Building an attractive, ripped body

13:39 / Posted by kreid / comments (2)

Most people know that they need to lift weights to build muscles. But many guys want to have muscle tone and an attractive body, without looking huge, so they just lift light weights with high repetitions.

Unfortunately, this is not going to work. Getting a ripped body is a two-step process. First, build up your muscles with intense training. Second, cut fat from your body to shrink-wrap your muscles, giving that striated, ripped look. That's really all muscle tone is - you are able to see the shape of the muscles throught the skin.

To get nice muscle tone and build an attractive muscular body, you need to commit to a regular training routine, with good nutrition before and after the fat-burning phases. Here are some muscle building tips that you can incorporate into your workouts. (Before you commence weight training, remember to warm up and as well as doing some stretching exercises.)

Train Muscle With Free Weights

Machines have their uses, but for a start, concentrate on free weights. That means working almost exclusively with barbells and dumb bells. Free weights force your body to use many stabilizing muscles for balance and coordination. That means you will work a larger overall area than the "big" muscle groups. This is essential to giving you a balanced, symettrical, sexy look. In other words, it will give rise to little bumps, striations and definitions all over your body instead of one big lump of muscle on your intended muscle. Because of the extra nutrients created, your muscles will grow faster too. (Why else do you think all professional body builders almost exclusively use free weights?)

Train With Compound Exercises

Incorporate as many compound exercises as possible to your exercise schedule. Compound exercises are exercises that involve 2 or more joint movements. They utilize more joints, which means greater muscle mass is involved. Using more muscles means you can lift heavier weights. This in turn encourages greater muscle growth - enhancing your muscle tone even further.

Some excellent compound exercises are Squats, Lunges, Deadlifts, Dips, Pull ups, Bench press, Barbell Press, Bent-Over Barbell Row. I'm thinking of writing about each one of these exercises in future posts - let me know if that's what you'd like to see.

High Intensity Training

Intense, hard training is key to muscle growth. Try to do more reps than your previous session, or lift more weight.

Every time you train hard, you give your body time to recover and rebuild itself bigger and stronger. Your muscles grow when you rest, particularly during sleep (not in the gym). So get enough sleep. Do not train every day or work the same muscle group more than once or twice a week. For vigorous, intense exercise, do no more than one hour per session.

Try not to do cardio work on the same day as your weight lifting work, as aerobic exercises are not conducive to muscle growth. You can increase your cardio work at the fat-burning phase, cutting this fat is key to getting ripped.

Technique And Form

Poor technique not only compromises your muscle growth; it will also make you prone to injury.

This usually happens when people try to lift weights that are too heavy, whether out of vanity or ignorance. As a guide, always lift with strict focus on the muscle you intend to work on for that exercise. Feel it contract and relax. Lift the weights smoothly and slowly without jerking. Never swing your weights up especially when doing bicep curls or the military press.

To Build Muscles Fast You Must Perform Lower Body Exercises

Your lower body makes up 60% of your muscle mass. If you don't train these muscles, not only will you look chicken-legged, your entire body will not grow as quickly and as large. Don't think that you can hide those skinny limbs in pants! Most people do not train their legs because squats, dead lifts and lunges are grueling exercises. But it is precisely because of such intensity that you will produce more growth hormones when you sleep and overall muscular development is stimulated. Your body shape will also be more balanced and therefore more attractive.

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kr
website: FitnessForRealMen - proven muscle and strength training techniques; fitness and nutrition tips

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Are running shoes causing injuries?

23:14 / Posted by kreid / comments (3)

Thinking of buying that pair of $150 running shoes you've had your eye on? You may want to think again.

I'm posting a link to a popular mechanics article that suggests modern running shoes are causing more harm than good. Personally, I've always bought cheap running shoes, as I felt that expensive ones are a waste of money. I mean, how can it be natual to run on top of a cushion of air, or an inch of rubber.

There have been other studies showing that gymnasts pick up fewer injuries when landing on a hard mat, as opposed to a sprung or cushioned one (I can't find it, so I'll leave that bit of searching up to you - please comment if you find it).

From what I remember, the reasoning was that the brain senses the first touch on the mat through the sensitive nerves on soles of the feet, and expects a hard surface. I suppose it's like when you think you're at the bottom step of a flight of stairs, but there's one more to go. That can be a painful experience. But, as we all know, the force exerted on your ankles during running can be more than 6 times your bodyweight. I think we can all see the potential for injury there.

