A lot of people are always asking how to build huge trapezius muscles and they usually refer to the upper traps which are at the sides of your neck. I got inspired to write this advice when I read Scott's "critique my physique" thread. He mentioned he would love to build him some bigger traps ( among other muscle groups such as hams and calves). I thought to share my personal experience.
So, my traps really grew when I started doing behind the neck pulldowns. Now, I know that most people do this for their lats but the truth is I dont really feel it there. A front lat pulldown or a reverse lat pulldown is so much better for the lats. The behind the neck version is really great for your rhomboids, your rear delts and your traps. 

Building huge traps is a matter of squeezing the muscle. Keep squeezing it harder and harder. Move more blood in the muscle.
When performing the behind the neck pulldown, as any other exercise it has a positive and a negative portion. On the positive focus on squeezing your shoulder-blades together and bring that bar down using your rhomboids and your rear delts. The sweet action is happening on the negative though. Really flex your traps and resist the negative on the way up. Go for a 6 second negative and keep flexing the traps as hard as possible. No other exercise will fire your traps like this one. 

People really insist on doing shrugs. Barbell shrugs, dumbell shrugs, smith shrugs. I dont like this exercise. Why? Its a really short range of motion and it doesnt do much for the traps. This is just my opinion though. If you get great results by just doing shrugs thats great. Keep in mind that genetics play a critical role on how fast your traps will grow.

Other good exercises for your "trap day" ( which is usually on my back day or very very rarely on shoulder day) are :

- Upright rows ( barbells, dumbells, smith machine, CABLES.)
- Face Pulls 
- Shoulder Press ( dumbells, barbells, behind the head )
- Wide grip Low cable row
- Deadlifts

Just give the behind the neck pulldown a try though. Focus on them traps and on that negative. Safety is also important so make sure you keep a neutral spine. ( meaning straight neck/ slightly tucked in chin). Weight is not of importance here.

Daniel,

 

Great post as ususal.  The trapezius is a very large muscle - dwarfed only by the Latissimus Dorsi.  I think people forget it runs from the top of your neck all the way down to the middle of your back and spreads out on both sides.  I have found that shrugs (dumbell or barbell) and upright rows work the upper 1/2 while low cable rows (pulled towards the sternum), shoulder pressing of any type, and close grip pull ups work the bottom 1/2.  I do feel it with behind the neck pulldowns somewhat but for me since my back and shoulders are a bit wide for my height, I feel these more in the Teres Major, Teres Minor, Rhomboids, and Infraspinatus muscles - not that that is bad :-)  Bottom line is you need to work with your own bio-mechanics and when doing behind the neck pulldowns weight doesn't matter as much as form as Daniel stated.

 

John

Good stuff man! I agree about the bio-mechanics. This might not work for really wide people. Everybody has to experiment with their body to find the best exercises. Suggestions like these usually help :D

Btw, this is hilarious man! You did the same mistake Nathan did a couple of hours ago. Its Kostas, not Daniel! :D

A lot of people are always asking how to build huge trapezius muscles and they usually refer to the upper traps which are at the sides of your neck. I got inspired to write this advice when I read Scott's "critique my physique" thread. He mentioned he would love to build him some bigger traps ( among other muscle groups such as hams and calves). I thought to share my personal experience.
So, my traps really grew when I started doing behind the neck pulldowns. Now, I know that most people do this for their lats but the truth is I dont really feel it there. A front lat pulldown or a reverse lat pulldown is so much better for the lats. The behind the neck version is really great for your rhomboids, your rear delts and your traps. 

Building huge traps is a matter of squeezing the muscle. Keep squeezing it harder and harder. Move more blood in the muscle.
When performing the behind the neck pulldown, as any other exercise it has a positive and a negative portion. On the positive focus on squeezing your shoulder-blades together and bring that bar down using your rhomboids and your rear delts. The sweet action is happening on the negative though. Really flex your traps and resist the negative on the way up. Go for a 6 second negative and keep flexing the traps as hard as possible. No other exercise will fire your traps like this one. 

People really insist on doing shrugs. Barbell shrugs, dumbell shrugs, smith shrugs. I dont like this exercise. Why? Its a really short range of motion and it doesnt do much for the traps. This is just my opinion though. If you get great results by just doing shrugs thats great. Keep in mind that genetics play a critical role on how fast your traps will grow.

