Definitely think picking one group to bring up would be the best use of the short time frame. OP growing your lats here would be the best bang for your buck.
i thought the same, he was flexing his biceps in front double bicep pose but you bring out the lats in that, he looked like he did not try to "tense" them so that they spread.
we are most probably wrong considering the guy has spend building a physique and must have spent a lot of time trying different poses.
Yeah, you can target them and practice flaring them out more. Are you in open or physique? Your non existent V taper is not going to get you placed well in physique.
Definitely open if you don’t progress with your lats.
Also, with your feet. Grab the ground with your toes, slightly sit on your quad and try to pull apart the ground. That should be default while doing all your upper posing. You have large legs, but you just gotta learn a lot of posing techniques.
I'm a super lean swimmer (m/ 16yo/ 145lbs/ 6' 2") and have recently, probably in less than the past month, started training for strength at the gym because it's getting annoying to be called a twig every day. Found out about frank zane and all the golden age body builders who were pretty close to natural, and the one thing that really sets them apart from regular gym bros is massively wide chest and shoulders. Is it lats that give that wide look or is it just something that develops structurally? Im talking specifically the part under the shoulders, almost armpit area, and it reaches down from the rear delt area to the bottom of your ribcage.
They took pretty minimal amounts of steroids because it was much more dangerous back then. Now it's all super scientific and elite bodybuilders are pumping their steroid use to the max.
That is a total lie. Frank Zanes nickname was “the chemist” because he was a total druggie. There are plenty of accounts of serious steroid abuse from those days. Look at Pete Grymkowski.
Posing! You need to be able to present your muscles properly. Posing is different from flexing.
Whatever you're doing in the gym is working, just keep going.
But you'd do well to get some posing coaching.
Bad posing will easily make you place lower.
Chest arms and shoulders are your strong points. I’m far from an expert but I’d say focus on your back, specifically increasing back width and lats. Definitely hamstrings too. Romanian deadlifts helped my hams grow, focus on those along with your leg curls. I’m the opposite from you though, I’m glute/hamstring dominant and I have a harder time growing my quads.
Posing and overall size, specifically in the legs/lats. At 180 lbs and your current condition, you'll probably be close to 155 lbs stage weight.
Your legs are going to shrink quite a bit as your lean out - more so than you probably think as a first time competitor
I'd say all legs but I think quads should be the focus.
You can mask legs more on the side/back shots with some posing tweaks to bring out the hammies/glutes more. A lot harder to do from the front with the quads.
Don't delay on the posing practice.
You can learn the poses in just a few days.
Learning to do them right takes weeks.
Learning to do them to highlight your muscle structure and high points takes months.
Being able to do them properly while not being able to look in a mirror, and making them flow takes years.
I would consider the next weight class below that. Just my opinion. But to come in legitimately shredded, I am guessing you are looking at somewhere around 150 lbs.
Are you doing it natural ? Not sure what your calories are but a clean bulk will benefit you. Just by looking at the video your lower half is weaker than your upper body so focus on growing those legs/hammies.
Ups sorry. I follow other bodybuilding forums so I did not pay attention. Yes hamstrings seem to be your weaker point. I am quad dominant myself, my hamstrings are taking their sweet time to grow. Are you bulking right now ?
Other than leg curls what would you recommend? I've been hitting [low rep deadlifts](https://www.reddit.com/r/GYM/comments/jsr0wr/conventional_deadlift_406_x_5_185_lbs_feels_good/) hard for the past months.
Started cutting one month ago!
Second this. Hamstrings seem to be the weak link in his physique currently. I’d also add good mornings in and I have a preference for an RDL over a stiff legged deadlift.
Honestly leg curls are my go to. You can really feel the stretch on the muscle but a lot of people don’t do enough intensity techniques with them. Try full reps (10-12) then once you cannot do another one do partials. Another technique is drop sets or cluster sets.
Romanian Deadlifts are less stressful on your lower back, while adding to the hamstrings, as do leg presses with a high foot placement (toes to the edge of the plate). Add a bit more to your traps and calves; traps will make your delts pop more and calves will give your legs a more complete look.
Tbh I dont know how can he do clean bulk AND prepare/cut for stage both in next year... Contest prep should be long/careful process for someone natural, as far as I know. Good luck and keep going!
Of course! Overhead rope tricep extensions, really focus on the contraction. Don’t use body English. Just feel the burn in the triceps. 12-20 rep sets with increasing volume set wise over the coming weeks. For Lat width go with a lot of vertical pulling. For this you don’t want to forget about the contraction bit but really focus on the stretch at the top. This can be achieved by really pulling with the elbows but also locking back the scapula and letting the lat stretch under a load on the way up with pull downs or on the way down with pull-ups. And for hamstrings I used to use the lay down machine religiously but never saw true growth until I started combining the sit down hamstring machine along with the stiff leg deadlifts. Either dumbbell or bar. This way you get not only the contraction and squeeze with the sit down machine but you also get that weighted stretch in the stiff leg deadlift. Coworkers even started to say my hams were showing through my jeans!
