Preface

Information has grown exponentially since the Poliquin Principles was first pub-

lished in 1997. There was valuable information in the original Poliquin Principles,

but as information grew updated editions were needed. Specifically, new discov-

eries in nutrition and functional medicine have led to the development of more

effective supplement protocols. One is the concept of peri-nutrition, in which sup-

plements are used immediately before, during and after a workout.

As with the 2nd edition, this book contains two major sections: Section I defines

the basic principles of resistance training, and Section II shows how to apply these

principles to training major body parts. The sets and reps chapter for this edition

was divided into two separate chapters, and likewise the nutrition chapter was di-

vided into two chapters, one on nutrition and one on supplements.

We know more today than ever. It’s been estimated that the amount of information

doubles every 18 months, and we’ve had to adjust our theories within that same

time frame. That’s why we decided it was time for this new edition of the Poliquin

Principles.
Weightlifting Action Photos: Bruce Klemens

ISBN: 978-0-9826086-7-8

Copyright © 2016, Poliquin Performance Center 2, LLC. All rights reserved.

First Edition, 1997 Second Edition, 2013, Third Edition 2016

All materials, content and forms contained on or in this publication are the

intellectual property of Poliquin Performance Center 2, LLC, and may not be

copied, reproduced, distributed or displayed without the express written

permission of Poliquin Performance Center 2, LLC.

Poliquin Performance Center 2, LLC, does not warrant, either expressly or implied,

the accuracy, timeliness, or appropriateness of the information contained in this

publication. Poliquin Performance Center 2, LLC, disclaims any responsibility for

content errors, omissions, or infringing material and disclaims any responsibility

associated with relying on the information provided in this publication. Poliquin

Performance Center 2, LLC, also disclaims all liability for any material contained in

other publications.
Warning: Before beginning any exercise program, consult with your physician to

ensure that you are in proper health. This book is not meant to provide medical

advice; you should obtain medical advice from your private health care practitioner.

No liability is assumed by the Poliquin Group for any of the information contained

herein.
Contents

Preface 3

Introduction 6

SECTION 1: Defining the Poliquin Principles 8

Chapter 1: Reps 9

Chapter 2: Sets 16

Chapter 3: Tempo 23

Chapter 4: Rest Intervals 33

Chapter 5: Frequency, Duration and Volume 51

Chapter 6: Exercise Selection and Exercise Order 69

Chapter 7: Recovery 86

Chapter 8: Advanced Training Methods 96

Chapter 9: The Kaizen Principle 110

SECTION 2:

Applying the Poliquin Principles 117

Chapter 10: Quads 118

Chapter 11: Hamstrings 145

Chapter 12: Calves 171

Chapter 13: Chest 185

Chapter 14: Shoulders 205

Chapter 15: Upper Back 231

Chapter 16: Arms 247

Chapter 17: Abdominals 274

Chapter 18: Nutrition 289

Chapter 19: Supplements 298

Glossary 313

Free Workouts 320

 Introduction

In working with elite-level athletes from a variety of sports, including bodybuilding

and powerlifting, we [the coaching staff of the Poliquin Group] have discovered the

best ways to increase strength and muscle growth in the shortest amount of time.

Sometimes this is accomplished by helping resolve chronic injuries; sometimes

it’s through scientific nutrition and supplementation. The most dramatic changes,

however, usually come from the manipulation of training variables, also known as

loading parameters.

These loading parameters, which are covered in the first six chapters of this book,

include reps, sets, tempo, rest, frequency, duration, volume, exercise selection and

exercise order. Before we begin those discussions, let’s take a brief look at the

evolution of resistance training methods.

Of Bulk and Bunk .

Bodybuilders have been inundated with inadequate and sometimes inaccurate

information. We can’t put all the blame on muscle magazines, as there are some

very good ones, such as Iron Man, but there are many bodybuilding writers who

have promoted training concepts that are simply not accurate. Case in point: Nau-

tilus founder Arthur Jones.

In Nautilus Training Principles: Bulletin No. 1, Jones said bodybuilders must work to

the point of momentary failure to “…reach their individual limits of muscular size

and strength very quickly.” We agree that overload is essential for increasing max-

imal motor unit activation, but we strongly disagree with Jones when he also pro-

claimed that overload “should be done in the performance of sets of at least 6 full

repetitions and not more than 20 full repetitions.” On the contrary, low reps are

essential for achieving maximal growth.

Misinformation regarding exercise physiology is not confined to the bodybuilding

community. Although some outstanding researchers in the US, such as William

Kraemer, Ph.D., produce exceptional research studies, most sports scientists who

study resistance training in the US are limited by factors such as time, scope and

subjects. Untrained college students are often used as subjects, and practical limi-

tations usually require these studies to be completed within a few months. In con-

trast, many of the studies in Norway, Finland and Germany use elite athletes and

span a four-year Olympic cycle. American studies also often lack sufficiently moti-

vated subjects to achieve optimal results and accountability for important training

variables such as lifting tempo and rest between sets.

We have the utmost respect for bodybuilders and the intensity they devote to their

training, but many of their methodologies are scientifically unfounded. Considering

the tremendous amount of new information now available in the Iron Game, we’re

amazed by the prehistoric practices that permeate the practice of building muscle.

Today, there is no excuse for mediocre and inefficient exercise routines.

SECTION 1: Defining the Poliquin Principles

Donald C. Reinhoudt is a four-time IPF World Champion and is the first powerlifter

to exceed 2400 pounds in the total. He broke 40 world records. Without knee

wraps, he squatted 934 pounds; he also bench pressed 607.4 pounds and

deadlifted 885.5 pounds.

Chapter 1: Reps

Pyrros Dimas is a three-time Olympic champion from Greece. His best lifts include

a 398-pound snatch and a 473-pound clean and jerk in the 187-pound bodyweight

class.
When it comes to lifting weights, the first question bodybuilders ask is “How

much?” The second question, which influences the first, is “How many?” The ac-

cepted wisdom of a few years ago dictated 8-10 reps. However, just as a lot of peo-

ple believe that old adage about needing eight glasses of water a day (which, by the

way, has never been scientifically proven), everyone accepts this “magic” number

range without questioning who arrived at it or how.

First of all, there is no magic number. As you’ll learn, repetition protocols should

change depending on the condition of the athlete, the nature of the exercise and

the goal. Learning a little about the principles behind repetition prescriptions will

give you a better idea of how to apply these principles to your own workouts.

The following general principles about rep selection are based upon scientific re-

search as well as practical, empirical evidence from work with elite athletes.

Follow the Neural-Metabolic Continuum

The amount of weight you lift in relation to your one-repetition maximum (1RM)

determines how much tension a muscle produces. The preponderance of credible

research and empirical evidence shows the level of tension imposed upon a mus-

cle is a critical factor in obtaining a strength or hypertrophy response.

The number of reps you select will influence all other loading parameters: sets,

speed of contraction, rest intervals and even exercise selection. The bottom line?

Strength researchers have found that reps in the 1-to-5 range maximally increase

strength with minimal gains in muscle mass, and reps in the 6-to-12 range maxi-

mally increase strength through muscle mass gains (Table 1).

Table 1
Extreme muscle mass is one of the primary goals in bodybuilding, but that doesn’t

mean bodybuilders should never perform low reps. Low reps with heavy weights

are the only way to stimulate the development of the Type IIb muscle fibers, which

are the fast-twitch fibers that have the highest potential for growth. Another benefit

of low-rep training is that when you come off a cycle of low reps, you will be able to

use heavier weights. Heavier weights create a higher level of muscle tension, which

in turn leads to a greater growth response. Mike Payette, a former Mr. Canada who

became a professional wrestler, performed 40 percent of his exercises in the 4-rep

range.

Let the Reps Dictate the Weight

Maximal voluntary contractions occur when you attempt to recruit as many motor

units as possible to develop force; in fact, you must periodically force yourself to

use maximal voluntary contractions to get results. This condition is the physio-

logical basis of what is commonly referred to as the overload principle: If you do

not apply overload to your muscles, there is no reason for your muscles to become

bigger or stronger. (The exceptions are beginners and rehab patients, whose

strength levels are so low that training to momentary failure is not necessary to

achieve optimal results.)

When you plan your workouts, determine the desired training effect and select a

repetition bracket to suit that goal. If you want to gain size, as a general guideline

you would select a weight that enables you to complete a set of between 6 and 12

reps. If you complete only 5 reps, the weight is too heavy. If you can do more than

12 reps, the weight is too light.

The need to allow the reps to dictate the weight is a problem with some comput-

erized workout programs. Most computer workout programs determine what you

should lift for each workout by taking a percentage of your 1RM in each exercise.

However, the 1RM continuum varies greatly from one muscle group to another,

and as you can see from Table 2, different studies produce different results.

Because so many factors affect your strength at any given time, plugging yourself

into a computer-generated program based upon a one-rep max may compromise

the quality of the workout. If you’re feeling subpar, the weights will be too heavy;

and if you’re feeling great, the weights will be too light, leading to plenty of frus-

tration.
Table 2 © Poliquin & Léger, 1991

Determine Muscle Fiber Composition

A muscle with a high percentage of slow-twitch fibers responds best to higher reps.

Let’s look at how this concept applies to training the calves and hamstrings.

