NUCLEUS OVERLOAD™ AND CHINESE WEIGHTLIFTERS - HOW THEY BUILD THEIR MASSIVE TRAPS !!!

Chinese Olympic weightlifters have some of the most developed set of traps in the entire sports world. From the upper traps to the mid and lower traps, their entire trapezius muscle is a sight to behold, despite their relatively low body weights when compared to world class bodybuilders. In fact, many of them carry a set of traps more impressive and detailed than that of many professional bodybuilders, despite both having access to similar P.E.Ds. I’m also willing to bet that their trapezius muscles contain far more satellite cells and nuclei than the average lifter, and that their incredible back development is mainly a result of hyperplasia, in addition to hypertrophy of course.

The reason for such development and theorized density of satellite cells/nuclei is simple. Over 90% of their entire training routine consists of exercises that directly (or indirectly) target the trapezius, since it is one of the most important muscle groups for their main competition lifts (The snatch & the clean and jerk). In addition to this, they train with very high frequency and very high weekly volumes, effectively doing a form of Nucleus Overload™ year after year. In short, every day is “Traps day”, even on the accessory days. The majority of their lifts consist of Bent over rows, Dumbbell rows, high pulls, snatches, cleans, overhead presses, upright rows, reverse flyes, rack pulls, behind the neck pullups, deadlifts, facepulls, and more, all of which are among the top exercises for maximum trapezius development.

The higher frequency/volume approach (in many cases much higher than that of the Bulgarians and Russians), combined with genetics and P.E.Ds, come together to create the best set of traps that we can feast our eyes on every 4 years at the Olympics. They are another testament to the effectiveness of Nucleus Overload, and the wonderful adaptive abilities of the human body when placed under stress. Moral of the story, if you have a lagging muscle, or want to take a specific body part to the next level, DON’T be afraid to jack up the frequency and weekly volume. As long as you follow the recovery guidelines of Nucleus Overload™, as well as the ever so crucial mTOR reset periods, be ready to see monstrous growth in the following months and years.