This means shoulder exercises will heavily stress the Long Tricep head. Caput
longum aids the shoulder in stretching your arms behind your body.
Your triceps are used in a host of movements, especially pressing movements.
So, strengthening this area of the triceps will help increase your power in
other compound pressing movements as well.
2. The Lateral Head
The lateral head (caput laterale) originates below the grater tubercle of the
humerus and lies on the back and side of the upper arm.
Caput laterale is located just under the shoulders.
3. The Medial Head
The medial head (caput mediale) originates below the radial groove and curves
around the back of the humerus (upper arm bone) and is mostly covered by the
long head.
Caput Mediale is positioned near your elbow.
The lower end of the muscle inserts in the flattened end of the ulna (olecranon).
This muscle is innervated by the radial nerve and supplied by muscular branches
of the brachial artery.
4. Isolation of the Three Tricep Heads
It is impossible to completely isolate a particular portion within a muscle.
But there are numerous ways to over-emphasis certain areas within a muscle. One
of those ways is but it is by stimulating the muscle through a variety of
angles.
For example, when we performed barbell incline presses in 8 weeks to
bigger Pecs, we effectively worked the entire chest area. But by
lifting the weight from an inclined angle we forced the upper chest to resist
the weight harder than the chest as a whole. In other words we forced the upper
chest to take the majority of the load by stimulating uneven distribution of the
weight via a sloping angle.
Our bodies are designed to be able to work from a vast amount of positions.
It would only make logical sense that our nervous system would have the ability
to adjust to these numerous angles and compensate by signaling particular areas
within the muscle to contract harder than others.
This would allow the body to focus its muscular energy and endurance to any
one particular area of that muscle that would be better equipped to perform the
work to complete the given task.
In this instance the work load is being forced at such an angle that the
upper chest muscles would be better equipped to handle the force being mustered
against it. Thus, the nervous system sends a signal to your upper pectorals to
contract harder than the other portions of your chest muscles to better deal
with the stress of the inclined resistance.
In the case of triceps the lateral and medial heads of the triceps are
strained most by press-downs and kickback movements. While,
arms-overhead movements will favor growth of the long head.
5. Viewing the triceps.
The appearance of each head will be more prominent depending upon what angle
your body is at.
From a front-on view, the lateral head will appear as a large "knot"
on the sides of your arms when developed, giving you a broader appearance.
When looking on from a rear view, all three heads will be visible as
well as their relative proportion to each other.
When looking at a side view of the upper arm, the long and lateral
head will be most pronounced. When fully developed they will make your arms look
much thicker.
Finally, in a front double biceps pose the long and medial head will
be the main attractions.
I’m a big believer in strategy. If we go into war without a strategy we are
no more than an unorganized local militia. If we approach war with a secure plan
of attack we are already one step ahead of an unsuspecting enemy.
Think of it like this. Your body is always on the defensive. When you enter
the gym you muscles have no idea what’s about to hit them!
But if you approach the weights without an effective plan of attack, or the
same old routine your muscles will yield as little effort as possible.
Our body’s muscular systems are extremely complex designed structures. Your
body is very adaptable and naturally accommodates to stress. Adding muscle is a
very unnatural thing to your body. As I’ve stated before it prefers to stay in a
homeostatic state of equilibrium, or maintenance.
Your body will add as little muscle as necessary to get the job done.
That’s why you have to constantly give it new jobs it’s not used too. In a
sense adding a new plan of attack (a new principle or new shock) to your routine
is literally an overload to your system that forces your muscles to grow. That’s
why they work so well!
As I study my physique and my workouts, I like to analyze the problems and
come up with solutions. It is the goal of Beyond Failure
magazine to give you as many solutions to any potential problems you might
encounter on your pursuit of the perfect anatomy.
Let’s say for example I am doing a self-critique (Jacob’s Self Assessment Sheet is excellent for this) of my front double biceps pose and I
notice my inner bicep head is lagging. I will come up with a list of principles
and strategies for tackling this problem. In this instance I may use the
specialization principle and list numerous exercises and shocks for better
stimulating hypertrophy in my inner biceps.
I would have a much better chance of achieving my goal if I go into the gym
with a strategy for attack, as opposed to just going in the gym and "going
through the motions" so to speak and putting no pre-meditation into it.
That’s why these last sixteen weeks have we have been implementing new
strategies of attack.
Throughout the course of this series we’ve learned two new principles for
putting together more powerful pushing power:
In "8 weeks to bigger Pecs" we learned about the Stabilizer/Non-stabilizer Principle(S/NS
Principle). The basics of the principle involve starting with a
free-weight exercise, and following that with a machine or cable exercise. This
will allow us to go heavy and stay heavy throughout the entire workout!
During "8 weeks to bigger delts" we focused on the Specialization Principle.
This principle can be summed up as prioritizing a particular part or range of
motion (angle) of a muscle group, while at the same time prioritizing the muscle
group as a whole.
In effect it takes the prioritization principle to the next level of
hardcore! You can see another excellent example of the Specialization Principle
in action in Jacob’s "Ultimate
Anatomical Guide to Freaky Calves Part IV".
These last eight weeks I have an all new principle to introduce…the Power/Stretch Principle!