Anyway, I was glad to see some scientific research related to this subject. Take a look at the article I linked to and let me know your thoughts in the comments.

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kr
website: FitnessForRealMen - proven muscle and strength training techniques; fitness and nutrition tips

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Unconventional six pack ab training

20:52 / Posted by kreid / comments (0)

One of the most desired bodily features is a toned set of abdominal muscles. Six pack abs can really improve the look of your whole body. There are two main ways to tone your abdominal muscles. First, you can do abdominal exercises such as crunches and situps. Secondly, you can use machines such as the balance ball or rowing machines.

However, the traditional regime of situps and abdominal crunches is monotonous and uninspiring. In this article I outline a number of unconventional exercises that can help you achieve a toned stomach area whilst having fun at the same time.


- Number one. The Bicycle. This is a great abdominal exercise. To begin you lay down flat on your back. You then place your hands behind your head with your fingers laced together, bring your knees to your chest and rotate them at close to 45 degrees (like you are peddling a bicycle). As you do this touch your right elbow to your left knee and vice versa.

- Next, another great exercise is Hindu Pushups. You begin on your hands and knees with your legs spread wide and your rear end pushed up. Next you bend your elbows (like you are doing a pushup) and bring your back down in an arc. Then straighten your arms so your back arches upwards with your hips just above the ground.

Both of these exercises should add some variety to your usual adominal exercise routine. However, if you are still looking to spice up your abdominal workout you could try implementing some machines. Below are a number of ideas for using machines to tone your abdominals:

- The Balance Ball - highly versatile and improves your core stability. This exercises both your stomach muscles and the rest of your body. To stay balanced on the ball your abdominal muscles need to remain tight, a task which is often a lot more difficult than people think. Try spreading your feet on the ground for balance, leaning back on the ball and doing half-crunches. Do chest presses while sitting on the ball - you will find it difficult to balance, but it's easy to pick up and really strengthens your core muscles. Ankle weights can make it easier to keep your feet on the ground if you find the balancing diffcult.

- The Rowing Machine primarily works your shoulders, forearms, biceps, triceps and legs. However, due to the position you have to maintain whilst seated on the machine it also gives your abs a great workout and helps tone and strengthen them.

- The Red Exerciser is a relatively new piece of equipment which keeps the upper body still, allowing you to oscillate the lower body using your abdominal muscles. If you train with the Red Exerciser frequently you will start to notice impressive results.

However you decide to exercise your abdominal muscles I hope that this article has proved useful to you. Variety in your abdominal workouts is a good idea because it prevents you from getting bored with your routine. Also, doing different exercises will keep working your abdominal muscles in different ways and help give them more tone and definition.

Remember to also try and eat healthily, incorporating lots of vegetables, fibre and protein-rich foods into your diet. Also try to consume plenty of water. Finally, make sure that you perform some cardiovascular exercise. Doing this will reduce your body fat, allowing your stomach muscles to stand out more. Keep it up and you will have the abs you've always dreamed of in no time at all.

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kr
website: FitnessForRealMen - proven muscle and strength training techniques; fitness and nutrition tips

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How to build an awesome back

20:37 / Posted by kreid / comments (0)

Writing is one of my favorite things in the world. I love to impart knowledge to people who are truly looking to sort through the maze of misinformation out there on health and fitness and learn how to achieve optimal health and enjoy a much higher quality of life. Trust me people. You will enjoy everything in your life better when you are healthy. Give yourself the gift of good health!


In this article I am going to tell you exactly what I do for my back. I do four exercises on my back day.

1) Machine Shoulder Shrugs
I get a tight grip on the handles and keep my arms straight and imagine they are bars. Standing straight up and holding the grips with my arms straight down at my sides, I shrug with my traps to lift the bars up as far as I can. I do not try to pull it up with my arms. All of my focus is my traps doing the work. Then slowly lower bars and relax your traps and repeat.

2) Machine Close Grip Row
The machine makes you assume the proper position. Sitting down and bracing your chest against the pad, reach forward and grab the handles. Keeping your back straight use your back muscles to pull the bars toward your midsection. Once again do not use your arms to the handles. Bring to your body then slowly let bars return to starting position and repeat.

