DefMetalLifter
MuscleChemistry Registered Member
How to Build Massive Delts!
With IFBB Pro Robert Burneika
The NPC Nationals is the biggest, toughest amateur bodybuilding event in the world. A few of the overall champions that went on to greatness in the pro ranks included Lee Haney, Shawn Ray, Kevin Levrone, Vince Taylor, and Victor Martinez. In 2010, for only the second time in its nearly 30-year history, the winner was not a natural-born American but an immigrant- Robert Burneika from Lithuania. Robert Burneika's shockingly enormous package of freaky mass would have risen to the top no matter where he was from.
Meant to Have Monster Delts
Burneika began working on his shoulders at age 14 in the attic gym of his Alytus, Lithuania home. He made his own bodybuilding equipment out of scrap metal- including train wheels and part of a Russian tank. The teenager trained his heart out even when the temperature dropped below freezing, and he had to bundle up in a heavy coat, hat and gloves.
By the time he moved on to his first real gym at age 18 in nearby Aludof, his strength was notable. "I was able to do shoulder presses with over 200 pounds when I was only weighing maybe 175, and at age 19 I bench-pressed 405 in a local meet."
Robert never stopped training, except for a brief period when he immigrated to Connecticut at age 21. He capitalized on his incredible shoulder power and built further bulk by entering strongman competitions. "The events I was the best at were all ones that strong shoulders and arms helped with; the Atlas stones, the tire flip, and the log press." But Robert's true passion was bodybuilding, so he never competed in Strongman competitions beyond regional events. "I love being strong and lifting heavy weights, but to me it's always been part of building the best physique I can," he shares. "I never wanted to just be a big, bulky strong guy."
We asked Burneika to talk about what he does for those boulder shoulders.
Overhead Presses
Robert is a free-weight guy. He always starts his shoulder workouts with a barbell or dumbbell press. On seated military presses with a barbell, he's done 405 for 4 reps. He prefers dumbbells and has pressed a pair of 180s for 8 reps. Close to contest time he often uses a Hammer or Smith machine for his presses, working up to four plates a side. On any press, Robert warms up with 2 or 3 sets of 12-15 reps before moving on to 3 progressively heavier sets of 8-10 reps.
One reason dumbbells are his usual choice is that until fairly recently, when he teamed up with MD's ownDennis Wolf in the gym, Robert trained on his own. He wouldn't even ask for a spot! "With the weights I handle, I know most guys don't want to spot me anyway," he says. "The great thing about dumbbells is that if I ever got stuck, I could just drop them. I was stuck under a 550-pound bench press last year in the gym and had to get it off by myself. It was not fun, and it was a good thing I didn't have collars on the end of the bars." The slight pec tear he suffered as a result was enough to make that the last time he benched heavy without a spotter.
Lateral Raises
Presses build the general bulk of the shoulders, but lateral raises isolate the medial head of the muscle for that round, "capped" look. Robert alternates from week to week doing seated or standing dumbbell raises. He does the same 3 or 4 sets, but the reps are a little higher now at 12. If he's standing, Burneika can work up to 80s, and on the stricter, seated version he typically doesn't go any heavier than a pair of 65s or 70s.
Front Raises
To make the most of his anterior delts, Burneika usually does alternating front dumbbell raises, progressing from 80 to 90 and finally 100s for 12 reps for each arm. "At other workouts I will also do these with a plate instead," he says. "It's just a different feel and a change of pace."
Rear Laterals
No great set of shoulders would be complete without well-developed rear delts. As with the side raises, he modified the exercise slightly to suit his own structure. "I feel a much better contraction if I point my elbows angled toward the back, and also by turning my hands so my thumbs face in toward my torso."
He also often supersets the dumbbell version with a machine. "I want a good pump and burn back there because it's important for me to balance my rear delts with my front delts. I am so strong on chest and shoulder pressing that if I'm not careful, my rear delts would fall behind very quickly and become a weak point."
Shrugs
For traps, Robert relies on dumbbell shrugs and works up to the heaviest pair of dumbbells in the gym-180s. "I stop at the very top and squeeze my traps- these are not little bouncy reps that many guys do." His massive, bulging traps nearly touch his ears, so you know his method is working.
Next Up: Preparation for the Big One
Robert is setting his sights on the IFBB Mr. Olympia in Vegas. More mass in the hams and back and greater overall detail and separation are his goals now as he enters his first off-season as a pro. One thing's for sure- nobody is going to dominate Robert Burneika on shoulders or arms!
