By Jason Ferruggia
Ever since I first discussed the importance of “the power look” and how important it is to earn respect and separate you from the pencil necks, I am repeatedly asked about how to build big traps.
The best trap building exercise in existence is the deadlift. One need look no further than the massive trap development of elite powerfliters to see how effective this exercise is at building these intimidating muscles.
Pussyfooting around with light weights will never get the job done. You need to deadlift heavy weights (with picture perfect form) for sets of 1-6 reps. A good goal for most lifters is to be able to pull at least double bodyweight.
For massive traps aim for 2.5 times your bodyweight. If you want traps like Goldberg make your goal to pull 2.5 times bodyweight for a set of five. Deadlifts should be performed once every 4-14 days (depending on if you’re a beginner or more advanced lifter). If you’re small and weak you can deadlift more often. When you get strong and can move a lot of weight the deadlift will take a lot out of you and be more difficult to recover from.
Beginners can do multiple sets but advanced lifters should work up to one top end set.
If you can’t deadlift perfectly from the floor with pristine technique, it is recommended to pull from rubber mats, blocks or pins in order to prevent lower back injuries. No sense in getting hurt when you’re trying to get yoked. Always train safely and intelligently.
Any discussion about how to build big traps would not be complete without discussing the Olympic lifts and their various pull variations. Programming snatches, cleans, high pulls and clean pulls into your workouts regularly is another great way to build huge traps.
If you could only choose one of these I’d recommend the snatch. It’s the easiest on the wrists and elbows and also keeps your shoulders healthy when done properly. Unlike deadlifts, Olympic lifts can be done with high frequency. Olympic lifters train these lifts every day. But they drop the bar which makes a huge difference.
If you don’t have the luxury of dropping the bar then snatches can be done 1-3 times per week for an average of five sets of three. They are usually done first on a full body or lower body dominant day, although there’s no reason why you couldn’t do them on an upper body day.
Shrugs are another weapon you can use in your trap building arsenal. Some people like heavy partial range shrugs, and others like lighter full range shrugs. I say do both. Load up a bar and do a few sets of 6-10 cheat shrugs one day and grab some dumbbells and do 2-4 sets of 12-15 full range reps with a 2-3 second hold at the top of each rep on another day.
Incline shrugs are another good option and these can hit the mid traps a bit better. Alternate between standing and incline for full trap development.
Finally, there’s the farmers walk. This will pack meat on your traps in a big way when heavy weights are used for sets of 20-60 seconds. I’d recommend doing them once per week for 2-4 sets of about 30 seconds average. Work up to heavy weights and wear a belt on these.
Below is an example of how you can incorporate all of these trap building exercises into a four way upper/lower split:
Day 1
Snatch- 5 x 3
Upper body pressing and pulling
Day 2
Squat- Top end set of 3-5
Rack Deads- 1 x 6
Lower body assistance work
DB Shrug w/ Hold- 2 x 10-12
Day 3
Upper body pressing and pulling
Day 4
Snatch- 5 x 3
Lower body assistance work
Farmers Walk- 2 x 30 sec