3) Lower Back Machine
Sit in machine with knees bent and feet on platform, back resting against pad. Smoothly and slowly push back the back pad with your rigid back to the full range of motion of the machine. Slowly let the back pad return to original position and repeat.

4) Cable Machine Wide Grip Pulldown
Sit on the bench and reach up and grab bars with a wide grip. Use your back to pull the bar down in front of you to your chin level. Once again think of your arms as bars. Slowly let bar raise up until your arms are extended fully again and repeat.

I use an advanced pyramid routine, 3 sets pyramiding upward in weight for each exercise, with the corresponding number of repetitions decreasing. I also switch the order of the four exercises each week to keep my muscles shocked into growing.

Example: 1st set 3 plates a side for 12 reps
2nd set 4 plates a side for 10 reps
3rd set 5 plates a side for 8 reps

To maintain progress and strength in any weight training program, each muscle group should be worked out at least once a week. It is important to work out all of your muscles each week, not just certain ones. When you start a weight training program, there will be a trial-and-error period where you will learn what poundage to use for each exercise. No matter what your goals, your resistance should be such that the last repetition of each set is all you can do. As a general rule of thumb, you should exhaust the muscle after performing ten to twelve repetitions of one exercise. If you do not, then you should increase the weight. Learn the correct weight for you.

The gym is not a contest to see who can throw around the most weight and impress people. It is about using the right amount of weight per exercise to make your body grow and to build lean muscle and burn fat. Learn the science of weight training and really make your time in the gym as productive as it can possibly be!

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/muscle-building-articles/how-to-grow-an-awesome-back-300362.html

About the Author:
Rico Connor is a 53 year old self-taught health and fitness expert, author, bodybuilder, and business entrepreneur. His web site is http://www.totalhealth4life.net features his eBook: Total Health For Life, Mind & Body, What the Diet and Fitness Gurus Forgot to Tell You

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kr
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A beginner's guide to weight training

12:40 / Posted by kreid / comments (0)

Bodybuilding is simply the process of increasing the muscle mass of the body and decreasing the amount of fatty tissue in the body. This is accomplished through the use of Progressive Resistance Training. Progressive resistance simply means to progressively use heavier weights as your muscles get stronger.

Increasing resistance is possible due to the body's ability to adapt to stress by becoming stronger in response to the stimulus of exercise. Simply put, when you work a muscle hard, the fibers are actually damaged or broken down and the body responds by repairing the muscle and making it slightly bigger and stronger to prepare for the work to be repeated. If the work (exercise) is repeated frequently (with enough rest in between for the repair process to take place) with increased resistance each time, theoretically, the muscle will get progressively larger and stronger. That is the basis of bodybuilding weight training.

It is a simple process, but there are many variables that can affect how fast and how much the muscle will grow. These factors include, but are not limited to, the following:

Nutrition

Rest

Intensity of workouts

Frequency of workouts

Nutrition is a huge part of successful bodybuilding. I recommend educating yourself on the topics of nutrition and supplements. One way to keep informed in this area is to subscribe to a good Bodybuilding magazine such as Flex or Muscle & Fitness. Both of these fine bodybuilding magazines have many great articles each month dealing with diet, nutrition and supplements.

Rest is another important area to consider. In this day and age, it is not unusual to get less than 6 hours of sleep a night for a lot of people. I recommend trying to get at least 8 hours if at all possible, even if you need to take a nap! Your body does most of it's growing as you sleep, so get all you can!

Workout intensity is something that entire books have been written on. I recommend reading up on this topic as well. Flex and Muscle & Fitness deal with this topic in depth. Basically you need to find the right amount of intensity to trigger muscle growth. When a bodybuilder is just starting out, it does not take much to trigger new muscle growth. However, the body will quickly adapt to repeated stress and this can cause muscle growth to slow or stop all together. When this occurs, bodybuilders refer to it as a "plateau". This is when changes to workout intensity must occur. The muscle must be subjected to a new kind of stress that it is not used to in order to stimulate new growth. Fortunately, there are many methods of changing the workout intensity, but that is beyond the scope of this article.

Frequency of workouts is something that will vary from bodybuilder to bodybuilder. Some bodybuilders workout every day and some only 3 days per week. You will have to experiment with this to determine what works best for you. You must give your muscles enough of a break between workouts to repair themselves, but you don't want to wait too long between workouts or you will not get maximum results.

