Tag: Ripped
Top 5 Moves For Massive Arms
Arms are one of the cornerstones of any self-respecting bodybuilder’s workout routine.
When you picture someone working out at the gym, probably the first image that comes to mind is someone lifting weights. That’s because getting totally shredded, massive arms is basically the birthright of every bodybuilder. But are you sure that you’re getting the most gains for the energy you’re exerting? Here are the top 5 moves that are essential for making massive gains in your arms.
1. Bicep Curls
Bicep curls are probably the best exercise you can be doing to increase muscle mass in your arms. This is because they force you to keep your back completely straight as you lift, which focuses the muscular tension of your entire body down into your arms as you lift. It’s a simply exercise, but it’s a classic for a reason – it really works.
One tip for great, effective bicep curls is to increase the intensity of your workout by using a “thumb-less grip.” If you keep your thumb on the same side of the barbells as your fingers, you actually increase the workout you get all through the bicep muscle.
2. Dips
Another classic, dips are a great way to work out the arms while also feeling a nice burn in your core and upper back. It requires you to hold your spine in an upright position, so basically all of your body is getting a workout with this one, even if most of the strain is concentrated in your arms.
Dips are exhausting but, when done correctly, are one of the best arm exercises and one of the best full-body exercises overall. An important health and safety tip for dips is to make sure that your back is always straight and you are leaning a little bit forward over your hands to prevent injury.
3. Triceps Pull (Cable Machine)
The cable machine is extremely useful for arm workouts because it allows you to put your muscles to work without the extra wear-and-tear on the knees and shoulders that can come from more mechanical arm exercises. Adjust the cable machine to an amount of resistance that feels right, but still challenging, to you.
Then, do as many tricep pulls as you can – this exercise will focus right it on that area of the bicep and help to develop the musculature there. An important tip to remember for the triceps pull is that you should never lock your knees and always pull straight towards your sternum. Keeping a relaxed stance helps the tricep pull work only on your arms; anything else, and you end up getting more of a core or back workout, instead.
4. Chin-Ups
Another classic, chin-ups are a great way to maximize definition in your arms. Like some of the other exercises on this list, the key to chin-ups is to keep your back straight and really focus on using your arm muscles to lift up your torso, which should feel like a completely rigid object for the duration of the exercise.
Maintaining that control is what develops the arms so completely and fully from this exercise. A great tip for getting the most out of your chin-ups is to move at a slow, highly controlled pace. It’s easy to use your momentum coming down to swing yourself back up and over the bar, but that really doesn’t give you the best workout. Do it slowly for the ultimate burn!
5. Band Pushdowns
Pull down using a low-resistance band attached to something above you — a bar, a doorframe, etc. Just like using the cable machine to do a tricep pull, this exercise maximizes how much muscle mass you gain with minimal exertion in the joint department.
An important tip to remember when doing band pushdowns is to always scale the resistance of your band to your difficulty level. Remember, the goal isn’t to do what you’re comfortable with, but to push just beyond that. If you’re a veteran bodybuilder, you’re going to want a band with extra resistance, otherwise you simply won’t make huge gains.
The Ultimate Workout To Build Ripped Hamstrings
Build Jacked Hamstrings With This Workout
Want to know what ripped hamstrings look like? Imagine a few steel chains running under the paper thin skin at the back of your legs. These chains are what are used to lower and raise your torso when you bend forward to touch your toes or in exercises like the deadlifts.
Hamstrings can be a stubborn muscle group to develop. It’s hard to establish a mind-muscle connection with the hamstrings as they’re at the back of your legs and you can’t look at them in the mirror while training.
Lying Leg Curls – 4 Sets 15 Reps
You’ll be performing a combination of isolation and compound exercises in this workout to smoke your hams. The compound lifts help in building strength and size of the muscle and the isolation movements improve the conditioning.
You’ll start off with the lying leg curls (an isolation exercise) to activate and engage your hams. The concentric (upward) movement should be explosive, and the eccentric should be slow and controlled.
Sumo Squats – 3 Sets 12-10-8 Reps
The sumo squats target the hamstring and abductors primarily. Stand with your feet placed more than shoulder-width apart and point your toes outwards. You should go as deep as possible without leaning forward to target your hamstrings optimally.
If you have trouble performing the barbell sumo squats, you can use a dumbbell. Stand on an elevated platform (like aerobic steps) and take the same stance as you would during the barbell squats.
Hold a dumbbell with both your hands while your arms are fully extended towards and perpendicular to the floor. Your arms will remain in the same position throughout the exercise.
Dumbbell Deadlifts – 3 Sets 12-10-8 Reps
Remember the steel chain reference at the beginning of the article? You need to bring it in practice in the dumbbell deadlifts. Place your toes on quarter plates to better isolate and recruit your hamstrings.
Maintain a slight bend in your knees and lower your torso by bending at your hips while pushing them back and focusing on your hamstrings. Keep your back arched and go as low as you can without recruiting your lower back.
Supersets
Standing Hamstrings Curls – 3 Sets 20-15-12 Reps
Standing hamstrings curls are an isometric exercise which helps in building conditioning and fixing any muscle imbalances. If you don’t have access to a standing hamstring curl machine, you can use a leg extension machine.
GHD Hyperextensions – 3 Sets 10 Reps
Superset the standing hamstrings curls with the GHD hyperextensions. The GHD hyperextensions were brought into the mainstream by CrossFit athletes and are an incredibly effective exercise to annihilate your hamstrings.
Barbell Hip Thrusts – 3 Sets 12-10-8 Reps
Barbell hip thrusts are one of the most underutilized exercises when it comes to hamstring training. Although the hip thrusts can help you in building meaty hams, you should avoid them if you have an impending lower back injury.
Place your upper back on a flat bench while you have a barbell placed across your groin. Use padding around the barbell to avoid it from digging in when you thrust. Hold and contract your hams at the top of the movement for a couple of seconds before returning to the starting position.
Header image courtesy of Envato Elements
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