The calf consists primarily of two muscles, the two-head gastrocnemius and the

one located under it called the soleus. The gastrocnemius contains predominantly

fast-twitch fibers and responds best to lower reps. In contrast, the soleus contains

predominantly slow-twitch fibers and responds best to reps in the 15-25 range (to

give sufficient time under tension for these fibers to hypertrophy). Now let’s look

at the hamstrings.
Sprinters and Olympic-style weightlifters often have much better development of

the hamstrings than bodybuilders. This is because the hamstrings are composed

of primarily fast-twitch fibers, and to access these fibers you must train them at a

high intensity level.

One practical way to determine muscle fiber type, and we must credit Arthur Jones

for this idea, is by seeing how many times you can lift a submaximal weight. This is

partially true. If two trainees have a 1RM of 100 pounds for the barbell curl, the one

who curls 80 pounds only 5 times has more fast-twitch fibers than the person who

can curl the same weight 10 times. Compared to the usual method of determining

fiber type that involves taking painful muscle biopsies, Jones’ test is extremely

convenient for untrained individuals. However, you must understand that you can

skew this relationship by making the body more neurologically efficient (with rela-

tive strength training methods) or less neurologically efficient (with aerobic work).

Consider Exercise Complexity

If an exercise involves multiple joints in a complex skill, such as the Olympic lifts,

excessive reps will produce undesirable technical and motor-learning changes.

When you’re performing more than 6 reps in the power clean, for example, the rela-

tively small rhomboid muscles will tire out first, causing an inefficient change in

lifting technique.
In the 80s, a Division I football strength coach recommended sets of up to 30 reps

in the power clean. His team had won a national championship at the time, so this

outcome is evidence that a scientifically sound weight training program is only one

variable contributing to success in college football. Likewise, we are not keen on

boot camp programs that recommend high reps for power snatches, power cleans

and push presses – even with the relatively light weights they use, technique is

often compromised.

With the increased contributions of science to training methodology, the subject of

selecting the appropriate number of reps for your workouts has become very con-

fusing. And because science has not yet provided all the answers, we will continue

to see much variation in training methods. Of course, tackling the subject of repeti-

tions is only part of the solution. You also need to select the appropriate number of

sets.
Chapter 2: Sets

John Kuc was the first powerlifter to squat 900 pounds and total 2300 pounds. He

was also known for his deadlifting ability, lifting 870 pounds at a bodyweight of

242.5 pounds.

Let’s start with a simple definition: a set is a group of consecutive reps. The com-

pletion of a set is signaled by the start of an extended rest period or a change of

exercises. This means that one superset – two exercises for different muscle groups

performed in sequence – equals two sets. One giant set – three exercises for the

same muscle group performed in sequence – equals three sets. Descending sets, in

which virtually no rest time is taken between weight changes, equals just one set.
Although some individuals endorse one-set training, when you apply the previous

definitions you often find their workouts contain extended sets. With extended

sets, the total time the muscle is under tension contributes to the total volume that

elicits a hypertrophy response.

Variables Influencing Set Selection:

A Top 10 List

The overload principle suggests that stronger athletes need more sets; real-life

examples prove multiple-set systems produce faster and greater gains in muscle

mass, strength and power. But there are many other variables to consider when

determining how many sets you should perform in a workout. Here are 10 of them:

1. Number of reps per exercise. Most strength coaches believe there is a minimum

amount of time the muscles must be stimulated for maximum size and strength

gains. Consequently, when training with low reps, you must perform more sets to

attain the optimal volume for strength development. This is illustrated in Figure 1.

Figure 1
2. Number of exercises per training session. The more exercises you perform, the

fewer sets you need to achieve an optimal training effect. If you add exercises to

your workout without reducing the average number of sets per exercise, you may

exceed the optimal time to complete a workout.

3. Training level. One or two sets per exercise are usually enough for beginners

because their training age is low. When we talk about training age, we don’t neces-

sarily mean chronological age; a 17-year-old could be considered advanced, and a

50-year-old could be considered a beginner.

4. Gender. At any given percentage of their maximum for one rep (1RM, or one

repetition maximum), a woman can perform more reps than a man. Take the arm

curl, for example. At 70 percent of her 1RM, we’ve found that a woman should be

able to perform about 17 reps, whereas a man should be able to complete only

about 12. Also, because there is an inverse relationship between sets and reps, this

difference in neurological efficiency means women should do fewer sets at a given

intensity.

5. Nutritional status. Advances in nutritional supplements, plus better drug-testing

methods, have enabled drug-free athletes to close much of the gap between them

and athletes who use drugs. Paying careful attention to peri-nutrition, which refers

to whatever supplements you take immediately before, during and after a workout,

can make significant changes in how you progress.

6. Muscle size. The number of sets performed should be inversely proportionate to

the size of the muscle mass trained. Small muscle groups recover more quickly

than large muscle groups and, therefore, can handle more sets. Thus, you can per-

form more sets for the biceps than you can for the quadriceps.

7. Principle of individualization. Bodybuilders and strength athletes have reached

high levels of performance using a variety of training philosophies. Because every-

one has a unique response to a given program, the number of sets should be indi-

vidualized. For example, compare Rick Weil, a former world record holder in the

bench press, to Doug Hepburn, a famous strongman and weightlifting champion

in the 1950s. Weil’s training primarily consisted of a low number of sets, whereas

Hepburn’s training primarily consisted of a high number of sets.

8. Principle of quality over quantity. Even when you rest for the appropriate time be-

tween sets, after a few sets the muscles will fatigue to the point where increasingly

fewer reps can be performed before failure. This condition is called the critical

drop-off point. The critical drop-off point occurs when you reach a 5-7 percent drop

in performance, and at this time you should move to another exercise or body part.

You’ll know you’ve hit the critical drop-off point when you must reduce the amount

of weight you’re lifting to maintain the selected rep range or when you experience a
drop of 2-3 reps from one set to the next.

The basic premise of the critical drop-off point, which should be credited to the

late Canadian sprint coach Charlie Francis, is “never increase the quantity of stim-

ulus at the expense of quality.” It is pointless to perform sets in which the resis-

tance is reduced so much that you don’t train the appropriate motor units and

don’t create sufficient tension on the muscles to elicit gains. These additional

“garbage sets” would also impede recovery by putting excessive strain on your ner-

vous system and energy stores.

9. Hormonal output and anabolic state. To maintain the quality of the training stim-

ulus, you should perform no more than 30-36 sets per workout. We’ve seen better

results when the total number of sets is kept between 20 and 25. Bulgarian

weightlifting coach Angel Spassov and former US national weightlifting coach

Dragomir Cioroslan believe training sessions should not last over one hour, and 45

minutes would be even better. Bodybuilders also often respond best to brief work-

outs. Former Mr. Universe André Charette made his greatest progress on two 40-

minute workouts per day, whereas bodybuilder Mike Payette made his best gains

by training only once a day for about 52 minutes per workout.

10. Muscle composition. Muscles that are inherently fast-twitch respond best to

more sets; muscles that are inherently slow-twitch respond best to fewer sets.

Thus, you can perform more sets for the hamstrings (fast twitch) than for the

soleus (slow twitch). Also, muscles not normally subjected to intense loading in

daily activities, such as the neck flexors, respond better to fewer sets.

Prescriptions for Increasing Muscle Mass and Relative

Strength

One of the most controversial topics in resistance training is the optimal number

of sets needed to perform to increase muscle mass. There are the low-set propo-

nents such as Dorian Yates and the late Mentzer brothers, and the high-set propo-

nents such as Arnold Schwarzenegger and Anthony Ditillo. Both camps are right.

What matters is the proportion of high-set work to low-set work through a sound,

periodized approach to training. However, we can make some useful general-

izations, and Table 3 shows several effective set-rep prescriptions for increasing

muscle mass.
Table 3

Strength coaches often encounter the challenge of trying to design training pro-

grams to improve an athlete’s strength without significantly increasing lean body

mass. The type of strength they want is called relative strength.

Relative strength is especially important in sports that involve weight classes, such

as boxing, wrestling, and weightlifting. Athletes in these sports must be as strong

as possible at the lightest bodyweight. Relative strength is also important to ath-

letes who require strength without excessive muscle mass, such as skiers, cyclists,

figure skaters, gymnasts, and bobsledders. Despite being relatively light, skiers and

bobsledders often have leg strength comparable to elite weightlifters and body-

builders. Felix Belczyk and Cary Mullen are both World Cup medalists. Belczyk

weighs 191 pounds and Mullen weighs 200 pounds, and both have front squatted

352 for 3 reps. Ian Danney of the Canadian bobsled team has front squatted 451

pounds, all the way down, and he weighed only 180 pounds.
The neuromuscular basis of relative strength training involves performing brief but

maximal voluntary contractions to improve the neural drive to the muscles. The

great voluntary effort associated with such training recruits the highest-threshold

motor units so as to make use of their greater strength and rate of force

development. Near-maximal and maximal weights must be used. Table 4 contains

set-rep prescriptions for relative strength.

Table 4

Of course, this is a book primarily about bodybuilding. Relative-strength training

produces minimal increases in size, so a bodybuilder should not use those meth-

ods except as an occasional means to introduce variety.

Chapter 3: Tempo

Three-time Olympic champion Naim Süleymanoğlu is, pound-for-pound, the

greatest lifter in the history of the sport. In the 132-pound bodyweight class, Naim

snatched 336 pounds and clean and jerked 418 pounds.

