Amateurs are constantly arguing in the halls about which groups should be pumped together, muscles antagonists or, on the contrary, synergists? Interestingly, local fights on this topic are also going on in the network, and depending on the level of training of each of the disputants, the advantage shifts one way or the other.

So which muscle groups are still better to pump together, antagonists or synergists? For those who have forgotten the school curriculum in biology, a little help:

those groups that are located opposite each other are called antagonist muscles, examples of such groups are biceps / triceps, chest / back, but synergists are those muscles that have the same functions, for example triceps and chest (they are both extensors).

As any novice bodybuilder can see, there are just a huge number of different training options, in each of which muscle groups are divided in different ways. You can find such options when everything is worked out in one workout. If you think for a second about the reasons for this diversity, it becomes clear that in fact the iron rule that antagonist muscles should be trained together or separately simply does not exist. But specialists are well aware of the fact that any program should be based solely on the principle of controlling the time required for muscle recovery after training. It is these principles that are at the forefront when drawing up a cycle of classes, and then the distribution of the load and the breakdown of muscle groups depends on the condition of the trainee.

For example, there is an athlete with average training and good data. He trains on a power cycle, where he either works out all the muscles in a day, alternating intensity and weight (the Plintovich system), or divides the body into parts (chest / back, shoulders / legs). In the second scenario, the antagonist muscles, of course, will work together. After the end of the power, there is a semi-power cycle, during which the muscle groups should be divided into three days. Here the question arises, what will be the training schedule, because you can rest one day between workouts, and after a month of active work arrange supercompensation. You can rest between classes for two days, but then the whole cycle will take longer.
If you choose the first option, then the antagonist muscles should be placed separately, back / biceps, chest / triceps and so on. With this type of load, the muscles are worked out weekly, slightly under-recovered, which means that this type of training will be quite normal.

In the second option, we train each group once every two weeks (with a break of two days). During this time, even such large muscles as the chest will recover, and even small ones (triceps) even more so. So it is necessary to take into account these factors and load the triceps a little more often so that it does not recover in the same way as the chest. In this training mode, the antagonist muscles swing together.

For example, on the first day we develop the chest and biceps, after a couple of days the back and triceps. The first workout partially loads the triceps and fully chest, then the biceps are loaded. In the second lesson after working out the back, we finalize the triceps. In this mode, there will be a week left until the next chest workout, and when this day comes, the triceps and chest will be approximately in the same condition.

Summarizing all that has been said, it is possible to briefly describe the answer to the question asked at the beginning of the article in this way - there is no rule that would determine how it is necessary to put the muscles of antagonists and synergists, but there are other rules, and it is necessary to break the groups according to them.

I hope that I was able to explain the main points and shed a little light on a question about which quite a few copies have already been broken. Now you know exactly what rules you need to build training. And maybe the next time someone around you tries to re-start the discussion about whether to train synergist and antagonist muscles together, this little research will help you respond to the argument in the right way.

Antagonist muscles are muscle groups or muscles that perform opposite anatomical functions. For example, the back muscles perform traction movements, the chest muscles perform pressing movements. All this happens within the framework of one anatomical movement, with the only difference being that the position of the body in space changes with a constant force vector.

In bodybuilding, antagonist muscles play a very important role, since training split-schemes are built on their basis. This is due to the fact that these muscles are ideally combined with each other and can be effectively trained on the same day.

Examples of Antagonist Muscles

Without understanding which muscles are antagonists, it is almost impossible to correctly draw up a split scheme, and with it a training program. Let's look at examples of these muscle groups.

Main antagonist muscles:

• Biceps + Triceps: biceps flexes the arm, triceps - unbends;
• chest + back: chest is responsible for pressing movements, back - for traction;
• Hamstrings + Quads: biceps femoris flexes the leg, quadriceps - unbends.

Additional antagonist muscles:

• Anterior/middle deltas + back
• Rear bundles of deltas + chest
• Abs + lower back

Application in bodybuilding

Thanks to the antagonist muscles, it is possible to significantly increase the intensity and effectiveness of the workout, since these muscles do not interfere with each other, even when performing heavy basic exercises on them within the same workout.

