lot of “bang for our training buck” with this particular exercise in that we’re working on glenohumeral external rotation/mobility, thoracic extension, as well as eliciting a great pec stretch.  All in all, this is a superb exercise for... read more 0 comments

In the world of figure competition, not only do you have to in great shape come show day, you also have to have the right amount of muscular development in the right areas; in essence to create a certain 'illusion' or silhouette. Contrary to the thoughts of a lot of new competitors, competing isn't just a fat-loss contest. Some muscles are more important developmentally in figure as well. For example, the key upper body parts for a figure girl tend to be back (both lat width as well as some depth and thickness) and shoulders – without question. Of course, everything needs to be developed so as to look balanced, but these are really stand-out muscle groups. If you've got... read more 22 comments

We always talk about the big compound exercises being the cornerstone of a good training program. Obviously, when we're talking aesthetics, nice, full glutes are a requirement, especially if you're a female competitor, or just a female actually. Never mind, that, everyone wants good glutes.

So the oft mentioned glute recommendation is to squat and squat deep (don't you dare do it on the Smith machine - friends don't let friends squat in Smith machines), use single leg movements, throw in some deadlift variations, pull throughs, etc. And, this is great advice. BUT, what if your glutes don't fire properly? Will then they get the full benefit of these exercises?

But everyone's glutes fire right? Most people's? Check... read more 6 comments

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