Brutal Deltoid Training Workouts

Author: Dane Fletcher

Many trainers in the gym simply have no idea how to train their shoulder muscles. They play with a couple of Hammer Strength machines. They may do some dumbbell side raises, if they’re familiar with that movement. And, they may even notice another trainer using cable movements to hit the shoulders, and give that a shot. However, most bodybuilders don’t treat shoulders as they do legs, chest, or arms. With those muscle groups, they’ll train with a purpose. They KNOW what big arms look like. They see the monster quads on professional bodybuilders. They can visualize a Herculean chest. But when it comes to shoulders, a muscle group whose seemingly sole purpose is to tie together two spectacular body parts, chest and arms, that same focus and intent isn’t always there.

Shoulders are often the ‘odd man out’ when it comes to constructing a weekly training cycle. Most bodybuilders grow best from a 4-day per week program. Given a day devoted to each of the major groups – chest, back, arms, and legs – that leaves shoulders are the body part searching for a place to exist. You can tack them onto the end of a workout, but how much quality will you really be able to deliver then? If you’re already exhausted from 20 sets of back training, how much energy can you truly devote to shoulders? Likewise, if you’ve just completed 18 sets of heavy chest exercises, how much will you have left in the tank for your shoulder movements?

While it may be hard, you’re going to need to make the adjustments to your recovery schedule to allow that fifth day to be devoted solely to shoulder training. This may include more frequent naps, additional calories, and new supplement use. You can also include AAS in that recovery guide, if that is in the cards for you.

Here is a sample shoulder training routine & weekly split which focuses upon major shoulder growth. This routine places shoulders at the forefront of your week, emphasizing them along with your showcase muscle groups.

• Monday – Shoulders
• Tuesday – Arms
• Wednesday – Legs
• Thursday – Rest
• Friday – Chest
• Saturday – Back
• Sunday – Rest

Shoulder Day

• Barbell military press 4 sets x 10, 10, 8, 6
• Dumbbell side raises 4 sets x 12, 10, 8, 6
• Bent over cable lateral raises 4 sets x 12, 10, 8, 6
• Upright rows 3 sets x 10, 8, 8
• Barbell shrugs 4 sets x 15, 12, 10, 10

You can add trapezius and neck training to shoulder day, which may help alleviate some of the time crunch that comes from keeping them on back day. This will also free up more sets on shoulder day, since so much shoulder, neck, and trap work overlap each other.

Shoulders are prone to injury. They are hit in a secondary nature when you train back, chest, and arms, so you’re going to have to be alert for overtraining. Fully stretch them on your days off, and enjoy a deep tissue massage whenever possible. Place shoulders on that same pedestal where you place your chest and arm training, and you should be fine!

About the Author:

Dane Fletcher is the world’s most prolific bodybuilding and fitness expert and is currently the executive editor for BodybuildingToday.com. If you are looking for more bodybuilding tips or information on weight training, or supplementation, please visit www.BodybuildingToday.com, the bodybuilding and fitness authority site with hundreds of articles available FREE to help you meet your goals.

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Escalating Density Training

During my recent talks in Bellaria Italy, a theme developed which reflects what I consider to be a problem in the way that most people think about resistance training. In particular, during one roundtable discussion on EDT training, I fielded numerous questions about the so-called “correct” number of sets, reps, rest duration, etc., etc., for EDT workouts.

Finally, I saw the underlying problem behind the various questions I was fielding: the attendees were focusing too much on the means of optimal weight training and not enough on the ends. As I thought about it, virtually ALL resistance training systems and philosophies focus on means, often to the total exclusion of the ends.

Case in point: HIT training. HIT (which stands for “High Intensity Training”) revolves around the performance of only one (or sometimes two), all-out sets to failure, as opposed to the more conventional methodology of several sets per exercise. Thus, the defining feature of HIT is the use of an unusual set of means.

Another example of a popular training system that focuses on means is Power Factor Training. This system advocates the use of restricted range of motion (for example, performing leg presses over the last 6 inches of extension only) in order to allow for the use of heavier loads. Again, the salient feature of this system is the means rather than the ends.

Enter Escalating Density Training

As I described to my lecture audiences in Italy, when I set out to codify the training system I had been gradually developing over the course of several years (the system that eventually came to be known as Escalating Density Training, or EDT for short), I eventually arrived at an arresting premise: in resistance training, the ends must dictate the means.

This realization struck me as profound, because it’s the exact opposite approach that virtually all other systems are based on! So in other words, what I became focused on is this question: “How can I organize sets, reps, rest intervals, etc., in such a way that I can perform the most amount of work possible in a pre-determined time frame?” (which in EDT parlance, we call “PR Zones”).

