Day 12:Shoulders

After a rest day, you should find this shoulder workout easier than those a couple days before. It’s important to keep on your diet. It gets easier the longer you stay on it. And the Kaged Muscle supplements help.

I’ve designed this workout so that you perform the most challenging workouts early in the week, after your cheat meal. And then you regroup through more focused workouts on smaller body parts such as shoulders and arms. You can think of these as mini-cycles if that helps you get through your first diet on Operation Aesthetic.

OPERATION AESTHETIC NOTES

*I often include triple drop sets when I’m dieting. What that means is that instead of performing every set after a rest, you grab a lighter weight and go immediately into the next set for the same reps.

*Drop sets are great for bringing in detail as you’re dropping body fat. I strongly recommend that you incorporate these for exercises or muscle groups where you really want to amp up detail when your strength is flagging.

EXERCISE	COMMENT
Standing dumbbell presses Make sure to hold your abs as tight as possible. This not only prevents injury but helps increase core strength.	6 SETS / 12, 10, 7, 3, 15, 15 REPS
Dumbbell lateral raises I like to raise the dumbbells to just above shoulder height, but choose the range that feels right to you.	5 SETS / 12, 10, 7, 3, 15 REPS
Dumbbell front raises I like to bring my working-side arm all the way back so I can really feel the stretch in that front delt before I raise the weight. But don’t swing it. Just get that stretch.	4 SETS / 12, 9, 6, 15 REPS
Standing military presses Note that I explode upward and lower the weight more slowly.	5 SETS / 12, 10, 7, 3, 15 REPS
Barbell shrugs SUPERSET: I hold shoulders as far back as I can while holding a barbell, and I lift the weight up and down, emphasizing the top portion of my traps.	4 SETS / Burnout*
Rear-delt flyes Emphasize the work in your rear delts by choosing a light weight—contract at the top and lower slowly.	4 SETS / Burnout*

*Choose weights that allow you to get in about 12–15 reps for each set, reaching failure for both exercises in all supersets. Reduce weights as needed.

TIP: A lot of people take 2–3 minutes or more between sets so that they’re “stronger” during the next set. When you’re trying to burn body fat, I believe in keeping rest periods to about 45–60 seconds between sets for shoulders. This helps keep up metabolism while reducing catabolism, making it easier to recover for the next workout. Sure, you’re going to feel it more during the workout, but that’s why we do this, isn’t it?