Growth factor shoulder training

Here's a quick summary:

1. People who only train with heavy weights or do Olympic-style weightlifting rarely have impressive arms and shoulders. The exception is those who train with heavy weights and also perform isolation training with high repetitions.
2. Performing only the heavy basic exercises can lead to strength imbalances that will ultimately affect your performance and muscle mass
3. The supersets described below cause the muscles to contract, which restricts blood flow and leads to the release of growth factors.
4. Warning: You will need a high pain tolerance to perform this shoulder workout.

Few Olympic weightlifters look lean and muscular

I love moving heavy weights during the big basic exercises, but I can't ignore the fact that pump training also works when it comes to building muscle. Many people have built a lot of muscle with isolation training performed to a literal skin-bursting pump - this includes strength-oriented athletes.

But few Olympic weightlifters have what we would call a muscular body - despite pushing monstrous weights up over their heads. They certainly have robust legs, robust glutes and a robust lower back. And some have a strong upper body too.

But most look "robust" instead of lean and muscular. It's true that they mainly use their legs, hips and torso to move the weight, but you would still expect more muscle in the shoulders and arms for people who can move 200 to 250 kilos overhead.

Exceptions to the rule

Chinese weightlifters and weightlifters from some other Asian countries with similar training systems seem to be an exception. Although they are less genetically predisposed to carry around a lot of muscle mass, Olympic weightlifters from these countries are much more muscular than most other weightlifters.

This is especially true for their arms, shoulders and back. If you look at their training, you'll notice that these athletes do a lot of isolation training with higher repetitions of exercises such as side raises, tricep presses and bicep curls.

They also perform plenty of exercises such as rows, dips and pull-ups in a higher repetition range (8 to 10 reps). They often perform 6 sets of 8 to 10 repetitions with short rest intervals of different bodybuilding exercises at the end of their training sessions.

But why would athletes who already train for four or more hours a day add another 30 to 45 minutes of additional training if it wouldn't be productive?

Well, these athletes understand that muscles move weights and that if you have more muscle, you can move more weight if your nervous system is efficient at using those muscles.

And I've learned through experience that volume builds muscle.

The problem with the shoulders

Sure, getting stronger will also help you get more muscular. If you increase the weight of all your heavy basic exercises by 50 kilos, then you will certainly have significantly more muscle mass. But this is not necessarily the fastest way, especially when it comes to muscles like the shoulders.

The shoulders are fragile. The shoulder joint is the most unstable joint in the whole body and is also very complex. There are more than ten muscles that directly influence the way the shoulders move and this joint can move in pretty much any direction.

It is therefore very easy to develop an imbalance in this area, which can lead to nagging and persistent shoulder pain or even serious injury.

And this is where the problem lies if you rely solely on the heavy basic exercises: The risk of developing an imbalance in your shoulders, which can ultimately affect your performance, well-being and, in the end, your muscle mass, is much higher.

In addition, many strong muscles support the shoulder muscles, which can make it difficult to fully stimulate the shoulder muscles using only heavy basic exercises. Sure, the shoulder muscles will take some load, but sometimes other muscles contribute disproportionately more to the movement and will therefore grow faster. As these muscles grow faster, the shoulder muscles become weaker in relation to these muscles and it becomes harder to engage them - the body will use the stronger muscles to get the job done. This increases the risk of injury.

This is the reason I use both time under tension and different angles to develop the shoulder muscles. In fact, I try to use as many different angles as possible when training the shoulder muscles directly.

Not only will this make the shoulders more functional and less prone to injury, but it will also maximize the mass of the shoulder muscles.

Constant time under tension and muscle development

The results of scientific research are clear: you can stimulate muscle growth without using heavy weights by increasing the release of local growth factors during exercise.

This is the basis of so-called occlusion training and the training style with repetitions with constant tension. The latter is of interest to us in this context.

When a muscle contracts, the blood flow to that muscle is restricted. The blood will flow into the muscle when it relaxes again - between repetitions and when the muscle stops contracting at the end of the set.

