Let’s face it, you’ll never see big bodybuilders starring in Hollywood action movies anymore. This is because this look is ‘trying hard’ and is not considered desirable for women. Today’s action stars are slimmer but still muscular. They have a GQ style where they look great with suits and fancy clothes because they are not too bulky.
After extensive research, I was finally able to quantify what this perfect build is. This is the structure that is considered most ATTRACTIVE to women. It is also associated with POWER and MASCULINITY.
According to several studies on physical attractiveness in men,
The physique of slim waist, broad shoulders, and muscular chest is often attractive. An almost universal sexually attractive feature of a man is a V-shaped torso: a relatively narrow waist offset by broad shoulders.”
A slim waist is unrealistic for a bodybuilder and broad shoulders and a muscular chest is unrealistic for someone who is skinny.
As a result, being bulky is out and being slim and toned is not enough.
Our goal should be to resemble the Greek gods!
Well, without further ado, the perfect male body proportions are:
– A waist that is 45-47% of your height (multiply your height by 0.45 or 0.47)
– A shoulder to waist ratio of 1.618. (Divide your shoulder measurement by your waist measurement)
– Arms, neck and calves of equal circumference
– A chest that is 10-12″ larger than your waist
Let’s take an average 5’10 man. His stats should be:
Waist: 31.5-33″ (45-47% of your height)
Shoulders: 51-53″ (waist x 1.618)
Arms: same as neck (approximately 15.5-16.5″)
Chest: 42-45″ (10-12″ larger than waist)
Now that you know what ratios to aim for, I’m going to provide you with 5 of the BEST EXERCISES to achieve these ratios.
Are here –
5 exercises to build the body of a Greek god
1. Dumbbell Incline Bench Press:
This is my favorite chest workout! Develops the chest perfectly with more attention on the upper chest. The upper chest is the most important region for men to grow as it exudes a masculine appearance. When bodybuilders develop their lower chest too much, they look like they have BOOBS. Also, a well-developed upper chest creates a sweet line down the middle of the chest. You should aim to be able to do this exercise with 100% of your body weight for 6 repetitions. So if you weigh 160lbs then you should aim to do 80lb dumbbells in each hand for 6 reps.
I do this exercise with 100-pound dumbbells in each hand for 6 reps with a 180-pound bodyweight.
2. Pull-ups
Pull-ups are one of my favorite exercises. They are the best back exercise for creating a V-shaped torso. You should strive to do at least 12 full-range pull-ups in a row. I have worked up to 20 pull-ups in a row and my back is extremely well developed. I give pull ups credit for this.
3. Lateral Raises
This movement is very effective for working the medial head of the deltoids. This will add width to your shoulders, thereby increasing your shoulder-to-waist ratio.
4. Plank
The plank is an excellent exercise to strengthen the transversus abdominis (TVA). The TVA is like the muscle in your corset: it keeps your stomach contracted and helps stabilize it. The goal to achieve here is 3 consecutive minutes with perfect form. After you can do this, you can raise your forearms on a stability ball or place your feet on suspension bands (TRX).
5. Bar sauces
Most people are not aware of the fact that their triceps take up 2/3 of their arm. Consequently, when you’re trying to get bigger arms, you can’t neglect the triceps. Dips are my favorite triceps exercise, and in addition to working the triceps, they also work the lower chest and shoulders. They will build strong triceps and give you good movement under your pecs. The goal here is to get to 6 reps of dips with 50% of your bodyweight attached. I do barbell dips for 6 reps with 135 lbs.
Now let’s take these 5 exercises and put them into a workout routine.
Greek God Exercise Program
1a) Incline Bench Press DB: 3 sets x 5-7 reps
1b) Pull-ups (add weight if needed): 3 sets x 5-7 reps
2) Lateral Raises: 3 sets x 6-10 reps
3a) Barbell Dips (add weight if needed): 3 sets x 6-10 reps
3b) Bicep Curl Variation: 3 x 6-10 reps
4) Plank: 3 sets x 60 seconds (contract abs as hard as possible)
training notes
– If you want to add muscle, use the rep ranges I provided
– If you’re happy with your muscle development, lower your rep ranges to 3-5, this will harden your muscles and increase tone (everyone gets this backwards)
– Do this workout 2-3 times a week with at least one rest day in between.
– 1a and 1b means you do a set of 1a rest you do a set of 1b rest and repeat for 3 sets
– If you want to add muscle to your legs you can do 3 sets of 4-6 repetitions of squats or deadlifts