Column 13 | Body symmetry

ANSWER

I can reassure you: It is nothing unusual for some parts of the body to be more developed than others. In fact, there are differences between individual muscle groups in every person, because no person is 100 percent symmetrical. In some people, the asymmetry is barely noticeable, while in others it is more pronounced.

There is no ultimate training to eliminate asymmetry in individual muscles, but I can give you some tips that, if implemented, can lead to long-term success. Sometimes the problem even resolves itself, as the body is able to compensate for small asymmetries through conventional training. For example, if you use the weaker part of the body more during weight training and thus promote it more. However, if the imbalance is more pronounced, you need to help it along. To do this, I recommend that you specifically train the weaker muscles. This can mean doing one or two extra sets or using additional weights for the affected areas. For example, shoulder presses with dumbbells would be a good option for you, in order to place more weight on your left shoulder and thereby stimulate growth.

It is important not to increase the weight too much, but only to one or two kilos, otherwise a clean movement cannot be guaranteed. You can also do one or two additional sets of lateral raises for your left shoulder. You can also do the same for your chest and arm training, for example by using heavier weights of one or two kilos on the left side when doing dumbbell incline bench presses.

For your left calf, I recommend one or two sets of standing one-legged calf raises to challenge the weaker muscle more.

You should be patient with all of these measures, because such asymmetries do not disappear overnight. The bigger they are, the longer it takes to achieve balance through special training. You should definitely plan on a few months for this!