Beach muscles: Part 1: the secret to chiseling a V-shaped torso

Men's Fitness, May, 2004 by Craig Ballantyne

When it comes to building the perfect beach body, your natural instinct is probably all wrong. Most guys focus on building their chest and arms, ignoring the muscles that take up less real estate in the mirror. That's a mistake because building a big back and wide shoulders is the trick for attaining the classic V-shape, which creates the illusion of a smaller waist, thicker chest, and more powerful torso. Because those neglected muscles are less developed, they'll also grow faster than their overtrained counterparts. And that means you'll see dramatic changes in your physique--almost instantly.

Part 1 of this three-part "Beach Body" series targets the muscles you work the least--your shoulders, lats, and upper back. By fixing these weak spots now, you'll strengthen the muscles that surround your chest and arms, enabling you to work your pecs and biceps harder than ever in the weeks to come. You'll definitely see faster gains in the mirror--no matter which direction you're looking.

How to do it: Alternate between Workout A and Workout B three times a week, resting at least a day between each session. (Start with Workout A in the first week, Workout B in the second week, and so on.)

Repetitions and weights: Use the heaviest weight that allows you to complete all the prescribed reps for each exercise. If you have trouble performing all the repetitions for bodyweight exercises such as pull-ups and chin-ups, use the "substitution" exercises for those movements.

Speed of movement: Next to each exercise, you'll find a recommended "tempo," designated as three digits. The first digit is the number of seconds it should take you to lower the weight, the second is the length of the pause, and the third is the time it should take you to lift the weight.

Workout A

[check] Perform exercises 1 and 2 as a superset, doing one set of exercise 1 and one set of exercise 2 before resting for 90 seconds. Repeat two more times for a total of three sets.

[check] After you've done three sets of exercises 1 and 2, move on to exercises 3 and 4, and then to exercises 5 and 6, following the same procedure for each.

1 Wide-grip Pull-up (Sub: Wide-Grip Lat Pull-down)

REPS: 8 TEMPO: 201 TARGETS: LATS

* Pull your body up by bringing your elbows into your sides, not behind your body.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

2 Slide Plank

REPS: 1 TEMPO: HOLD FOR 15 SECONDS TARGETS: CORE ENDURANCE

* Contract and brace your abs for 15 seconds while keeping your body in a straight line.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

3 Chin-up (Sub: Underhand-Grip Lat Pull-Down)

REPS: 12 TEMPO: 301 TARGETS: LATS

* Lower yourself until your arms are almost fully extended each time.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

4 Bench Press

REPS: 8 TEMPO: 201 TARGETS: CHEST, TRICEPS

* Keep your elbows tucked in close to your sides as you lower the bar.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

5 Snatch-Grip Barbell Row

REPS: 12 TEMPO: 302 TARGETS: UPPER BACK

* Grab the bar with an overhand grip that's about twice shoulder width.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

6 Elevated Push-up

REPS: 12-15 (EACH SIDE) TEMPO: 101 TARGETS: CHEST, SERRATUS ANTERIOR

* Place one hand on a step or box and lower your body as far as possible.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Workout B

[check] Perform exercises 1 and 2 as a superset, doing one set of exercise 1 and one set of exercise 2 before resting for 90 seconds. Repeat two more times for a total of three sets.

[check] After you've done three sets of exercises 1 and 2, move on to exercises 3 and 4, and then to 5 and 6, following the same procedure for each.

1 Narrow-Grip Romanian Deadlift

REPS: 8 TEMPO: 301 TARGETS: HAMSTRINGS, LATS, UPPER BACK

* Place your hands shoulder-width apart to emphasize the lats.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

2 Dumbbell Shoulder Press

REPS: 8 TEMPO: 201 TARGETS: DELTOIDS

* Press the dumbbells straight above your shoulders.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

3 Reverse Lunge

REPS: 10 (EACH LEG TEMPO: 201 TARGETS: HIPS, HAMSTRINGS

* Step back and lower your body straight down, keeping torso upright.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

4 Plank

REPS: 1 TEMPO: HOLD FOR 30-SECONDS TARGETS: CORE ENDURANCE

* Contract and keep your abs braced for 30 to 60 seconds, breathing naturally.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

5 Rear Lateral Raise

REPS: 12 TEMPO: 201 TARGETS: REAR DELTOIDS

* Keep your lower back naturally arched for the entire movement.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

6 Swiss-Ball Jackknife

REPS: 12-15 TEMPO: 301 TARGETS: ABS

* Push your hips as high as possible as you pull your knees toward your chest.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Muscle Log

How to use this log: Cut out this page (or photocopy it to keep your copy of MF in mint condition) and take it with you to the gym. Simply write the amount of the weight and the number of reps you do for each set of exercises under "Wt/Reps:" So if you do 12 reps of the rear lateral raise with 10-pound dumbbells, you'll write 10/12 in the box that corresponds to the appropriate set and week of your workout. If you performed eight repetitions of the shoulder press with 30-lb dumbbells, you'll write 30/8 in the box.

Perform each workout: once a week for four weeks, starting with the Monday workout. Rest 1-2 days between workouts. For each workout, perform exercises 1 and 2 as an alternating set, doing one set of each before resting for 90 seconds. Repeat two or more times for a total of three sets. After you've done three sets of exercises 1 and 2, move on to exercises 3 and 4, and then to exercises 5 and 6, following the same procedure for each.