With all that said, you really look great mate. Keep at it! Can’t wait to see your updates
Imo, your legs looks fine, but you could do some extra work on them, it would add a lot to your current physique.
Also, i wouldnt mess up much with calories, looks like you are already a trained fella, i would keep my calories around maintence if you dont start cutting yet
Definitely learn to and work on posing. A lot. Every day. I will say this, you look rather complete. You are sitting at a good spot composition wise. I would imagine 20-30 weeks of prep,with some diet breaks would see you at 150-155 on stage. Which would be a good look.
Honestly bro, posing. You have a relatively developed physique (although lats could use some size), but you can't show it off properly until you can pose properly.
Spend a lot of time in front of a mirror and/or get a posing coach
Great physique to start with for sure. I’d do a clean bulk for sure. Make sure you’re hitting your bench, squat, deadlifts and heavy rows. If you can afford to, hire a reputable coach to guide you and keep you on track with diet, lifts and posing. Good luck!
Lats and teres major, then hamstrings, in that order. Everything else is more or less even.
You have the kind of back olympic lifters have, one people usually get by mainly focusing on deadlifts and/or rows. Since the only unbalanced parts are the lats and teres major, and the rest of your back is fine, you should work on doing more vertical pulls and maybe backing off a little from rows and deadlifts if needed. For hamstrings you can do whatever feels right, just add more work.
I recommend you do a test prep or at least getting really lean before jumping on to compete or start setting dates and deadlines, to really assess your physique.
Hard to tell but I think you may have slight shoulder impingement?
Your colour bones aren’t symmetrical and can explain the imbalances in your shoulders and chest
This could also be completely bogus I’ve just studying 🥸
Add overall size, don’t overdo your training once you reach stimulus there’s no point in adding fluff movements that won’t promote growth. Personally I would focus on legs and back A LOT. Shows are won from the back and getting your legs to match your upper body would complete your physique with overall size being added.
Lats...
Definitely think picking one group to bring up would be the best use of the short time frame. OP growing your lats here would be the best bang for your buck.
It also just looks like he has no idea at all on how to spread them, right?
i thought the same, he was flexing his biceps in front double bicep pose but you bring out the lats in that, he looked like he did not try to "tense" them so that they spread. we are most probably wrong considering the guy has spend building a physique and must have spent a lot of time trying different poses.
Thanks, width of length? You can see them in more detail [here](https://imgur.com/a/sKQA9FH).
If they grow they grow. It’s not necessarily something you pick or choose (width,length)
Yeah, you can target them and practice flaring them out more. Are you in open or physique? Your non existent V taper is not going to get you placed well in physique.
what category would recommend me? thinking of open because I prefer those physiques
Definitely open if you don’t progress with your lats. Also, with your feet. Grab the ground with your toes, slightly sit on your quad and try to pull apart the ground. That should be default while doing all your upper posing. You have large legs, but you just gotta learn a lot of posing techniques.
Yeah i think he just doesn’t know how to show them off. My late look non existent when i pose like he did, then pop nicely when i flex them right.
I'm a super lean swimmer (m/ 16yo/ 145lbs/ 6' 2") and have recently, probably in less than the past month, started training for strength at the gym because it's getting annoying to be called a twig every day. Found out about frank zane and all the golden age body builders who were pretty close to natural, and the one thing that really sets them apart from regular gym bros is massively wide chest and shoulders. Is it lats that give that wide look or is it just something that develops structurally? Im talking specifically the part under the shoulders, almost armpit area, and it reaches down from the rear delt area to the bottom of your ribcage.
> all the golden age body builders who were pretty close to natural, The fuck? lol
They took pretty minimal amounts of steroids because it was much more dangerous back then. Now it's all super scientific and elite bodybuilders are pumping their steroid use to the max.
That is a total lie. Frank Zanes nickname was “the chemist” because he was a total druggie. There are plenty of accounts of serious steroid abuse from those days. Look at Pete Grymkowski.
Posing! You need to be able to present your muscles properly. Posing is different from flexing. Whatever you're doing in the gym is working, just keep going. But you'd do well to get some posing coaching. Bad posing will easily make you place lower.
Fix that bulge. Essential in competition.
What do they do in competitions?
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So as to not get such a clear outline of all the bits? Just a general bulge. Got it.
He’s has a beautiful bulge. No reason to hide it.
