intense arm workout?

SVFootball · Jan 28, 2007

does anyone hav a really good mass routine for their arms?

ive been training hard for years and have seen great progress with my back and chest, but my bi's and tri's still lack the pure size that i want.

i train back/bis and chest/tris, then legs, shoulders and all the other stuff on other days.

my diet is pretty strict, really high in protein and low in fats. moderate carbs.

any suggestions?

Tom · Jan 28, 2007

Stop working them.....

Interestingly enough I stopped doing all direct arm work about 3 months ago and they are fuller and feel thicker. I was never one to measure arms but I am being told they look bigger. I do heavy basic compound movements and get a great arm pump on upper body workout days. As a bonus my forarms have no more pain and my other lifts have gone up since stopping direct arm work. You have to have a willingness to experiment to see if this is for you or not...I thought for sure my arms would shrink but I was wrong.

oldfella · Jan 28, 2007

SVFootball said:
does anyone hav a really good mass routine for their arms?

ive been training hard for years and have seen great progress with my back and chest, but my bi's and tri's still lack the pure size that i want.

i train back/bis and chest/tris, then legs, shoulders and all the other stuff on other days.

my diet is pretty strict, really high in protein and low in fats. moderate carbs.

any suggestions?

I train arms as one unit. Bi's Tri's on the same session. I try to use stretch position movements for both. ie Seated two hand overhead tri extension and get the weight right down to the bottom and all the way thru full range of motion. Incline palms up d/bell curls. Try not to let your elbows move forward as you curl. Plus I do a high volume approach. anything from 15-18 sets for tri's and 12-15 sets for bi's. Yes that's correct up to 30 sets for arms. I do not do this every arm workout I do change it up to some lower volume work if energy and strength are down. I always work as heavy as I can and generally do not let my reps drop below 5 This is what works for me. I've been at it a long time though and My body does not respond to light training. I have tried and it just don't like it!

MrWannabe · Jan 28, 2007

you said you do back/bis combo and chest/tris combo. I was doing back/bis combo and chest/shoulders/tris combo and noticed that my arms were lacking compared to how they have looked in the past and compared to the rest of my physique. You have to prioritise what parts of your body need the most work. I switched back to how I used to train which was arms on their own seperate day so they were not exhausted after doing back,chest, etc. I could now use good weight, feel great contractions and control the muscle. In about one week I could see the difference my arms were back on track. So put your effort in to what needs your effort - If your arms need to come up I dont think you should be trying to work them after blasting your back or chest. This is an option for you - I hope your actual training and routines are sound as well. Peace.

SVFootball · Jan 29, 2007

ok ill definitaly go to an arms-only day

heres a tentative schedule:

day 1 - Back and shoulders
day 2 - Arms
day 3 - Chest and abs
day 4 - Legs

any suggestions to alter this plan?

km2000 · Jan 29, 2007

Tom said:
Interestingly enough I stopped doing all direct arm work about 3 months ago and they are fuller and feel thicker. I was never one to measure arms but I am being told they look bigger. I do heavy basic compound movements and get a great arm pump on upper body workout days. As a bonus my forarms have no more pain and my other lifts have gone up since stopping direct arm work. You have to have a willingness to experiment to see if this is for you or not...I thought for sure my arms would shrink but I was wrong.

I agree with ya tom,

I did the same about 4-5 months ago and have seen an improvment in my arms too... I do an arm workout consisting of 2 sets of barbell curls and 2 sets of close grip bench presses about every 7-10 days or so and am liking it very much,as oposed to a high volume going to falure workout of 15 sets for bis and tris. It seems like if you let them rest and actually recover you will see some growth. when you train you creat new innervations that are baicaly pathways to new muscle cell or fibers, and when the body is overtrained it will never be able to use these new innervations created, resulting in a lack of growth and progress.

undertrain dont overtrain!