is it possible to target a certain part of a muscle?

[frustrated]

I keep seeing these posts on other forums suggesting u have to do this for outer pecs and that for inner pecs etc..as far as I know pecs or any other muscles grow as a whole and only a certain part of it cant be worked out or shaped or toned..for example I have a weak upper chest for years and no matter how much incline presses or flyes I ve done this area kept being weaker (visually) than the down side.. anyways what do you think about that?
thanks

 

[Kaiser]

I keep seeing these posts on other forums suggesting u have to do this for outer pecs and that for inner pecs etc..as far as I know pecs or any other muscles grow as a whole and only a certain part of it cant be worked out or shaped or toned..for example I have a weak upper chest for years and no matter how much incline presses or flyes I ve done this area kept being weaker (visually) than the down side.. anyways what do you think about that?
thanks

I think that genetics has alot to do with your shortcoming area. There are always techniques to do to even things out. Like stopping or slowing down the lower chest development and concentrating upper. I have had to do this myself in the past. As far as breaking muscles down further than groups, absolutely. You can isolate each individual portion with the correct exercises and technique. Granted, the other portion of the muscle group will get some workout, but isolation to a certain portion is definately possible. Take what Cutler did for 2005 Olympia. He said he needed to thicken up his back, so he basically stopped all exercises that had to do with width, like wide grip pulldowns etc. In the end he definately thickened his back, and he had no noticable loss to his width.

 

[Big A]

I totally dissagree. You cannot make one part of a muscle grow over the other part. All the fibers in one muscle will fire at the same time under stimulus.

Back is different, because when one trains for thickness, he develops the inner back muscles, such as traps. When the back is trained for width, the outer back muscles such as the lats are developed.

 

[ag-guys]

I totally dissagree. You cannot make one part of a muscle grow over the other part. All the fibers in one muscle will fire at the same time under stimulus.

Back is different, because when one trains for thickness, he develops the inner back muscles, such as traps. When the back is trained for width, the outer back muscles such as the lats are developed.

Good point

AG
www.ag-guys.com

 

[squatster]

My uper chest was lacking- so I swalowed my pride and did all uper chest first. It grew like mad.. and did all my lower chest next. The chest is a muscle group right?I consintrated on the upper part of the chest muscle and made it grow bigger and still made the lower grow. just like the leg- my tear drops sucked - so on leg extensions, I come up point my toes in and my heals out and squeze and hold on top. My tear drops are huge now. I isolated a peice of the quad muscle- right?
If your uper chest is week- you work it first and hard as hell, pound it, then incline flat bench ,db's presses, then mabie some peck deck with the seat way down low and hand as high up as possable with your but up tite to the machine, then go to flat bench and flies and there are many more for upper chest to get it huge. And so on for every single muscle in your body. The people that get to points and say that nothing works have to stand back, look at what thay are doing, eat more nutritios meals, sleep right and get rid of there lame exuses. Genetics mean shit. You are at PROFFESIONAL MUSCLE brotha

 

[Big A]

Of course you can isolate a muscle within the quads. But you cannot make the lower teardrop grow more than the upper teardrop for example.

Regarding chest, physiologically, the pec minor fires at the same rate as the pec major.

I have not done any flat or decline chest movements in over a decade. Only incline pec work. Yet my lower pecs greatly overpower my uppers. Why, genetics. No training miracle will fix that.

 

[RazorCuts]

You said it Big A. Right on the money!

RC

 

[frustrated]

thanks alot for the replies..

 

[xcelbeyond]

I totally dissagree. You cannot make one part of a muscle grow over the other part. All the fibers in one muscle will fire at the same time under stimulus.

Why, genetics. No training miracle will fix that.

The man has said it all!

 

[squatster]

I must be reading this question wrong. No you can't work upper chest with out some stimulation of the lower, but you sure as hell can build the week part of that chest muscle up and equal it out to the bigger one. You can not tell me you can't. BB's do it every day. Am I wrong here????
Did I read the question wrong in the first place. What did the person posting mean???
what is the question?

question- 1-Can you build a weak part up in a muscle?
or
question-2-Can you work one part of a muscle with out stimulatin the other parts?
Big A is right for the -1
I was answering question-2
Is that correct?