Getting Started

First and foremost, check with your physician to make sure you are in good physical condition to start a weight lifting or bodybuilding program! I recommend that beginners to bodybuilding start with a simple workout plan. This plan should consist of one exercise per bodypart, working the entire body 3 times per week.

Bodyparts are divided as follows:

Chest (pecs)

Back (lats)

Shoulders (delts)

Triceps (back of upper arm)

Biceps (front of upper arm)

Forearms Abdominals (abs)

Quadriceps (front of thigh)

Hamstrings (back of thigh)

Calves (back of lower leg)

Here is an example of a workout:

Bench press

Lat pulldowns

Military Press

Tricep pushdowns

Barbell curls

Crunches

Leg extensions

Leg curls

Standing Calf raises

You should start out each exercise with a warm up set. For this set, choose a relatively light weight that will allow you to do 25 reps without killing yourself. This will get your muscles ready for heavier weights. Then do 3 sets of each exercise of 8-10 repetitions.

For your first set, choose a weight that will allow you to 10 reps without struggling too much. Rest for 30-60 seconds, then increase the weight for your second set that makes 10 reps considerably harder. For your third set, choose a weight that is heavy enough that you cannot do any more than 8-10 reps no matter how hard you try. This is called muscular failure. You must take your muscles to the point of failure or they will not grow. It is at this point that your muscles will be triggered to grow because they are being asked to do something they never did before and their natural response is to become stronger.

Write the weights down for each exercise so you know where you are for the next workout.

It will take a bit of trial and error until you find the correct weight in each exercise. Be sure to take care when you first start out not to load the bar up with some ridiculous weight that may cause injury to your muscles, tendons, or your foot when you drop it!

As time goes on and you are diligently following your training program, you will notice that when you get to rep number 10 on your last set, you feel like you can do one or two more. This is good! Continue the set for eleven or twelve total repetitions. When you are able to do this for 2 or 3 workouts in a row, it is time to increase the weight in that particular exercise.

If you are training a relatively large muscle group, such as chest or quads, you may try increasing the weight by 10 or 15 pounds. If you are doing biceps or delts, then maybe increase only 5 pounds or even 2.5 pounds. The new weight should limit you to 7 or 8 reps on the last set. Soon you will be back up to 12 with the new weight, and then you will bump the weight up even more. These increases are what you are working so hard for. Increased weight means increased strength, which means increased muscle mass!

Make sure you take good notes as you work out. This is very important for several reasons. First, you may not remember what weight you used in a particular exercise the next time you workout, and you will waste time and effort having to figure it out again! Second, you need be able to gauge your progress as time goes on. When you see that you are using 10 or 15 more pounds than you did a month ago, you know your strength is increasing and this is great feedback! I recommend getting a good training journal, but you can use any pad of paper. Create a space for the following data for each workout:

Date

Muscle Group worked

Exercise name

Number of sets

Number of reps in each set

Weight used each set

Personal Notes

Write things down that may have a positive or negative affect on your workout, such as energy level, whether you were tired or still sore from your last workout, or maybe your left shoulder has been bothering you, etc. If you are detailed here, you may be able to learn some important clues as to what makes you have a good workout verses an "ok" workout. Maybe you'll find that when you workout right after work you have more energy than when you wait until 8 o'clock. Or maybe certain foods you eat before a workout help you with your energy and focus. Write down if you have a cold, or if you are recovering from an injury, or if any particular exercise hurts you when you do it. These notes will come in handy sooner or later in the course of your bodybuilding program.

Use this program for 4-6 months and you should see some real progress. At that time, you may want to start to include some advanced techniques to increase your workout intensity in order to continue making good gains.

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kr
website: FitnessForRealMen - proven muscle and strength training techniques; fitness and nutrition tips

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Get fit by eating well

14:39 / Posted by kreid / comments (1)

Staying fit and losing some pounds can be a daunting task for men. Finding the right diet can be a tentative balance. However, men may be surprised to hear that they can still maintain a good weight without giving up their favorite foods. Here are a set of no-nonsense tips that will have guys looking good and feeling great (without the hunger pains):

1. Try eating several small meals throughout the day. This keeps your metabolism going.

2. Don’t starve and then binge. Skipping meals could end up promoting more fat storage and lowering your metabolism due to fluctuating insulin and sugar levels.

