66Kg Monster!

[GHOSTrun]

So it's possible for your buddy to have good genetics that give him the ability to build a body that looks a certain way, but anyone that says they don't have the genetics to achieve a particular goal are just making excuses right?

Keep digging, whilst trying to post credible info

If you train, eat, sleep right for 5 years and don't achieve your goal then yes you don't have the genetics for it. Most people don't even come close to maintaining the level of discpline required to carry out this for an extensiveable amount of time to see what their body is really capable of.

Here are some more pics of kwan, one from his 2nd comp which was nationals I think and one from the natural INBA comp on the Gold Coast a few weeks ago where he took out the intermidiate mens division, and a shot of his back. Remember he competes in a drug-tested natural bodybuilding comp so don't cry steroids or diuretics. This is why I say he has the genetics for it, because how many natural 5'7 70kg guys do you see walking around with this build? Not many..

Edited November 23, 2011 by GHOSTrun

[-FIGJAM-]

my build is always a topic for discussion and debate

some interesting theories been thrown around, a lot I have read before some others I haven't. I'll try and post some pics of me last year to me now.

is anyone or does anyone know anyone who works out with real long limbs?? My spotter is taller then me, yet my legs and arms are considerably longer then his. I am wondering if this is going to make it harder (not impossible) for me to show some real bulk around my arms and legs....

[GTR_JOEY]

Longer limbs will make ur arms look skinnier when fully extended but u can still work hard on them and get them looking thick

Varys person to person obviously

[-FIGJAM-]

Longer limbs will make ur arms look skinnier when fully extended but u can still work hard on them and get them looking thick

Varys person to person obviously

Thats what I was thinking.... someone tried telling me ill never look big blah blah, but i didnt really pay attention

Kwan looks real short, how much does he weigh and what is his height?

my end goal is nothing like that, to me its a little over the top but each to their own.

[NickR33]

I don't understand what relevance posting your mate has to do with FIGJAM's build thread?

that dude has a great physique don't get me wrong but he has a VERY narrow waist that makes his upper body look bigger... he is very well proportioned and cut to shreds but far from massive... I appreciate the dedication it takes to look like that but not really any help to a beginner

FIGJAM: my wife is very thin with very long arms/legs so she struggles with pressing and pulling... but on the flipside she has a good build for deadlifting and its variations... maybe make the DL a core lift in your program... you could even learn to power clean/snatch as they can be a great way to get maximum bang for buck

also I don't see any pull ups, dips or push ups? as a lighter guy you should find these easier and as you progress you can add weight etc

the key is your muscle attachment points not the length of your limbs... if you have long tendons and the muscle attaches a long way from the joint you will struggle to make the limb look as full as someone with short tendons and a longer muscle 'belly'

[-FIGJAM-]

pull ups are on back day, dips are machine and pushups are never done

also pushed out 2 sets of 8 reps @ 80kg deadlifts last night

Edited November 24, 2011 by -FIGJAM-

[GHOSTrun]

I don't understand what relevance posting your mate has to do with FIGJAM's build thread?

that dude has a great physique don't get me wrong but he has a VERY narrow waist that makes his upper body look bigger... he is very well proportioned and cut to shreds but far from massive... I appreciate the dedication it takes to look like that but not really any help to a beginner

It's in response to Dezz's post about genetics.

70kg is not massive, never said it was.

16" arms, chest and back like that at his height, weight and leaness ala lean body mass IS massive, plus proportions = good genetics (not to discount A LOT of hardwork and discipline).

Summary, you don't see too many 'kwans' walking around...

Edited November 24, 2011 by GHOSTrun

[GTR_JOEY]

Thats what I was thinking.... someone tried telling me ill never look big blah blah, but i didnt really pay attention

Kwan looks real short, how much does he weigh and what is his height?

my end goal is nothing like that, to me its a little over the top but each to their own.

Who ever told u that should go eat a fat one cause they have no idea, I have a mate with similar limbs to me and he has 20inch arms

[NickR33]

Summary, you don't see too many 'kwans' walking around...

quoted for truth

good work on the DL... these will give you a great strength base with which to improve your other lifts... keep on doing the pull ups... a nice wide grip should help grow your whole back... when you can do 10-12 try adding weight

I dunno what a dip machine looks like but when dipping be sure to get a little forward lean on and bring your chest into it, otherwise its just a tricep exercise

[-FIGJAM-]

Thought I'd update this with what I have been doing. We moved onto a tri phase type of workout. Involves 9 weeks of typical 8-10 rep workout, 9 weeks of strength which is aiming for 4reps and 9 of frequency which is a bit of everything.

