Sometimes, no matter how many workouts you try, how clean you eat, and how much time you spend at the gym, you’ll notice that certain muscles won’t grow as much as the others. You might be happy with most of the gains you’ve made, but there almost always seems to be at least one body part lagging behind.
This could be caused by several factors, some of which you can’t control like genetics. But that doesn’t mean you should give up. There are several techniques and methods you can apply to your workout routine at AFAC’s Thornton, CO, gym that will lift your weaker body parts to their full potential.
Steps You Can Take at the Gym to Develop Weaker Body Parts
When people start strength training and building muscle, they tend to focus on the equipment they use, how much weight they lift, how many reps and sets they complete, and how much rest they get. But these variables aren’t the answer to achieving the best results at the gym.
The goal of bodybuilding isn’t to move a dumbbell, kettlebell, cable, or barbell from Point A to Point B. Instead, the focus should always be on working the muscle, and what’s happening to that muscle throughout the entire range of motion. When you lift, you should pay attention to which muscles you feel working during the exercise, and whether you can make tweaks to your form to put more resistance on the muscles you’re trying to grow.
You’ll notice that your strength training program becomes much more rewarding when you concentrate on the muscles you’re working and how they function, instead of simply pushing weights around. Here are some steps to do just that!
#1 – Improve Your Posture at the Gym
Poor posture is one of the main issues that causes weak body parts. To have good posture, your muscles need to be both balanced and strong from your front to your back.
The reason posture is important is because weak muscles create instability. When weak muscles are placed under tension, stronger muscles will take over for them. Rounded shoulders are a common example of weak muscles at the gym, and they create a lot of instability. When you have bad posture during a bench press, for example, you wind up putting more tension on your triceps and shoulders instead of your chest.
Bad posture can be the result of several common lifestyle habits like sitting all day slouching over a computer or looking down at a smartphone for long periods of time. Bad posture, however, is not a sign that you need to be sitting or standing straighter – it’s a sign that some of your muscles are weak and need to be strengthened. You can improve your posture by strengthening your mid and lower back muscles (rhomboids and trapezius), shoulder external rotators, neck extensors, core muscles, and glutes.
Some weightlifting exercises you can do at the gym to improve your posture include the farmer’s carry, lat pulldown, seated cable row, reverse snow angels, and glute bridges with weights.
#2 – Change Out the Gym Exercises that Are Ineffective for You
While the majority of lifters should be able to perform most exercises, not all exercises are a perfect fit for every weightlifter. If you notice pain in your joints when performing a certain lift or you don’t feel the right muscles contract, the exercise might not be the best match for you right now.
Find the lifting exercises that work for you to grow your weaker muscles and refine your form on those before moving on to other lifts. You can also consult with a personal trainer at AFAC gym who can assist you with improving your form and help you find the workout that will best achieve your fitness goals.
#3 – Train Through a Full Range of Motion at the Gym
All muscles have a fully lengthened range (think of your biceps when your arm is fully stretched out) and a fully contracted range (think of your biceps when you bend your arm to show off your guns). To completely develop a muscle, you need to train it through its entire range of motion.
Keep in mind that there will always be a part of any movement where you feel weaker. Most people will throw a weight past the hard parts of a lift because it makes the lift easier, but their physiques suffer for it. Instead, learn to train your weaker muscles first by lifting a lighter weight if needed to keep control of it throughout your entire range of motion. That will grow the weaker muscles so that eventually, you’ll be able to do that lift with a lot heavier weights and slow, controlled movements.
Remember, the faster you learn how to control your muscles’ contractions without breaking form, the stronger your mind-muscle connection will be, and the faster your lagging muscle will strengthen and grow.
#4 – Improve Your Muscle Control at the Gym
When you walk into many gyms, you’ll see weights being thrown around without much control at all. But, to grow your weak muscles, you should always be in control of the weight you’re lifting.
Lifting with control means you remain in control of the lift from the moment you move a joint all the way to full contraction, and then at every point as you’re lowering the lift.
