6 Key Movements for Building Muscle According to Pro Natural Bodybuilder Tal Shadlovsky

PNBA pro natural bodybuilder Tal Shadlovsky shares six imperative movements for building muscle mass. 

There are essential principles you must follow to build muscle. One of them being the correct movements. Fortunately, pro natural bodybuilder Tal Shadlovsky has shared six movements on social media that are vital for building muscle. Tal Shadlovsky competes in the World Natural Bodybuilding Federation (WNBF) and the International Natural Bodybuilding Association (INBA)/Professional Natural Bodybuilding Association (PNBA). 

In this article, we’ll cover compound movements in Tal Shadlovsky’s off-season training regimen and six exercises that are critical to any muscle-building program. 

Workout

Below are full-body exercises Tal Shadlovsky includes in his off-season training cycle. 

• Squat x 6 reps 
• Deadlift x 6 reps 
• T-Bar Row x 8 reps 
• Bench Press x 6 reps 
• Incline Dumbbell Press x 8 reps 
• Overhead Press x 6 reps 

Shadlovsky didn’t include the sets he did, but below, you can view Tal Shadlovksy completing the movements on Instagram and what weight he used. 

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CZrm9ajjdwq/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

For most individuals looking to add lean muscle mass to their frame, we recommend performing 3-4 sets of each movement. 

Since Shadlovsky kept the reps between the 6-8 rep range, the weight he’s using will be heavy. 6-8 reps is a good rep range to aim for before because it’s enough volume to stimulate muscle growth while allowing you to use adequate weight to build muscle as well. 

*Note: To get the most out of these exercises, it’s best you split the workouts into different days. That’s because they’re taxing compound movements, and you’ll hinder your progress by trying to perform them all in one day. 

Muscles Worked

• T-Bar Row: back 
• Squat: legs – quads, hamstrings, glutes
• Deadlift: back, hamstrings, glutes
• Incline Dumbbell Bench Press: upper chest
• Overhead Press: shoulders
• Bench Press: chest, triceps, shoulders

Keys to Building Muscle Mass

To build muscle mass, you must stimulate your muscles with enough volume and intensity. However, if you do too much, you risk overtraining. And rest and recovery are critical to muscle growth as well. Avoiding overtraining is especially important for natural bodybuilders since you can’t engage in doping unless you want to be banned from competing. 

Furthermore, you should be applying the progressive overload principle – increasing the stimuli placed upon your muscle as often as possible. You can do this by either increasing the weight or the reps of a movement. 

Lastly, your nutrition will play a vital role too. You should be in a caloric surplus and eat enough protein to maximize muscle mass. 

INBA PNBA Vs. Other Natural Bodybuilding Organizations

There are a variety of natural bodybuilding organizations, but the INBA PNBA is the largest and most respected one. They host the most significant natural bodybuilding competition – Natural Olympia – and screen their athletes through the most rigorous drug testing standards – the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). For example, some natural athletes pass drug tests in other natural bodybuilding organizations yet fail them when they join the INBA PNBA. 

Recap

Building muscle takes time, consistency, and a strategic approach. So add these fundamental movements a top natural physique in the world uses to your plan. And apply the principles laid out in this article, and you’ll be headed in the right direction to building muscle. 

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