What Should I Work On?

Currently dropping some fat.What should I work on after that upper-body wise?I am looking for a nice aesthetic physique.Looking for some feedback in general, I’m pretty new to the whole physique thing

Only flexing on the first and final pic

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Me when my posts do not get any replies :laughing:

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Euh, everything ? Don’t want To sound harsh but you’re not near the point to specialize from a muscle pov

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It’s mostly the questions like “should I hit lats or upper back first on my back days”, “should I keep hitting inclines first or I not”, that I am trying to figure out.Although everything must grow, on muscle groups like back and chest, what do I start with

Squats, leg press, Dead lifts, bench at different angles, dips, rows. Compound movements.

The good news is that you are not fat.

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If you want a “lifter look” I would focus on shoulders and building that v-taper. As others have said… you’re not fat. Do what that action stars do in short order… shoulder width to waist ratio.

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It doesn’t really matter

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Just make sure you’re doing the compound lifts at the start of your workouts, and accessory stuff after. You can switch up the order and variation of the compound lifts after each deload, which I would recommend you do every 8-10 weeks if you’re pushing yourself hard.

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This is how I’ve always trained, and still do, but I think it’s worth noting that some BB’er type guys (maybe John Meadows?) will sometimes do the opposite, as it helps get their joints ready and then they don’t need to go quite as heavy on the big lifts…@stronkfak - an option, if you’re curious.

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none of those questions are important, my man. Those are specialization questions that just don’t apply to you. I feel like too many articles make people think that these things matter. They just don’t. There will be no difference between, say, doing pullups before rows. I think for the sake of energy, it makes the most sense to put heavy compound exercises before isolation and accessory work, but even that is not critical. As jshaving points out, if you’re staying in higher rep ranges, or if you’re trying to warm up joints with lightweight accessories, they can be done first.

Just work hard and consistently.

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Except OP is a beginner, he would benefit the most from linear progression on the compound lifts, not an advanced Bodybuilding split.

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Wasn’t trying to argue, I simply said it was another option. Given that the OP said he merely wants to look “aesthetic,” a “bodybuilding approach” could easily still follow a linear progression, given his potential for improvement.

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I am kind of doing that for my delts, where I start with rear delt work first.For the time being my volume tolerance is not great, so I start with a compound, but in the short future I’ll definitely try it out

To be honest, I was looking for some conversation around smaller, not so important details. I get that at the end of the day those details barely make a difference.See it as the conversation you’d have with some fellow meatheads over some beers

Some thoughts I had on that:

The only significant difference between beginner and advanced splits is how hard they allow you to work to see results (for example an advanced split may have dropsets, or more isolation stuff, or less compounds ect).Other that that, there barely is a difference.Let’s say I got in a split like meadows, and just adjusted it a bit around my personal volume tolerance.Would it make a difference in my physique as long as I stayed consistent?

This is key. However, a beginner has the potential to make large strength gains. With the correct diet and training they can add weight to the bar every week, week after week For months or even an year. My personal opinion is that fatiguing your muscles with isolation exercise before the compound lifts will result in less weight being moved on the compound exercises, thus limiting your growth potential on the compound exercises (which will pack on the most muscle).

An Intermediate or advanced lifter needs more training volume than the beginner. And they will also have a good baseline of strength and muscle. They can easily spot lagging body parts, And to bring those lagging areas up is where isolation exercises can come into play and perhaps programmed before the compound exercises.

I just feel the best bang for your buck would to be train in a way that puts on the most strength and muscle possible in the shortest amount of time to exhaust those noobie gains.

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Many beginners focus a lot on exercise variation, when fewer exercises would yield better results. IMO, a beginner is better served focusing on progressive overload over things like drop sets and squeezing the delt at the top of the fly.

I would work on making my lifts like squats, deads, OHP, bench, rows and chins go up. Once you get those lifts improved, then you can focus on BBing stuff, and use 2X the weight.

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You don’t start with isolation but an exercise that is less damaging to start the pump and activate. For instance Decline DB press before Incline BB press or Cable rows before Rack pulls. The goal is also to prevent injury and ensure longevity.

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