You've Got 5 Weeks to Get in Shape
For the past few years, the NPC Nationals has been held in late November, so most athletes plan on that. But this year it got moved up over a month, to the middle of October. Few people were probably as affected by that schedule change as Robert Burneika. "My wife only gets one vacation a year, and my cousin was getting married in Lithuania, so we booked a three-week trip for early September."
It was a week in Lithuania, a second week lounging around the Greek island of Crete being a beach bum, and another week in Lithuania. Since Robert had hoped to get his pro card back in July at the USA, he hadn't even planned on doing the Nationals again. So by the time he knew he had to do it and saw that the date had been bumped up, he realized he would only have five weeks to get ready for it.
"I wasn't going to get fat over in Europe or anything, but I knew it would be impossible to stay on a perfect diet and training regimen over there too," he said. "Plus, it's the only vacation Katherine gets every year, so I couldn't ruin it by being in contest prep."
Luckily, Burneika wasn't too out of shape- and came back home at a pretty hard 275 pounds. He still might be chasing a pro card, though- had it not been for the assistance of MD's own IFBB Pro Guru,George Farah. "The very end is where I have trouble for a contest," Robert explained. "I actually looked great right before the USA this year when I got fourth, but in the last couple of days I was getting softer and didn't know what to do. This time for the Nationals, George took me on right after the weigh-ins and guided me into my best condition ever. I was also the lightest I've been in years at 246, but people told me I looked bigger because the condition was crisper. Now I will be working with George 100 percent for my next prep. I am very grateful for his help, and he really knows what he's doing."
Contest History
1997 Lithuanian Championships: 5th, Juniors
2006 NPC Northeast Tournament of Champions: 2nd, Heavyweights
2006 NPC East Coast Championships: Super Heavyweight Winner
2006 NPC Eastern USA: Super Heavyweight Winner
2008 NPC USA: 7th, Super Heavyweights
2008 IFBB North American: 6th, Super Heavyweights
2009 NPC USA: 3rd, Super Heavyweights
2009 NPC Nationals: 2nd, Super Heavyweights
2010 NPC USA: 4th, Super Heavyweights
2010 NPC Nationals: Super Heavyweight and Overall
2011 IFBB Mr. Olympia: 16th
2011 IFBB Tijuana Pro: 7th
2011 IFBB New York Pro: 5th
2011 IFBB Mr. Olympia: 16th
2013 IFBB EVL's Prague Pro: 16th
Sample Training Split
Day One: Chest and triceps
Day Two: Quads and calves
Day Three: Back and biceps
Day Four: Shoulders, traps, and forearms
Day Five: Hams and calves
*Rest days are taken as needed. Robert may train two or three days before taking a day off, or he may train five days in a row at times. He changes his split approximately every two to three months as well.
Weights and Measurements
Height: 5'9"
Weight: 250-310
Chest: 56"
Arms: 24"
Quads: 32"
Waist: 34"
With IFBB Pro Robert Burneika
Meant to Have Monster Delts
Burneika began working on his shoulders at age 14 in the attic gym of his Alytus, Lithuania home. He made his own bodybuilding equipment out of scrap metal- including train wheels and part of a Russian tank. The teenager trained his heart out even when the temperature dropped below freezing, and he had to bundle up in a heavy coat, hat and gloves.
By the time he moved on to his first real gym at age 18 in nearby Aludof, his strength was notable. "I was able to do shoulder presses with over 200 pounds when I was only weighing maybe 175, and at age 19 I bench-pressed 405 in a local meet."
Robert never stopped training, except for a brief period when he immigrated to Connecticut at age 21. He capitalized on his incredible shoulder power and built further bulk by entering strongman competitions. "The events I was the best at were all ones that strong shoulders and arms helped with; the Atlas stones, the tire flip, and the log press." But Robert's true passion was bodybuilding, so he never competed in Strongman competitions beyond regional events. "I love being strong and lifting heavy weights, but to me it's always been part of building the best physique I can," he shares. "I never wanted to just be a big, bulky strong guy."
We asked Burneika to talk about what he does for those boulder shoulders.
