Exercises I Quit Doing for Muscle Growth (Plus Better Alternatives)
In a Nutshell
The speaker abandoned several classic compound lifts—standing overhead press, heavy barbell rows, high-bar squats, and deadlifts—because their systemic fatigue and injury risk outweighed the targeted hypertrophy they delivered once he was already well-developed. In their place he now prioritizes exercises with superior stimulus-to-fatigue ratios: extensive lateral raises for side delts, machine or cable work for quads and glutes, and rows or stiff-leg deadlifts for back thickness. The overarching rule is that no exercise is mandatory for physique development; keep only the movements that efficiently hit weak points without excessive cost.
These notes were generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies.
The speaker stopped doing the overhead press because it became an ego-driven exercise focused on how much weight could be moved for reps, reaching 275 lbs standing strict clavicle to lockout shoulder press for eight repetitions. While the overhead press built triceps, upper chest, and shoulder development, the standing version creates massive spinal column loading that fatigues the musculature and connective tissues needed for upright posture. This fatigue takes away resources that could be used for rowing, deadlifting, and squatting training.
Sitting down for the exercise reduces total squishing fatigue. The vast majority of impactful bubble-style delts come from side delts, which are primarily hit with upright rows and lateral raises. After switching to extensive lateral raise variations including super arm laterals, regular laterals, seated laterals, cable laterals, and free motion laterals, the speaker's shoulders became significantly larger than when doing heavy overhead pressing.
For maximum delt gains, some overhead pressing is beneficial, but the primary training should focus on side delt work with extensive lateral raises and upright rows.
The dumbbell fly was used for years to increase chest size and strength with super controlled lowering, minimal elbow bend, and maximum chest activation. The exercise provides maximum loading at the stretch and minimal loading at peak contraction, matching the ideal force curve for hypertrophy training with big tension at the stretch and very little tension at the top.
The speaker stopped doing dumbbell flies because chest development from pressing became so significant that there was no recovery capacity remaining for additional fly work. This is described as the Cheesecake Factory problem, where after consuming the main course, there's no room for additional items despite their appeal.
Six sets of pressing on one day plus four sets later in the week proved too much stimulus, causing a chest pull injury. Flies remain recommended for those needing extra pec work, with cable flies, machine flies, and dumbbell flies all viable options. Dumbbell flies are considered potentially the best due to their optimal force curve and adaptability to body size and range of motion.
Key technique points for flies include sticking the chest up high, pulling shoulder blades back, going slower on the descent, achieving a deep stretch felt primarily in the chest, and using sets of 10 to 15 reps. Tension is the primary driver of muscle growth.
Flies can be performed three ways: as a pre-exhaust at the start of chest workouts, sandwiched between pressing movements, or as a finisher after pressing work. Myo-reps are also suggested for dumbbell flies.
Ultraheavy barbell rows were performed because Ronnie Coleman did them and they felt good for strength progression. The speaker had a large gut which reduced range of motion, plus excellent hamstring flexibility allowing deep positioning. Starting rows as a competitive powerlifter meant spinal erector development transferred well to squatting and deadlifting.
The speaker stopped heavy rowing to manage spinal erector fatigue for stiff-legged deadlifts and good mornings, as the erectors are enormous and primarily fast twitch, fatiguing before other muscle groups. Back thickness is already a strong attribute, so the focus shifted to prioritizing lagging muscle groups like shoulders and upper back width.
Heavy rows create significant axial fatigue that affects deadlifting, lunging, overhead pressing, and squatting later in the week. Maintenance for back thickness is relatively easy compared to building it initially.
For those with less than five years of training, an average template should include overhead barbell pressing, conventional barbell pressing, squatting, stiff-legged deadlifting, regular deadlifting, pull-ups, and heavy bent-over rows.
High bar squats in weightlifting style with knees over toes, weightlifting shoes, heels bolted to the floor, and super upright posture were the speaker's favorite exercise for years. The movement built significant leg size and could be performed anywhere with a barbell. Long torso and short femurs allowed super upright positioning with excellent quad stimulus and minimal back involvement.
High bar squats carry high systemic fatigue and acute injury risk when getting strong, with the speaker's best set being 500 lbs for 10 reps. As strength increases, squats become more of a total body exercise rather than specific quad work. The stimulus-to-fatigue ratio for quads became inferior to leg presses, hack squats, and Smith machine squats.
