Traps!!!

[M.E. Hollingsworth]

I work my traps really hard on my deadlift day. This is how my workout looks, Deadlift, SLDL, Shrugs, Bent over rows, Pull ups, Close grip pull downs, GHR. I have added a little mass to my traps but not that much. How do you get your traps to get so big. Do think the increase in size with bodyweight. I also powerclean, and high pull. I think im going to shrug 3 times a week, then the next week only once, the 3 times again and so on. What do you guys think? Thanks

Mark

 

[oso0690]

I work my traps really hard on my deadlift day. This is how my workout looks, Deadlift, SLDL, Shrugs, Bent over rows, Pull ups, Close grip pull downs, GHR. I have added a little mass to my traps but not that much. How do you get your traps to get so big. Do think the increase in size with bodyweight. I also powerclean, and high pull. I think im going to shrug 3 times a week, then the next week only once, the 3 times again and so on. What do you guys think? Thanks

Mark

wow that's a lot of exercises. I never work traps directly but they've grown bigger from my deadlift getting stronger. Yes, you must be in a caloric excess to gain muscle. I think, if you are going to shrug, do power shrugs instead.http://www.elitefitness.com/forum/showpost.php?p=4712284&postcount=319

 

[theprofessor]

swap SLDL for cleans

 

[glennpendlay]

powershrug. these do not work well with normal set/rep schemes. they are a very short range of motion very fast and explosive movement, it takes about half a second to do a rep. you need to do more reps than with most exercises. 2 or 3 sets of 10 done HEAVY are what it takes. a couple of sets of 20 will work also. if you really want to concentrate on traps, do them once a week, say on wednesday, with rows on monday and chins on friday. when i say heavy, i mean heavy. more than you can deadlift.

if you cant make your traps grow noticable the first 3-4 weeks of doing this exercise, then you are either not doing it right, or you are the type of genetic mutant that is literally 1 in 10,000.

if you can deadlift 500, by your 4th workout you should be using roughly 550lbs for 10. this is what i mean by heavy. this aint no isolation exercise. its a heavy, momentum using, fast, cheating shrug.

when i could deadlift around 700, i was doing 880 for 10 on these. if you work hard on them, they WILL make your traps grow. guaranteed.

 

[blut wump]

I'd second powershrugs, there's nothing that seems to target the traps quite so well or so directly. Use your whole body, except your arms, which should be hanging like ropes, to get the bar moving to pull sharply upwards. Expect your heels to leave the floor. You'll probably needs straps.

 

[kethnaab]

listen to the master. I generally do sets of 15 with a slight pause at the top when I do the powershrugs. My single rep deadlift generally is close to the 15-rep powershrug

for me atleast, and I think my traps are okay for a natty

 

[glennpendlay]

kethnab,

by all means, if what you are doing is working for you, keep doing it and dont let me change your opinion... HOWEVER...

for most, i would not advocate a pause at the top. I would say that if you are capable of pausing at the top, the weight isnt heavy enough, and you should immedietly add 50 to 100lbs to the bar. the weight you should be using ( in my opinion) should be far in excess of what you can shrug strictly, or hold in an isometric contraction.

the powershrug should really be an all out "heave" using the whole body to get the shoulders and the bar up about 4 or 5 inches. yes, yes i know that many could and probably will find all sorts of things wrong with this. but it works, no matter how "wrong" it seems.

glenn

listen to the master. I generally do sets of 15 with a slight pause at the top when I do the powershrugs. My single rep deadlift generally is close to the 15-rep powershrug

for me atleast, and I think my traps are okay for a natty

 

[BiggT]

I second the power shrugs.....from those without an athletic/strength training background they sound almost criminal, and that is perfectly understandable, but they work.....just try them for 3 weeks, if by the 3rd week your shirts don't fit funny, stop doing them, lol.....but once you see what they do for trap size in such a short time, you'll never shrug strictly again.

 

[Anthrax Invasion]

kethnab,

by all means, if what you are doing is working for you, keep doing it and dont let me change your opinion... HOWEVER...

for most, i would not advocate a pause at the top. I would say that if you are capable of pausing at the top, the weight isnt heavy enough, and you should immedietly add 50 to 100lbs to the bar. the weight you should be using ( in my opinion) should be far in excess of what you can shrug strictly, or hold in an isometric contraction.

the powershrug should really be an all out "heave" using the whole body to get the shoulders and the bar up about 4 or 5 inches. yes, yes i know that many could and probably will find all sorts of things wrong with this. but it works, no matter how "wrong" it seems.

glenn

Regarding the pause at the top, what about with rows? Here, everyone advocates the explosion (as do I), but no real pause at the top. I know AB and myself have found it difficult to judge whether the rep was complete or not - the pause at the top of the rowing helps to signify completion.

What do you guys do? I'm pretty sure the row isn't supposed to be an all-out heave like power shrugs, but it seems like thinking of it more in terms of the power shrug (though not letting to body come ridiculously about parallel) would be more, well, sensible.

I mean, we always said the back responds to explosive pulling.

 

[The Shadow]

Pausing is beneficial, although humbling as the weight will go down, as it increases the TUT time under tension, which is primarily responsible for the size vs strength pathways.

I would do the power shrugs with no pause....get under a claf raise machine and do THOSE shrugs with a pause.