 

[xcelbeyond]

Can you build a weak part up in a muscle?

Surely, you can increase the size of any muscle. You developed a teardrop because you had the genetic predisposition for a teardrop. No matter what I've tried, I can't develope the sweep. I have huge legs, but no big sweep. You actually compromised your knees describing what you did. You're lucky you didn't do any damage, unless you weren't using a very heavy weight.

Using your analogy - if I do Scott Curls, I'll get a peak like Larry Scotts. My biceps are predisposed to have large bellies and long attachments and there's no way possible to get that double peak for me

 

[squatster]

We used to train people with week knee's that way to strengthen them. It is actually very good for you. You are right thought - you keep the weights light

And your other thing- You can increase the peak on your bi's- You have to put down your weights open your mind. Look at the exercises you have been doing for the past ? many years, look at your injuries you are working around, if any, and start from scratch. And just do the peak exercises, for a little bit.If you can not feel the peak working and burning after your 3 or 4th rep of your first set then you are holding the bar wrong or you are going to heavy, or just doing it AL together wrong. Some people will never serenader to new things and light weights- you see most people with long biceps fully extending every exercise, even if it's meant for the peak. Most exercises for the peak are short movements.

I am not saying by any means that you are wrong- but you are putting this like every one out there- if you have a peak, that is all you will have or if you have a long muscle then that is all you will have. That is not good for the novices to read. I have been lifting and BB for 24 years. I by far do not know every thing, and I am learning every day.( mostly at this place) I did not learn how to isolate muscles till I got injured and had to go lite then I learned what it is to be a body builder. It is incredible what some guys can do to each muscle with just using different form, or just little things.

Please - I am not flaming you or Big A in any way shape or form and I would never do that to any one- I just want these novices here to have a lot of different ideas, and don't want them to ever stop thinking for them selves and develop bad habits.

so what exactly was frustrated asking in this post??
how did you guys read it?

 

[frustrated]

If I need to put it in a simpler way:
-incline presses make your upper chest grow more than flat presses...
true or not?

(sorry for any grammar mistakes..I am not a native speaker)

 

[squatster]

If I need to put it in a simpler way:
-incline presses make your upper chest grow more than flat presses...
true or not?

(sorry for any grammar mistakes..I am not a native speaker)

no-no brotha- you put the question right.
It was getting answered wrong and I did not understand what people where answering.
The incline will make your upper chest bigger. You got it brotha
If you want to get it real big you can do all your upper chest first then do the flats.
One person tough me a great finishing thing many years ago for upper chest, it got huge.
go to flat bench with a weight you can handle. wide grip, bring it down to your neck, almost on your adams apple. Keep going till it burns on your upper chest ( if it hurts any where else just try to grip the bar wider or narrower)
get right up and go to a dip bar and do reverse shrugs on it, ( Keep arms strait) You are supper setting both exercises. I like and can't handle more then 3 sets.
your upper should be pumped as all hell
the seated peck deck also- grip on top real high and keep the seat as low as it goes, you want to grip at about your head. Make sure you always keep your but tight up against the machine, it will kill the upper chest. If you don't feel it right away just keep positioning your self and if your but is not against the machine , you will not get the full affect.
try it and tell us how you make out.
I am glad you posted brotha
keep them coming - these guys are amazing here

 

[Big A]

Bicep peak is having a large brachiallis muscle. If the genetic predisposition is for that not to be high, and also, most importantly, if the biceps attachmets are long, you will NOT under any circumstance have any kind of peak, regardless of what exercises you do!
It is physiologically IMPOSSIBLE!

I have zero peak - I have long bellies - I only do so called 'peak' exercises.

Incline chest work will NOT increase your upper pec mass any more than flat chest work. I only do incline work because it is more comfortable on my shoulder joints. I only do incline work yet the lower part of my pecs is larger then my upper (genetic predisposition).

Novices should be set straight about myths like these - you CANNOT change the genetic predispositioned shape of a muscle through exercise. You can only do that through surgery or through Syntherol to some degree.

