Take a look at top IFBB professional bodybuilder Phil Heath. He finished fifth in the world at the 2009 Mr. Olympia show, and he could have been even higher. When he flexes his arms, he is probably one of the most impressive human beings on the planet. His back is thick and shredded. His legs are full and crisp. He has one of the top physiques in the world – almost. Phil was cursed with narrow clavicles. His shoulder blades are 2 to 4 inches closer than those of his peers. When you see bodybuilders like Victor Martinez or Jay Cutler standing next to him, the differences become more than obvious. He carries just as much muscle, but his torso just appears to be crunched together. This is something that will be with him forever. He’ll finish among the top physiques in the world – but he’ll always have to work hard to overcome his narrow clavicles.

If your clavicles are narrow, you shouldn’t worry too much. After all, if bodybuilders like Phil Heath can score some of the sport’s top honors, there is still hope for you. However, you are going to need to make some adjustments to your training – just as he has – if you wish to reach your potential and minimize this weakness while making your strengths more obvious to those at the judging table. Your training will be the first factor to address. But how can changing the way you train affect your bone structure, something which you cannot change?

While you cannot change the width of your shoulders, you can make the shoulders appear wider in most poses by growing the outer deltoid, or the side deltoids. Focus upon completing a great deal of dumbbell and cable side raises, particularly at the beginning of your workout when your strength and intensity levels are going to be at their highest. Making the waist appear narrower is your second training goal. Some movements are notorious for thickening up the lower back and making the obliques bigger and stronger. The obliques are one muscle group that you very rarely want to make bigger. They are located underneath the problem areas known as the ‘love handles’ on the untrained individual. Dumbbell side crunches or any movement using any kind of weight will make them thicker. If you want to create that illusion of width, or the proverbial “v-taper”, keep the abdominals as small and as tight as possible while training those shoulders.

Aside from making these training adjustments, you also have to adjust your posing presentation techniques. Avoid direct poses against those competitors exuding superior width and a better waist. Remember that even the great Arnold Schwarzenegger had a wide waist. Instead of allowing it to defeat him, he would twist in many poses to create an illusion of a smaller waist. You can do the same! Smart training and posing can turn a limitation like narrow clavicles into a minor footnote on the book of your bodybuilding success.

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