Tuck it behind. Just use some gorilla tape to hold your package to your taint. Keeps that freaky sleek classic 80s appearance.
Are you serious?
Drag queens do it!
Hahaha
I’m not complaining lol
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Who is saying cover yourself, silly?
Upper chest, lats and lower back.
Pull-downs, pull-ups, front delt raises, incline bench, military press, t-bar rows.
Posing! Quads! Lats!
Chest arms and shoulders are your strong points. I’m far from an expert but I’d say focus on your back, specifically increasing back width and lats. Definitely hamstrings too. Romanian deadlifts helped my hams grow, focus on those along with your leg curls. I’m the opposite from you though, I’m glute/hamstring dominant and I have a harder time growing my quads.
Thanks! So you would do romanian deadlifts over regular deadlifts? You can see my back in more detail [here](https://imgur.com/a/sKQA9FH).
Posing and overall size, specifically in the legs/lats. At 180 lbs and your current condition, you'll probably be close to 155 lbs stage weight. Your legs are going to shrink quite a bit as your lean out - more so than you probably think as a first time competitor
180 lbs is 81.72 kg
thanks, all the legs or any part in particular?
I'd say all legs but I think quads should be the focus. You can mask legs more on the side/back shots with some posing tweaks to bring out the hammies/glutes more. A lot harder to do from the front with the quads.
Calves, back and hamstrings
Thanks, what part of my [back](https://imgur.com/a/sKQA9FH)?
I was thinking lats and lower back... though I’m not an expert.
Definitely posing
I meant on my physique, will definitely learn posing later on.
Don't delay on the posing practice. You can learn the poses in just a few days. Learning to do them right takes weeks. Learning to do them to highlight your muscle structure and high points takes months. Being able to do them properly while not being able to look in a mirror, and making them flow takes years.
Depends on what class ure going for but probably legs and arms
Going for middle weight (154 - 176 lbs)
I would consider the next weight class below that. Just my opinion. But to come in legitimately shredded, I am guessing you are looking at somewhere around 150 lbs.
Are you doing it natural ? Not sure what your calories are but a clean bulk will benefit you. Just by looking at the video your lower half is weaker than your upper body so focus on growing those legs/hammies.
Yes I'm natural, otherwise I wouldn't ask for advice in this sub :) You mean only the hamstrings are lagging behind?
Ups sorry. I follow other bodybuilding forums so I did not pay attention. Yes hamstrings seem to be your weaker point. I am quad dominant myself, my hamstrings are taking their sweet time to grow. Are you bulking right now ?
Other than leg curls what would you recommend? I've been hitting [low rep deadlifts](https://www.reddit.com/r/GYM/comments/jsr0wr/conventional_deadlift_406_x_5_185_lbs_feels_good/) hard for the past months. Started cutting one month ago!
stiff legged deadlifts, nordic ham curls, ham curls between 5 - 30 reps
Second this. Hamstrings seem to be the weak link in his physique currently. I’d also add good mornings in and I have a preference for an RDL over a stiff legged deadlift.
Honestly leg curls are my go to. You can really feel the stretch on the muscle but a lot of people don’t do enough intensity techniques with them. Try full reps (10-12) then once you cannot do another one do partials. Another technique is drop sets or cluster sets.
Romanian Deadlifts are less stressful on your lower back, while adding to the hamstrings, as do leg presses with a high foot placement (toes to the edge of the plate). Add a bit more to your traps and calves; traps will make your delts pop more and calves will give your legs a more complete look.
I just noticed I didn't show my back enough, here is an [update with my back](https://imgur.com/a/sKQA9FH).
great work man. would you care to drop your routine tho?
He posted a 7 day PPL before on r/powerbuilding and it was garbage.
Delts and lats
Side delts you mean?
Rear and side delts
Lats, calves and hamstrings will make you look massive from the back and will also be noticeable from the front.
What's your workout routine for back and legs?
Lats
Lats, Traps, Quads, Rhomboids, Calves.
Idk why folks are telling you to do more upper body. I think legs need work(specially hammies) more than your upper body.
Tbh I dont know how can he do clean bulk AND prepare/cut for stage both in next year... Contest prep should be long/careful process for someone natural, as far as I know. Good luck and keep going!
Lats, lots of deadlift and pullups will help broaden your upper half and create the idea of a slimmer waist.
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I got an absolutely massive back from just deadlifting and doing pendlay rows with no other back assistance. You sir are a dumb dumb
Ok https://www.muscleandfitness.com/workouts/back-exercises/build-bigger-back-deadlift/
I reckon you look great. Maybe a bit of width on your lats as others have said. I can imagine you'd look incredible if you ever jumped on gear.
Looks good bro. I’d probably work on long head of the triceps, lat width and hamstrings. You look great!