In the process of asking this question, a fundamental truth emerged: work capacity is a function of managing (rather than seeking) fatigue.

This principle is universal in the lives of all successful people in all fields of endeavor. It is the hallmark of all effective people. In his excellent book Leadership, Rudolph Giuliani states that one of his primary objectives was to get as much done as possible in the first hour of the day, while his energy was still high.

This is a strategy that I have used in my own professional life for many years, and maybe you have too. The point is simple: effectiveness, whether at the office, at home, or in the weight room, is a function of managing energy.
EDT manages energy expenditure in the following seven ways:

1) Antagonistic Pairings:

Sherrington’s Law states that when a muscle contracts, it’s antagonist must relaxó otherwise, no movement would occur. Therefore, if the trainee performs a set of leg extensions in between two sets of leg curls, each muscle group recovers faster as a result of the work performed by it’s antagonist. In EDT, three type of antagonists are recognized:

True Antagonist: For example, pectoralis major and latissimus dorsi

Bilateral Antagonist: When using unilateral exercises (such as dumbbell rows for example), the left side becomes the ìantagonistî for the right side, and vice versa.

Proximal Antagonist: In some regimes of EDT training, two distal muscle groups are trained together in the same PR as a way to manage fatigue. For example, leg curls and incline presses.

2) Optimal force-velocity relationship:

In the body composition aspect of EDT training, trainees are advised to select a weight that can be lifted 10 (but not 11) times – in other words, a 10RM weight. Most importantly, each PR Zone starts with sets of 5 with this 10RM weight – exactly the opposite of what most training systems recommend.

The rationale? By selecting a moderate weight and lifting it acceleratively (See point # 7 on CAT training below), we strike a balance between force and speed which results in the highest possible motor unit recruitment and work output.

3) The Chronological Governor (PR Zones):

Most automobiles have a “governor” which sets a limit on how fast the vehicle may be driven. This is designed to protect both the vehicle and yourself. EDT training uses a similar device, called the PR Zone, to limit the amount of high intensity work you perform in an exercise session.

Typically, EDT workouts feature 2-3 PR Zones, usually 15 minutes in duration. Note that most exercise systems provide you with a certain number of exercises, sets, and reps, and then you perform that workout, regardless of how long it takes to complete. EDT employs the opposite approach: you first set the time limit, and then perform as much work as possible within this time frame.

4) Definitive Progression Targets:

Unlike most training systems, EDT workouts provide a specific performance goal for each PR Zone. You start the workout knowing exactly how much time you have and exactly what must be accomplished. This provides focus and clarity each and every workout.

5) The Distraction Principle:

During an EDT workout, you’ve always got one eye on the clock and the other on your training log. There’s little time to consider how tired you are, what you’ll eat for lunch afterward, or any other distracting thoughts.

6) The Conscientious Participation Principle:

Workout by workout, each individual finds the best set-rep-rest strategy to permit a maximal performance. Slow-twitch dominant exercisers often find that higher reps and shorter rests result in the best performances. Fast-twitchers, just the opposite.

There are a number of individual factors that determine optimal exercise performance for each person, and EDT provides the flexibility to capitalize on individual talents and predilections.

Consider this analogy: water, being flexible and adaptable, always fills the shape of it’s container. Most systems are more like ice however – it only fits if you’re the right container!

7) CAT: Compensatory Acceleration Training

This phrase was coined by Dr. Fred Hatfield, the first man to officially squat 1000 pounds in competition. The central premise is that you move the weight quickly, and compensate for momentum by accelerating the weight even faster.

The body is hard-wired to accelerate heavy objects, and training styles should reflect this reality. After all, if you had to move a 100 pound box from the floor onto a high shelf, would you move slowly in order to maintain continuous tension, or would you move it with as much speed as possible?

When you run a one mile course, your rate of energy expenditure is greater than if you walk that same course – in other words, you did more work per unit of time. Similarly, when you move a weight a certain distance, a faster execution results in greater work per unit of time. Forget about Super Slow training – it only applies to Tai Chi molasses wrestling events.

Static Versus Dynamic Systems

Another shortcoming in most training systems is that they are static. In other words, “Here’s the program, now go do it.”
The problem with this approach is that everyone is different. Not only that, but each individual has different needs at different points in their lives. Most training systems prescribe a particular exercise/set/rep/rest/tempo recommendation for everyone.
A select few do a little better by tailoring these parameters for the individual exerciser. EDT takes it a step further by enabling the exerciser him or herself to participate in the design of the workout.