As bodybuilders and other athletes reach higher levels of conditioning, they must

address all the major components of training. From watching countless athletes

train, we would say the single most overlooked component of program design is

tempo.
Let’s start with some definitions. Speed of contraction refers to the rate of move-

ment of the implement or limb involved in any given strength exercise. In sport sci-

ence circles, it is described or measured in terms of degrees per second. For

simplicity, we measure speed of contraction as the time it takes to complete each

phase of a repetition. We use the term tempo collectively to describe the total

amount of time it takes to complete an entire repetition.

Simply prescribing a specific number of repetitions for a set does not ensure that

the appropriate stimulus is being applied. For example, if two athletes are told to

perform a dumbbell row for 10 reps, one might perform each repetition slowly and

finish the set in 45 seconds, whereas the other athlete might perform the exercise

as though they were trying to start a lawnmower and finish the set in 8.2 seconds

before dropping the weight to the floor. Such variations make it difficult to deter-

mine the effectiveness of a workout because each athlete is receiving a different

training stimulus despite performing the same number of reps.

German strength experts Rolf Feser and Lothar Spitz believe that athletes not only

need to perform explosive ballistic contractions to create central nervous adapta-

tions, but also need to use other types of training protocols. Pierre Roy, an accom-

plished weightlifting coach in Canada, used 5-second eccentric contractions for

sets of 6 reps when he wanted one of his lifters to gain size in preparatory training

periods.
There are also the writings of Soviet weightlifting coach Michael Rudolf Plukfelder,

who trained weightlifting champions Vasily Alexeev and David Rigert. Alexeev was

the first man to clean and jerk 500 pounds, won two Olympics, and broke 80 world

records. Rigert broke 68 world records and won Olympic gold. Plukfelder was also

a proponent of varying the tempo for strength enhancement, and his ideas were en-

dorsed by Professor Alexei Medvedev, head coach of the Russian weightlifting

team.

Many weightlifting coaches from the Eastern Bloc countries believe in variation of

speed of contraction. One problem, however, was that researchers often were aim-

ing to find one precise – “ideal” – tempo prescription. For example, Soviet re-

searchers S.I. Lelikov and N.N. Saxanov published a paper in 1976 entitled “The

Rate of Increase in Leg Strength Depending on the Tempo of Performing Squats.”

The purpose of the four-month-long study, which involved 32 weightlifters of var-

ious strength levels, was to determine the best tempo prescription for increasing

strength in the back squat.

In the study’s introduction the authors said, “There is no experimental research in

either the weightlifting literature (or for other types of sports, for that matter) deal-

ing with a comparative analysis of whether a fast, moderate, or slow tempo of per-

forming exercises, under the natural conditions of training, is the most effective

means for increasing strength.” One result of the study was that the group that

trained using a moderate lifting tempo achieved the best improvement in strength

gains.

While the authors are to be commended for recognizing the importance of ma-

nipulating the speed of contraction of repetitions, we have to be careful about

inferring practical information from this study. Let’s expand on this idea.

Many sports scientists have tried to determine the optimal combination of sets and

reps that will produce the best gains in strength. They would compare, for example,

a protocol of 10 reps for 3 sets to a protocol of 5 sets of 5 reps. Instead, as Dr. Mike

Stone and his colleagues did in the late ’70s, they should have been experimenting

with workouts that varied set-rep protocols over the duration of the study. The bot-

tom line is that there is no one single, perfect, “best” speed-of-contraction pro-

tocol. In the Soviet study, it would have been interesting to have one of the

experimental groups perform a slow speed of contraction for the first half of the

experiment, and then a fast speed of contraction for the second half.
When designing tempo prescriptions, there are some general guidelines you can

follow that are backed by sport science. Slow-speed lifting brings about more meta-

bolic adaptations than high-speed lifting. Training at faster speeds does not induce

these changes. Also, performing slow reps builds the connection between the

mind and the muscle, and they make a great finishing-off set.

An important step in reaching your ultimate goals in lifting is recognizing the

importance of tempo. Remember the example of the two guys performing 10 reps

in the dumbbell row? One completes the reps slowly, and the other fast. Doesn’t it

make sense that they would achieve different training effects? Of course. Although

both are performing the same number of reps, the tempo is affecting other vari-

ables. For a bodybuilder, one of these variables is “time under tension,” that is, the

amount of time the muscles must contract to complete a set.

To develop maximum muscle mass, the optimal time a muscle should contract

during a set should fall between 20 and 70 seconds. This range allows for a lot of

variation, from sets consisting of 1 rep and lasting 70 seconds (brutal!) to sets in-

volving 15 reps. This does not mean that bodybuilders should avoid performing

shorter or longer sets, but that the majority of their sets should fall within this

range.
Reading Tempo Prescriptions

To achieve the appropriate training stimulus, you must adhere to the precise speed

of movement for all aspects of a lift: eccentric, isometric and concentric. Instead of

using such vague terms as “fast” or “slow,” express tempo in workouts with a

four-digit abbreviation – such as 4231. This is an extension of a 3-digit formula first

popularized by Ian King, a strength coach from Australia, but strength coach

Charles Poliquin added a fourth digit to encompass all major phases of a repetition

to ensure the precise training stimulus. The formula that should be used is broken

down as follows:

The first number refers to the eccentric part of the exercise. An eccentric contrac-

tion occurs when a muscle lengthens, such as when you lower the resistance dur-

ing the descent of the squat. Eccentric training is often neglected by American

strength coaches to the detriment of their strength training programs. In fact, re-

search by renowned biomechanist Tom McLaughlin showed that the most suc-

cessful powerlifters are those who have the best eccentric control of the weights

they lift.
The second number refers to the isometric pause in the stretched position. This

pause usually occurs between the eccentric (lowering) phase and the concentric

(lifting) phase of a repetition, such as when the barbell makes contact with the

chest during the bench press. Pauses in this “disadvantageous” position (i.e., poor

leverage) of a lift increase intramuscular tension, which can further boost strength

development.

The third number refers to the concentric contraction. The concentric contraction

occurs when a muscle shortens, such as when you curl a barbell to your shoulders.

If X is used in the formula, it implies explosive action with full acceleration. Obvi-

ously, it would be dangerous to use X for the eccentric contraction of exercises

such as squats and bench presses, so you will only see the X used as the third

number in these prescriptions. Likewise, using an “XXXX” prescription for a power

clean, such as recommended by one misguided strength coaching certification,

would suggest that the athlete would pull the weight off the floor as fast as pos-

sible, bounce it off their shoulders and then slam it to the floor – not exactly a safe

training recommendation.
The fourth number refers to the isometric pause in the shortened position. This is

the type of contraction that occurs at the end of the concentric phase, such as

when a bench press is locked out. Pauses in this “advantageous” position (i.e.,

good leverage) also increase the recruitment of more fast-twitch fibers, which are

the fibers that will provide the most increases in strength and power.

Putting it together, a 4213 tempo prescription for the bench press would mean you

would lower the barbell to your chest in 4 seconds, pause for 2 seconds when the

bar makes contact with your chest, press the weight to extended arms in 1 second,

then rest 3 seconds when the barbell is locked out before performing another repe-

tition.

This simple format enables you to take more precise control of the training stim-

ulus. To achieve consistency between reps, it’s best to count at a speed that is sim-

ilar to the action of a clock (e.g., one thousand and one, one thousand and two,

etc.). This method will prevent counting erratically or too fast. The count should

begin when the resistance implement (barbell, dumbbell or body part) starts mov-

ing, not before or after this period.

As an example of how to prescribe workout tempo, here is an excerpt from the

training diary of Pierre Lueders, 1994 Overall World Cup winner in the bobsled.

This is a three-week program designed to make large gains in leg strength, and

Pierre certainly had strong legs. At a bodyweight of 220 pounds, Pierre power

cleaned 352 pounds and did a rock-bottom front squat with 462 pounds!

A. Snatch Pull from Floor

Week 1: 6 x (4,3,2,4,3,2), 30X1, rest 180 seconds

Week 2: 6 x (3,2,1,3,2,1), 30X1, rest 180 seconds

Week 3: 6 x (3,2,1,3,2,1), 30X1, rest 180 seconds

B. Front Squat

Week 1: 4 x 5-6, 3211, rest 120 seconds

Week 2: 5 x 4-5, 3211, rest 120 seconds

Week 3: 6 x (2,2,2,3,3,3), 3211, rest 120 seconds

C. Russian Good Morning

Week 1: 3 x 8-10, 3031, rest 120 seconds

Week 2: 3 x 6-8, 3031, rest 120 seconds

Week 3: 4 x 4-5, 3031, rest 120 seconds

D. Low Cable Pull-In

Week 1: 3 x 10-12, 1011, rest 90 seconds

Week 2: 3 x 6-8, 1011, rest 90 seconds

Week 3: 4 x 4-5, 1011, rest 90 seconds

The Cause for the Pause

The pause is an often neglected component of lifting speed. In the bench press it

has been shown that pausing 4 seconds on the chest will dissipate virtually all the

plyometric effect elicited in a heavy lift. In fact, it’s estimated that during a bench

press competition an extra 1-second delay for the judge’s clap could make a 5 per-

cent difference in the amount of weight lifted! In contrast to powerlifters, body-

builders want to emphasize longer pauses in their training because the muscles

must contract harder when the plyometric effect is reduced.

Because more muscle fibers are involved in lifting heavy weights, the most intense

sets would consist of only 1 repetition performed with the heaviest weight you

could manage. Consequently, training with slow sets of 10 reps technically should

not be called high-intensity training but low-intensity training.

