If I could only do ONE Exercise Per Muscle- Upper Body | J3U Podcast Ep. 209

In this episode of the J3 University Podcast, Luke and I break down our top “if you could only pick one” upper body exercises for hypertrophy — and we also call out the most overrated patterns that tend to be less sustainable or less repeatable long-term. We start by laying out what actually makes an exercise “great” (easy to bias the target tissue, highly repeatable, scalable, and sustainable), then work through chest, delts (side + rear), upper back/traps, and lats, including the tradeoffs that come with machine design, handle angles, resistance profiles, and set-up constraints across different body types. We wrap by previewing the next episode where we’ll hit lower body and finish the list.

Drop your questions in the comments — and if you want more videos like this (real training decisions, pros/cons, and how I actually coach exercise selection), make sure you’re subscribed.

🎟️ Save 20% on ANY J3U Program with code J3UPOD
👉 https://j3u.site

All J3U Programs
🏋️‍♀️ Hourglass (Female): https://j3u.site/hourglass
💪 X-Frame (Male & Female): https://j3u.site/xframe
🏆 Olympia Prep: https://j3u.site/olympia

🎓 Courses
Level 1 — Foundations of Evidence-Based Bodybuilding → https://j3u.site/level1
Applied Hypertrophy Optimization → https://j3u.site/aho
Female Physique Module → https://j3u.site/female

🏋️ Get Coaching From J3U
https://j3u.site/coaching

💪 Join the Community
📩 Weekly education emails → https://j3u.site/newsletter
🧠 Coaching forums → https://j3u.site/forum

📸 Follow John
Instagram:   / johnjewett3  

👨‍⚕ Marek Health
Comprehensive blood work analysis and professional medical guidance
10% off your first comprehensive J3U panel + additional markers
Code: J3U
Affiliate link: https://marekhealth.com/J3U

💊 Animal
Performance supplements
20% off with code John20

Chapters
0:00 Top “one exercise” picks for upper body (and what’s overrated)
0:35 What makes an exercise great for hypertrophy (repeatability + sustainability)
3:15 Chest: top press picks and machine tradeoffs
9:42 Chest: what’s overrated (and why bench can be a problem)
11:31 Delts: best side delt + rear delt choices
14:51 Delts: overrated patterns (upright rows + common setup issues)
18:48 Upper back/traps: best row pattern and why it wins long-term
24:20 Upper back/traps: overrated picks (bent-over barbell row sustainability)
27:17 Lats: best pulldown setup (and the handle caveat)
29:45 Lats: most overrated lat pattern (pullover machines)


#bodybuilding #hypertrophy #exerciseselection #chesttraining #shouldertraining #backtraining #lattraining #physiquecoaching #j3university #strengthtraining #evidencebasedtraining #gymeducation