3. Set regular mealtimes and stick with them. Once your body comes to expect a meal at the same time everyday, it’s easier to avoid sudden cravings and snack attacks.

4. When hunger strikes, make sure you’ve got some healthy snack options available to you (this is a great way to get in your 5-9 servings a day of fruits and vegetables).

5. Protein is more filling than carbohydrates and usually has fewer calories, so be sure to include fish, lean beef and pork, white-meat poultry, eggs, nuts and beans in your diet.

6. Reduce serving sizes and eat a wider variety of food. Don’t deny yourself your favorite foods…just consume them in moderation.

7. Avoid drinks that contain calories and stick to water instead. Many men don’t realize that beverages are often loaded with empty calories and don’t accommodate for them with their meals.

8. One simple way to avoid packing on calories is to use more spices in your food and less condiments like mayonnaise, butter and sour cream.

9. Eat slowly so your body gets a chance to register the food and you won’t end up eating more than you should. Eat until you feel satisfied; not stuffed.
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kr
website: FitnessForRealMen - proven muscle and strength training techniques; fitness and nutrition tips

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How to build big biceps

00:26 / Posted by kreid / comments (0)

How To Build Big Biceps

Wish mine looked like this (kidding!)

The “Guns.” The “Pythons.” “Thunder” and “Lighting.” The “Rockweillers.” There is no other muscle group that has earned more nicknames than when describing a bulging and huge set of bicep! Bulging biceps - every guy wants them. Count me in this group.

The days are far from gone when you walk into the gym and see 9 out of 10 guys doing bicep curls all at the same time with the same determination to add even ¼ inch to their biceps. Training biceps has become almost an ‘obsessive addiction’ in the gym. I have seen guys do bicep curls in between sets just so they can ’see’ a little bit of a pump in their arms. I have seen guys spend an entire hour bent over doing concentration curls while starring in the mirror. I have seen guys take weights on vacation so that they can do some bicep curls at their hotel before they go into the club! I have seen guys spend longer amounts of times shopping for t-shirts than girls shopping for a blouse with the hope that one of these shirts will make his arms look ‘good.’

Someone disagree with me that bicep training has become an unhealthy ‘obsessive addiction.’ for many. In the “Skinny Arms” defense, the allure of peaked, mountainous biceps will never go away. Why should it? The ‘guns’ are of a man’s most prized possession and one of many women’s most desired body parts on a man (of course)!

My question is if 9 out 10 guys are obsessed with seeing their biceps grow and dedicate so much of their workout volume to isolating their biceps and using every technique from forced reps, drop sets, and 21’s which are ‘promised’ to be the most effective methods confirmed by pro bodybuilders, why do they still have little to show for their efforts?

Let’s examine five of the most common problems with bicep training before I offer a step-by-step program to take your bicep peak to new heights.


Problem #1 with bicep training – More is not always better

If doing 4 sets is better than 3 sets, why don’t you just do 10 sets? Even better, why don’t you just train them all day? It has been said before, but it obviously needs to be said again: “Less is often more.” Especially if you are not gifted with “muscle-friendly” genes.

Your goal of each weight training workout should be to simply ‘out do’ your last workout. Once you achieve this with an extra pound or a few extra reps, then it is time to move to the next exercise. Not to Nazi-torture the muscle for another hour.

I have found this a hard concept for many skinny guys to grasp because they are fixated on the instant gratification of making their biceps ‘look’ big during the workout and not what they look like when they leave the gym, which leads us to our next problem.


Problem #2 with bicep training – Being more obsessed with how they look while you train rather than when you are not training!

Problem #2 ties in with problem #1. The truth is that the longer you train your biceps, even if the weights are not extremely heavy, you can achieve a fairly decent pump that can turn a few heads while in the gym. This attention and perception that you are doing something beneficial is deceiving. Yes, there is something to say about keeping blood in the muscle as long as possible, but if the workout is done with weights that do not overload your muscles and emphasize an increase in strength, your biceps will quickly deflate back to normal with no true muscle growth.


Problem #3 with bicep training – Not focusing on increasing your overall strength

Some of the biggest guys I know rarely even train their arms. What they do though is put a strong emphasis around increasing their chest, back and shoulder strength. If you simply focus on increasing the weights on your rows, pull ups and chin-ups, rest assured that your biceps will come along for the ride and grow proportionally.

