Thread: Prioritization for lagging body parts? Specifically arms?

You're working out too often. Drop back to every 3rd or 4th day, focus on heavy compound lifts.

Check out Tri-Phase Training. It has a 3-4 week part where it is specifically aimed at your lagging body parts. Don't have the link to the actual program but you can google it. its on bodybuilding.com so type this into google: site:bodybuilding.com tri-phase training ...it should come up.

I understand the tri feeling on chest day,but if your feeling alot of biceps on back day you havent learned how to isolate the back muscles.i do triceps after chest work out anyway and they are jacked by then.you need to change up your tri workout every so often ,because they get used to it.shock and awe baby..lol..

Originally Posted by theCaptn'

You're working out too often. Drop back to every 3rd or 4th day, focus on heavy compound lifts.

I am because we discussed in a previous topic that the best way to grow your arms was to do these compound lifts. So I was sticking to deads, bent over rows, t bars and chins mainly, then maybe 2 sets for bi's to finish. I wanted to know whether there was any point in my having just an arms day since they're all isolation exercises, and at this point I'm still training for overall mass not detail.

No point in arms day at all. Put a few sets at the end of a workout, and i mean a few sets total.

Originally Posted by MrKeenan

Ok so I have the problem a lot of people have; lagging arms. I've tryed a lot, people say that with weight comes the extra inches yet I'd say i've gained just an inch from around 20lbs. What I am asking though is do you think it would be wiser to, instead of having an arms day, have maybe another back or chest day with a more bicep or tricep focus? So a example split for biceps would be:
Monday: Back & Bi
Tuesday: Chest & Tri
Wednesday: Legs
Thursday: Rest
Friday: Back & Bi
Sat: Rest
Sunday: Shoulders
Giving me 3 days rest of the paticular muscle if chest were to replace back.

Also, I really don't feel my tri's on a chest day the way I feel my bi's on a back day. Has anyone got any suggestions on my technique for feeling better tricep involvement? Or is the only thing you can do is have a closer grip?

My Stats by the way is I am 236lbs, 21% bf been training for around 2 and a half years. Just in case anyone thought I've just joined the gym or something

That really doesn't give us a lot of information about your program. You're just telling us one part of it.

Oh, by the way, the change in your arm size isn't particularly bad. Usually it takes somewhere between 10-20lbs of body mass to make the arms grow an inch, depending on their current size.

Your arms will get bigger and stronger quick if you drop the isolation lifts and focus on compound lifts such as: chin-ups, pull-ups, bb rows, bench press and dips. You're quite right, no need for an isolation day just more sets for the above mentioned each week should trigger growth.

I tried the "heavy compounds" only route and my arms were lagging hard. Chest and back grew great but my shoulders/arms were weak. At least for me I need some isolation for my arms to keep up. Curls are a given but skullcrushers/cable pushdowns worked great for my tri's, and doing standing/bent over laterals and front raises really brought up my shoulders.

Should isolation exercises be introduced more when I eventually start cutting? Or should the routine stay the same with heavy compound movements

It is hard to tell what you are doing wrong if you don't post the exercises you do, sets, and rep ranges. Also, why break up shoulders from chest and tris? You can easily do chest, tris, and shoulders on the same day. You are lifting too many days. You need an extra day of CNS recovery in your program.