Recently, I read a splendid book or perhaps better said, a splendid encyclopedia on Bodybuilding, written by none other than Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has more than one nickname, including: Arnie, Schwarzie, The Terminator, and The Governator.
The New Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding
This encyclopedia describes multiple aspects of bodybuilding such as the history of bodybuilding, how to start bodybuilding, training principles, exercises, anatomy, physiology, nutrition, posing, and much more. This encyclopedia is also very interesting for ordinary athletes who do not have the ambition to become a bodybuilder. The physiology described in the book and the explanation of various fitness exercises are interesting for a very broad audience.
Weak Point Training
What I particularly want to discuss in this article is what Arnold describes as “Weak Point” training. Arnold Schwarzenegger was of course immensely large and well-defined, but compared to the absolute top, Arnold’s thighs and calves were simply not big enough. What I find very admirable is the way Arnold dealt with this. Arnold describes that his training partners were more than happy to tell him that he had rather small calves. I think it often happens that people tell each other what can be improved or what someone’s weaker point is (if only to bring out the best in each other, I hope). Arnold’s solution was to cut off his trouser legs so that everyone could see how narrow his calves were. The fact that nobody could ignore his calves and he was often negatively addressed about them gave Arnold the motivation and focus to train huge calves. And let’s be honest, this man turned his weak point into what might have later become one of his strengths in his career. Weak Point training is realized by adhering to the “Priority Principle.”
Priority Principle
The Priority Principle basically means giving priority to the less trained body parts in your training program. It is simply a fact that some body parts are better developed than others, and that is the case for everyone, even people with the very best genes. Additionally, it also depends on preference and training program; how many men train their chest much more often than, for example, their legs?
Application of Weak Point Training
There are several ways to apply the Priority Principle:
- For example, you can train your weak body part directly after a rest day, so that you can train this muscle group with new energy and great intensity.
- You can train a less trained body part at the beginning of your workout when you have much more energy and are fitter than at the end of your workout.
- You can choose an exercise that is more focused on a specific part of a muscle group. For example, the shoulder muscle is composed of 3 different heads: Clavicular (front) head, Acromial (middle) head, and Scapular (rear) head. There are shoulder exercises that are particularly aimed at training the rear head. For example, this part is not actively trained in a Shoulder Press but is in a Cable Bent Over Raise. These are things you need to know, and if you don’t know this, it can lead to a weakly developed rear head of the shoulder muscle.
- You can increase the intensity of training a weak muscle group by, for example, adding an extra exercise or taking an extra set. There are many more variations, such as supersets, etc.
Arnold also describes that sometimes a body part lags behind because you overtrain it. It is super important to let trained muscles rest so that they can recover. It may be difficult to judge whether you are not growing hard because you are not training intensively enough or because you are not growing hard because you are overtraining. Arnold also has advice for this.
- The solution to prevent under-stimulation is to learn how to train harder and more intensively. This relates to the various intensity techniques available. This is often better than just increasing the number of sets.
- Overtraining often results from performing sets too often and too much, with too few rest periods in between. A sign of overtraining can be when you don’t feel a good pump during your workouts.
A final tip from Arnold Schwarzenegger: “One of the reasons there are so many good bodybuilders is that they have learned to train extremely intensely in short bursts. Always keep in mind that training stimulates growth, but that actual growth takes place while you are resting.”
Conclusion
I think everyone has a body part they are less satisfied with. Often, a muscle group is less trained because the focus is on other body parts. If you have a weak point, apply the priority principle and work on it by focusing more on this muscle group. As with Arnold Schwarzenegger, you will see that a weak point can certainly be strengthened. The New Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding is a splendid piece of text of almost 800 pages. The way of writing about bodybuilding, training techniques, and sports motivation is simply fascinating. A recommendation for every sports enthusiast.
Source:
Schwarzenegger, Arnold & Dobbins, Bill. The New Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding, 1998.