At the moment we are in the strength phase. Routine and my latest lifts are below, whilst I am happy with a couple of these lifts, there is definite room for improvement, but I am getting there.

Day 1:

Bench Press:

60kg x 6reps

70kg x 4

70kg x 4

Bent Over Row (first time trying this so I am still trying to get the right technique down so I dont hurt my back more):

40kg x 10reps

45kg x 10reps

50kg x 10reps

Machine Shoulder Press:

20kg x 8 reps

25kg x 4reps

25kg x 4 reps

Barbell Shrug:

70kg x 8 reps

85kg x 4reps

85kg x 4 reps

Dumbbell Tricep Ext:

17.5kg x 8reps

22.4kg x 4reps

22.5kg x 4reps

Barbell Curl (another funny exercise for me, if I go heavier say 35kg the bones in my forearms hurt. I also loose the good technique, so for this I have gone down weight, slowed the rep and really squeezed the bicep):

25kg x 8reps

25kg x 8 reps

35kg x 4reps

Day 2:

Barbell Squat:

60kg x 10reps

80kg x 6 reps

80kg x 6reps

Romanian Deadlift:

60kg x 10reps

80kg x 4reps

80kg x 4reps

Smith Machine Reverse Calf raises:

90kg x 10reps

90kg x 10 reps

90kg x 10 reps

Day 3: we tried a new gym this day. The weights felt heavier at times then our normal gym and lighter at other times, so i expect next week I will be lifting more

Incline Bench:

40kg x 10 reps

60kg x 5 reps

60kg x 4 reps

Dumbbell Shoulder Press

20 x 8 reps

22kg x 4 reps

22kg x 4 reps

Wide Grip Lat Pulldown (another exercise where I feel it alot more if i go lighter then If i go real heavy)

40kg x 8 reps

46kg x 5 reps

46kg x 4 reps

Dumbbell Shoulder Shrug:

34kg x 8 reps

36kg x 6 reps

36kg x 6 reps

Dumbbell Bicep Curl:

12kg x 10 reps

14kg x 8 reps

16kg x 4 reps

Day 4

Deadlift (found my grip lacking a bit here, I could probably push out more reps but cant hold onto the bar):

90kg x 4 reps

90kg x 5 reps

90kg x 4 reps

Leg Press (my biggest lift, dont know where I get the strength/energy from to do it):

180kg x 4 reps

190kg x 6 reps

210kg x 4 reps

Standing Calf Raises:

80kg x 10 reps

120kg x 6 reps

120kg x 4 reps

[-FIGJAM-]

23/1/2011 Upper Body:

Bench Press:

60kg x 6reps

60kg x 6reps

60kg x 8 reps

Couldnt really go heavier because my crappy gym doesnt supply many 5kg plates...

Barbell Bent Over Row:

50kg x 8reps

50kg x 6reps

50lg x 6reps

Still getting used to this exercise. Really annoys me, If I go lighter, I feel it a lot more in my back then if I go heavier.

Machine Shoulder Press:

25kg x 4reps

25kg x 4reps

25kg x 4reps

Tricep Extensions:

22.5 x 4reps

22.5 x 4reps

22.5 x 4reps

Shrugs:

We did shrugs, but on a cable so I am not sure about weight moved. One thing I am sure of, I didnt like it at all.

Barbell curl:

30kg x 6reps

30kg x 6reps

30kg x 6reps

I can possibly go heavier with this, but I tend to loose form. Anything past 6 reps here and my form started to drop, so I didnt count the reps after 6. I did these and really focused on the squeeze in the bicep. Also made sure I did the full motion of the exercise.

Cheers,

[GHOSTrun]

Some good solid lifting in there

[Basti]

my build is always a topic for discussion and debate

some interesting theories been thrown around, a lot I have read before some others I haven't. I'll try and post some pics of me last year to me now.

is anyone or does anyone know anyone who works out with real long limbs?? My spotter is taller then me, yet my legs and arms are considerably longer then his. I am wondering if this is going to make it harder (not impossible) for me to show some real bulk around my arms and legs....

im almost a foot taller than my spotter, in most things im pretty close to his strength, much stronger in some, weigh the same and i look half his size. its frustrating lol

[-FIGJAM-]

well I injured my left shoulder last week on bench press.... no warm up set and straight to 70kg did it right away.

A week of rest and I went to do bench yesterday, still got pain in there so I went much much much lighter (basically so I got something done.)

Most frustrating thing about it is that i have been seeing some good results of the work and effort that I am putting in and now I am going to go backwards. Hopefully I recover sooner rather then later.