Once you start implementing this principle into your training you are going
to experience some serious shock inducing growth. It works by prioritizing
certain types of movements that will focus on the properties of the muscle’s
role in exertion with that exercise.
First let me explain some of the basic mechanics of a muscle.
When your muscles encounter resistance, a complex set of actions takes place
to allow the muscles to exert themselves and also to ensure no damage is done to
the muscle. Let’s consider what happens in the Triceps.
Reciprocal Inhibition:
As the tricep (the protagonistic muscle) contracts a signal is sent to the
bicep, via the nervous system, (the antagonistic muscle) to relax and allow the
tricep to tighten.
Stretch Reflex:
Inside the Tricep, and all muscles, there is an exclusive muscle fiber called
the annulo-spiral receptor. This receptor is responsive to the rate and
extent the tricep is being stretched. As the tricep lengthens this receptor
sends a signal, relative to the amount and rate of the stretch, to tell the
Tricep to contract. This is, in a sense, a safety procedure to prevent the
Tricep from being overstretched.
Inverse Stretch Reflex:
Enclosed in the tendon of each muscle is the Golgi tendon receptor.
This receptor is receptive to the build up of tension when a muscle is either
stretched or contracted. The receptor has a tension threshold which causes the
tension to be released when it gets too high.
As the Tricep lengthens the added response of the stretching action and the
stretch reflex contraction cause an upsurge of tension in the Tricep tendon.
When the maximum is reached the receptor will send a message to the Tricep
muscle causing it to relax. This will allow the Tricep to be stretched further.
The Power/Stretch Principle
The basic concept of the
Power/Stretch (P/S) principle can be applied by
braking up exercises into two types of categories; Exercises that emphasize
power, and exercises that emphasize the stretch.
What determines if a movement is a stretch exercise or a power exercise?
A power exercise has the majority of its stretch factor during
the negative portion of the range of motion, for example a barbell curl, or a
Close-grip bench press. During the positive portion of these exercises, you are
basically only fighting gravity and rely on muscular power to lift the weight
along its path of movement.
A stretch exercise is stretched heavily on the positive portion
of an exercise and over-stretched on the negative portion of an exercise.
The resistance against the stretch on the positive portion of the exercise
causes the muscle to lengthen. Your muscle is then subjected to twice the amount
of stretch on the negative portion of the exercise causing an over-lengthening
effect. This over-lengthening of the negative phase is a result of both the
resistance of gravity and the naturally stretched state the exercise starts in.
A few stretch exercise examples would be Incline curls, pullovers, or lying
hamstring curls.
I consider cable movements as stretch exercises due to the constant tension
they put on the muscle under subjection.
There are many combinations in which to apply the P/S principle.
Methodology
For this series we will divide this principle into four phases:
Week one: Stretch exercises
Week two: Power exercises (except for French Presses, but for maximum
development of the long head I included these even though they are a stretch
exercise)
Week three: Super setting power and stretch exercises
Week four: A giant set consisting of the two types of exercises.
As you can see in week three we will be super setting the two types of
exercises.
This is one of the most lethal combinations for super setting ever invented.
As you will see this combo can result in some serious growth!
Try out these other superset combinations:
Dumbbell Flys and Bench press, Barbell Curls and Incline curls, Pullovers and
Barbell Rows, Leg extensions and Hack Squats.
These three principles can in effect be used for any muscle group you want to
target. For example the specialization principle could be used just as well for
triceps as the stretch/power principle could. Or the S/NS principle can be used
for increasing your deltoid power. All of these principles are just three more
pieces of weaponry to add to your training arsenal!
Reverse Supination
Reverse supination is a technique that can be used for adding extra peak onto
the entire tricep and especially on the inner tricep head. It is simply the
opposite motion of the extra twist you give at the top of a dumbbell curl for
biceps. You are using the same technique only reversing the twist.
Let’s use the tricep dumbbell kick back for an example of how to
execute reverse supination. To add extra intensity to a tricep kickback, you can
twist your wrist and rotate your hand (supinate) so that the back of your hand
is aiming toward your body. You may not actually be able to twist your wrist
that much, but that is the hand position you are aiming for. This helps to
contract the triceps peak similar to twisting at the top of a bicep movement!
The rotation takes place slowly and steadily until the movement is completed and
starts about half way up. You then lower the weight just like you raised it
until you are back to the starting position.
You can use it at any time you wish during this series. It doesn’t work as
well for compound movements over the head, like barbell tricep extensions or
French presses, but it is excellent for movements like tricep pushdowns and kick
backs. Also one handed exercises such as one-arm at a time tricep extensions or
tricep overhead presses are other excellent candidates.
Here’s another top secret. Use reverse supination with your side chest or
tricep poses. It adds a mean peak!
WAR MACHINE
During these eight weeks, I recommend training the triceps on a day of their
own for added intensity and power. After you complete these eight weeks I
recommend switching your split around so that you are working your biceps and
triceps together on the same day. This will only shock your arms into further
growth.
At the completion of these eight weeks you will become a walking
instrument of war. You will have mastered three new strategies for taking
the enemy by surprise, and summoned new depths of pushing power. Good luck with
this series!
In the spirit of hardcore,
Old School.
OldSchool@abcbodybuilding.com