For example, after completing a heavy chest workout, you can easily proceed to the same heavy back workout. At the same time, the intensity of exercises on the back will not suffer in any way. This is a classic example of the benefits of antagonist muscle training.

Another example. Try to combine, for example, a back and biceps workout in the same way. Or back and leg muscles. You will immediately feel that after the exercises on the back, the intensity of the training of the biceps or legs has seriously dropped.

Another advantage of antagonist muscles is their ability to combine into. For example, try combining isolated exercises for biceps and triceps into a superset. Despite the apparent severity of such a workout, you can complete it without any problems. However, the situation will be just the opposite if you decide to combine, for example, an exercise for biceps and back into a superset.

Thus, antagonistic muscles play a significant role in strength training. If you still do not use their advantages in your sports practice, try to do so. You will immediately feel a significant increase in intensity, and with it, a faster increase in strength indicators, as well as muscle mass.

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Antagonist muscle training program For many decades it has been very popular among experienced athletes and professionals, because training opposite muscle groups has its own specific advantages and allows the athlete to break through stagnation and reach a new level. Before jumping directly into the antagonist muscle training program, let's look at its main benefits.

Benefits of Antagonist Muscle Training:

• Increasing the intensity of training
• Increasing the strength of antagonist muscles
• Reduced workout time

By training opposing muscle groups in conjunction, you can use greater working weights than when training synergistic muscles, since when training antagonists during an exercise for one muscle group, the second MG actually rests and at the same time dynamically stretches, which increases its contractility. In addition, blood flow to the antagonist also increases. Thanks to all this, the intensity of the training increases significantly, and the training time is significantly reduced.

However, the antagonist muscle training program is not intended for beginners. It is recommended to switch to antagonist muscle training for athletes with at least 1 year of regular training experience and only after other training schemes have exhausted their potential and will not bring results.

ANTAGONIST MUSCLE TRAINING PROGRAM

MONDAY (CHEST & BACK)

1. Pull-ups with a wide grip 4x8-12
2. Bench press 4x8-12
3. Bent over row 3x8-10
4. Incline Dumbbell Press 3x8-10
5. One arm dumbbell row 3x8-10
6. Breeding dumbbells lying on an inclined bench 3x8-10

WEDNESDAY (QUADRICEPS & hamstrings + calves)

1. Barbell Squats 4x10-12
2. Deadlift on straight legs 4x10-12
3. Leg extension in the simulator 3x10-12
4. Bending the legs in the simulator 3x10-12
5. Rise on socks sitting 3x20
6. Rise on socks standing 3х12-15

FRIDAY (SHOULDERS, BICEPS and TRICEPS)

1. Bench press standing 4x10-12
2. Standing barbell row to the chest 4x10-12
3. Lifting the bar for biceps 3x8-10
4. Close Grip Press 3x8-10
5. Hammers with dumbbells 3x8-10
6. Standing French press 3x8-10

NOTES ON ANTAGONIST TRAINING

• Exercises can be performed alternately or in supersets, depending on your goals and fitness.
• Rest between sets is 45-90 seconds. The harder the exercise, the more rest time you will need.
• The duration of the training program for antagonist muscles is approximately 8-12 weeks (until efficiency decreases), after which it is recommended to take a week break and change

Hello reader. In this article, we will explore issues related to bodybuilding anatomy in the truest sense of the phrase. We will talk about our muscles, this great and complex mechanism that allows us to perform almost any movement and cope with a variety of physical tasks.

Our muscles are muscle tissue, capable of contracting and stretching under the influence of nerve impulses. What we usually mean by musculature is nothing more than skeletal muscles, responsible for the movement of our limbs in various vectors, planes and directions. Each skeletal muscle has several attachment points to bones that form tendons. There are a great many such muscles in our body - more than 600, and each is responsible for its own vector of movement, in which our multifunctional body is able to bring them. While some muscles are squeezing a heavy barbell up, others are quite comically writhing your face, which immediately becomes clear that at the moment you are doing hard work.