As long as the muscle is working and blood flow is restricted by a muscular contraction, metabolic products will accumulate in the muscle, leading to the release of local growth factors.

This is the basis of this training approach for the shoulders. This program will build muscle mass quickly. When I use it after focusing only on the heavy basic exercises, my physical appearance changes almost immediately - almost as if muscle mass is migrating to the shoulders.

To maximize growth factor stimulation, you need to focus on stimulating as much accumulation of lactic acid as possible in the target muscle. You must have a high pain tolerance for this to work optimally!

Lactate accumulation through muscle work is maximized when the muscle is under tension for 45 to 70 seconds. This program is based on sets that fall within this range. And because the shoulders are so mobile, I prefer to use multiple exercises on each set to strengthen every angle of shoulder movement.

The program itself uses 5 supersets and you will perform each of these supersets three times, which will result in a total time under tension of about 15 minutes. Each of these supersets will work great on their own. But for maximum shoulder development, you should use all five.

Superset 1 - Multi-Press Complex

Each set consists of 6 different pressing exercises and we go from weakest to strongest - a concept known as mechanical descending sets.

The 6 exercises performed without rest are as follows:

• A. Seated snatch (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4EGCUt3J4s) (for one use of the lower body) or Cuban Press with a barbell (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiGNewVNbZY)
• B. Seated neck press, wide grip
• C. Seated neck press, wide shoulder grip
• D. Savicka's Press (shoulder press, sitting on the floor with legs straight and without back support)
• E. Bradford Press (standing) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUOs8v6IzEg)
• F. Push Press (standing shoulder press with momentum from the legs)

The goal is to perform 5 repetitions of each exercise, but don't worry if you only manage 3 or even fewer repetitions towards the end. Start conservatively. By using constant tension, fatigue and soreness will build up quickly.

Perform 3 sets of these exercises with about 90 seconds rest between sets.

Important: You'll notice that this superset/complex includes neck presses - an exercise that has been discredited by many recently as the work of the devil. Many people believe that this exercise will potentially damage the shoulders.

Well, that's true if you don't have any shoulder mobility, but pressing in this position is part of normal shoulder function.

It's true that some people may have problems with neck presses - especially those with a posture with shoulders hanging heavily forward or bodybuilders with massive pecs and front shoulder muscles.

However, if your shoulders are healthy and have good mobility, then this exercise should not cause any problems. If your shoulders are not healthy - perhaps due to too much bench pressing - then you will not be able to perform neck presses.

The neck press is one of the more complex shoulder exercises. With this exercise, you achieve a stronger contraction in the lateral and posterior shoulder muscles. Standing shoulder presses put more strain on the front shoulder muscle head, but are less complete and comprehensive as an exercise.

In addition, remember that due to the nature of this complex, you won't be using as much weight, so neck presses will be less traumatic and will even help you regain full shoulder function.

Superset 2 - dumbbell press through multiple ranges of motion

This is similar to the good old 21 technique, which is also based on constant tension and lactate accumulation, but in this superset you will use sets of 5-5-10 instead of 7-7-7. This means:

• 5 partial repetitions only over the lower half of the range of motion
• 5 partial repetitions over the upper half of the range of motion only
• 10 movements over the entire range of motion

The complete repetitions should be performed at a steady pace, pausing neither at the highest nor the lowest point of the repetition. End the upward movement 1 to 2 centimeters before reaching full extension of the arms to keep the shoulder muscles under tension.

The partial repetitions will cause a rapid hypoxic state (lack of oxygen) and a rapid build-up of lactate - and it is in this state that you will perform your full repetitions afterwards.

Perform 3 supersets with about 90 seconds rest between supersets.

Superset 3 - Shoulder Circles/Scott Press/Shoulder Press

I started shoulder circles with added weight and arms extended to the side when I was doing a lot of ring work as part of my training. This is a highly underrated exercise and a great exercise to prepare the entire shoulder joint for a brutal workout.

This exercise does this by activating most of the muscles involved in shoulder exercises and this makes it an interesting hypertrophy tool as it can stimulate a lot of muscles. It is an excellent option for the first exercise in a pre-fatigue superset.

