end all isolation exersizes, reps

[THCshellshock]

looking for isolations to compliment my compounds and so far i do bench and dips for tri's, bench and flies for chest, upright rows and lateral raises for shoulders, pullups and spider curls for biceps, pullups and bent over rows for lats, ofcourse squats, abs and reverse curls but i dont feel a need to iso or add compunds with them.

im trying to go balls to the wall on compounds for strength and isolations for MMC and growth, it seems to be working okay but i wonder are my iso's sub optimal? could flies be exchanged for inc flies for better overal growth etc?

if anyone wishes to reasure me or suggest better iso's i'll rep your way. thanks

[Hnando]

looking for isolations to compliment my compounds and so far i do bench and dips for tri's, bench and flies for chest, upright rows and lateral raises for shoulders, pullups and spider curls for biceps, pullups and bent over rows for lats, ofcourse squats, abs and reverse curls but i dont feel a need to iso or add compunds with them.

im trying to go balls to the wall on compounds for strength and isolations for MMC and growth, it seems to be working okay but i wonder are my iso's sub optimal? could flies be exchanged for inc flies for better overal growth etc?

if anyone wishes to reasure me or suggest better iso's i'll rep your way. thanks

anything could be subed to yourr bodys accomedation ... it all really comes down to what works for you so untill you try em no one can tell you what exercises work for you... but at 145 id stick to compounds and bulking brah just saying..

[THCshellshock]

anything could be subed to yourr bodys accomedation ... it all really comes down to what works for you so untill you try em no one can tell you what exercises work for you... but at 145 id stick to compounds and bulking brah just saying..

old stats im about 155-160 now, and i rarely used to work legs and i've only recently started. and i am still bulking and sticking to compounds, but i've added iso's and seem to be getting bigger/stronger faster

[Hnando]

old stats im about 155-160 now, and i rarely used to work legs and i've only recently started. and i am still bulking and sticking to compounds, but i've added iso's and seem to be getting bigger/stronger faster

thats good man its probably because of the added stress your putting on the muscle whic is cool as long as your making gainz you have found what works for you... and yeah the heavier you hit dem wheels the more gains youll see alround so keep hitting making gainz brah!

[THCshellshock]

thats good man its probably because of the added stress your putting on the muscle whic is cool as long as your making gainz you have found what works for you... and yeah the heavier you hit dem wheels the more gains youll see alround so keep hitting making gainz brah!

using dips to find my triceps has really helped my bench, and same goes with other iso' and compounds. only recently found a gym partner and spotter which is why i've only just started squatting again, feel much safer knowing im not going to get stuck in the hole lol

[sportyaccordy]

My approach to lifting is "try everything, dump what doesnt work/hurts you"

I like cables for shoulder + triceps and dumbbells for biceps... but you might respond better to something different.

[MichaelCJ]

Whatever you do, and however you go about it, don't neglect anything (especially anything extremely important). For example, you really don't want to ignore yoru lower back, OP. Trust me on this one. You say "ofcourse squats"... where are the deadlifts, say? Or at least back extensions + shrugs...

Yes, try to include compounds, because theyre very efficient. But iso work is fine too. Again, just make sure you are covering everything, sufficiently (in terms of frequency and volume and intensity). IMO, the back in general is absolutely vital, and can hardly be overworked. But balance is key - back/front, upper/lower, left/right, etc.


edit: And if you're doing low bar squats, you might want some quads work, and if high bar, then hamstring work. Calves too, in either case.

[Rasputin4]

Here are the isos I find work best, though everyone is different:

biceps: some type of curls

triceps: skullcrushers or overhead extensions

shoulders: upright rows, behind the back rows (though these are not really isos, they bend at the eblows [i[and[i/] shoulders and hit some traps/rhomboids etc., too.

chest: dumbbell flyes (though I prefer dumbbell bench, which is kind of the best of best worlds of barbell bench and dumbbell flyes, imo)

calves: I guess you'd have to consider calf raises an iso

Really, though I'd focus on compounds, like: bench press, bent over rows, chinups/pullups, overhead press, squats, and deadlifts. The rest gets hit to an extent by doing all these, though, probably more than anything, I'd suggest the upright rows and hehind the back rows because lateral and posterior delts tend to be neglected by a lot of people. Bicpes get hit by supine grip bent rows and chinups, triceps by bench press, chest by bench press, etc., but it still can't hurt to add some light volume in for them.

I wouldn't worry so much about the little stuff, like if your flyes should be done flat or on an incline, refer to the 80/20 rule sticky. You just have to find what works best for you over time.

[THCshellshock]

Whatever you do, and however you go about it, don't neglect anything (especially anything extremely important). For example, you really don't want to ignore yoru lower back, OP. Trust me on this one. You say "ofcourse squats"... where are the deadlifts, say? Or at least back extensions + shrugs...

