[quote]The Mighty Stu wrote:
I was always a fan of DBs over BB for shoulder pressing because I felt that they allowed me to make use of more of an Arcing motion as opposed to just another pressing movement which for me, usually allowed more work being done with my triceps. Also, as I got to know my body better, I started focusing on the BOTTOM 2/3s of the ROM, which I always felt allowed me to really keep the stress primarily onl the delts without my tris assisting so much.
It’s usually the case with gym rats only doing the limited ROM but in the upper range that you see less than deltoid optimal growth, false perceptions of strength levels, and possibly aching joints from the usual locking out that accompanies such an approach IMO.
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That is a good post. One IFBB pro that I train uses the bottom 2/3 of the range of motion only (sometimes 1/2) on pressing movements. This is obviously not what I meant when I talked about shortening the range of motion to look stronger.
I feel that stretching a muscle under load (or placing a muscle under tension when it is stretched) is a great stimulus for growth. With bottom half partials you spend a lot of time in that state which, along with the constant tension/occlusion effect, is a great stimulus for growth.