Whenever I see someone with a waist too large, it looks more like a GH/whatever gut than overly muscular obliques. Then again my eye is very inexperienced when it comes to bodybuilding
train obliques or not?
Not really much potential for hypertrophy in the oblique area. Willprovide some benefit for stabalization purposes during overhead lifts/front squats, but usually you’d want to keep them smaller for aesthetic purposes and let abs/lats/lower back do the work. (yes I realize that I’m talking about these muscle groups as if they’re not interconnected).
I’ve found that heavy front squats do wonders for my obliques.
I don’t see any need for targeted oblique development, beyond what you get with any complex exercise involving the core.
Side planks on a bosu/swiss ball can be a good way to strengthen your obliques if they’re really weak. Not gonna make you any bigger but stronger core = bigger more stable lifts.
[quote]Trenchant wrote:
Not really much potential for hypertrophy in the oblique area. Willprovide some benefit for stabalization purposes during overhead lifts/front squats, but usually you’d want to keep them smaller for aesthetic purposes and let abs/lats/lower back do the work. (yes I realize that I’m talking about these muscle groups as if they’re not interconnected).[/quote]
I need to strengthen my core to help with my lifts, but after a certain point should I stop? Of course if I was a powerlifter or other type of strength athlete I wouldn’t care, but for bodybuilding purposes, are overly muscular obliques the cause for larger waists or is that mainly based upon bone structure?
[quote]Mr Body Massage wrote:
Side planks on a bosu/swiss ball can be a good way to strengthen your obliques if they’re really weak. Not gonna make you any bigger but stronger core = bigger more stable lifts.[/quote]
How do you figure an endurance movement would be better for strength than heavy ass side bends or roataional movements?
[quote]rrjc5488 wrote:
Mr Body Massage wrote:
Side planks on a bosu/swiss ball can be a good way to strengthen your obliques if they’re really weak. Not gonna make you any bigger but stronger core = bigger more stable lifts.
How do you figure an endurance movement would be better for strength than heavy ass side bends or roataional movements?[/quote]
I didn’t say to do nothing but planks and other endurance holds.
Depending on how new to lifting/weak in that area you are they can be a good starting point to help condition the area and prepare your transverse abs/obliques for heavier lifts.
If you can do a plank for 90 sec or whatever, you’ve pretty much exhausted the move. What lift (besides possibly front squat widow makers) would take any longer or even that amount of time. If he’s concerned with strengthening them, he should be doing weighted movements.