Ahrens Press The late Peary Rader, notable iron game historian, repeatedly noted in the 1950s and 60s that Chuck Ahrens had the widest shoulders of any human being he had seen or seen photos of. A cursory Google search of Chuck Ahrens reveals that Ahrens was huge, with an enormous chest and broad, broad shoulders. He was also somewhat of a mystery man, commonly referred to as reclusive and a powerhouse, lionizing his place as one of the men who put Muscle Beach on the map. Besides extremely heavy lateral raises, incline presses and overhead barbell presses, there may have been another exercise that aided in Ahrens uncanny deltoid development. This exercise is affectionately known as the "Ahrens Press." The Ahrens Press is a variation of the two-dumbbell overhead press, but instead of pressing the dumbbells straight up, you press them away laterally, much like making a "V" with both arms overhead. Ahrens had no choice but to press the dumbbells in this style because he used special loadable dumbbells that were very long. In other words, it was impossible to press them straight overhead because they would hit each, owing to the massive poundages he routinely pressed. Necessity was the mother of invention, in this case! What does this mean for the modern bodybuilder? Because of the lateral pressing motion, this exercise forces the medial delts, or "caps" to work harder. Exercise Description: Grasp two dumbbells and lift them to shoulder level with a pronated grip. From shoulder position, press the dumbbells out laterally, away from you. Finish with arms locked and at a 15 to 30 degree angle. Return to starting position. Routine Layout: 1) Standing Overhead Press, 3 sets of 3 reps with 3 rep maximum. As heavy as possible each set. Rest 3 minutes between sets. 2) Ahrens Press (cluster set) ??? sets of 5 reps. Start with 15 rep max of a traditional dumbbell press and d as many sets of Ahrens Presses as possible. Rest 30 seconds between sets. 3) Incline Lateral Raise, 8 x 8 with 15 rep maximum. Emphasize stretch of the movement, no cheating whatsoever. Rest 30 seconds between sets. 4) Reverse Pec Deck, 3 sets of 8 with 12 rep maximum, hold the contracted position strongly for at least one full second. Rest 90 seconds between sets. 5) Handstand Pushups, 3 sets max reps. If you are unable to do these, do them in the downward dog yoga position. Final Thoughts The key to maximum muscular development is in the synergistic blending the most effective methods of the past with the newest innovations.
