bluejacket
New Member
i see the debates continue as to whether iso's or just plain compounds are better/more effective for the smaller body parts, ie: bis, tris, traps, calves and even forearms. a few yrs ago i began my own quasi-experiment with the difference (bulk only) and finally finished most of the mentioned body parts with this last cycle.
1st a few of the facts and constants.
37-39 years old 6' 175-215lbs during various cycles (currently 208). hst 3x week. diet mostly(90%) bw x 18-19 or @ 1lb a week gain for me. all cycles 8-10 weeks of 1.5 weeks 15s 2 weeks 10s and 5s and 5s/negs until i need a break. typically 8-12 day sd. major compounds (squat, sldl, deadl, db press,dips, ohpress, chins) present in almost all workouts and cycles. im your relative typically hard/slow gainer (controversial term for some but thats a discussion for another time).
i did at least 1 cycle (some cases more) of an added iso for a body part (say curls or calf raises) as well as at least 1 with no iso at all for various body part (say only chins for bis or just squat and deadl for calves).
results
note: all cycles resulted in btw 7-9lb wgt gain.
biceps. chins only cycles had 1/4 inch gain in arm size both times (2 cycles). iso cycles (various curl exer.) yielded 1/2 inch both times (2 cycles)
triceps. dip and press only cycle had 3/8 inch gain in arm size while the iso cycle (cl. grip bench) had 1/2 inch gain.
traps. can only be measured visually. bottom line, saw no noticible diff when not using any iso (2 cycles) but have definitly made nice gains using a t-bar/db shrug superset for 3-4 cycles. a little skewed as this has been a priority area for me.
calves. no iso cycles (just sq, and dl) saw a 1/4 inch decrease and no change in size respectively (2 cycles)and yes that is with a 8lb gain each time. calf raise cycles had gains if 1/4 inch each time (3 cycles). note, i spent 10yrs in competative middle distance running but that was 15 yrs ago. my calves are quite strong but it usually takes an inordinate amount of work to add size to them. the running aspect may be a factor?
forearms. only did 1 cycle of iso work which resulted in an injury due to poor form. all other non iso cycles results are hit or miss. never more than a 1/4 inch growth. all lifts are bare hands except deadl over 300lbs.
so what do i make of all this. iso's of some form (in conjunction with compounds) are necessary for me to make optimal progress with most body parts. bis and traps definitly and calves absolutely but probably not tris. others are differant, they grow calves just by walking around or nice traps just from deadlifting. as for me i will most likely add calves to each cycle while continuing to alternate iso's for traps, bis and even the occasional tri. although i never tried it i dont think adding iso's for all the body parts is a good idea. that just sounds like way too much work and most likely detrimental to growth.
id like to hear what others think.
1st a few of the facts and constants.
37-39 years old 6' 175-215lbs during various cycles (currently 208). hst 3x week. diet mostly(90%) bw x 18-19 or @ 1lb a week gain for me. all cycles 8-10 weeks of 1.5 weeks 15s 2 weeks 10s and 5s and 5s/negs until i need a break. typically 8-12 day sd. major compounds (squat, sldl, deadl, db press,dips, ohpress, chins) present in almost all workouts and cycles. im your relative typically hard/slow gainer (controversial term for some but thats a discussion for another time).
i did at least 1 cycle (some cases more) of an added iso for a body part (say curls or calf raises) as well as at least 1 with no iso at all for various body part (say only chins for bis or just squat and deadl for calves).
results
note: all cycles resulted in btw 7-9lb wgt gain.
biceps. chins only cycles had 1/4 inch gain in arm size both times (2 cycles). iso cycles (various curl exer.) yielded 1/2 inch both times (2 cycles)
triceps. dip and press only cycle had 3/8 inch gain in arm size while the iso cycle (cl. grip bench) had 1/2 inch gain.
traps. can only be measured visually. bottom line, saw no noticible diff when not using any iso (2 cycles) but have definitly made nice gains using a t-bar/db shrug superset for 3-4 cycles. a little skewed as this has been a priority area for me.
calves. no iso cycles (just sq, and dl) saw a 1/4 inch decrease and no change in size respectively (2 cycles)and yes that is with a 8lb gain each time. calf raise cycles had gains if 1/4 inch each time (3 cycles). note, i spent 10yrs in competative middle distance running but that was 15 yrs ago. my calves are quite strong but it usually takes an inordinate amount of work to add size to them. the running aspect may be a factor?
forearms. only did 1 cycle of iso work which resulted in an injury due to poor form. all other non iso cycles results are hit or miss. never more than a 1/4 inch growth. all lifts are bare hands except deadl over 300lbs.
so what do i make of all this. iso's of some form (in conjunction with compounds) are necessary for me to make optimal progress with most body parts. bis and traps definitly and calves absolutely but probably not tris. others are differant, they grow calves just by walking around or nice traps just from deadlifting. as for me i will most likely add calves to each cycle while continuing to alternate iso's for traps, bis and even the occasional tri. although i never tried it i dont think adding iso's for all the body parts is a good idea. that just sounds like way too much work and most likely detrimental to growth.
id like to hear what others think.
