Tag: Shoulders

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Weight Loss Exercise

How To Build Upper Body V Shape


How to build upper body V – that V-shape taper from huge shoulders to a small waist – is the first thing that many bodybuilders want to know. It is often what sets bodybuilders apart from others in the gym and makes them stand out on the beach or even in the street. It is what makes a guy look like a comic book superhero about to save the world!

There are three main muscle groups that you need to consider when you are planning how to build upper body to an impressive degree. Let’s take them one by one.

1. Lats

The lats (latissimus dorsi) are the muscles that cover the sides of the middle back, reaching up to the armpit. As a bodybuilder, you will always want to keep building bigger and wider lats.

There are two types of exercise that you need to use if you want to work and build the lats. The first involves chin-ups and pulldown moves. These build width. The second is rows (e.g. cable rows and barbell rows) and deadlifts, which build thickness. You will need to cover both.

2. Deltoids


The deltoids are the muscles that cover the shoulder joint, forming the rounded shape of the shoulder. Your aim when you are considering how to build upper body V will be to build a strong, round ball shape on the shoulder. This gives the shoulders that massive, wide look.

The way to build deltoids is to use both a heavy pressing action and leverage raise exercises. Take as much weight as you can without sacrificing form. Raises should always be performed with full control, never by swinging the weights.

Exercises that you might want to include are: seated press, dumbbell lateral raises, bent over lateral raises, and cable lateral raises both in front and behind the back.

3. Abdominals

While they might seem out of place in an article on how to build upper body, the abs are just as important as the other two muscle groups. Having a tight midsection sets off the shoulders and contributes to the appearance of width at the top.

If you are interested in how to build upper body V shape, you will want to tighten rather than build the abs so that you do not develop a thick waist. For this reason, some experts recommend that you avoid using weights in your abs workout and do not do side bends. This may go against what others tell you but give it a try if you want to increase the contrast between weights and shoulders.

Exercises to concentrate on here include crunches, leg raises, sit-ups and hanging knee raises. For the hanging knee raise, hang from the chin-up bar and bring the knees up as high as possible toward the chest. Lower and repeat.

Of course, you also need to follow a good bodybuilding diet with plenty of protein and complex carbs at the right times. Drink plenty of water too. Soon it will be very clear when you hit the beach that you know how to build upper body!

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Weight Loss Exercise

Workout Clothing: Why It Is Important


Workout clothing might not be top of your list of things to consider when you are planning your workout routine but it is important for a number of reasons. Check out all of the points below and we are sure you will agree that it is worth spending some time and money selecting the right workout clothing.

Many of the reasons for having dedicated fitness apparel for wearing at the gym are psychological. Workout clothing puts you in the zone. Your mindset can have a huge effect on the success of your fitness or bodybuilding training, so pay close attention to this.

If you think about it for a moment, you will soon see that if you go to the gym or work out at home in your regular clothes, you are much less likely to take your training seriously. You will not pay so much attention to form or treat this as an important activity in your life.

Having the right clothes also increases your confidence. When you look like somebody who works out, you will feel and act like somebody who works out. ‘Fake it until you make it’ works here as in so many other aspects of life.

Workout clothing is important for comfort too. It is vital that your body can move freely during your training program, so you will not want anything too tight or restrictive. Your training program should only be limited by your body’s strength and endurance, not by your clothes. Heavy fabrics like denim are out; stretch fabrics are in.

Tanks that leave the armpits open can prevent your workout clothing becoming uncomfortably sweaty. Tanks are also great for showing off the results of your training. Arms, shoulders, backs and even the chest and abs are clearly displayed in a well designed bodybuilding tank. Sports tanks are usually looser in the body and cut higher under the arms.

Women’s workout clothing includes sports bras and tops as well as all types of leg wear from shorts through Capris to sweatpants. Short skirts suit some sports like tennis and badminton, while anybody including yoga in their workout will prefer leggings that allow a full stretch without flopping the way that other pants might.

It may seem weird to be thinking so much about workout clothing, especially for guys, but consider this. Pretty much everything important that we do has special clothes. Big events like weddings and funerals, of course; but even things that we do every day have their own ‘costume’. Most people wear different clothes for work than they would wear on the weekend, even if there are no dress rules for their job.

So wearing the right clothes in the gym helps your training program in many ways. It puts you in the zone for getting fit. It means that your mind will be much less distracted than if you went on wearing the same T shirt that you had on all day. Finding it hard to believe that the right workout clothing could actually improve your performance? Try it.

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Weight Loss Exercise

A Body Building Routine That Works


Finding a body building routine that works is not as easy as many beginner bodybuilders think. First, there is such a huge number of possible routines. This is not surprising when you consider how many muscle groups there are to work and how many possible exercises there are for each one. When you think about all the combinations you could make, you can see that the number of possible workout routines for body building is almost infinite.

Copying somebody else’s routine is not usually the best way to go. You are not going to develop the same body as the current Mr. Universe by reading up on his routine and doing the same thing yourself. It is very unlikely that your body is ready for exactly the same workout that he does right now.

A Starting Body Building Routine

A Body Building Routine That Works

Starting Body Building Routine

So what do you do? If you are just starting out, then probably any standard beginner body building routine will do fine. It is true that what works for one person will not necessarily work for anybody else but in the beginning it is okay to figure out your best plan by trial and error.

However, you do need to be sure that your workout routine covers all of the bases. Check it out against the following scheme. And if you want to plan your own body building routine, this is a good way to go.

First, note down all the muscle groups that you need to work. That is pretty much all the muscles in the body. Do not forget the core and especially the muscles of the back. It is dangerous to overdevelop the chest, shoulders and abs while neglecting the back because you can so easily cause an injury there.

Then choose an exercise that works each group. This could involve dumbbells, a barbell, or gym machines such as the bench press. Some exercises will work out more than one muscle group.

Now you are ready to plan your body building routine so that each muscle group is worked around twice a week with at least one full day of rest between. It is good to give yourself a couple of days of complete rest from working out, too.

Watch Your Results – Is your Body Building Routine Working?

What if nothing seems to be working? First, consider whether you are giving your muscles enough rest. Bodybuilders who do not get the results they expect are often guilty of overtraining. Remember that the muscles are broken down during your workout. The time that they build mass is during the recovery time. So do not be tempted to overtrain.

Second, look at other factors such as your diet. Are you getting the right amount of protein and carbs at the right times? Have you looked into possible supplements that you might take?

Lastly, keep in mind that it is good practice to change your routine around from time to time. This counters boredom and more importantly, works the muscles a little differently than what they may be used to. You will often find that changing out one ab exercise for another or using a different press at the gym will be the catalyst that you need to start gaining muscle mass again. All of these tips will help you figure out a body building routine that works.