 

[squatster]

Bicep peak is having a large brachiallis muscle. If the genetic predisposition is for that not to be high, and also, most importantly, if the biceps attachmets are long, you will NOT under any circumstance have any kind of peak, regardless of what exercises you do!
It is physiologically IMPOSSIBLE!

I have zero peak - I have long bellies - I only do so called 'peak' exercises.

Incline chest work will NOT increase your upper pec mass any more than flat chest work. I only do incline work because it is more comfortable on my shoulder joints. I only do incline work yet the lower part of my pecks is larger then my upper (genetic predisposition).

Novices should be set straight about myths like these - you CANNOT change the genetic predisposition ed shape of a muscle through exercise. You can only do that through surgery or through Syntherol to some degree.

sorry Big A- I think I was answering the question way different and not so technical. I was answering it just how he asked it. Can incline make it bigger? Yes
with the bi- ( or any muscle at that) I bet 90% of people will never even get to the point in there lifting that they will ever realize that they can not get peaks or there upper chest will not grow any more. 90%of people with peaks lift a certain way, never extending fully, 90% with the long muscles most of the time over extend and never restrict enough for a peak concentration.
I am really not trying to get technical with this strait forward question- with your answer it looks like you are saying that no one can get a bigger upper chest- and that is that. And no one with long muscles can ever get a peak.
you have to remember- you may never find or ever run into the 10% of people that have hit there set genetics
Has Jay cutler hit his yet??? Who knows- It will not stop him from hitting the muscles in different ways.
I just do not want these kids and people out here to stop trying to make there muscles look different because of a misunderstanding.
I hope you Big - A and the others do not get mad at me for posting my opinions and theories. You guys are right what you are saying but I think it is way to deep for the simple question at hand. Most people will never know what there genetics are ever and never hit there full potential if thay just train for there muscle type

 

[Crowler]

with the bi- ( or any muscle at that) 90%of people with peaks lift a certain way, never extending fully, 90% with the long muscles most of the time over extend and never restrict enough for a peak concentration.

Well there you go now we know why Arnold's right arm had a peak and his left did not. And why Big A and Kiwi don't have peaks.

 

[xcelbeyond]

Our intent to help people reach their goals not give them false hope.

Most people can improve many-fold, esp if they don't work out or are inconsistent or sloppy about it. Or - they don't understand NUTRITION, rest, working "smart" and a host of other things.

You CAN MAKE THE MUSCLE. The actual shape of that muscle has already been decided by god (genetics). Make the muscle as big as possible (if that's what you want) but don't assume you can make it look different (other than what Big A said )

 

[RazorCuts]

False hope is what keeps this machine running. Myths will never die no matter how much science and physiology teahes us. Everyone has to find out the hard way, genetics rule.

RC

 

[Conan21]

Yes and No.

you can and can't change the shape of a muscle.

if your doing tricpeps. it has 3 heads. if a person only does exercises that fully activate 1 or 2 heads and then add in better exercises to bring up weaker heads they would have said to have changed the shape of their "tricep". but again the tricep is really 3 muscles. so in reality all they did was make an underdeveloped muscle bigger.

exercises for bicep peaks. no way. show pictures of anyone whose ever done this in the history of the world where theres ever been noticable difference.

inclines build your upper chest more? well i think it has more to do with how some people perform flat bench. They might not be targeting their pecs well in the first place. they might be benching more with front delts and triceps. where as with inclines they might be targeting the pectorals more and get more pec growth from them. not as much b/c they are hitting "upper chest". its just that that particular exercise is hitting the pectoral muscles better for them.

in regurads to bringing up lagging muscles for bodybuilding. say chest for example.

it should be more of a question of...what exercises allow the greatest amount of Motor Unit activation for the pectoral muscles through the entire range of motion(not just part of it). and then its a matter of what methods to use for these exercises. some methods might be better for certain exercises.

now there is nothing wrong with believing maybe lighter weights with better from gets you better results for biceps. after all this is bodybuilding right? using a certain type of form might be targeting the tissue better and getting you better size gains. but again--its doing nothing to shape your biceps or target the peak.