The Poliquin Principles
Charles Poliquin
Charles is one of the most accomplished strength coaches in the world. He has designed workouts for Olympic medalists, world-record holders and pro athletes.
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Do NOT Train Delts
QUESTION: My shoulders hurt all the time when I work them directly. I’ve thought about not working them at all and instead concentrating on all the other body parts. What do you think?
ANSWER: I think it’s a great idea! I don’t prescribe direct delt work to most of my clients, yet they end up developing impressive delts. Recent anatomical research points out that there are seven different innervation patterns for the delts—not three (anterior, medial and posterior), as was originally believed. The shoulders will actually grow best if left alone. Anterior innervation patterns get plenty of stimulation from chest work, and posterior innervation patterns get plenty of stimulation from back work. Therefore, most torso work is bound to involve some of the seven innervation patterns. You may, however, want to train using some shoulder abduction work (with exercises such as cable lateral raises) once every ten days or so.
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