Yes, it might sting your ego to lift 50% of what you normally do to remain in control, but remember that lifting more weight with less control is not working to strengthen your weaker muscles. By lifting lighter with control, your muscles will get stronger, and you’ll work your way back up to your goal lift, the right way.
#5 – Increase the Frequency of Your Workouts at the Gym
Once you’re performing the right exercises at the gym using proper form and control, it’s time to decide how often to do them. Remember to give your weaker body parts more exercise than any other body parts.
Begin by training your weak muscles more frequently than you do the rest of your body, but with less weight per training session at the gym. For example, instead of training your weaker muscles once per week, train them 2-3 times per week.
You’ll probably notice at first that your weaker muscles won’t need many reps or sets to become fatigued. If your weaker muscles are completely exhausted after 2 sets and your form starts to suffer, it’s time to switch over to exercises that train your stronger muscles. You can return to training the weaker muscles again in a couple days.
It’s also important add in more weights and/or reps and sets to increase the volume of weight you’re lifting with your weaker muscles. When you’re able to add more weight to training your weaker muscles, you can reduce your training frequency.
#6 – Initiate Your Muscles at the Gym
“Initiating” a working muscle means that you should contract it before you even start the lift, which ensures you’ll fire up the muscle you want to develop.
For example, think about a dumbbell biceps curl. At the fully stretched position, contract your biceps. This will start developing the muscle tissue at its extreme range of motion and single it out as the muscle doing the work before the lift begins.
#7 – Do Negative Reps at the Gym
Negative reps are one of the best ways to create microtrauma to your muscles which in turn leads to greater muscle size and strength.
The three keys to negative reps are:
- First, get a spotter to assist you.
- Second, start with a weight that’s near the weight you can only do one rep with.
- And third, lower the weight in a slow, controlled manner.
Let’s take a bench press, for example. Once you have the weight off the rack, lower it while counting to five seconds. Then, have your spotter help you return the weight back to its starting point and repeat. When you’re no longer able to control the weight on the way down, you’re done.
#8 – Switch Up Your Rep Speeds at the Gym
Both slower and faster speeds of each rep can stimulate your weak muscle in different ways. Slow and fast reps are physiologically distinct, but one is not better than the other. That’s why it’s important to vary your rep speed at the gym. As you perform each set of your workout, try switching the pace up between slow, medium, and fast reps.
Generally speaking, though, it’s best to do the lifting (or concentric) portion of the lift in a more rapid manner, and then do the lowering (or eccentric) portion of the lift in a slower, more controlled manner.
#9 – Isolate the Weak Muscle at the Gym
Yes, compound exercises are better at building overall size than isolation exercises, but if you’re trying to grow a weak muscle, isolating that muscle is important.
For example, let’s say you’ve been doing barbell squats to build your quads and you’re not seeing results. Try doing hack squats or leg extensions instead to make sure your quads are receiving more direct and targeted attention.
When you choose an isolation exercise, pick one that allows you to really feel that muscle working.
#10 – Finish Up Your Gym Workout with a Dropset
A dropset is an extended set of an exercise that’s performed as the last set of that exercise, with the goal of burning out at the end.
Here’s how it works. With dropsets, during your last set of an exercise, you do as many reps as you can. Then drop the weight and lift to failure, and then drop the weight again until you can’t lift anymore.
Dropsets stimulate a wide range of muscle fibers and can help boost up a lagging muscle.
Workout Those Weakest Muscles at AFAC Gym
Building weaker muscles comes with more benefits than simply keeping your physique proportional. Having balanced muscles throughout your body can also help you to avoid injury and maintain function as you age.
The team at AFAC gym is here to support all our members in their quest to build a strong, balanced body. If you have concerns about muscles that are lagging behind during your workouts, please don’t hesitate to approach us with your questions.
To find out more about becoming a member of AFAC gym — the best gym in Thornton, Colorado — please stop by or give us a call anytime. We’ll be happy to assist you. You can also contact our gym owner, Susan, at 720-849-0245 or susan@adventurefitness.club for assistance.
