Clifford Smith Jr., better known as rap group Wu-Tang Clan member Method Man, has released a new hit single, or rather, a new set. The New York native took to his Instagram page to share another training video in the gym of a pretty impressive gym lift.
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The 51-year-old Method Man was in a Crunch Gym on Dec. 4, 2022, wearing elbow sleeves and wrist wraps to hoist 120-pound dumbbells overhead on an incline bench. The 10-rep set saw Method Man take his elbows to 90 degrees each rep. Check it out in the video below:
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One of the main benefits of training with dumbbells instead of a barbell is the ease with which the lifter can angle their elbows to better line up their structure. However, Method Man maintains his elbows flared relatively wide, similar to how they’d be positioned in a barbell bench press.
Maintaining his arms in that flared position could apply more stress to his shoulder joints, but Method Man appears comfortable as all 10 reps went through his full range of motion. Judging by the difficulty of his final rep, he took the set to near mechanical failure — he locked out his last rep but would have unlikely been able to hit an 11th.
Although he did not mention if his goal is hypertrophy, training to near failure is a tried and true way of packing on muscle mass, assuming he is eating sufficient protein daily and maximizing his recovery through requisite sleep.
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Method Man’s programming appears to follow progressive overload as he has steadily increased the weight of his lifts over the past two years. In July 2021, Method Man incline bench pressed 100-pound dumbbells for a dozen reps.
If Method Man can continue adding weight to his dumbbell bench press, maybe one day he’ll be able to match the lifts of elite bodybuilders like 2022 Olympia competitor Nick Walker, who is notorious for moving 180-pound dumbbells on his chest days.
Featured image: @methodmanofficial on Instagram
