Muscle symmetry problems

Many people have problems with muscle symmetry , including having one more pec than the other. They find themselves without solutions, as if trapped. That’s why in this article, taking a example of a larger pec than another, we’ll go over in detail what to do in case of asymmetry.

First case: I have more pec than the other – I’m starting bodybuilding

It is normal not to be completely symmetrical, nobody is, proof with morpho-anatomical analysis. But as we progress, these differences in symmetry diminish. This is why many of those who care about being heavier than others are mostly newbies with only a few months of strength training.

I remember when I started out, I did a psychological fix on an uneven girth.

I had my right hand half a centimeter thicker, and it got me sick, when, finally, I gained experience and knowledge, I realized that this is normal, and, besides, no one knew this difference except me. If you start bodybuilding, you don’t need to worry about such problems, because they will go away “by themselves” (finally, my left hand has become more of a right to focus on this during my swimming trunks).

Don’t waste time correcting this asymmetry, it will be a waste of time since you, as a beginner, do not have the “ muscle sense “required for a possible correction of this problem. If you’re new to bodybuilding, don’t worry about having one pec larger than the other, this is not an important detail.

Paying too much attention will limit your progress. Second case: I have more weight than the other – a posture problem. In the super pectoral workout, we saw together that one of the main problems preventing pectoral muscle grabbing is the lack of mobility of the muscles that position the joint. shoulder.

This so often when you have one side larger than the others, and in particular at the chest level, which occurs due to posture imbalance between the two sides.

One case I see often during my Premium Workout is having one shoulder in front of the other in profile, which effectively results in differences in performance, muscle needs between the two sides – two pectoral muscles and agonist muscles, which, in particular, are the anterior deltoid muscles.

To solve this problem, one of the tracks is that if the real issue is flexibility, not bones, stretch the side least flexible (or reinforcing agonists) to return to the “same line” as the others.

This will change your technique for performing your pectoral movements, so you will have to lighter for a while to retrain them.

This mobility issue can emanate from both the pectoralis major and pectoralis major, as well as the anterior deltoid processes, dorsal fin, large swarm, as well as biceps, triceps, long instep … Of all the muscles that are attached to the joint of your shoulder and can affect it.

This is the most common cause of muscle imbalance , the second is the morpho-anatomy of each of them, namely the different lengths of muscles and bones on each side (see examples in the video), which is true for everyone, ideal symmetry does not exist.

What training do I need to do if I have one bigger pec than the other?

If this muscle asymmetry problem is not the result of a postural problem, and yet you have a difference between two visually annoying sides ( psychologically ), you are probably asking yourself what to do. to make up for this “lag”, this larger pec than others.

The first thing to do is introduce one-sided into your workout, that is, move one side at a time. So, instead of doing the bench press with a barbell, you will be doing the press with one hand if you don’t have a good convergent bar.

You will be able to adapt the resistance, the load on each side, because there is a high probability that you will have an imbalance of forces between the two sides if you have a difference in volume, if you have not compensated for agonists such as triceps or shoulders , which is quite common and can be seen visually.

We can see this in many professional bodybuilders who ruptured a muscle despite “healing”, compensated for the agonist muscles and then developed much stronger than expected. When you’re doing one-sided, you’re always wondering which side to start with.

No best choice . Starting with the stronger side, you can strengthen the weaker side and thus become stronger, make it heavier, but starting from the later side you can get more concentration. You choose, but personally I prefer to start on the late side, potentiation is often very weak or even absent in practice at fairly low loads.

You should treat your bib less than another, as a weak point , that is, give it more importance than other muscles, that is, change your training distribution in order to temporarily eliminate certain muscles. If your imbalance is really minimal, but still bothers you a little, I advise you to do a “normal” session and another session just for that less developed side.

This will allow you to gradually catch up. If, on the other hand, it really bothers you, you will have to forget about the “basic” sessions and only perform one-way movements in each of your movements so that nurses can catch him.

As you can imagine, in this case training becomes less “fun”, less “pleasant”. This is why I very rarely advise spending time trying to catch up on the less developed side than on the other, because there is always room for improvement in general and especially in the fact that it’s okay not to be completely symmetrical.

A good example of asymmetry is the biceps, which are rarely the same length between the two sides, but this does not prioritize trying to hide it by visually developing more of the shoulder girdle on one side compared to the other …

This difference in length between the two pectoral muscles can also exist, in which case, unfortunately, you will have a pec with more potential than the other, and there is nothing you can do to correct this “genetic asymmetry”. This is morphoanatomy, no more, no less. The advice I just gave you can apply to any muscle, not just the chest, following the same principles.

What exercises should I do if I have one pec larger than the other?

To make the most of unilateral exercises to catch up with your heavier weight, you must choose your exercises wisely. Indeed, not all exercises are effective on one side, the worst of all is that they are less effective on one side.

The best exercises that can be done unilaterally, when you have one more peak than the other, are those that allow you to focus on the work of the muscle in question and, in particular, on strength, while being stable strong.

For example, doing a one-arm dumbbell bench press is nothing more than an exercise in favor, because once you gain strength, the real limiting factor will be stability on the bench, not your pectoralis major

This is why good converging machines and pulleys are desirable for better positioning, so that complete safety can be ensured without the least involvement, if possible, of “plating”. This is in stark contrast to “functional” learning, but it is all a matter of purpose. If we are not “stable,” we will not be able to really force, and then we will not actually progress in the medium to long term, which is the rule when we do strength training without doping.

How many exercises, series and reps if I have more pec than others?

If you want to catch up with muscle retention , you don’t have to exercise like everything is fine. Indeed, if this delay is present, then normal work is not suitable. This is why, as with identifying weakness, we must start at 0 and do motor training, that is, teach our nervous system to use the muscles we want. develop.

For this, in addition to being unilateral, the best options are to do as long series as possible with continuous pulling (no pause during execution) to emphasize secondary muscle growth factors when you are doing bodybuilding without doping, such as local congestion and burning. This indirectly effective work will come in handy when you return to the classic workout with progression loops , which in turn actually builds muscle.

In the meantime, you should look for maximum workout during your workout. When you feel like you can’t bloat anymore, it’s time to stop.

We’re talking about creating relatively long series of at least 15 to 20 reps each.

This little traumatic work can be repeated several times this week as it requires a little recovery and does not actually cause microtrauma, the physical sign of which is pain. The more often you do this, the more your body will learn to use your lighter pec than others.

This is a really non-traumatic background work that explains why we can use a higher stress frequency than usual with a classic workout.

Conclusion

Replenishing muscle retention is never easy, and even less so when it comes to a one-sided problem. This is why if you are heavier than others, think carefully before forcing yourself to completely reorganize your workouts to compensate for this delay, which, again, is normal since no one is completely symmetrical.

There is also a high probability that you are the only one who sees this problem visually. That is why I do not recommend that you pay more attention to him than to someone who is engaged in bodybuilding without doping and does not seek to live on his body, which, I must say, does not exist more than that, given all the changes that need to be made to your training in order to effectively “Fix” it.

I hope I helped you see more clearly if you have more weight than others.