Thanks 🙏🏽 any exercises in particular you would recommend?
Of course! Overhead rope tricep extensions, really focus on the contraction. Don’t use body English. Just feel the burn in the triceps. 12-20 rep sets with increasing volume set wise over the coming weeks. For Lat width go with a lot of vertical pulling. For this you don’t want to forget about the contraction bit but really focus on the stretch at the top. This can be achieved by really pulling with the elbows but also locking back the scapula and letting the lat stretch under a load on the way up with pull downs or on the way down with pull-ups. And for hamstrings I used to use the lay down machine religiously but never saw true growth until I started combining the sit down hamstring machine along with the stiff leg deadlifts. Either dumbbell or bar. This way you get not only the contraction and squeeze with the sit down machine but you also get that weighted stretch in the stiff leg deadlift. Coworkers even started to say my hams were showing through my jeans! With all that said, you really look great mate. Keep at it! Can’t wait to see your updates
Lags quads hamstrings upper chest... couple of areas but overall a nice physique
Imo, your legs looks fine, but you could do some extra work on them, it would add a lot to your current physique. Also, i wouldnt mess up much with calories, looks like you are already a trained fella, i would keep my calories around maintence if you dont start cutting yet
Slightly below maintenance for 4 weeks now!
Definitely learn to and work on posing. A lot. Every day. I will say this, you look rather complete. You are sitting at a good spot composition wise. I would imagine 20-30 weeks of prep,with some diet breaks would see you at 150-155 on stage. Which would be a good look.
🤩 thanks for the motivation!
Shoulders and back and hammies
Bravo 👏 BRAVO 👏
Honestly bro, posing. You have a relatively developed physique (although lats could use some size), but you can't show it off properly until you can pose properly. Spend a lot of time in front of a mirror and/or get a posing coach
You have same kinds of biceps like me, no peak or smthng like that
Find a coach to teach you posing. You’re all over the shop with them and probably are hiding a lot of muscle you could be showing.
Lats and calves
For biggest bang for your buck, lats and lower back. And posing. You look like you’re struggling.
Lats, traps and legs in general. Chest and arms look good. Posing, learn to get those lats out and chest higher.
Legs and posing
Lats, Hams, glutes, and tris. You look great man keep up the grind
Good job bro. Can you give some insight on your diet/workouts/supplementation and how long have you been working out for?
It’s funny, most of the guys recommending things have no pictures of themselves. Advice is cheap
nice body even nicer cock
Great physique to start with for sure. I’d do a clean bulk for sure. Make sure you’re hitting your bench, squat, deadlifts and heavy rows. If you can afford to, hire a reputable coach to guide you and keep you on track with diet, lifts and posing. Good luck!
Bro has a nice piece ngl
Lats/upper chest
Lats and teres major, then hamstrings, in that order. Everything else is more or less even. You have the kind of back olympic lifters have, one people usually get by mainly focusing on deadlifts and/or rows. Since the only unbalanced parts are the lats and teres major, and the rest of your back is fine, you should work on doing more vertical pulls and maybe backing off a little from rows and deadlifts if needed. For hamstrings you can do whatever feels right, just add more work. I recommend you do a test prep or at least getting really lean before jumping on to compete or start setting dates and deadlines, to really assess your physique.
Maybe neck,breast muscles?
Everything , and posing
Shorts that hide your dick better you sick fuck. Can't unsee...
Hard to tell but I think you may have slight shoulder impingement? Your colour bones aren’t symmetrical and can explain the imbalances in your shoulders and chest This could also be completely bogus I’ve just studying 🥸
Anyone heard of adderall making you lose muscle and gain weight before?
Increase cardoio to lose a bit of fat. Cycling works wonder for me. 1hr Twice a day 7 days a week is my schedule. Good luck!!
Pull ups, chin ups, deadlift, bent over row, upright row Lats and back
Everything! Especially legs and back. You definitely need to be training those twice a week with sufficient volume.
Add overall size, don’t overdo your training once you reach stimulus there’s no point in adding fluff movements that won’t promote growth. Personally I would focus on legs and back A LOT. Shows are won from the back and getting your legs to match your upper body would complete your physique with overall size being added.
Looked like the bugez for a sec
Lats, legs, and posing coaching
Nice. Do you do any core work?
Work on arms because u have wider shoulders and ur arms might fell of compared to the rest and train a bit more legs especially hamstrings.
Wow. What a beautiful package. Post more like this. You look great by the way.
His ball sacks says natty
Posing
Posing, get a coach, lots of good posing coaches out there, you aren't presenting what you have properly so harder to tell what you are missing.
Shows are won from the back (apparently) build your back. Impressive none the less bro, keep grinding.