The speaker achieved the biggest quad size ever during macro cycles without squatting, using leg presses, hack squats, lunges, and belt squats instead. High bar squats remain recommended for overall lower body size and strength development from traps to legs, but for specific quadriceps hypertrophy with lowest fatigue cost, they no longer make the list.
Pre-exhausting quads with hack squats or leg presses before lighter high bar squats was used as a transition method before completely abandoning squats for efficiency reasons.
The standing barbell behind the neck press served as an assistance movement for overhead pressing, building triceps strength for the lockout position with carryover to the main lift. The exercise also hit delts and traps significantly while being more stable than regular overhead pressing.
The speaker stopped this exercise because heavy overhead barbell work decreased, making the assistance work unnecessary. With a straight bar, elbow flare was limited, making it more of a press than a tricep-specific movement. The exercise became primarily about moving impressive weight rather than targeted development.
For behind the neck tricep work, cables and EZ bars are preferred because they allow proper elbow flaring forward with more tension directed to the triceps. Axial loading is reduced by doing cables standing and overhead EZ extensions seated.
The exercise can still be performed with straight bar or EZ bar, taking a closer grip and ensuring elbows flare forward. Pausing at the bottom position is recommended. Variations include seated versions and switching to cables when the straight bar becomes boring.
Deadlifts were performed extensively as a competitive powerlifter in both conventional and sumo variations. The exercise develops the entire back from traps to glutes, builds hamstrings and inner thighs, strengthens forearms and grip, and provides injury protection for daily activities like picking up groceries.
The stimulus-to-fatigue ratio becomes unfavorable for bigger, stronger individuals. Most IFBB pro bodybuilders don't conventional deadlift much because glute machines, deficit lunges, and modified deadlift variations provide comparable glute stimulus with less fatigue and injury risk.
For back development, heavy rowing can provide sufficient thickness, and as development progresses, width rather than thickness becomes the limiting factor. The need for deadlifts gradually diminishes as other exercises can target specific muscle groups more efficiently.
One is most of the children in the town grew up and moved away. Now, he's a sad clown. The other thing is people rightfully realize they're clowns or manifestation of pure evil and he was properly segregated away from society and permanently imprisoned with no food or water. Deadlifts aren't as bad as evil clowns. But when there's no longer approximate need to deadlift, think of it this way. You can always come back to deadlift later, but put in front of yourself what you really need for development.
If you have glute exercises that are better for the deadlift stimulus to fatigue ratio-wise, if you have back exercises that are way more worth your time than deadlifts, you're going to be winning doing those for a while. And you can always come back to deadlifts.
One thing I want to remind you guys of, especially in physique development, there are zero must-do exercises. So when people say you have to deadlift, they are wrong in every every single case except for one. When you're a competitive powerlifter, you have to deadlift so that your deadlift can be as good as possible because literally practicing for exactly your sport.
For everybody else, deadlifting is absolutely not required. Okay, maybe for strong men, but they also do the deadlifting competition. You guys know what I'm trying to say.
So, for me, the reason I stopped deadlifting was objectively what to stimulate and how much stimulus to fatigue ratio to impose on each muscle group. Just left the deadlift in like third or fourth place behind amazing exercises that I would choose instead. Exercises like front foot elevated Smith machine lunges for glutes and exercises like stiff-legged deadlifts for the hamstrings and exercises like heavier rows for the back and eventually machine rows for the back.
Once I had those exercises clued in, there just wasn't approximate need for me to be deadlifting. And the only reason I was still deadlifting is for spirit energy. Spirit energy is dope and all, but you know, when you're trying to get judged in a bodybuilding competition, like I have very poorly many times in my career, nobody gives a what you can deadlift. And that's the harsh truth about life.
The next time you go to a party and someone asks what you do, you just tell them all of your rep range deadlift numbers. If that doesn't get you laid, I don't have any more advice.
Guys, hopefully that was instructive. Remember this, it's all about being fit for purpose. If the exercises you like to do also check the boxes and what you need and they don't come with irrational costs on fatigue or injury risk, 100% do them. Be they hardcore, softcore, or whatever else. Uh if the exercise doesn't fit, you must acquit. Just running into all kinds of trouble today.
In any case, do the things that you need to do that you like to do. If you don't like an exercise, you don't need to do it. It doesn't matter how hardcore it is. It won't be the right exercise for you.
All right. Now, get out there and make good choices and wear a condom. And ladies, a lady condom dental dam. I'll see you guys next time.
Keep Renaissance Periodization in your library
Save the videos and channels worth coming back to, and find them again in one place.
