Help me beat genetics

[dieselj]

Help on building upper chest, improving posture.

Hi,
I have created a website which is specific to portions of my body that I am most unhappy with. Please go to this link and provide any advice you can. Serious advice only. I have posted everything from diet, to workout split. If you need more information check out the 'contact me' tab. I am very gracious to all who participate. I will keep everyone who helps posted on my progress. You can post your advice on the forum or email me directly. I am very serous about training, and I am trying to take myself to the next level.

thank you very much.
Jon

http://jtruhan.tripod.com/workoutjournal

 

[Lord_Suston]

Too much..............
If you are trying to gain weight you need to stop over training. 2 leg days in a week is ridiculous, no offense but many don't even do that on juice. Your work ethic looks good so get three days rest a week and try to split up your days D1 wo D2 wo D3 rest D4 wo D5 wo D\6 rest D7 rest. You also need to eat more alot more since you seem to be quite tall and relatively slim.

I am not trying to be mean just analytical.

 

[goldenone]

I would do the barbell military presses to the front, instead of behind the neck.Behind the neck could increase the chance of a shoulder injury.

 

[the_waterboy44]

Well to start man I wouldnt worry so much about shaping the muscles as I would about adding some mass first. Dont get me wrong Im just saying that because you dont appear to be starting off with way to much BF and your arent horrible skinny either. Add some mass, shape, shred then repeat. It should take you Ideally 8 months to a year for that cycle. That seems to be (in my opinion) what would work best for what you want. Lord suston is right about overtraining though. You wont get anywhere that way. Your approach is good just tone it down a bit. When adding mass cut the cardio to 2 or less time per week. Lower reps adds sets and add rest time. You get the Idea. Good luck.

 

[GenetiKing]

Hi Jon,
First of all your diet looks good if you're trying to bulk. To be honest, you will probably see some decent gains when you first start this program just because your diet is sound and you are relatively young. Both these factors will hedge agains the overtraining your particular routine will place on your body. The fact is, you are doing too many sets and working out too many days per week. Again, this won't be a problem until the rigors of overtraining creep up on you and you begin to feel the symptoms...which could be sooner or later depending on a host of other variables. But make no mistake, with that routine you will be overreaching and, ultimately, overtraining.

Cut back on the number of sets, eliminate repetitive exercises, and make sure to place priority on workout intensity and exercise form. I made the exact same mistake when I first started training. I thought that more always equaled more. I believed that if I worked longer and harder than everyone else, I would have the physique to prove it. Yeah, I made some gains and improvements but I quickly burned out and felt overtrained. Overtraining isn't some myth and I'm not just reciting someting I've read in a book, it's something I have studied AND experienced firsthand. The science of bodybuilding proves that exercise intensity will always come before volume (number of sets) in terms of predicting response to stimuli.

Best of luck.

 

[teslet]

I am going to say what some of the guys said already,but it is info everyone can benefit from:

*Get rid of the skim milk, it isn't doing you much good (because it has all of the EFAs leached out).

*Ditch the behind the neck movements, they are damaging for the shoulder (among the risks: anterior shoulder instability, shoulder impingement, cervical neck injury) so just do them to the front.

*Do not fully extend--or lock out--on your knee extensions(can result in hyperextended knee).

*Do not protrude down and forward your head in any exercise(rows, laterals, squats, deadlifts,etc), keep it straight up and looking forward.

*Keep your back straight through workouts (rows, laterals, squats, deadlifts,etc), not arched or rounded.

*Lower your training volume; research in: Effect of Resistance Training Volume on Strength and Muscle Thickness. Med Sci Sports Exerc 1996; 28(10): pp1311-1320 has shown that for beginners, 1 high intensity set per week for each muscle produces the same results as 3 high intensity sets per week each muscle. You will also be less sore and you are also less likely to plateau as quickly. There is really no need to do abs daily! I used to go around a lot and look into the Muscle magazines looking for a magical number of repititions and sets I could do in order to acheive a six-pack to only find out there is no magical number, only scientificaly understood interpretations of helping me to acheive my goals.Ideally, the best thing to do for building the abdominals is to use heavier weights less sets, more rest because the rectus abdominis is usually like 54% fast-twitch fiber (average, of course it is not the exact same for every person) therefore we know that muscle is comprised of chiefly the muscle fiber type that will show itself. Even in muscle groups that are 50% FT/50% ST it is ideal to use the heavier weights over light weight higher reps because of the size of type II muscle fibers compared to type I fibers.

*Lower your work out sessions: working out 6 times per week is not allowing your body rest and you may find it difficult to gain mass and strength.

*Narrow rows vs. wide rows will not place emphasis over a muscle group over another, so just pick the one that suits you the most**. The same with seated and standing calf raises. Same with the tricep pushdowns.


**I suggest you utilize a closer grip because it can give you a biomechanical advantage- in turn allowing usage of greater amount of weight and increased muscle stimulation (if that is your gig).