While big traps — the uppermost back and neck muscles — are in Classic Physique bodybuilder Wesley Vissers’s job description, they’re paramount for anyone to look yoked. “[Traps] are a muscle that makes or breaks your muscular look,” Vissers said via his latest training tutorial. The 2024 Arnold Classic champion shared his four go-to trap moves to make a physique stand out.
Vissers’ Vintage Traps Workout
Vissers included techniques to hit all three trap muscles that lift, retract, and pull the shoulders down.
- Seated Cable High Row: 3 x 8-12
- Modified Lat Pulldown: 3 x 12-15
- Machine Chest Supported High Row: 8 x 12
- Dumbbell Depth Shrug
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Seated Cable High Row
“What causes muscles to grow? A full contraction and full stretch,” Vissers prescribed. While shrugs are a classic trap move, Vissers prefers seated cable trap rows for a more extensive range of motion. The extra stretch paired with high tension may favor more growth. (1)
Vissers uses a shoulder-width, neutral grip bar and leans back slightly to align the pull with the shoulder blades. “Pull the shoulder blades apart and together,” he queued. Protract or roll the shoulders forward to exaggerate the stretch.
Modified Lat Pulldown
Since the lower traps depress the scapula, lat pulldowns can target them. As Vissers demonstrated with cable rows, lean back, then “Pull toward your upper chest, and [squeeze] the shoulder blades together. That’s the secret,” Vissers claims.
Vissers’ Form Tips
- Grip slightly wider than the shoulders.
- Bend the arms to roughly 90 degrees to minimize biceps involvement.
- Hold the stretch and contraction briefly to prevent cheating.
- Don’t go too heavy to ensure full motion capability.
“If your traps aren’t [growing], there’s something wrong with your execution,” Vissers believes. His advice? “Wait a half second in the contraction.”
A suboptimal training program and diet can also stagnate gains. Adding partial reps in the stretched position at the end of a set has also been shown to stimulate more growth. During pulling exercises, pull halfway from the arm extension. (2)
High Row & Deep Shrug
Though high rows are commonly used to build the lats and rhomboids, the traps are hit just as much. “Think about pulling your upper body into the chest support while letting your arms,” Vissers demonstrated.
The Dutchman noted how the machine angles his arms forward for a better stretch than the previous exercises. “You’re being pulled apart,” he exclaimed.
Use high resistance but not too heavy to fully contract. “The back and traps need a heavy load to grow,” Vissers reminds.
Lastly, while Vissers criticized shrugs for having limited motion, he shrugs back and forward rather than up and down with dumbbells for more range: “Don’t [bend] your arms too much; that’s the biceps; bounce a little at the bottom to force the stretch more.”
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References
- Roig, M., O’Brien, K., Kirk, G., Murray, R., McKinnon, P., Shadgan, B., & Reid, W. D. (2009). The effects of eccentric versus concentric resistance training on muscle strength and mass in healthy adults: a systematic review with meta-analysis. British journal of sports medicine, 43(8), 556–568. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsm.2008.051417
- Pedrosa, G. F., Lima, F. V., Schoenfeld, B. J., Lacerda, L. T., Simões, M. G., Pereira, M. R., Diniz, R. C. R., & Chagas, M. H. (2022). Partial range of motion training elicits favorable improvements in muscular adaptations when carried out at long muscle lengths. European journal of sport science, 22(8), 1250–1260. https://doi.org/10.1080/17461391.2021.1927199
Featured image: @wesleyvissers on Instagram