For the development of maximal strength, slow-speed training performed with

heavy weights has a definite advantage over high-speed lifting. Slowing the move-

ment increases both the duration of the stimulus and the levels of tension im-

posed on the muscle, factors that favor the development of strength and muscle

mass. High-intensity, slow-speed training, which would be indicated by exercise

prescriptions such as 4 x 4-6 on a 4161 tempo, will produce the following muscle-

building effects: stimulation of the Type IIa fibers and increased muscle glycogen,

CP, ATP, ADP, creatine, phosphorylase, PFK, and Krebs cycle enzyme activity –

which collectively equate to more strength and muscle mass!

Studies have shown the superior value of varying lifting speed compared to keep-

ing the speed of contraction constant throughout a program. To increase

poundage at both high and low speeds, training must be performed at both

speeds. Low-velocity training produces greater increments in force production at

low speed than high-velocity training produces. However, high-velocity training

alone does not produce changes as great as those produced by training that in-

cludes both high and low velocity.

For elite athletes, it may be necessary to vary lifting speeds to elicit a training re-

sponse. Various world-class athletes have reported enhanced performance from

systematically planned variations in the speed of contraction. For example, in ham-

mer throwing, low-velocity work (e.g., slow-tempo deadlifts) has been beneficial for

enhanced control of knee- and trunk flexion during turns; and high-velocity training

(e.g., power snatch) is taught to enhance power in the release phase of the throw-

ing movement.

The key in power training for athletes is to keep the repetitions low (generally 1-5)

to recruit the high-threshold motor units. Training with higher reps, even while

concentrating on acceleration, would still access lower-threshold fibers.

Regarding isokinetic equipment, although it allows you to train at a specific speed,

it does so at a constant rate. One of the principal components of power is accel-

eration, and isokinetic equipment does not allow you to accelerate the resistance.

In fact, long-term studies have shown that isokinetic training can reduce power.
While strength training at higher speeds is specific to the movements that occur in

most sports, this type of training must be performed only after obtaining a solid

base of maximal strength. Eventually, many athletes could get great results from

these types of explosive exercises, but they must first develop a base with slow-

speed work. Then they must continue to use slow-speed movements throughout

their athletic careers to ensure continued progress.

For a bodybuilder, one secret to success is to manipulate training speeds to create

maximum adaptation. As such, slow-speed exercises should be emphasized over

fast speeds because they make the muscles work harder by eliminating the use of

momentum. However, slow-speed training should never be the only training speed

employed. Muscles require a variety of stimuli for optimal results, and varying

training speeds will provide much of the necessary variety.

As you proceed through this book, you will come across an several routines for

specific purposes. In each of these routines you will see a tempo prescription.

Follow it. Counting through each phase of the lift keeps your concentration fo-

cused where it should be – on the components of the lift. You’ll also begin to feel

how slight variations in the tempo affect the exercise. In just a few weeks you’ll be

able to see positive differences from varying your lifting speeds.

Poliquin Group Gymnasium, East Greenwich, Rhode Island
Chapter 4: Rest Intervals

Russian’s Anatoly Pisarenko broke 13 world records on his way to winning four

World Championships. He dispelled the myth that a large gut was needed to

become the strongest weightlifter in the world.

The length of rest intervals is rarely addressed in workouts that appear in body-

building magazines and strength coaching publications. Although beginners can

make progress on just about any type of program, trainees who overlook this

important training variable will not make the progress they should.
The length of your rest between sets affects several factors that are important in the

adaptations brought on by your training. The rest interval accomplishes the fol-

lowing:

1. Regulates the partial, or nearly complete, restoration of the short-term-energy

substrates necessary for maximal performance.

2. Allows for the clearance of the metabolic waste accumulated in muscle tissue

following intense muscular work.

3. Allows the central nervous system to recover.

4. Slows down the elevated metabolic rate and heart rate caused by exercise.

5. Affects the secretion of hormones that affect strength, fat loss, and muscle gains

and to what magnitude.

Sports scientists recommend rest intervals of three to four minutes (and up to five

minutes) for training with maximal loads: 1- to 5 reps maximums at 85 to 100 per-

cent of max. That approach prevents early fatigue and enables you to make re-

peated efforts at high intensity. In fact, weightlifting coaches will repeatedly change

a lifter’s attempts in competitions to allow for more rest time as the clock is

stopped when the loaders change weights.

A guiding principle when developing strength is that the rest interval should be

long enough to permit the nervous system to recover almost completely but not so

long that you lose what’s called the post-tetanic potentiation effect (PTP). PTP is

the phenomenon by which your contraction strength potential is increased for five

to 10 minutes after a heavy set because of greater neural activation. This concept

became popular in the English-language literature after it was translated from Diet-

mar Schmidtbleicher’s work from German in the early ’80s.

The peak effect – that is, greatest potentiation – occurs about four minutes after a

near-maximal contraction and then gradually wanes so that it’s gone by around the

fifth minute. Consequently, when training for strength, you should rest about four

minutes between sets of an exercise – that is, assuming we’re talking about a com-

pound exercise. For isolation exercises, three minutes rest should suffices.

An individual’s maximal strength has an impact on that phenomenon, however. If

you can curl 155 pounds for reps, you may need four minutes rest; if you curl only

75 pounds for reps, three minutes rest should suffice.

With a properly designed strength session, you should become stronger on every

set of an exercise – up to a point. That point occurs later for well-trained athletes.

An intermediate trainee may reach it in 4 sets while an Olympian may reach it on

the 8th set. When Bulgarian weightlifting coach Ivan Abadjiev spoke at the Eleiko

Strength Summit in 2011, he reinforced the idea that weightlifters need to perform a

much higher volume of maximal weights than lower-level lifters to fulfill their ath-

letic potential.

The most important principle to consider about rest intervals and how they affect

bodybuilding is that there is an inverse relationship between reps and rest: The

more reps you perform, the lighter weights you must use and the less rest you

need. This brings up the question “How much rest is enough?”

Most American exercise physiologists recommend a 1:5 work/rest ratio to train the

ATP-CP system, which is the energy system involved in high-intensity muscular

contractions. A 1:5 ratio means that whatever time it takes you to complete a set, it

would take you five times as long to recover adequately from that set. However, not

everyone is in agreement with the Americans in this field.

Canadian exercise physiologist Normand Gionet believes that a 1:5 ratio does not

provide sufficient recovery for the ATP-CP system; he recommends a ratio of 1:12-

18. The late Canadian sprint coach Charlie Francis was also a strong believer in

long rest intervals. He suggests a ratio between 1:20 and 1:30!

Coach Francis says a nervous-system cell takes five to six times longer to recover

than a muscle cell. This means that even though energy stores may be nearly re-

plenished by a ratio of 1:5 or 1:6, your nervous system has not recovered enough to

effectively activate the fast-twitch fibers responsible for muscle growth. And if the

nervous system cannot activate the fast-twitch fibers, what is the point of per-

forming another set?

Although counting repetitions is a convenient way to determine work performed, it

is more precise to consider how long it takes to complete a set. The amount of

time it takes to complete a set is referred to as the “time under tension,” or “TOT.”

As with reps, the longer a muscle is stressed, the less rest time is needed.

It’s also important to vary (i.e., periodize) your rest intervals. Despite the estab-

lished cause-and-effect relationship of varying rest intervals, failure to vary rest

intervals limits adaptation to the training stimulus. This concept has yet to be vali-

dated in the scientific literature, but we believe that it positively favors the rate and

magnitude of strength and size gains, especially with elite athletes.

In addition to reps and sets, there are several other factors to consider when deter-

mining rest intervals. Here are three of them: training experience, muscle mass and

strength levels, and aerobic fitness.

Training experience. The ability to tolerate short rest intervals with loads in the

60-80 percent range (6-20 reps) is a function of years of accumulated training. The

lactate buildup resulting from this type of training is tolerated by only the well-

conditioned bodybuilder. Therefore, rest intervals must be shortened for advanced

trainees only, as for beginners lactate buildup will interfere with proper exercise

performance. In fact, to prevent excessively high lactate buildup, it’s best to alter-

nate upper- and lower-body exercises in your workouts.

Muscle mass and strength levels. The bigger and stronger the trainee, the longer

the rest interval should be. There appears to be a direct linear relationship between

the length of the rest interval and the bodyweight of the trainee. Thus, a heavy-

weight bodybuilder such as Mamdouh “Big Ramy” Elssbiay, who has competed as

heavy as 316 pounds, would need a longer rest period than Francis Benfatto, who

weighed 145 pounds less than Big Ramy.

Aerobic fitness. The more aerobically fit an athlete is, the shorter the rest interval

should be – that’s the theory. The problem is that an aerobically-fit individual is

normally weaker and usually possesses minimal muscle mass. It’s also common

that these individuals tend to rush between heavy sets to maintain a high heart rate

which decreases neural adaptation. Unfortunately, a high heart rate by itself does

not lead to maximal gains in strength and mass.

Putting Theory into Practice

A weightlifter or strength athlete must emphasize complete recovery, but a body-

builder has two choices when selecting the rest interval: nearly complete recovery

or incomplete recovery. To see the benefits of each, let’s examine three types of

training methods for an individual who can barbell curl 100 pounds 10 times on a

4011 tempo (every rep would take 6 seconds: 4 to lower the weight, no pause, 1

second to lift, and then pause 1 second before starting another repetition).

