Watching elite bodybuilders train can motivate and give insights for improving workouts. In a video published on YouTube on March 12, 2024, Men’s Open bodybuilder Regan Grimes teamed with reigning Mr. Olympia champion Derek Lunsford for an intense chest, shoulder, and triceps workout in front of a live audience at the NewTech booth in a fitness expo in South Korea. The workout consisted of:
Grimes and Lunsford’s Push Day Workout
Here is a summary of the high-volume training session:
- Machine Chest Press
- Decline Machine Chest Press
- Machine Chest Press
- Pec Deck Flyes
- Machine Shoulder Press
- Standing Machine Lateral Raise
- Bent-Over Cable Rear Delt Flyes
- Standing Cable Rear Delt Flyes
- Machine Dips
Check out the session below:
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Machine Chest Press
The duo opened with neutral-grip machine chest presses to bias the middle chest. The goal of the movement was not to push load but rather to maintain constant tension on the target muscles throughout their ranges of motion (ROM).
Lunsford avoided using his full grip on the handles, keeping his hands open to minimize triceps engagement. The pair performed a double drop set on the final set.
Decline Machine Chest Press & Machine Chest Press
In the second exercise, Lunsford and Grimes shifted focus to the lower chest via a plate-loaded decline machine chest press. The machine’s converging line of pull allowed for peak chest contraction at the top of their ROMs.
They moved to a different chest press machine with handles that rotated externally during the concentric, allowing for a deeper chest contraction in their fully shortened positions.
Pec Deck Flyes
After three pressing movements, Lunsford and Grimes transitioned to pec deck flyes to bias the inner chest. While maintaining slight elbow flexion, Lunsford pulled the elbows to his midline on eccentrics.
While doing this exercise, I think about hitting the [favorite] most muscular pose.
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Shoulder Press & Standing Lateral Raise
The duo kicked off shoulder training with machine shoulder presses. Lunsford placed his back against the machine’s pad, retracted his scapula, and kept his chest proud throughout to load the anterior deltoids.
Grimes raised his arms parallel to the floor during machine lateral raises. He employed slow eccentrics and paused at the top. Slower lifting tempos can lead to greater muscle protein synthesis (i.e., building muscle) than training at faster tempos. (1)
On the final set, Lunsford performed partial reps to muscle failure (i.e., when form breaks down due to fatigue). A randomized controlled trial in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research found that partial range of motion reps might facilitate muscular hypertrophy better than full range of motion. (2)
Bent-Over & Standing Rear Delt Flyes
Lunsford positioned his torso at 45 degrees and placed his head on a weight bench to limit momentum while performing bent-over cable rear delt flyes. Cables maintain tension on the target muscle, unlike free weights.
During standing cable rear delt flyes. Grimes drove his elbows toward the floor on concentrics to ensure optimal posterior delt development.
Machine Dips
Grimes and Lunsford concluded their push-day with machine dips to bias the triceps. While keeping his torso upright, Lunsford fully extended his elbows at the bottom and paused in the fully shortened position to maximize triceps activation.
References
- Burd NA, Andrews RJ, West DW, et al. Muscle time under tension during resistance exercise stimulates differential muscle protein sub-fractional synthetic responses in men. J Physiol. 2012;590(2):351-362. doi:10.1113/jphysiol.2011.221200
- Goto, M., Maeda, C., Hirayama, T., Terada, S., Nirengi, S., Kurosawa, Y., Nagano, A., & Hamaoka, T. (2019). Partial Range of Motion Exercise Is Effective for Facilitating Muscle Hypertrophy and Function Through Sustained Intramuscular Hypoxia in Young Trained Men. Journal of strength and conditioning research, 33(5), 1286–1294. https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0000000000002051
Featured image: @regangrimes on Instagram
