Not all body parts are made equal and like every other area of life, you may have parts of your physique that are stronger than others and there might be some that require more effort to grow. This can lead to imbalances in strength as well as aesthetic points of view. However, there is no need to worry about that as one of the greatest bodybuilders in history, Dorian Yates, recently shared some simple methods to achieve balanced growth.
Dorian Yates is one of the most accomplished IFBB Pro bodybuilders in history. The 61-year-old won the coveted Mr. Olympia trophy six times – from 1992 to 1997, dominating the sport after the legendary Lee Haney walked away.
At the peak of his bodybuilding career, Yates was noticeably bigger than most of his peers. He had incredible muscle definition, excellent conditioning, and an extra-wide back to compliment his massive build. He was one of the few bodybuilders that followed the HIT training routine.
The retired bodybuilder shed a lot of muscle mass in favor of long-term health and longevity but continues to train and stay in excellent shape. He is also one of the foremost voices in the fitness industry and imparts bodybuilding wisdom through several podcast appearances and social media content. Recently, he also started the Shadow Talk podcast and had veteran bodybuilder Tom Platz as his inaugural guest.
Dorian Yates shares techniques to bring weaker body parts up
In a recent video on the DorianYatesNutrition YouTube channel, the legendary bodybuilder spoke about the methods to bring the lagging body parts at par with the stronger parts of the physique.
While most fitness enthusiasts would take the traditional route and train the lagging body part more frequently or increase the number of exercises to target it, Dorian Yates advised against it. He said:
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“The answer is not to train it more frequently or do more exercises, more sets of more reps! It is to do it with more focus. So do it first in your workout rather than later on.”
According to Yates, using intensity-building methods to add more stimulus to the muscles and pushing beyond failure are the keys to developing weaker body parts as he added:
“Slow down the negatives. If you’ve got a training partner who can help you with one or two forced reps at the end, that’s also good.”
The negative (eccentric) phase of an exercise requires relatively less energy and muscle engagement. Additionally, negative reps can induce hypertrophy more effectively and reduce the chances of training injuries.
Yates advised using negative reps, especially on the machines, effectively to speed up the growth. He said:
“If you do an exercise on a machine, when you reach failure on the positive, You can get somebody to lift it into the end position and lower it down again for a couple of more negatives.”
Slowing down on the stronger body parts
Trying to build weaker body parts can be futile if you don’t slow down on the stronger ones. Why? Because you will not be able to bridge the gap and the imbalance may continue to exist. While you’re focusing on the weak link, Yates advised to control the training intensity of the stronger body parts:
“And then you’ve got stronger body parts. In order to keep balance, you don’t need so much intensity on those body parts. Maybe you just go to the point of failure and you don’t go beyond that.
Yates’ training tips are backed by pure experience and his storied career stands as testimony to their efficacy. While one size doesn’t fit all, it’s worth the effort to try these techniques to build a more balanced physique.
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