big issue: right side of body much stronger and bigger than left side

[Radiohead Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Radiohead]

This has been driving my crazy for months.

My right side is so much strong and bigger than my left side. I'm talking about pecs, biceps, shoulders and trapezius. The right side out-dominates the left.

What am I supposed to do to correct this? Should I only exercise my left side for a while?

Thanks..

[scythe Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close scythe]

Wow. I've never heard of such a phenomena. Any clue how this happened?

[Fluxo Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Fluxo]

I have the same problem, but my right side is my weak side.. it could be from sitting down all day, or bad posture or possibly nerve damage in your back like i have..

And yes, exercising on one side should work great, just exercise on a 2 to 1 ratio with your weak side and over time the muscles will catch up..

[LOL Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close LOL]

Do exercises that isolate sides (dumbbell rows, dumbbell curls). Start each set with your weak side. For instance if you can curl 50's 10 times with your right but only 8 with your left and you started with your right, you'd fail your set with your left on the 9th rep. If you start with the left, your left side gets the optimal workout without completely excluding your right side. Failure reps don't help strength gains. Good luck, and also watch your posture and form in the mirror while working out and try to be as symmetrical as possible.

[Batwoman Moderator ReservePEGym Hero Find all posts View Profile Close Batwoman]

How about swimming? That's a great way to even things out.

[calixto ModeratorPE Gym EditorPEGym Hero Find all posts View Profile Close calixto]

All you need to do is begin to do EVERYTHING with dumbells when you go into the gym. This way the other side catches up, and is forced to.

Thats it, read Arnold's bible man, its the end all!

[hardcore Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close hardcore]

doing everything with dumbbells might not even sort it, guessing you have probably tried using dumbbells for everything? the same thing happend with me and it was really noticable, after a while i figured out while i was doing an exercise bicept curls for example using dumbbells i would do 8 reps in a set and on the 8th my left arm (weaker and smaller at the time)would fail but the other wouldnt. this went on (in every other exercise aswell) untill the left side ended up alot bigger than the right side because the right side was not going to failure. so i had to add on an extra 3 reps on to everything on the right side so it would fail and then a bit of tweaking here and there with the reps untill both sides would fail at the same amount of reps,a bit like pe just need to find what works for you by tweaking your reps, i`m pretty symetrical now. thats what worked for me anyway,good luck buddy hope you get the symetry your looking for

[Pegasus AdministratorPE Gym EditorPEGym Hero ☺ Admin of the Month Mar 2015 Find all posts View Profile Close Pegasus]

Get your back aligment/posture checked.

[stackatk Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close stackatk]

imbalanced muscles

[shane_syndrome Banned Find all posts View Profile Close shane_syndrome]

bro I think your 100% right , my right shoulder sicks out a half inch farther then my left one but its hard to notice but when i look at it in the mirror it looks like im slouching on the one side

[vulcan Retired ModeratorPE Gym EditorPEGym Hero Find all posts View Profile Close vulcan]

Calixto beat me to it. Dumbells over time. Has anyone ever tried TRX Suspension training, just looking at it earlier, looks pretty cool.

[Mc Dong Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Mc Dong]

I would recommend a dumbbell intense workout. First you want to gain on your weak side. Second you don't want to lose size on your strong side. To do this, you should adjust your weight so that your weak side is lifting in 6-8 range. Use the same weight for both sides. Your strong side might be able to get 10-12 reps at that same weight, but do not train to failure on your strong side. Just match the reps from your weak side. SInce you are doing dumbells, always start with your weak side first. For example, Bicep curls. You grab 40lbs DB with your weak side. Do standing DB curls, 6-8 reps, to failure. You only work one side at a time. (doing this also helps with strengthening your core). Then you switch hands and crank out the exact number of reps you just did. No more. No less. Why? You want to go heavy on your weak side for size gains while still maintaining your strong side. I know its tough to not lift heavier or harder with the strong side, but don't.

A great DB exercise is the power clean & press. It's basically an up right row, then flips the weight and finish with an overhead press. Look it up online. Don't lift the weight from the floor. Do a partial clean, basically start the motion at mid thigh. It will hit your traps, delts and tris. It more of a power lifting exercise. It will make you stronger. I promise you that. Another example: Use the hammer strength machine for chest. Same idea as above. Weak side first with heavy weight. Then swtich sides. Always do one side at a time. This is also great because you can go back and forth with out rest, which keeps your heart up and burns calories.

*I am not a bodybuilder or personal trainer. However, I've been lifting for 15+ years and lift with bodybuilders and trainers (my buddies). I am 195lb, 5'11, 9% body fat, in my thirties. I also had the weak/strong side problem but corrected it with a smarter workout program. Essentially you are always doing "weak point training"... Training your weak areas first in order to make them equal to your strong areas.

One more thing, since you always start with your weak side, I recommend finish with your weak side too. This way it always gets one more set. THis is your call. Don't over train. You know your body.

I assume you know about dieting.

Good luck

Mc Dong