Feeder Workouts for Muscle Growth: How to Fix Lagging Muscles

Do you ever feel like one muscle is lagging behind while you’re trying to build your dream physique? This is a common issue, especially for beginners. Feeder workouts are a simple strategy many lifters, and myself, use to bulk up underdeveloped muscles.

What are feeder workouts?

Feeder workouts are short, high-volume, low-intensity sessions designed to increase blood flow to a specific muscle. The goal isn’t to get exhausted or sore, but to get a pump and help deliver more nutrients to the muscle, supporting muscle growth over time.

You can use feeder workouts for almost any muscle group, using simple exercises. They are not meant to replace your main workouts, only to support them.

You can watch this video by Dr. Mike from the Renaissance Periodization. He goes more into depth about the pros and cons of feeder workouts if you are curious:

How to start feeder workouts

1. Keep the weight light
Use weights you can fully control. If you’re struggling to complete reps, the weight is too heavy.

2. Don’t train to failure
Stop a few reps before failure. Feeder workouts should not make you fatigued or affect your main training sessions.

3. Focus on consistency, not intensity
A small amount of work done frequently is more effective than going hard once in a while.

When I was trying to build a V-taper, my shoulders were lagging behind. To fix this, I did a few sets of light lateral raises almost every day before bed. I kept the reps high, the weight low, and never pushed to failure. Over time, my shoulders started to catch up.

Should beginners use feeder workouts?

If you’re a beginner struggling to grow a certain muscle, feeder workouts can be a simple and effective tool as long as you keep them light and don’t overdo them. Think of them as extra practice for a muscle, not a full workout. 

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