However, if you are always blasting and ’smoking’ your biceps, they will always be fatigued when you train your back muscles and, as you should know, you are only as strong as your weakest link. This is another reason to take a lower volume approach to arm training.


Problem #4 with bicep training – Using the same bicep exercises every time

Every pro bodybuilder will put their money on two of the simplest exercises for building huge biceps – barbell curls and dumbbell curls. According to the pros, these two exercises have built more huge guns than any other exercise in the world. I definitely agree that these ’simple’ exercises are a safe foundation to build a program around, but let’s also remember that pro bodybuilders using steroids are going to have a strong response to practically any exercise they do.

I have no problem using these two exercises under one condition – you are getting stronger from week to week. As long as you are increasing the weights and reps relative to perfect form, then your arms should continue growing. Aim to build your barbell curls up to 110 pounds for a few “slow speed” sets and your dumbbell curls up to 50 pounds for a few “slow-speed” sets that involve zero rocking and swaying.

Once you build your barbell curls up to 110 pounds, you will be ready to try these two different angles on the bar. You will have to drop your weights a bit, but stick with these two variations until you build back up to 110 pounds:

Bicep Exercise 1: “Stress” the outer portion of the bi’s by placing your elbows outwards and using a super-close grip.

Bicep Exercise 2: “Stress” the inner portion of the bi’s by taking a super-wide grip on the bar and digging your elbows into your side (and don’t let them move.)

Bicep Exercise 3: To “stress” the brachialis and brachioradialis stick to good old fashioned hammer curls and reverse curls. Don’t underestimate these two exercises in the slightest.


Problem #5 on biceps – Not enough tension on the muscle

I think many weight trainees do not fully grasp the concept of isolating and actually training a muscle. They do not know how to make the muscle work and fatigue. Instead, you see a lot of swinging, momentum and sloppy lifting used to move the weight from every part of the body except the one they are actually trying to train. The biceps have a very strong response to “constant tension,” which means you should never give them a chance to breathe. Keep the bar constantly moving without pausing at the top or bottom. Focus on squeezing the heck out of the bar and never let your biceps relax until the set is over. Your entire goal is to not allow any oxygen into the muscle which creates a spike with your anabolic hormones to promote muscle growth. Resort to a slower 3-0-3 or 4-0-4 tempo to get the job done.


Fitness for Real Men Bicep Prioritization schedule

Weight Training Program Notes: An extra 5 pounds of overall weight should lead to at least an extra inch on your arms. Keep the program going for another 5 weeks and you’ll have a whole extra inch on your arm in about 10 weeks! Then tell all your friends to get tickets for the “Gun Show!”

  • Notice the simplicity of the workout structure. This program will work extremely well for hardgainers. The overall volume might be a little low for someone used to a traditional bodybuilder split program and has more than four years of consistent training.
  • The power of the program is found in the principle of prioritization by sequence on the first pull workout. Notice that your prioritization muscle is being sequenced at the start of the workout and the start of the week. This is happening on purpose. We are intentionally giving your biceps an opportunity to train at their two most “fresh” times – at the start of the week and at the start of the workout.
  • Focusing on increasing overall strength can still be achieved on the second pullworkout where the biceps will not be pre-fatigued.
  • Notice the slow speed movements. Many anabolic hormones are released when your muscles are under constant tension. The tempo’s are set up so that will be forced to move the weight slower and with a greater amount of tension concentrically and eccentrically.
  • On a pull day, 402 would mean: 4 seconds to release the weight, 0 second pause at the bottom and 2 seconds to pull the weight. On a push day, 402 would would mean 4 seconds to lower the weight, 0 second pause at the bottom and 2 seconds to push the weight up.
  • Focus on adding 5-10 pounds to each of your exercises over the course of the next four weeks while keeping the rep ranges and sets the same. It is not necessary to do more sets or more reps. Focus on increasing more weight under the same set, rep, tempo and rest prescription.

Conclusion

Focus on gaining an extra 5 pounds of overall weight this next 5 weeks. That works out to gaining about 2 pounds of dry muscle accompanied by some water and glycogen weight.


By Vince DelMonte

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kr
website: FitnessForRealMen - proven muscle and strength training techniques; fitness and nutrition tips

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