Method 1: adequate rest and constant weight. In this method a constant weight is

used and you are given at least three minutes to recover, which allows almost all

the energy stores to resynthesize by the end of every set. Assuming that your first

set is a maximal effort, you will tend to fatigue two percent, or one rep per set, after

three minutes. Here is how it looks:

Set 1: 100 pounds x 10, rest 180 seconds

Set 2: 100 pounds x 9, rest 180 seconds

Set 3: 100 pounds x 8, rest 180 seconds

Set 4: 100 pounds x 7, rest 180 seconds

Results:

Average weight lifted: 100 pounds

Total reps performed: 34

Time under tension: 204 seconds

Because the rest is more complete, this method enables you to use heavy weights

on every set and, therefore, make more tensile demands of the contractile fibers.

This higher tension leads to myofibrillar growth. These longer rest intervals have

also been associated with greater testosterone levels in experienced athletes per-

forming exercises that work large muscle groups.

Method 2: adequate rest and decreasing weight. In this method the rest interval is

the same as in Method 1, but the weight is adjusted precisely from set to set to ac-

count for fatigue. Here is how it looks:

Set 1: 100 pounds x 10, rest 180 seconds

Set 2: 98 pounds x 10, rest 180 seconds

Set 3: 96 pounds x 10, rest 180 seconds

Set 4: 94 pounds x 10, rest 180 seconds

Results:

Average weight lifted: 97 pounds

Total reps performed: 40

Time under tension: 240 seconds

As with Method 1, the longer rest intervals increase the average amount of weight

that can be used, but the decreasing weight has the advantage of increasing the

time under tension. Because hypertrophy is related to time under tension with opti-

mal loading, this would be the optimal system to force myofibrillar growth.

On paper this method looks great, but how many gyms do you know of that have

training implements that can be decreased two percent at a time? (MedX machines

can do this quickly with their double weight-stack design, but using only these ma-

chines would seriously limit your exercise choices.) In most gyms you usually de-

crease weight in increments of five percent.

As a compromise, try decreasing the weight by five percent every two sets, which

would result in the following performance: 100 x 10, 100 x 9, 95 x 10, and 95 x 9.

This would change the average load to 97.5 pounds and the time under tension to

228 seconds.
Method 3: inadequate rest and decreasing weight. In this method only 60 seconds’

rest is allowed, so that energy stores are not completely resynthesized by the end

of each set. In this system you tend to fatigue at about 10 percent per set (4-5

reps). Here is how it looks:

Set 1: 100 pounds x 10, rest 60 seconds

Set 2: 90 pounds x 10, rest 60 seconds

Set 3: 80 pounds x 10, rest 60 seconds

Set 4: 70 pounds x 10, rest 60 seconds

Results:

Average weight lifted: 85 pounds

Total reps performed: 40

Time under tension: 240 seconds

This option is often used by bodybuilders to achieve the “pump” sensation that

comes with it and is associated with high levels of growth hormone and lactic acid.

It also increases the storage of glycogen and phosphagens and the associated en-

zymes for the metabolism of these nutrients.

As with the first two methods, the third method creates hypertrophy, but not for

the same reasons. While methods 1 and 2 are great for creating hypertrophy by

favoring the growth of the contractile proteins, method 3 promotes hypertrophy

through energy substrate storage. It follows that for maximum muscle mass, all

three methods should be used. In other words, for optimal progress to occur in

bodybuilding, you need to vary the rest intervals.

Super Results with Supersets

Although four minutes rest between sets of the same exercise is generally best for

strength, there are ways to manipulate that recommendation. If you alternate two

exercises for opposing muscle groups you can get by with less rest time between

sets, provided that you still keep four minutes between sets of the same move-

ment. Applying that idea to seated dumbbell presses and loaded chin-ups, your

workout could be designed as follows:

A1. Seated dumbbell presses: 6 x 4, 40X0 tempo, rest 120 seconds

A2. Weighted chin-ups: 6 x 4, 40X0 tempo, rest 120 seconds

Breaking down this superset even further, the workout would proceed as follows:

set 1 of seated dumbbell presses, rest 120 seconds; set 1 of chin-ups, rest 120 sec-

onds; set 2 of seated dumbbell presses, rest 120 seconds; set 2 of chin-ups, rest

120 seconds; and so on. Keep the pattern until you complete all 6 sets of 4 reps.

Although the rest time between sets is 120 seconds, you have more than four min-

utes of rest before recruiting the same muscle groups again.

If you have the antagonistic pairs contracting alternately (flexion followed by exten-

sion), as opposed to agonist contractions alone (precontraction of antagonists),

you can often enhance full motor-unit activation in a muscle contraction.

Alternating between two antagonistic muscle groups or movements is the best way

to train for strength. It makes for shorter rest intervals, a greater total volume of

work per training session and a greater recruitment of motor units. But don’t just

take our word for it.

The September 2011 issue of the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research pub-

lished a study that investigated the effects of eight weeks of two types of heavy

weight training protocols, one involving circuit training protocols and another

using traditional strength training protocols. This study involved 33 participants,

approximately 22 years of age, who had been performing resistance training for at

least 12 months before the experiment.

The authors noted that both training groups were equally effective in improving

maximal strength, peak power, and muscle mass. However, significant decreases

in body fat occurred only in the circuit training group. Further, the circuit training

group completed their workouts faster: 105 minutes of total training time com-

pared to 55 minutes for 3 sets, and 125 to 78 minutes for 6 sets. In other words, cir-

cuit training enabled these subjects to achieve nearly identical results in approx-

imately half the training time.

One of the most dramatic examples of how rest intervals influence a training effect

is the German Body Composition program. The shorter rest intervals increase the

production of growth hormone, and as such this type of protocol will help reduce

body fat. The following is a three-week program designed for weight loss. Because

aerobic exercise can compromise muscular strength, this workout utilizes weight

training to elicit weight loss. The workouts divide the body into two parts, each

trained twice a week.

Day 1 and 3

A1. Dumbbell Lunge

Week 1: 4 x 15-20, 20X1, rest 45 seconds

Week 2: 4 x 15-20, 20X1, rest 45 seconds

Week 3: 4 x 15-20, 20X1, rest 45 seconds

A2. Lat Pulldown to Sternum

Week 1: 4 x 10-12, 3211, rest 45 seconds

Week 2: 4 x 10-12, 3211, rest 45 seconds

Week 3: 4 x 10-12, 3211, rest 45 seconds

A3. Lying Leg Curl, Feet Neutral

Week 1: 4 x 10-12, 5011, rest 45 seconds

Week 2: 4 x 10-12, 5011, rest 45 seconds

Week 3: 4 x 10-12, 5011, rest 45 seconds

A4. Decline Dumbbell Triceps Extension

Week 1: 4 x 10-12, 4011, rest 45 seconds

Week 2: 4 x 10-12, 4011, rest 45 seconds

Week 3: 4 x 10-12, 4011, rest 45 seconds

B1. Hamstring Leg Press

Week 1: 3 x 15-20, 2011, rest 45 seconds

Week 2: 3 x 15-20, 2011, rest 45 seconds

Week 3: 3 x 15-20, 2011, rest 45 seconds

B2. One-Arm Cable Row

Week 1: 3 x 10-12, 4011, rest 45 seconds

Week 2: 3 x 10-12, 4011, rest 45 seconds

Week 3: 3 x 10-12, 4011, rest 45 seconds

Day 2 and 4

A1. Dumbbell Squat

Week 1: 4 x 15-20, 2011, rest 30 seconds

Week 2: 4 x 15-20, 2011, rest 30 seconds

Week 3: 4 x 15-20, 2011, rest 30 seconds

A2. Pronated-Grip Front Lat Pulldown

Week 1: 4 x 10-12, 3011, rest 30 seconds

Week 2: 4 x 10-12, 3011, rest 30 seconds

Week 3: 4 x 10-12, 3011, rest 30 seconds

A3. Dumbbell Semi-Stiff-Leg Deadlift

Week 1: 4 x 10-12, 4021, rest 30 seconds

Week 2: 4 x 10-12, 4021, rest 30 seconds

Week 3: 4 x 10-12, 4021, rest 30 seconds

A4. Seated EZ Bar French Press

Week 1: 4 x 10-12, 3021, rest 30 seconds

Week 2: 4 x 10-12, 3021, rest 30 seconds

Week 3: 4 x 10-12, 3021, rest 30 seconds

B1. Low-Pulley Abduction, Standing

Week 1: 3 x 10-12, 3011, rest 30 seconds

Week 2: 3 x 10-12, 3011, rest 30 seconds

Week 3: 3 x 10-12, 3011, rest 30 seconds

B2. Seated Rope Rowing to Neck

Week 1: 4 x 10-12, 2111, rest 30 seconds

Week 2: 4 x 10-12, 2111, rest 30 seconds

Week 3: 4 x 10-12, 2111, rest 30 seconds

German Body Comp Training

The German Body Comp program, or GBC, is a popular workout and is charac-

terized by short rest intervals and multijoint movements to generate maximum

growth-hormone production.

The program is based upon the pioneering research by Hala Rambie, a Romanian

exercise scientist who defected to West Germany. Rambie made the important dis-

covery that the lactic acid pathway is better for fat loss than the aerobic pathway.

Rambie found that high blood lactic levels decreased blood pH levels, which in

turn sends a message to the brain to accelerate its production of growth hormone.

Higher growth hormone levels increase fat loss.

Not only does GBC result in greater fat loss than aerobic programs can produce,

but it will not sacrifice strength and muscle mass. In fact, it can make you bigger

and stronger. With aerobics, all you get is fat loss and weakness – why train your

body to be weak?

