Bringing up the traps

[AKIRA]

Yeah definately looking for growth, and was talking about DOMs. The shrugging seemed to do it. I feel like Chuck Norris karate chopped me on both sides today.

P-Funk has a saying I believe is from Mel Stiff: Everything works. Nothing works forever.

If it works for you and you grow, great. However, not just from my personal standpoint, I cant see it working for long. Reason being, there is hardly any movement with the intensity youre using. Focusing on eccentrics would do the trick, but the ROM is so short. You can increase the intensity, but I have YET to see anyone use an intensity matched with deadlifts' and use good form.

For example, a person, with straps doing shrugs with 135lbs uses a full ROM vs. another person, with straps using 315lbs. When the weight gets up that high, people typically bounce that shit all around. Its silly.

Like I said, I did it, but it didnt last. I enjoyed Hise shrugs, but as I was explaining to my room mate about them, the ROM is so short and as the intensity increases, the ROM suffers as does the eccentric.

Buuuut...I am not fully against it and ill explain why in a second. Windows Vista has to fucking restart me every time it has an update.

 

[FMJ]

Windows Vista has to fucking restart me every time it has an update.

Upgrade to Windows7. It's Vista without all the bullshit.

 

[AKIRA]

I cant afford it right now.

Anyway. When I was 15-19, I always had delicious looking arms. Truth is, I was too much of a pussy to do big movements so most of my workouts consisted of curls and forearm curls. I got pretty strong and my arms got big. So big people asked what I benched.

With that comes realization. I was doing every kind of bicep curl known plus forearm curl variations as well. My forearms never really got stronger, my grip NEVER got better, but they looked cut to shit. As far as DOMS goes, I got sore only around the anterior of the elbows. Hardly ever felt shit in my brachiradials nor my biceps themselves. Sore or not, when I started curling 140lbs, I never got any stronger or bigger. I had exhausted that method.

Now the traps are much larger, but I wonder if they have the same RANGE of motion. Their job is to elevate the scapulae yes? So, Id imagine it would have less range than the arms'. That being said, soreness should be less? Or more?? How about this...who cares? My arms grew with soreness being non existent or even elsewhere!

Its a good peace (or is it piece?) of mind to be sore, but certain bodyparts on me that have gotten sore hardly ever grew. (abs, calves, shoulders, lower back, allegedly glutes) My advice, eat, stick with deadlifts, and if theres time, do your shrugs.

 

[jmorrison]

Good avice man, and since your physique is pretty much what I am shooting for, I will take it to heart! I guess I just never learned to train them because I always had a huge neck/traps from wrestling. Now that they have atrophied, I just dont know how to build them back up. I will definately stick with my deads, but I will add in some flavor to try to target them a little more.

 

[Smash]

These are some of the main ones
-Cleans
-DB shrugs
-Behind the back barbell shrugs
-Deadlifts

And these are a couple small things that will hit your traps too
-squeeze your traps at the top of your range when doing side DB shoulder raises
-Upright rows hit them a little bit too

As far as grip goes, I've just built mine up over time as I handle heavier weights. It just takes time. Straps are very helpful though when doing heavy shrugs of DL.