But it is quite a mistake to believe that each individual muscle is responsible for a specific movement. Anyway, our muscle corset is constantly at work, because the body needs to keep balance and often cope with a non-standard load. Do you feel tension in your legs and buttocks when you bench press? It's hard enough not to feel it. Although it would seem - where are the pectorals, and where are the legs. Therefore, although muscles are usually divided by function into flexors, extensors, abductors, adductors etc., all the same, our organism is too complicated to give such a specific division. And do not forget that the muscles are constantly interact with each other. And the most striking example in the field of muscle interaction during certain work are the so-called muscles antagonists and synergists.

Muscle antagonists

The antagonists are muscles that move in opposite directions in a particular joint. If some muscles from a pair of antagonists are activated, then the second ones relax or resist. To make this simple term easier to visualize, we again imagine that we are pressing the barbell while lying down. To squeeze it from the chest up, collaboration is needed pectorals, triceps, anterior deltas and other less active muscle groups in this movement. Now let's imagine that you and your barbell were turned 180 degrees face down, and now you need not to squeeze the barbell, but to pull it towards you. Will the same muscle groups work in this position? Of course not. The movement has become not pressing, but traction(the bench press has turned into a barbell row), and they are already starting to work pulling muscle groups, primarily back muscles, biceps and rear deltas. So we got a ready-made pair of antagonist muscles, where on the one hand - pectoral, triceps and front delta, and on the other - the latissimus dorsi, biceps and rear delta.

I don't really like classic division to antagonists, which on any resource usually looks like this:

• Chest - Back
• Biceps - Triceps
• Quadriceps femoris - biceps femoris

Too conditional and generalized division. Just in the example above, I showed you the specific work of the antagonist muscles in specific joints. Agree that it would be too primitive to shove such an example into the classic chest-back group.

A more or less understandable group from the presented list is "biceps - triceps", in which muscle functions are quite clearly delineated: the biceps flexes the elbow joint of the arm, the triceps unbends. It turns out that it is enough to simply divide the muscles into antagonists when moving in one single joint. When it comes to multi-joint movements like bench presses and deadlifts, things get a lot more interesting.

Well, the ability to divide muscles into antagonists is not just a way to feel a little smarter. This skill will allow us to more competently draw up a training plan, in which fresh, untired muscles will work in each exercise, which is extremely important in. Again, imagine that you have completed your favorite bench press. What exercise is logical to put next - one that will load an already tired triceps in isolation or one that purposefully hits the middle and rear deltoid? The first option is not logical for two reasons: easy to overtrain triceps and, most unpleasantly, the working weight in the triceps exercise will depend on the degree of his fatigue after the barbell press, respectively the ability to progress the load is practically eliminated. At the same time, those antagonistic muscles that performed exclusively passive work during the bench press: middle and rear deltas, biceps, lats - are full of freshness and are ready for the hardest work. Therefore, it is much more logical to combine such muscle groups as "pectoral - rear deltas" or "pectoral - biceps" on a training day than "pectoral - anterior deltas" or "pectoral - triceps". And all why? because antagonists eliminate joint loading, unlike synergistic muscles.

Muscle synergists

Synergists (agonists)- This muscles that move simultaneously in the same direction. In other words, this is a prime example of the complexity and versatility of our muscular system.

The most striking examples of synergistic muscles are manifested in multi-joint exercises, because a certain muscle group is responsible for the main effort in the movement of each joint, respectively, if two or more joints are involved in the movement, then at the output we have a combination of synergistic muscles working together.

We have already given examples of such interaction a little higher. Pairs "pectoral - front deltas" and "pectoral - triceps" fit perfectly into the definition of synergists. But! Only on condition that basic movement in progress, where such interaction is possible, in this case, of course, our bench press or push-ups on the uneven bars. When breeding dumbbells for chests, there can be no talk of any pair of synergists "pectoral - triceps", chest ones will work in isolation.