How effective is the GBC program? We’ve seen men gain 12 to 18 pounds of mus-

cle within 12 weeks while losing fat, and it’s not uncommon for women to lose

seven percent body fat in the same time period. Doug Weight, formerly of the St.

Louis Blues, used a German Body Comp workout to transform his physique quick-

ly. In just six weeks, the NHL star decreased his bodyfat by 4.32 percent while

adding 11.5 pounds of muscle!

In addition to being great for anyone who wants to lose body fat, the GBC program

is especially geared toward athletes because it improves muscular endurance. Law

enforcement officers are prime candidates for the benefits of GBC, and high mus-

cular endurance athletes such as speedskaters and hockey players have enjoyed

success with this type of workout. In contrast, aerobic training does little to im-

prove this type of endurance for most sports and will compromise strength and

power – it’s even been shown that upper body aerobic training can compromise

jumping ability.
The GBC workout outlined in the book German Body Comp Program are designed

for all levels of individuals. It’s a mix of machines and free weights, with the exer-

cises increasing in difficulty with the higher levels – along with the overall volume

of training. To give you an example of how a GBC should be written, here’s a three-

week program for an individual who has a considerable amount of training expe-

rience but can only train twice a week.

The workouts should be scheduled so that there is, at least, two days’ rest between

training sessions. So you could train on Monday and Thursday, or Monday and Fri-

day. After completing six workouts, move on to a different training program. Note

that each week the number of sets is increased, and the rest intervals are short-

ened, thereby increasing the difficulty of the workout.

A1. Split Squat, Front Foot Elevated, with Dumbbells

Week 1: 3 x 10-12, 40X1, rest 60 seconds

Week 2: 4 x 8-10, 40X1, rest 45 seconds

Week 3: 5 x 6-8, 40X1, rest 30 seconds

A2. Incline Bench Press

Week 1: 3 x 10-12, 40X1, rest 60 seconds

Week 2: 4 x 8-10, 40X1, rest 45 seconds

Week 3: 5 x 6-8, 40X1, rest 30 seconds

A3. Deadlift

Week 1: 3 x 10-12, 30X1, rest 60 seconds

Week 2: 4 x 8-10, 30X1, rest 45 seconds

Week 3: 5 x 30X1, rest 30 seconds

A4. Chin-Up, Supinated Grip

Week 1: 3 x 10-12, 30X1, rest 60 seconds

Week 2: 4 x 8-10, 30X0, rest 45 seconds

Week 3: 5 x 6-8, 30X0, rest 30 seconds

Don’t be fooled by this workout – it is much more difficult than it looks, especially

when you get down to the third week and are resting only 30 seconds between sets.
Intensify Your Training with Clusters

Carl Miller is a weightlifting coach, but he is also a weightlifter with impressive

accomplishments. For starters, at age 19 he broke the national teenage record in

the snatch, and one of his coaches at that time was Frank Spellman, 1948 Olympic

gold medalist in the 165-pound bodyweight class. At age 41, despite having had two

spinal fusions, Miller snatched 281 pounds and clean and jerked 352 pounds at a

bodyweight of 181 pounds. At age 61 he power cleaned 319 pounds and ran the 40

in 4.81 seconds.

Carl Miller
Pursuing coaching, Miller earned a master’s degree in exercise science from the

University of Arizona. After graduating, he coached weightlifting in South America

for two years and in Japan for three years. In 1978, Miller was named head coach of

the US Weightlifting Team for the World Championships. Miller should also be

recognized as being one of the first persons to understand the Bulgarian weightlift-

ing methodology and share it with the rest of the world.

In the ’70s, Carl Miller wrote about the value of cluster training, a method that

many strength coaches are only now discovering. Cluster training involves using

prolonged repetitions between sets to increase the total weight used in the set and

thus the overall intensity of the set.

Typically, cluster training works like this: If you can normally power clean 200

pounds for 1 rep and 180 pounds for 3 reps, try resting 15 seconds between single

reps by pausing with the barbell on the floor between reps (not in the top posi-

tion). You may be able to clean 185 pounds for 3 single reps, maybe even 190

pounds. The result is you are performing the same number of reps, but the inten-

sity is greater – and likely the power output too. Plus, you will be training more of

the higher-threshold motor units.

A 2012 study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research is the

first we’ve found to test the effects of inter-repetition rest during multiple sets of

the power clean. This study compared peak power output, force, and velocity in the

power clean with no inter-repetition rest, or with either 20 seconds or 40 seconds

of rest. Participants were trained college-aged men, and they performed 3 sets of 6

reps of the power clean at 80 percent of the 1RM. After each rep in the “no rest”

group, participants returned the barbell to the floor in a controlled manner and

immediately performed the next rep. The subjects in the “rest” groups rested for 20

or 40 seconds in the start position of the power clean after they had returned the

barbell to the floor.

Results showed that peak power significantly decreased by 16 percent during the

“no rest” sets (i.e., there was a 16 percent drop in peak power from the 1st to the

6th rep of the set), compared to a decrease of 5.5 percent in the 20-second rest

sets and to a decrease of only 3 percent in the 40-second rest sets. Peak force also

decreased significantly in the “no rest” sets, whereas the other two rest groups

maintained peak force throughout the set. Peak velocity of the bar also decreased

significantly by 10 percent in the “no rest” group and dropped by only 3.8 percent

and 1.7 percent in the 20-second and 40-second rest groups, respectively.
Researchers suggest that the short recovery between reps in the two inter-repetition

rest models allowed for recovery of short-term energy substrates such as phospho-

creatine. The 20-40 seconds of rest allowed participants in this study to almost

completely resynthesize creatine and recover from the fatigue of the repetitions.

This research confirms previous evidence that creatine is resynthesized in about 22

seconds.

Previous studies support mixing up training protocols with inter-repetition rest. A

study of elite Australian rugby players found that using inter-repetition rest im-

rest im- lower body power and velocity when training the power clean and squat.

This study indicated that cluster training can lead to greater neural adaptations and

the recruitment of more Type II muscle fibers.

Finally, a 2010 study on cluster training for the upper body found that this method

allowed participants to perform a higher number of repetitions while maintaining

the velocity of the lifting motion, even when fatigue would have become a factor in

a traditional training scheme. The researchers concluded that cluster training is

effective for developing power and speed for sports and should be programmed

accordingly. Upper body cluster training can be used in sports such as wrestling,

boxing, or judo, while lower body power may be enhanced for rugby, soccer or

football, or for track and field throwing events.

The following is a sample arm workout using cluster training:

A1. 10-Degree Decline Close-Grip Bench press

3-5 clusters (5 x 1) @ 50X0 tempo, rest 10 seconds between reps and 120 seconds

between sets

A2. Scott EZ Bar Semi-Supinated-Grip curl

3-5 clusters (5 x 1) @ 50X0 tempo, rest 10 seconds between reps and 120 seconds

between sets

When you are ready to give cluster training a try, you should increase the weight

only if all reps and sets are successful. When you are ready to move up, a general

guideline would be to increase the weight by 1 to 3 percent.

Hopefully, the abundance of empirical and scientific evidence available about the

importance of rest intervals will encourage you to pay attention to it when design-

ing your weight training programs. Optimal rest intervals will make a big difference

in helping you achieve your goals.

Chapter 5: Frequency, Duration and Volume

Gerd Bonk from East Germany was the first weightlifter to clean and jerk 551

pounds (250 kilos). He won a silver medal at the 1976 Olympics and a bronze in

the 1972 Olympics. He also broke the East German youth record for the shot put in

1967 with a result of 17.82 meters.

We live in a world where there are not enough hours to do everything that needs to

be done. It’s a world of compromise and sacrifice. If you want to become a cham-

pion bodybuilder, forget about every productive aspect of your life and just eat,

sleep and live bodybuilding – and don’t forget that this started out as a healthy en-

deavor.

In the latter scenario, consider the possibility that although it’s a rarity, it is

possible to become a champion bodybuilder and still have a life. Hmmmm, you

say – interesting concept. . . . So, while we won’t tell you what to do with all the time

you’ll have away from the gym, we will tell you how to best manage your time in the

gym to produce maximum gains. To do this, you need to properly manipulate three

critical elements of training: frequency, duration and volume.

Training Frequency

To achieve maximum physical potential, most bodybuilders focus on providing the

optimal amount of stimulus to the muscles. Train hard with forced reps. Train

harder with negatives. Growl, grunt and scream – slap your training partners in the

face and have them slap you back. Intensity has been the focus of today’s body-

builder, and there’s no doubt that you have to train hard to get results. But inten-

sity is only part of the growth equation. Recovery is the other.

Optimal recovery requires good nutrition, preferably with high-quality supplements

such as fish oils and post-workout shakes, and determining how much training

your body can handle. If you spend too much time in the gym, you risk injury and

overtraining. If your workouts are too brief or too infrequent, your muscles will

grow slowly or not at all.

One practical way to manipulate your recovery ability is to increase or decrease

your training frequency, which is defined as the number of training sessions per-

formed per week.

Old-timers will remember articles about Dave “The Blond Bomber” Draper’s work-

outs in Muscle Builder/Power magazine. Draper worked out practically every day and

often performed 20 sets or more per body part. Draper’s training methods were ex-

treme and indisputably constituted a protocol that enabled him to become one of

the best bodybuilders of his era. It’s hard to argue with success, but that still leaves

unanswered the question of whether or not Draper’s training methods will also

work for you.