The second exercise is Scott Presses (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxk4Tc88S9s), which are very similar to Arnold Presses in that you start the movement with your arms in front of your body and rotate them outwards as you push the dumbbells upwards. The difference with Arnold Presses is that in Arnold Presses you push the dumbbells straight up after rotating your arms outwards, whereas in Scott Presses a more circular movement is used.

As a result, the arm is tilted forward at the highest point of the movement, placing the elbows further back than the wrists. This circular movement puts more strain on the side of the shoulder muscles.

After you have finished the Scott Presses, finish your set of regular dumbbell shoulder presses with a slight modification: during the pressing movement, the weight plate on the outside is slightly higher than the plate on the inside and this inclination is maintained throughout the entire upward movement. This puts more strain on the lateral area of the shoulder muscles.

A set looks like this:

• A. Shoulder circles: 10 repetitions from front to back
• B. Shoulder circles: 10 repetitions from back to front
• C: Scott Presses: 6 to 8 repetitions
• D. Dumbbell shoulder presses: 6 to 8 repetitions

Perform 3 supersets with about 90 seconds rest between supersets.

Superset 4 - Dumbbell complex

This is my favorite superset to isolate and really destroy the shoulder muscles. It trains the shoulder muscles from multiple angles, which is important for complete shoulder development.

Four different exercise variations are performed in succession without rest:

• A. Front raise across the upper half of the range of motion: from arms parallel to the floor to overhead, 4 to 6 repetitions
• B. Side raise: 4 to 6 repetitions
• C. "Y" side raise with thumbs pointing upwards: 4 to 6 repetitions (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ET0O8y1aIrs)
• D. Outside-in front raise (dumbbell front raise with hammer grip): 4 to 6 repetitions Perform 3 supersets with about 90 seconds rest between supersets.

Superset 5 - Bus driver/front lift

The first exercise is the "bus driver" exercise, in which you hold a weight plate at arm's length in front of your body and slowly rotate it (https://youtu.be/AGjuA82-10c). This is a highly underrated exercise.

This exercise puts the entire shoulder muscle group under constant tension and trains it from angles that are not normally trained in the gym. This is an excellent way to end shoulder training and make the shoulder joint more resistant to injury.

The second exercise is front raises, using three different grip widths: close, shoulder width and wide.

The use of different grip widths makes this a mechanical descending set: if you can't perform any more repetitions of an exercise, you change the lever arm to be able to perform more repetitions. By using a wider grip, you shorten the lever arm, making the exercise slightly lighter, which allows you to perform more repetitions without having to reduce the weight.

Changing the grip could also bring some new motor units into play, which is an advantage as the more motor units you can recruit and exhaust, the more you will grow.

A set looks like this:

• A. Bus Driver: 6 to 8 repetitions per side
• B. Front lift: Dumbbells are held about 2 to 3 centimeters tighter than shoulder width, 6 reps
• C. Front lift: the index finger forms a line with the outer edge of the shoulder muscles, 6 repetitions
• D. Front lift: wide grip, about 8 to 10 centimetres wider than shoulder width, 6 repetitions

We aim for 6 to 8 reps per side on the bus driver exercise and 6 reps on each grip variation of the front raise, but the goal is to pump up the muscles as much as possible. If this goal is achieved, it doesn't matter whether you do 5 or 10 reps per position.

IMPORTANT: When performing barbell front raises, imagine that you are rotating your elbows upwards instead of lifting your arms. This will increase the activation of the lateral shoulder muscle head.

Maximize your results

Get ready to build mass quickly in your shoulder muscles - especially if you are someone who is used to heavy pressing workouts.

This program is based on both maximizing local growth factor release and transporting a ton of nutrient-rich blood to the muscles. This means that using the right pre- and intra-workout supplementation before and during your workout will maximize the amount of anabolic nutrients in your blood, leading to even better results.

Source: https://www.t-nation.com/training/growth-factor-shoulder-training

By Christian Thibaudeau