It doesn't make sense to imagine Arnold, we all know this ironclad legend. But it will be very important to take a closer look at his hand training. Now most of the fans of iron sipping give a huge priority to work on hand muscles, but the results as such are almost invisible, because most of them have no idea what it means to train hands!
In this article we will fill in the gaps in our knowledge regarding this topic. We will take a closer look at Arnold's hand training and offer you two training schemes that have helped him in his time and can be sure to help you as well. So, let's get started.
Arnold's basic principles
Arnold's most important training principle was to use not only muscle strength, but also brain strength. In all his interviews, he repeatedly said that he needed to work with his head. Our brain gives orders, and the muscles only follow them. And to make yourself truly powerful muscles, you can not come into the hall and thoughtlessly carry weights. Everything must be thought through. Below we will look at the basic techniques that Arnold used to create the hands of titanium.
Uniform development of the hand muscles
If you look at it from the back, no one can estimate the size of your breast muscles, or, for example, the anterior surface of your hip or abs. That's not the case with hands. They can be seen from all sides and at all angles. Based on this, Arnold believed that they should be trained under a variety of loads, and all the muscles that make up our hands should be treated equally well.
Yes, yes, all muscles. After all, powerful hands are not only developed biceps. They are also well-trained triceps and forearms. Competent training of hands, assumes that you will train all three components of success, and not only the biceps that all beginners like.
Give priority to triceps
Triceps is the muscle that takes up most of our arm's surface. Roughly speaking, the entire muscle volume from elbow to shoulder, two-thirds consists of three heads of triceps and only one-third of the two heads of biceps. Therefore, if you want to increase the volume of your hands, you should not have any doubts about which muscle gives most of this volume.
Also, taking into account that triceps is a three-headed muscle, you won't be able to work it out in one exercise to the maximum extent possible. Therefore, your triceps complex should include at least three different exercises. Further in the article, we will tell you which ones. If you will "punch" your triceps with the same exercise from training to training, you may not expect anything good from it. You will only develop one of the three heads of triceps, and the rest will be disproportionately underdeveloped. Which, of course, will have a negative impact on the total volume of your hands.
Training your hands at the limit of concentration
Arnold was a very companionly and sociable person in his normal life, but as soon as he started training, he plunged into his own inner world and, concentrating on the working muscle, did not notice anyone and nothing around him.
Very often, he told us that at the training of his hands, he imagined how his biceps were poured with blood and became like two huge balls. This kind of visualization would seem ridiculous to many, but it helped Arnold to establish a perfect mental connection between the brain and muscle.
This should be done by you when you train. During the approach, your thoughts should not be in the clouds somewhere. You should direct all your attention and concentration to the working muscle. Only in this way, you will be able to "punch" through the load of its deepest fibers.
A variety of loads and "shocking" muscles
Our body adapts perfectly and gets used to almost any load and as long as the process of adaptation takes place, the muscles respond to the growth of strength and weight. As soon as the process of getting used to the load is over, the muscles stop growing.
Knowing this, Arnold understood that even the best training program would sooner or later lose its former effect. Therefore, he regularly introduced into his training complexes a variety of loads associated with changing working weights, the speed of their lifting and lowering, varied different rest times between sets, performed unusual exercises, etc.
However, the most frequent methods of increasing the intensity of loads in Arnold's training were several principles of Joe Vader. Arnie tested them on himself and constantly recommends them to others.
Negative repetitions. Incredibly powerful bodybuilding technique, which, you can be sure to move from place, even the heaviest stagnation in muscle growth. The essence of negative repetitions is that you take the working weight (more than the one you are able to overcome) with the help of a partner, and lower it yourself.