In the realm of track and field, Charlie Francis’s intelligent approach to training en-

abled his athletes to excel at the international level. His success established him as

one of the greatest innovators in athletics. Even the East German coaches acknowl-

edged his abilities. Part of Francis’s success can be directly attributed to his find-

ing the optimal training frequency for each of his athletes. Francis’s philosophy is

that there is no point in going back to the gym if you are not going to make

progress. In other words, if you are not going to do an extra rep or add more

weight, you might as well stay home.

In the realm of competitive weightlifting, there are conflicting schools of thought

on training frequency. For example, Rick Weil, a world record holder in the bench

press, recommends one session per week per muscle group. At the other end of

the spectrum we find Russian weightlifters who train up to 12 times a week. The

Bulgarians, who for three decades have competed on a level equal with the Rus-

sians, have pushed training parameters even further – often training 4-5 times a

day!

The success of these various athletes indicates a debatable relationship between

the actual number of training sessions needed to stimulate maximum levels of

strength and the number needed for maximum hypertrophy.

It is common for competitive bodybuilders to perform multiple training sessions

using a split routine (different muscles trained each day) or a split program (dif-

ferent exercises for the same muscle on the same day or successive days).

Regardless of the system used, the training frequency for each muscle group is

usually limited to three times per week.

The classic approach to training frequency has been to perform only three training

sessions per week, on alternate days, for each muscle group. This equates to train-

ing each muscle group approximately once every 48 hours. Proponents of this

training theory also believe that if muscle soreness interferes with performance

during a subsequent workout, the intensity of the training was too high and should

be reduced accordingly. This is a simplistic approach, and one that can still be

found in the theory segments of many personal training certification courses.

For most individuals, 3-4 days’ rest between workouts for the same body part ap-

pears to be, generally speaking, good advice. For optimal progress, however, you

must consider the principles governing training frequency. Here are eight of them:
8 Principles of Training Frequency

1. Frequency is recovery dependent. A misconception perpetuated in strength train-

ing circles is the concept that one needs to train the same muscle every 48 hours

or progress will be less than optimal. The opposite is true, as evidenced by the

numerous world-class bodybuilders and powerlifters who are known to train a

body part only once weekly.

Frequency is dependent upon your recovery ability at any given time. Failure to re-

spect this rule may cause overtraining that could cause you to lose strength and

muscle mass and come down with a variety of ailments that include lethargy and

recurrent colds (Figure 2). Most bodybuilders train too frequently because they do

not know how to assess their recovery ability or because they take too literally the

slogan, “No pain, no gain.” However, provided you do an honest job and use the

proper ratios of reps and sets, a frequency prescription of “twice per week, per

muscle group” should work well. If you’re a more advanced bodybuilder, one work-

out every five days is probably the optimal training frequency

Figure 2

2. Frequency is strength dependent. The weaker the trainee, the more frequently

they can train. In cases of rehabilitation, such as post surgery, training frequencies

of 4-6 times a week are well tolerated. Female trainees, because of their lower lev-

els of maximal strength initially, need greater frequencies of training to maximize

their training progress. As female trainees reach higher levels of strength, the dif-

ferences in training-frequency requirements diminish appreciably. This effect usu-

ally occurs after two full years of training (and when comparing gender differences,

consider that at the 2012 Olympics a woman snatched 330 pounds and clean and

jerked 407 pounds and lost!

3. Frequency is muscle-group dependent. Large muscle groups recover slower than

smaller muscle groups, and muscles with a high percentage of fast-twitch muscle

fibers recover slower than muscles with a high percentage of slow-twitch fibers.

These facts have many practical applications. For example, while the soleus (pre-

dominately a slow-twitch, large-muscle group) may be trained two to three times a

week, the hamstrings (predominantly a fast-twitch, large-muscle group) respond

better to one or two training sessions per week.

4. Frequency is exercise dependent. Exercises that involve a small number of

motor units, such as calf raises and wrist curls, can be performed more frequently

than exercises that involve many motor units, such as squats. Exercises that in-

volve a high percentage of motor units make greater demands on the central ner-

vous system and, therefore, require longer recovery periods – it is not uncommon

for powerlifters to rest ten days between intense deadlift sessions. Also, because

multijoint exercises involve more muscles, they can create enough stimulus to en-

sure that strength and muscle mass are maintained in the secondary muscle

groups. This is why someone who bench presses three times a week can see signif-

icant progress in their triceps development by performing isolation exercises for

the triceps only once a week – the triceps are being worked during the bench press.
5. Frequency is individualized. Frequency is dependent on work capacity. Some

individuals can handle prodigious training volumes, while others can handle only

minimal volumes. With our clients, we look at their training response in their work-

out diaries, and increase or decrease their training frequency based on how fast

they progress. For example, powerlifter Cathy Millen bench pressed every five days,

squatted every seven days and deadlifted every ten days in a peaking phase. She

was a world champion and held the world record in all these lifts. In contrast, for-

mer IFBB pros such as Joe Spinello and André Bilodeau made progress training

twice a day with a four-days-on, one-day-off split. We have also seen pro body-

builders who cannot train more than two days in a row without overtraining.

The solution to the dilemma is fairly simple; just ask yourself, “Am I improving?” If

the answer is no, frequency has to go either down or up. And we should add that

on average, it takes a good strength coach or personal trainer roughly 6-8 weeks to

determine what methodology works best for an individual.

One of the major limiting factors in tolerating frequent workouts is the ability to

load nutrients into the muscle cells, and this is likely mediated throughout a myr-

iad of hormonal interactions such as with insulin, growth hormone and IGF-1.

We’ve also found that bodybuilders with a high percentage of fast-twitch muscle

fibers can rarely train two days in a row without overtraining.

6. Frequency is repetition-bracket dependent. The greater the intensity, the more

rest is needed between workouts. Because intensity is partially determined by the

number of reps performed per set, more rest days are needed between training ses-

sions emphasizing low reps. Thus, if you are performing 2-3 reps per set, you may

need 4-5 days’ rest between workouts for the same body parts – or even as much

as 10 days! If you perform 15-20 reps per set, you can probably repeat the workout

for that body part after 2-3 days.

If you are not improving, change your training frequency. Because most body-

builders train too much, first try experimenting with reduced frequency. One rea-

son that a few bodybuilders make progress for several weeks on heavy-duty pro-

grams is that they were so overtrained that the overtraining masked their true fit-

ness level. Only when they reduced their training volume could hypertrophy occur.

The fact is, there are not many bodybuilders who can continue to improve on a fre-

quency of 2-3 times per week per muscle group while holding down a regular job

and dealing with other stresses of normal living.

Rather than thinking that only one frequency mode will suit you, realize that a vari-

ety of modes will stimulate greater growth. To paraphrase German philosopher

Friedrich Nietzsche: “What does not kill me makes me stronger.”

7. Frequency is influenced by adrenal stress. All stressors have both general and

specific effects on the body. If an athlete performs a set of squats, that activity has

a specific stress on the muscle fibers, but it also produces general stress that trig-

gers neural and hormonal responses. If the stress levels are too high, the body will

not be able to adapt, and progress will cease or even regress.

Aerobic work is one of the worst offenders in creating adrenal stress. If an athlete is

a marathon runner, then obviously a high level of aerobic work is necessary for that

athlete to excel. However, aerobic work places considerable stress on the adrenal

system, and the effects can significantly hamper progress in strength training. Al-

though some studies suggest that a small amount of aerobic work will not affect

strength gains, often these studies involve beginners or are performed for only a

short period, making it difficult to yield information that would apply to advanced

trainees.

8. Frequency is dependent on nutritional intervention. Numerous studies have

established that one of the keys to optimal recovery is post-workout nutrition,

which requires carbohydrates to lower cortisol levels and increase muscle glyco-

gen. If the nutrition is good, a higher frequency of training can be tolerated.

Training Duration

The next aspect of proper time management in the gym concerns the concept of

duration. Duration can be defined as the time between the start of the workout and

the finish of the workout, not including warm-up, stretching or cool-down. Dura-

tion is a result of the number of exercises, the number of sets, the duration of the

sets (i.e., the speed of movement times the number of reps) and the duration of

the rest periods.

Duration of training is essential to physical health. A study published in 2011 in the

International Journal of Epidemiology found that intense physical activity such as

strength training can help us live longer because it has protective effects on the

body. The study was a meta-analysis of all previous studies on the connection be-

tween physical activity and mortality rates as classified by cause of death and age at

death. The analysis included more than 1.3 million individuals and identified a very

strong relationship between longevity and performing regular intense vigorous

exercise for a total of more than 150 minutes a week. Let’s move on to discussing

how duration of training can influence a trainee’s efforts to become bigger and

stronger.
A modern trend in strength development is towards decreased duration of training

time, an approach that has been referred to as the “Bulgarianization” of weightlift-

ing. Endorsed by Russian, Romanian and Hungarian national weightlifting teams,

this methodology is often perceived as the “modern” way of training developed by

Bulgarian National Weightlifting Coach Ivan Abadjiev, but it was already advocated

as a superior form of training in the early 1950s by the American lifter Charles

Ross.

Workouts exceeding the one-hour mark have been shown to be associated with

rapidly decreasing androgen levels. This shift in androgens probably upsets the

testosterone-cortisol ratio. Since this value is strongly correlated to strength gains,

one may infer that training under depressed androgen levels is counterproductive,

since the catabolic effects of the glucocorticoids would negate the anabolic effects

of the androgens. Apparently, an hour break is sufficient to allow the testosterone

levels to return to normal. This is why modern strength training has evolved to

multiple daily sessions rather than the grueling two-hour workouts popularized in

the Arnold days.

