Getting (More) Jacked For Spring Break Part II
Which muscles make the most difference for Spring Break?
When it comes to looking bigger and more muscular as a guy, some muscle groups are more impactful than others. In my opinion, the shoulders (especially the side delts), arms (biceps and triceps), and (to a lesser extent) chest are most important for achieving this appearance.
I’m not saying that we should neglect the rest of our body in the gym—namely back and legs. But, I am saying that the muscle groups above are the ones to prioritize if you’re looking to make a noticeable difference in your appearance for Spring Break in 12 weeks.
Although they are aesthetically appealing in and of themselves, these muscle groups are especially impactful because of the contrasts they create with other parts of the body.
Let’s dive into the specifics below.
Shoulders
The shoulders (deltoids or delts) are valuable when it comes to building your physique as a guy because having broad shoulders can create the illusion of having a tighter waist.
In addition, when looking at somebody from the front, width probably stands out as the most noticeable factor from a physique point of view.
And, your shoulders are important from a side view as well, in that they are the largest muscle group that is directly visible on your upper body from that angle.
In particular, the sides of your shoulders (the side delts) are important for building this aspect of your physique, as they largely contribute to the width and roundness of your shoulders.
Arms
Similar to the shoulders, since they hang down besides your abdomen, your arms contribute to the perception of the size of your waist. The thicker your arms are, the thinner your waist appears in comparison.
In addition, other than your shoulders, your biceps and triceps are the only major muscle groups that are largely and directly visible from a side view. This gives your arms a big influence on how big you appear when looking from the side.
Also, for some reason I haven’t quite put my finger on yet, it seems that the arms are one of the first places we look when it comes to assessing how muscular somebody is.
Maybe this is because we see them in action the most often during daily activities, or maybe it’s because of the popularity of the bicep flex as a symbol of muscularity. Either way, the biceps and triceps carry a lot of weight (pun-intended) for a guy’s physique.
Chest
Although probably less important (at least in my opinion) than the shoulders and arms, the size of your chest influences the perception of how far your gut sticks out. So, the bigger your chest, the smaller your stomach appears. In addition, your chest ties together your shoulders and arms, creating a filled in look to the front of your upper body.
Now that we’ve identified our priority groups (mainly side delts and arms, with chest to a lesser degree) we can look at training variables and executing our Spring Break training program in Part III.
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