Even further, the exact parameters of each workout often change in accordance to the trainee’s innate experience and understanding about what it will take to beat the pervious best numbers. Interestingly, the flexibility just described does not blur the basic structure of the system.

The Perfect Training System

In fact, there is no singular “perfect” system, in any field of endeavor. However, the “best” systems are dynamic, flexible, and respect the established principles that are known to guarantee a successful outcome.

In the field of resistance training, EDT dynamically conforms to the end-users needs from workout to workout while at the same time ensuring the stringent application of the established principles of athletic training.

Learn more about Escalating Density Training

About the Author

His colleagues call him an iconoclast, a visionary, a rule-breaker. His clients call him “The Secret Weapon” for his ability to see what other coaches miss. Charles calls himself a “geek” who struggled in Phys Ed throughout school. Whatever you call him, Charles’ methods are ahead of their time and quickly produce serious results. His counter-intuitive approach and self-effacing demeanor have lead to appearances on NBC’s The TODAY Show and The CBS Early Show.
Currently, Charles competes in Olympic-style weightlifting on the master’s circuit, with a 3-year goal of qualifying for the 2009 Master’s World Championships.

Muscle Gain Truth

If there is one substance that could be considered the “holy grail” of muscle growth, testosterone would be it.
Quite simply, testosterone is the most important muscle-building hormone in your body and is one of the limiting factors that determines how much muscle you can ultimately build.

Here is just a small handful of the many amazing benefits that increased testosterone levels will provide you with…
- Increased muscle size and strength.
- Decreased body fat levels.
- Increased sex drive and sexual endurance.
- Improved mood.
- Decreased levels of “bad” cholesterol.

Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it? Well it is, and in this article I’m going to outline 10 simple steps to naturally raise your testosterone levels and achieve all of these incredible benefits. While these steps will not result in “steroid-like” muscle gains, they will definitely contribute to your overall bottomline results…

1) Use compound exercises as the cornerstone of your workouts. I’m talking about the basic, bread-and-butter lifts such as squats, deadlifts, bench presses, rows, chin-ups, dips, lunges and military presses. These exercises will place your muscles under the greatest amount of stress in the gym and will force your body to increase testosterone production.

2) Always train with 100% effort and intensity. If you want to see real muscle gains, you must be willing to push yourself to the limit in the gym. Again, greater muscular stress in the gym translates to higher testosterone output.

3) Train your legs equally as hard as your upper body. As you may already be aware, intense leg training can actually stimulate growth in your chest, back and arms. This is due in part to the increase in testosterone that leg training induces.

4) Increase your EFA consumption. Essential Fatty Acids from sources such as peanuts, avocadoes, fish and healthy oils like flax seed, olive and canola are a great way to naturally boost testosterone levels.

5) Reduce your intake of soy. Soy protein raises the body’s levels of estrogen (the main female hormone) and this has a direct negative effect on testosterone levels.

6) Limit your consumption of alcohol. Alcohol has been shown to have quite a dramatic effect on testosterone levels, so try to limit your “binge drinking” nights and keep your alcohol consumption in moderation.

7) Increase your dietary intake of cruciferous vegetables. Broccoli, cauliflower, radishes, turnips, cabbage and brussel sprouts have all been shown to dramatically reduce estrogen levels, thereby raising testosterone.

Lower your daily stress levels. Being overly stressed stimulates the release of “cortisol”, a highly catabolic hormone that will cause your testosterone levels to plummet.

9) Increase your sexual activity. Sexual stimulation causes the body to increase the production of oxytocin which increases endorphin production (the “feel-good” chemical), and this also raises testosterone.

10) Make sure to get adequate sleep every night. A lack of sleep contributes to cortisol production, and this will lower your testosterone levels.

Start implementing these techniques on a consistent basis and you should experience a noticeable increase in your muscle size and strength gains.

To learn more insider techniques for building a powerful, muscular body, I would strongly suggest paying a visit to Muscle Gain Truth. You can sign up for my free muscle-building email course and instantly access my renowned natural bodybuilding program, “The Muscle Gain Truth No-Fail System”.

About the Author

Once an awkward, pencil-necked “social reject”, Sean Nalewanyj is now a renowned natural bodybuilding and fat loss expert, best-selling fitness author, and creator of the wildly popular online muscle building program, “The Muscle Gain Truth No-Fail System”. Learn how to build muscle and gain weight in just 24 minutes a day by visiting: Muscle Gain Truth

Sean is also the owner and operator of the web’s premier muscle building and fat loss support community, currently accepting new members at Fitness Inner Circle.