For clarity, we give a few more examples of muscle symbiosis. When squatting, they act as synergists quadriceps and buttocks, when pulling up - lats and biceps, with deadlift - a shit ton of muscle groups :)

On this, I think, it's time to end the article. The material turned out to be more theoretical than practical, but I hope that it will be useful to many. I do not advise you to worry too much about relative classification of muscle groups into dubious subgroups, as many other resources recommend. This will do little to help you with increasing muscle volume. See you on the pages of Hardmeat!

Antagonist muscles are muscle groups whose actions, according to anatomical features, are opposite to each other. For example, the muscles located in the chest area are pressing, the muscles located in the back area are responsible for traction.

These processes proceed with one anatomical action, the only difference is that with the same force vector, the position of the body changes.

On a functional basis, muscle groups are divided into several main types:

• flexor muscles
• extensor muscles
• synergistic muscles
• antagonist muscles.

Synergists are muscles that move in different directions at the same time.

Opposite functions are performed by muscles - antagonists. For example, in order to bend your back, several are involved at the same time, and they all belong to the category of synergists.

The muscles that are responsible for trunk extension are antagonists.

Almost all antagonist muscles are in interaction with one or two joints, therefore, when they contract, the joints begin to move.

The most common types of muscle movement - antagonists include flexion, extension, rotation, etc. The muscles that are responsible for flexion are located in front of the joints.

Behind the joints are antagonists, which are necessary for the extension of the trunk and limbs. However, in the knee and ankle joints, this scheme is used exactly the opposite.

Examples of muscles - antagonists

Antagonists in bodybuilding are important, since it is this muscle group that is the basis for building training split systems.

The fact is that these muscles are perfectly combined with each other, therefore, if the antagonists are trained hard on the same day, then such training will bring a high level of efficiency.

Without knowing which muscles are included in the category of antagonists, there is no chance of compiling a competent and, therefore, it is necessary to note the main examples of antagonist muscles:

1. Triceps and biceps. The biceps is responsible for flexing the arm, while the triceps extends it.
2. Pectoral and spinal muscles. The main task of the back muscles is traction. The pectoral muscles perform pressing movements.
3. Quadriceps and. The hamstring biceps flexes the leg, while another muscle is responsible for its extension.

There are also additional muscle antagonists, but they have not been widely used in bodybuilding for training.

Application in bodybuilding

The training of the muscles of the antagonists, as a rule, occurs simultaneously. This means that both muscles have approximately the same development, since by training together, both muscles receive a sufficient degree of load, and, consequently, a good level of growth and development.

These muscle groups do not interfere with each other, even if during training it will be necessary to perform a series of heavy exercises.

One of the advantages of antagonist muscles is that they allow you to use supersets during training. Many people combine separate exercises aimed at triceps and biceps into one superset.

Despite the fact that these are quite difficult exercises, all athletes perform them without any problems.

But if you combine exercises for biceps and back muscle groups into one superset, the result will be the opposite. The first to say that supersets should be extended to the back and chest was Arnold Schwarzenegger.

In strength training, it is precisely the antagonist muscles that play an important role, which provide a lot of benefits and a high level of efficiency.

With proper preparation of exercises for this muscle

group, there will be an accelerated increase in strength indicators, as well as a significant increase in muscle mass. Before training, do not forget that it is necessary to carry out a quality warm-up and warm up the whole body.

Effective Exercises

As soon as one of the antagonist muscles begins to work actively, it immediately activates its muscular “partner”, so that, if the opportunity arises, it can show a reaction in a matter of seconds.

One of the most effective and well-known exercises - "Extension of the legs in the simulator", initially does not strain the femoral biceps. But in the process, while the quadriceps are being trained, the femoral biceps has an increased level of nerve tone, and the volume of blood circulating in this muscle increases on average by 30% compared to the resting state.

It is best to use exercises for training that allow the biceps to take turns. In this case, the “roles” of muscle groups are exchanged, but at the same time, a rush of blood into an unused muscle creates a powerful level of pumping.

For training and building muscle mass, as a rule, a linear method is used, which consists in performing basic exercises that replace each other.

According to professionals, and statistics confirm, muscles that perform a number of opposite functions must be loaded in one workout.

It is this approach that will increase the effectiveness of training and lead to a rapid increase in muscle mass.

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