Building 20-inch Arms and Cannonball Delts The Larry Scott way By Tony DeFrancisco PT 2

In part 1 we covered many of the exercises Larry did both in his formative years as well as in his competitive years leading up to winning the big three; Mr. America, Mr. Universe and  twice Mr. Olympia.  In this segment, we will finish up on how Larry trained as he disclosed to us in his seminar back in 1978 in Philadelphia, PA.

Larry couldn't rave about the preacher bench enough and he called it that, The Preacher Bench and the Preacher Curl. This is despite the fact that this exercise was renamed Scott Curls after Larry who really popularized this exercise. Larry told us that he did preacher curls for over 6 years without burning out and his arms gained from approximately 13 inches to over 20 inches. Bear in mind that very few bodybuilders truly had 20 inch arms. Larry was one of the very few.

As mentioned in part 1, Larry started his biceps training with DB Preacher Curls. He would use a swinging motion and he called them "cheat curls" Larry's style was to keep his elbows in close and hands out wide. He would aim for 6 reps and then do 4-5 burns (half reps) 

Larry Scott demonstrates preacher bench DB curls. Note his elbows are up high on the bench.

Larry would immediately put the dumbells down and grab a heavy barbell and now do preacher bench barbell curls with a straight bar. Hands were out wide, elbows in close and again he would use a swinging (cheating) motion. Larry emphasized going all the way way down on the bottom of these curls, let the arms stretch and then curl right back up. 

He would do 6 sets of 6 reps. As with the dumbell curls, Larry would finish with 4-5 half reps ---burns.

Next Larry would grab a ez curl bar and do preacher bench reverse curls for 6 sets of 6 reps.  Larry said this  finishes off the lower biceps and creates the bicep/forearm tie-in that he was famous for. This exercise also works the brachialis muscle which lies underneath the biceps and just above the triceps. This gives the biceps a fuller look. And nobody had this look better than Larry.

"Some people ask me if my biceps shape was genetic or came from training. And I know you are all dying to know right?"

Everyone shouted yes.

"Well not to confuse you but it came from both. Obviously I had the genetic advantages to develop arms like I have. As far as I know no one else has biceps as full as mine. Sergio Oliva comes close. My biceps were always long but became longer and eventually extended all the way down to my forearms. I attribute this to the exercises and training that Vince Gironda showed me."

"I also saw a direct correlation to bicep fullness and size. That is, as my biceps became fuller and longer they also became bigger and larger. 

That arm looks like a small football.  Larry Scott circa 1965-1966. Notice how the flexed arm looks huge while the relaxed arm is also big but shapely and aesthetic looking.

"Strive for shape, not just size"

"My quest was to develop shape, not just size I saw several bodybuilders with huge arms. To me that was a turnoff. They lacked shape. I wanted huge  size with shape and thank God I DISCOVERED Vince Gironda who was the real trainer of champions and knows bodybuilding like no one else. And no offense to Joe Weider."

"Ever see these guys who do a lot of regular curls and have big arms? How do their arms look? Bulky? Almost like popeye upper arms. I didn't want that. Now look at anyone who trains at Vince Gironda's gym. Totally different shape. Appealing. Large size but also shapely. I like to think I got that look too."

(Everyone laughed)

"In my mind the perfect arm has biceps with  size, shape, fullness,  and peak. Triceps also have fullness and peak underneath. The forearms are also well developed and the brachialis muscle (near the forearm in between the biceps and triceps) is well formed also."

"There are bodybuilders like Albert Beccles and Franco Columbu who have a peak, but lack fullness. Then as already mentioned you have Sergio Oliva with fullness and no peak. The best arms, other than mine (Larry said with smile) belong to Arnold. He has fullness, peak, plenty of size, and great shape. I only fault Arnold in that his triceps and forearms could be better and biceps could be fuller. But he has come a long way. You should have seen his arms when he first arrived in America before he discovered the preacher bench and started training with Vince Gironda."

"The best exercise to develop peak is what we call at Vinces Gym "Spider  Curls" 

Larry Scott showing possibly the greatest arm development of all time

Larry showing how to develop a high peaked biceps with "Spider Curls" done on the special bench designed by Vince Gironda.

"On Spider Curls the weight is unimportant. Go for a full stretch on the bottom and cramp at the top contracting the biceps. Use a medium width grip and a straight bar for this, not an ez curl bar. 