Yes, try to include compounds, because theyre very efficient. But iso work is fine too. Again, just make sure you are covering everything, sufficiently (in terms of frequency and volume and intensity). IMO, the back in general is absolutely vital, and can hardly be overworked. But balance is key - back/front, upper/lower, left/right, etc.


edit: And if you're doing low bar squats, you might want some quads work, and if high bar, then hamstring work. Calves too, in either case.

I agree i completely overlooked lower back, but it all fairness im quite active and i can get away without direct ab/lumbar work because they are hut enough during work and sports. Plus they havent seemed to give any signs they are lacking and i do rollouts for abs so that may br working them to some extent.

I high bar squat and my quads definatly overpower my hams because i jump alot, i will look into that

And for shrugs i say i do them somewhat when i upright row, i fully relax and start the movement with the traps and once my arms are more or less horizontal i finish by getting a full trap contraction then repeat

EDIT, would you suggest SLDL for ham and lumbar work ??

[THCshellshock]

Here are the isos I find work best, though everyone is different:

biceps: some type of curls

triceps: skullcrushers or overhead extensions

shoulders: upright rows, behind the back rows (though these are not really isos, they bend at the eblows [i[and[i/] shoulders and hit some traps/rhomboids etc., too.

chest: dumbbell flyes (though I prefer dumbbell bench, which is kind of the best of best worlds of barbell bench and dumbbell flyes, imo)

calves: I guess you'd have to consider calf raises an iso

Really, though I'd focus on compounds, like: bench press, bent over rows, chinups/pullups, overhead press, squats, and deadlifts. The rest gets hit to an extent by doing all these, though, probably more than anything, I'd suggest the upright rows and hehind the back rows because lateral and posterior delts tend to be neglected by a lot of people. Bicpes get hit by supine grip bent rows and chinups, triceps by bench press, chest by bench press, etc., but it still can't hurt to add some light volume in for them.

I wouldn't worry so much about the little stuff, like if your flyes should be done flat or on an incline, refer to the 80/20 rule sticky. You just have to find what works best for you over time.

Yea the 80/20 rule really does apply here, im just nit picking at minor details i know. But dont you feel much more satisfied knowing your routine is optimal so if you do encounter problems with stretgh/growth you know its an out of gym issue? Y'know its just nice to feel as if im putting the work into an optimal routine and reaching my goals that littke bit faster

[DJAuto]

The majority of the exercises you posted are not isolation-style. If the routine is working, don't change it.

[THCshellshock]

The majority of the exercises you posted are not isolation-style. If the routine is working, don't change it.

I dont follow? Im sure they arent complete isolations but the idea is to really feel the intended muscle working rather than letting my stronger ones take the strain, and ofcourse develop my MMC so my compounds can flourish

[DJAuto]

I dont follow? Im sure they arent complete isolations but the idea is to really feel the intended muscle working rather than letting my stronger ones take the strain, and ofcourse develop my MMC so my compounds can flourish

To me, your post sounds like you are referring to certain movements (such as flys) as isolation-style work. I'm just clarifying that it's not isolation-style work.

[THCshellshock]

To me, your post sounds like you are referring to certain movements (such as flys) as isolation-style work. I'm just clarifying that it's not isolation-style work.

I was reffering to flies as isolations, i understand they dont solely work the chest but the chest takes more involvement in flies than bench. By all means if you have a better suggestion to try and iso the chest i'd appreciate it

[im2manly]

french press

[sportyaccordy]

I think the lower back, like the front delts, are among the most abused muscles on BB.com

I would not do any front delt or heavy lower back work... Front delts get hit anytime you bench or shoulder press, lower back gets plenty of work from squats and lighter stuff like SLDLs. I stopped doing heavy deads and no longer have the dull aches or miserable workouts I used to. And I was getting up there, last time I DL'd I did like 405x6. Now it is all about SLDLs. You only get one back

[Orlando1234977]

looking for isolations to compliment my compounds and so far i do bench and dips for tri's, bench and flies for chest, upright rows and lateral raises for shoulders, pullups and spider curls for biceps, pullups and bent over rows for lats, ofcourse squats, abs and reverse curls but i dont feel a need to iso or add compunds with them.

im trying to go balls to the wall on compounds for strength and isolations for MMC and growth, it seems to be working okay but i wonder are my iso's sub optimal? could flies be exchanged for inc flies for better overal growth etc?

if anyone wishes to reasure me or suggest better iso's i'll rep your way. thanks

Iso's work one joint, compounds work two. Strength is a component of growth, if you're interested in growth, get stronger in all movements. There's no reason separate compounds from iso's for strength unless you're in competition lifting. Choose the exercises that work each desired muscle the best, and progress on them all.