Other good exercises for your "trap day" ( which is usually on my back day or very very rarely on shoulder day) are :

- Upright rows ( barbells, dumbells, smith machine, CABLES.)
- Face Pulls 
- Shoulder Press ( dumbells, barbells, behind the head )
- Wide grip Low cable row
- Deadlifts

Just give the behind the neck pulldown a try though. Focus on them traps and on that negative. Safety is also important so make sure you keep a neutral spine. ( meaning straight neck/ slightly tucked in chin). Weight is not of importance here.

Well, I don't have advanced cable machines a home. So I'm "limited" to the stuff I have. That means: deadlift, chin ups, loaded carries and farmer's walks for traps. I agree with your points, though.

Daniel,

 

Great post as ususal.  The trapezius is a very large muscle - dwarfed only by the Latissimus Dorsi.  I think people forget it runs from the top of your neck all the way down to the middle of your back and spreads out on both sides.  I have found that shrugs (dumbell or barbell) and upright rows work the upper 1/2 while low cable rows (pulled towards the sternum), shoulder pressing of any type, and close grip pull ups work the bottom 1/2.  I do feel it with behind the neck pulldowns somewhat but for me since my back and shoulders are a bit wide for my height, I feel these more in the Teres Major, Teres Minor, Rhomboids, and Infraspinatus muscles - not that that is bad :-)  Bottom line is you need to work with your own bio-mechanics and when doing behind the neck pulldowns weight doesn't matter as much as form as Daniel stated.

 

John

Good stuff man! I agree about the bio-mechanics. This might not work for really wide people. Everybody has to experiment with their body to find the best exercises. Suggestions like these usually help :D

Btw, this is hilarious man! You did the same mistake Nathan did a couple of hours ago. Its Kostas, not Daniel! :D

Farmers walks are great for the traps man!

Haha we do have similar profile pictures but we all know I HATE behind the neck pulldowns!!

Can I just clarify something here are we talking about growth of the upper trapezius here or the other two portions?

Yea I hated them too and I also thought they were dangerous for the shoulder/neck. Until I saw Kai Greene performing them with his "unique" style! We are talking about the upper trapezius. Of course it will engage the mid and the lower trapezius.

A lot of people are always asking how to build huge trapezius muscles and they usually refer to the upper traps which are at the sides of your neck. I got inspired to write this advice when I read Scott's "critique my physique" thread. He mentioned he would love to build him some bigger traps ( among other muscle groups such as hams and calves). I thought to share my personal experience.
So, my traps really grew when I started doing behind the neck pulldowns. Now, I know that most people do this for their lats but the truth is I dont really feel it there. A front lat pulldown or a reverse lat pulldown is so much better for the lats. The behind the neck version is really great for your rhomboids, your rear delts and your traps. 

Building huge traps is a matter of squeezing the muscle. Keep squeezing it harder and harder. Move more blood in the muscle.
When performing the behind the neck pulldown, as any other exercise it has a positive and a negative portion. On the positive focus on squeezing your shoulder-blades together and bring that bar down using your rhomboids and your rear delts. The sweet action is happening on the negative though. Really flex your traps and resist the negative on the way up. Go for a 6 second negative and keep flexing the traps as hard as possible. No other exercise will fire your traps like this one. 

People really insist on doing shrugs. Barbell shrugs, dumbell shrugs, smith shrugs. I dont like this exercise. Why? Its a really short range of motion and it doesnt do much for the traps. This is just my opinion though. If you get great results by just doing shrugs thats great. Keep in mind that genetics play a critical role on how fast your traps will grow.

Other good exercises for your "trap day" ( which is usually on my back day or very very rarely on shoulder day) are :

- Upright rows ( barbells, dumbells, smith machine, CABLES.)
- Face Pulls 
- Shoulder Press ( dumbells, barbells, behind the head )
- Wide grip Low cable row
- Deadlifts

Just give the behind the neck pulldown a try though. Focus on them traps and on that negative. Safety is also important so make sure you keep a neutral spine. ( meaning straight neck/ slightly tucked in chin). Weight is not of importance here.

Have you got a link for Kai Greene performing them? Have you got good results from performing these pulldowns?

Yea man I got tremendous results doing them. My traps got huge in about 2-3 months after I started them. Here are 2 videos of Kai Greene performing them and giving advice. 

1st video  at about 1:40 and onward

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cG32kXQxFu8

2nd video at about 13:05 and onward

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6d2cBgpm0C0


You will not believe the pump you get on your traps when you do this. Have your lifting partner massage the upper traps and pinch them with their fingers while you are doing the set. It works even better if your lifting partner is your girlfriend! :D