Larry told us that he had great difficulty creating a peak on his biceps. This exercise did the job. Larry told us that "Spider Curls" also works the brachialis muscle in a unique way.

Sometimes for variety Larry would grab one dumbell and do one arm concentration curls with his elbow on his knee. 

"Nothing fancy or unique here. Except it is called the concentration curl for a reason. Like "spider curls" let the db go all the way down and cramp/contract the biceps at the top. Do these slowly and really think about your arms getting larger and better peaked."

Larry told us that he felt that the lying tricep press aka skull crushers and the kneeling tricep ext on a pulley were the two very best tricep developers and shapers. He did say that sometimes for variety he would do lying tricep presses on a incline bench.

Larry demonstrates the incline tricep press which he used from time to time to break through sticking points.

The other major  tricep size builder Larry Scott recommended was tricep pressdowns on a lat machine. 

"Keep a close grip and lean over slightly. Like the preacher curls I use loose form on this one and cheat somewhat. At the end of each set I will stand upright and do what looks like a close grip bench press only on a lat machine.  I push straight down.  I do both exercises as one. This combination hits all three triceps head and will burn your triceps."

"We discussed kickback with a  barbell earlier. A lot of times I would do them one arm at a time with heavy dumbell. This really brings out the horseshoe shape of the tricep.

With this exercise, you may initially get a "Charley Horse" type of cramp. Start these easy. Great Exercise to develop "Horshoe Triceps" 

Larry Scott demonstrates the one arm DB kickback with a pretty heavy weight. Larry says this exercise creates that "Horshoe Triceps" look and by the looks of his triceps, we believed him. This will not necessarily add size but you will not believe the new shape you have to your arms--Triceps.  It will look like a blacksmith carved a horseshoe on the back of your arm. 

Larry told us that he would alternate between barbell kickbacks and 1-arm dumbell kickbacks. 

Another bodypart that is showy and often neglected is the rear delts. Larry said that the rear delts give that coconut look and from the back looks really impressive. Rear delts also gives that lat/rear delt tie in which is very impressive.

Larry told us that one of his favorite exercises is the incline bench rear delt raise. This works the upper back and high on the rear delts, a area that is usually untouched.

"The rear delts are a a bodypart that many forget about  Bodybuilders will do presses, front and side raises and always forget those poor rear delts. But especially if you in competition, it is the rear delts that really makes you stand out in the competition lineup when you are standing sideways and especially to the back."

"Don't make the mistake that many bodybuilders make thinking that back work works this area so you can skip it. No, no, no. Rear delts  have to be worked and isolated just like biceps, triceps etc."

"In my opinion, the incline rear delt raise is the best rear delt exercise. It works better than the regular bent over bent raise."

"Also lat pulldowns to the front, the special way that Vince showed me years ago is also a great rear delt exercise.  We will talk about those later. Never forget rear delts. They will give your body a look of completeness and create that cannonball delt look. Rear delts very important."

"To really isolate the side delts, I like doing seated side laterals on a light incline. Remember the style, little finger up, arms bent.  Sometimes I would superset these with incline rear delt raises. Just raise the angle of the bench for side laterals."

"I always started off with the delt press. I know some people call it the Scott Press and Arnold calls it the Arnold press. Call it what you want. Great exercise. This is like a side lateral and press. Really works the delts. This exercise did for my delts what the preacher curl did for my biceps."

"I usually do 6 sets of 6 reps, work fast with 30-60 second rests between sets. You want to keep the pump going. Also use  heavy weights. I worked up to 150 lb db's on this. The heavier the weight I used, the bigger my delts became. Sometimes I would work these down the rack. Starting with a heavy weight and just go nonstop to the next set of dumbells until I was down to a pair of 10 lb dumbells. This would take about 10 sets total in one set. When I was done, I could barely raise my arms! And my delts were blown up to super size."

"Then I would move into side laterals either standing of seated as descibed above and finish off with rear laterals. 6 sets of 6 reps on each. I found 6 reps to be about right for me. Less was more for strength and didn't give me development. More didn't give me the size I was seeking."

"I also played around with other exercises to break monotony and sticking points. Sometimes I would do side laterals one arm at a time on a incline bench. Other times bent over at a slight incline.  This worked for me. The one exercise I never got stale on for delts was the delt press. Incredible exercise."