Overhead Presses
One reason dumbbells are his usual choice is that until fairly recently, when he teamed up with MD's ownDennis Wolf in the gym, Robert trained on his own. He wouldn't even ask for a spot! "With the weights I handle, I know most guys don't want to spot me anyway," he says. "The great thing about dumbbells is that if I ever got stuck, I could just drop them. I was stuck under a 550-pound bench press last year in the gym and had to get it off by myself. It was not fun, and it was a good thing I didn't have collars on the end of the bars." The slight pec tear he suffered as a result was enough to make that the last time he benched heavy without a spotter.
Lateral Raises
Front Raises
To make the most of his anterior delts, Burneika usually does alternating front dumbbell raises, progressing from 80 to 90 and finally 100s for 12 reps for each arm. "At other workouts I will also do these with a plate instead," he says. "It's just a different feel and a change of pace."
Rear Laterals
No great set of shoulders would be complete without well-developed rear delts. As with the side raises, he modified the exercise slightly to suit his own structure. "I feel a much better contraction if I point my elbows angled toward the back, and also by turning my hands so my thumbs face in toward my torso."
He also often supersets the dumbbell version with a machine. "I want a good pump and burn back there because it's important for me to balance my rear delts with my front delts. I am so strong on chest and shoulder pressing that if I'm not careful, my rear delts would fall behind very quickly and become a weak point."
Shrugs
Next Up: Preparation for the Big One
Robert is setting his sights on the IFBB Mr. Olympia in Vegas. More mass in the hams and back and greater overall detail and separation are his goals now as he enters his first off-season as a pro. One thing's for sure- nobody is going to dominate Robert Burneika on shoulders or arms!
You've Got 5 Weeks to Get in Shape
For the past few years, the NPC Nationals has been held in late November, so most athletes plan on that. But this year it got moved up over a month, to the middle of October. Few people were probably as affected by that schedule change as Robert Burneika. "My wife only gets one vacation a year, and my cousin was getting married in Lithuania, so we booked a three-week trip for early September."
It was a week in Lithuania, a second week lounging around the Greek island of Crete being a beach bum, and another week in Lithuania. Since Robert had hoped to get his pro card back in July at the USA, he hadn't even planned on doing the Nationals again. So by the time he knew he had to do it and saw that the date had been bumped up, he realized he would only have five weeks to get ready for it.
"I wasn't going to get fat over in Europe or anything, but I knew it would be impossible to stay on a perfect diet and training regimen over there too," he said. "Plus, it's the only vacation Katherine gets every year, so I couldn't ruin it by being in contest prep."
Luckily, Burneika wasn't too out of shape- and came back home at a pretty hard 275 pounds. He still might be chasing a pro card, though- had it not been for the assistance of MD's own IFBB Pro Guru,George Farah. "The very end is where I have trouble for a contest," Robert explained. "I actually looked great right before the USA this year when I got fourth, but in the last couple of days I was getting softer and didn't know what to do. This time for the Nationals, George took me on right after the weigh-ins and guided me into my best condition ever. I was also the lightest I've been in years at 246, but people told me I looked bigger because the condition was crisper. Now I will be working with George 100 percent for my next prep. I am very grateful for his help, and he really knows what he's doing."
Contest History
2006 NPC Northeast Tournament of Champions: 2nd, Heavyweights
2006 NPC East Coast Championships: Super Heavyweight Winner
2006 NPC Eastern USA: Super Heavyweight Winner
2008 NPC USA: 7th, Super Heavyweights
2008 IFBB North American: 6th, Super Heavyweights
2009 NPC USA: 3rd, Super Heavyweights
2009 NPC Nationals: 2nd, Super Heavyweights
2010 NPC USA: 4th, Super Heavyweights
2010 NPC Nationals: Super Heavyweight and Overall
2011 IFBB Mr. Olympia: 16th
2011 IFBB Tijuana Pro: 7th
2011 IFBB New York Pro: 5th
2011 IFBB Mr. Olympia: 16th
2013 IFBB EVL's Prague Pro: 16th
Sample Training Split
Day One: Chest and triceps
Day Two: Quads and calves
Day Three: Back and biceps
Day Four: Shoulders, traps, and forearms
Day Five: Hams and calves
*Rest days are taken as needed. Robert may train two or three days before taking a day off, or he may train five days in a row at times. He changes his split approximately every two to three months as well.
Weights and Measurements
Height: 5'9"
Weight: 250-310
Chest: 56"
Arms: 24"
Quads: 32"
Waist: 34"
