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mid-traps and rhomboids have their greatest activation in sagittal plane rowing
movements where maximal shoulder hyperextension can be achieved. Moreover,
transverse plane exercises such as wide-grip rows and bent flyes are needed to optimize
stimulation of the posterior delts.
Multi-planar training is equally important when working the legs. Sure, squats, lunges,
stiff-leg deadlifts and leg presses are staple exercises, but including exercises such as
lateral lunges, resisted lying clamshells, and other frontal plane movements provide
complementary activation patterns that bring about greater development of your lower
half.
3. Manipulate the Length-Tension Relationship
A muscle fiber's ability to produce force is dependent on a concept called the lengthtension relationship. Simply stated, the contractile capacity of the fiber is dictated by the
position of the actin and myosin filaments in its sarcomeres. There are two strategies you
can use to take advantage of this phenomenon in your training: active insufficiency and
passive tension.
Active insufficiency refers to the condition where a two-joint muscle is shortened at one
joint while a muscular contraction is initiated by the other joint. Because of the weak
contractile force of a muscle when its attachments are close together, the muscle is at its
lowest point on the length-tension curve and therefore its capacity to produce force is
diminished.
Conversely, passive tension is achieved when a two-joint muscle is elongated at one joint
while producing force at the other joint. This produces a favorable length-tension
nrelationship and therefore maximizes the capacity of a muscle to produce force. As an
analogy, think of a slingshot. You can propel an object a lot farther when the rubber band
is taut than when it's slackened.
Having an understanding of these concepts allows you to selectively target areas of your
physique by making muscles more or less active during movement. The classic example
of employing this strategy is with training the calves. As you know, there are two primary
calf muscles the gastrocnemius and the soleus. The gastroc is a biarticular muscle,
crossing both the ankle and knee joints. At the ankle, the gastroc is a plantarflexor (i.e.
extender of the ankle) while at the knee it assists the hamstrings in flexion.
When performing a seated calf raise, the gastroc is rendered actively insufficient since the
knee is flexed. Accordingly, it has limited ability to produce force leaving the soleus to
carry out the majority of the work. Alternatively, standing calf raises place the gastroc in
a stretched position whereby it produces maximum force.
The triceps are another muscle that lends itself to this strategy. Since the long head is an
extensor of the shoulder joint, it becomes stretched in shoulder flexion and therefore can
exert more force than the other two heads.
Overhead triceps extensions therefore are best for long head development.
Conversely, the medial and lateral heads are more active during movements where the
elbows are held at the sides. This renders the long head less active so that the remaining
heads carry out a greater amount of work. Thus, an exercise such as the triceps pushdown
will allow for maximal involvement of the lateral and medial heads.
Final Thoughts
Architectural variances between and within muscles dictate the importance of adopting a