I am thinking that I have just strained it, nothing torn or anything serious like that. Iced it the night of the incident and have used some voltaran on it as well. Anyone know anything else I can try?

On another note, I am not squatting 100kg. Not for ten reps but I believe I could get to 8 if I pushed myself. The 5th and 6th take me time to regather before I drop back down.

[NickR33]

not enough rear delt/upper back work

ditch the bench press for a while and try some flyes for your chest until your shoulder is 100%

when you go back to bench press make sure your grip isn't too wide and try not to flare your elbows, keep them tucked in to your sides

my 2c, good luck with it, sucks to be injured

[Birds]

Problem with bench press is that it is very sensitive to off technique and probably one of the most injury prone exercises because it's very compounding - elbows and shoulders doing their own thing and if it's not all in allignment then something can easily click or tear. This is why I'm a big purveyor of stretching before exercise because you can pick up on little things, like joints being out of place or a click/tear that you might have earned yourself during the day without noticing, rather than heading straight into the weights without testing them first. I warm up on 80kg bench press, which is rather excessive for a warm up, but it's never caused an injury and I attribute this to my stretching beforehand.

How bad is the injury in your shoulder? Did it feel better when you went lighter a week later? Did the exercise make it feel noticeably worse? Reason I say this is that, when I've had joint or shoulder issues in the past (stupid arm wrestles etc.), I'm rather OCD about still getting the work out done. It has to be a pretty debilitating injury or I have to feel that the exercise is actually making it worse, in order for me to skip it.

As long as you have a good technique and the exercise isn't making the pain WORSE than it was, then I say it's not such a bad thing to just work through it and ignore the pain. Now I don't really like saying this, because it's counter-intuitive and you can't always get away with it. You really have to know your body well to know if it's the kind of injury you can just work through. But if it is, your joint will still heal, and sometimes for the better IMO. There are benefits to mobilising joints that are/were injured, as opposed to immobilising them and then putting them through their paces after healing (injury can come back easily if the joint did not heal around the movement).

[-FIGJAM-]

its not the most pain i have ever been in but it is noticeable. After the workout last night it hurt a little for no reason but woke up this morning and was fine. My form and technique is generally pretty good, i try to focus more on good form rather then big lifts.

guess I'll just lift and if it hurts stop. Dont want to do bad damage to it and screw myself completely.

[NickR33]

what's the point of 'working through the pain' if you can get your chest work done without irritating your shoulder? bench press isn't the best/only chest exercise so why not use the opportunity to work something else into your routine and go back to it when the shoulder is feeling better (unless your training for a powerlifting meet... in which case your going to have to get some benching in)

[Birds]

Well it depends what sort of shoulder pain it is, he may not be able to do any kind of chest exercise if the problem still presents itself with flys.

If dude is anything like me, and by the way he's talking about progress/plateau, it sounds like he is...it's going to be worse for him mentally having to skip an exercise he normally does or come back to it a couple weeks later and work his way back again. I'm not talking about doing bench press with a broken shoulder, I'm talking about small tears or clicks that don't feel worse after doing the exercise. Just my experience...

[rev210]

its not the most pain i have ever been in but it is noticeable. After the workout last night it hurt a little for no reason but woke up this morning and was fine. My form and technique is generally pretty good, i try to focus more on good form rather then big lifts.

guess I'll just lift and if it hurts stop. Dont want to do bad damage to it and screw myself completely.

You have a rotator cuff injury. It's still there. It won't go away by itself. Next time will be much worse.

Stop the workouts and go to a physio. Look up stretches and exercises for rotator cuff injury and start doing some.

My tip is leave the bench press alone til you have some decent shoulder girdle strength. Get this happening and there will be less risk and better lifting.

If you have any clicking in the shoulder at any time. It's not good for you to workout. Muscle soreness is not a good indicator for over or under-training by itself sometimes but, mechanical noise in the shoulder isn't a good thing. Grinding away will often result in calcification spurs requiring surgery.

If you can live with it, turf the isolation arm workout in terms of bicep curl and tricep. The compound movements will take care of these. They can cause issues again without foundational strength for some people. You sound like one of them as pain in the forearms you describe sounds alot like tendonitis.

Don't worry the guns will still grow. But, if you can't be motivated without the gun workout then keep them in but, to a minimum.

Looking at your workout you don't have enough balance in the muscle development. Where is your back workout? You need a tad more there, it's a big group of muscles too. You also need some abdominal strength stuff ideally also.

Foundation are the bits that help stop the injuries when they are nice and strong.

Back / abbs

Shoulders

Legs

hope you sort the shoulder soon mate.