From an empirical point of view, multiple training sessions are associated with bet-

ter recovery rates and enhanced concentration during the training sessions. Since

maximal neural activation is essential for relative strength training, enhanced con-

centration would maximize the effectiveness of the training stimulus. However,

you must consider that this type of multiple daily training workload may be realistic

only for full-time sponsored athletes.

Once your warm-up is finished, if your workout takes longer than one hour you are

making friends, not training! We’ve seen a few bodybuilders who were able to sus-

tain full intensity for two-hour periods, but they reported better quality after shifting

to shorter workouts. More important is the fact that most lifters who don’t grow

are training for too long.

Training Volume

The third element in time management, and the one that brings the other two prin-

ciples together, is volume. Volume in strength training can be defined as the total

number of repetitions completed in a given time frame. For example, if you per-

formed 3 sets of 10 on 6 different exercises in a workout, the volume of that work-

out could be described as 180 reps (3 x 10 x 6 = 180). This method of calculation is

also commonly applied to a training week, month and year. To extend the above

example, if four of the above workouts are performed in a week, the volume would

be 720 reps (4 x 180). Over four weeks, the volume would be 2,880 reps (4 x 720),

and over the year would be 34,560 reps (12 x 2,880).

Volume could alternately be described in terms of time spent on an exercise, time

under tension, or number of sets. Russian weightlifting textbooks describe volume

as the total amount of work performed in a specific period, such as a training ses-

sion or a training week. Usually only lifts at or above 60 percent are recorded, as

the lighter weights are considered part of the warm-up. If a lifter performed back

squats for 5 sets of 5 reps and used 100 pounds, the volume of that exercise would

be 2500 pounds. The Russians have determined precise volume levels for all levels

of lifters, for all major lifts used in training, for levels of ability, and also for precise

points within the training period. For example, if four workouts are performed in a

week, the training volume for a typical week might be divided as follows:
Day 1: 15 percent

Day 2: 23 percent

Day 3: 37 percent

Day 4: 25 percent

In the week before a competition, with the fourth day being the competition, a

weightlifter would want to have the majority of the training volume at the beginning

of the week. This would enable the athlete to be at their peak for the meet. Here is

such a distribution:

Day 1: 54 percent

Day 2: 30 percent

Day 3: 16 percent

This method of assessing volume has been used with great success in the sport of

weightlifting. However, when attempting to apply this method to strength training

for hypertrophy, you may encounter certain problems. For example, this method

assumes that all reps are performed at an identical speed and at a similar meta-

bolic cost.
Contrary to what some bodybuilding authors have proclaimed, slow tempo does

not increase the intensity of training. Instead, it prolongs the duration of the train-

ing stimulus, thereby increasing time under tension, which leads to hypertrophy. If

a 5-rep set is performed that involves a 6-second eccentric contraction and a 6-

second concentric contraction for each rep, the total time under tension is 60 sec-

onds. That is similar in volume to a 15-rep set that includes a 3-second eccentric

contraction and a 1-second concentric contraction: [15 x 3] + [15 x 1] = 60 seconds.

But if the reps method is used to assess the volume, there would be a significant

difference between the two sets: 5 reps compared to 15 reps.

Furthermore, the metabolic cost of strength training exercise is normally asso-

ciated with the size of the muscle mass involved. Therefore, 300 repetitions in the

squat do not equal 300 curls; rather, 300 squats are more equivalent to 1,200 curls.

The reps method assumes that a repetition of any exercise has a metabolic cost

equivalent to that of a rep of any other exercise. This is more applicable to

weightlifting, where the exercises are variations of the clean, snatch, jerk and squat.

The assumption does not apply in bodybuilding, where smaller muscle groups

such as the biceps and triceps are trained with dozens of adjunctive exercises.
One of the most important principles about training volume is this: Volume of

training is always inversely related to intensity. In other words, you cannot work in-

tensely and perform great amounts of work at the same time -- when the volume is

high, the intensity is low and vice versa. For example when working with loads ex-

ceeding 90 percent, one rarely exceeds a workout volume of 20 repetitions per

exercise. While working in the 60 percent range, some trainees can easily do 10

times that volume (200 reps).

Another important principle is that for maximum hypertrophy, a greater volume of

work is necessary. When analyzing the training volumes of elite bodybuilders ver-

sus elite powerlifters and weightlifters, a greater volume of training is evident in the

training of bodybuilders and is associated with more hypertrophy. This increased

volume comes mainly from performing more exercises to allow the recruitment of

a greater selection of motor units, hence inducing hypertrophy in a greater number

of fibers.

When designing a specific program for a hypertrophy phase, you should measure

your volume. If you use the reps method of volume assessment, the average num-

ber of reps per workout may be about 200 repetitions. If you use time as the indi-

cator of volume, measure the length of the workout or number of training hours

per week; for example, a one-hour workout. If you use the time under tension, 24

minutes might be reasonable (24 sets x 60 seconds = 24 minutes).

Research points to elevated levels of growth hormone in multiple-sets training ver-

sus single-set training, which may prompt a more anabolic environment. Maximal

strength training methods (85 percent of 1RM) with their high-intensity resistance

but low volume of work do not elicit substantial hypertrophy. Higher volumes of

work (6 reps or more for multiple sets) are needed to ensure a critical concen-

tration of intracellular amino acids to stimulate protein synthesis. However, this

model has limitations since it assumes that all reps are performed at an identical

speed and at a similar metabolic cost.

The 2 Percent Rule of Progress

We’ve thrown a lot of information at you, but the bottom line regarding training fre-

quency, duration and volume is that the best protocols are the ones that work for

you! To help you determine what works, here’s a practical guideline: the 2 Percent

Rule of Progress.

Unless you are an advanced trainee, the 2 Percent Rule will apply to you. It states

that every time you repeat a workout, you should be able to add 2 percent weight

on the bar for the same number of reps or do an extra rep with the same weight.

Thus, if you bench pressed 200 pounds for 8 reps in one workout, during the sec-

ond workout you should be able to lift 204 pounds for 8 reps or lift 200 pounds

for 9 reps. If you can accomplish this progression, or improve upon it, then your

training frequency is appropriate.

When applying this rule, you should always compare the same sets of a given exer-

cise. If you are performing 5 sets of 8 reps in the bench press, you would compare

set 5 of the first workout with set 5 of the second workout, and so on. However, as

you progress in strength, it becomes more difficult to make this level of progress.

Thus, if you have seven years of training under your weightlifting belt, then the 2

Percent Rule would evolve into the 1 Percent Rule.

The philosophy behind the 2 Percent Rule is that you want to train hard, but only

come back for another workout when you can lift more. That is, you have to wait

for supercompensation to occur – and that may happen after three days to as many

as 10 days per exercise.

Along with this principle, which many of the best bodybuilders of the past such as

Bill Pearl and Reg Park understood, is that time under tension is critical to increas-

ing muscle mass. If you can squat 375 pounds for 1 rep and 300 pounds for 10

reps, increasing your 1-rep maximum to 475 pounds may not produce exceptional

gains in muscle mass – compared to being able to perform 350 pounds for 10 reps.

To take this training principle to the next level, we’ll share with you three basic op-

tions for frequency of training that reflect a variety of recovery abilities. The

examples provided would be considered accumulation (high volume) phases in a

training cycle.
Frequency Option 1

This option, which works for about 20 percent of the population, consists of train-

ing the entire body on three nonconsecutive days a week. It’s great for those who

have very limited training time, such as Monday, Wednesday and Friday; or Tues-

day, Thursday and Saturday.

Monday and Friday

A1. Back Squat, 3 x 15-20, 2010, rest 90 sec.

A2. Lying Leg Curl, Feet Inward, 3 x 6-8, 4010, rest 75 sec.

B1. Parallel Bar Dips, 3 x 10-12, 3010, rest 75 sec.

B2. Close, Parallel-Grip Chin-Up, 3 x 8-10, 4010, rest 75 sec.

C1. Incline Dumbbell Press, 2 x 10-12, 3010, rest 75 sec.

C2. Seated Cable Rowing, 2 x 8-10, 4010, rest 75 sec.

D1. Decline Triceps EZ Bar Extension, 2 x 10-12, 3110, rest 75 sec.

D2. Incline Dumbbell Curl, 2 x 8-10, 4010, rest 75 sec.

E1. Standing Calf Raise, 2 x 10-12, 2210, rest 60 sec.

E2. Low Cable Pull-In, 2 x 10-12, 2020, rest 60 sec.

Wednesday

A1. Back Barbell Lunge, 3 x 15-20, 2010, rest 90 sec.

A2. Dumbbell Deadlift, 3 x 12-15, 3010, rest 75 sec.

B1. Back Step-Up, 3 x 15-20, 1010, rest 75 sec.

B2. Back Extension, 3 x 12-15, 2012, rest 75 sec.

C1. Incline Dumbbell Press, 2 x 10-12, 3010, rest 75 sec.

C2. Seated Cable Row, 2 x 8-10, 4010, rest 75 sec.

D1. Decline Dumbbell Press, 2 x 10-12, 3010, rest 75 sec.

D2. One-Arm Dumbbell Press, 2 x 10-12, 3010, rest 75 sec.

E1. Seated Calf Raise, 2 x 15-20, 2010, rest 60 sec.

E2. Twisted Crunches on Swiss Ball, 2 x 10-12, 2020, rest 60 sec.

Frequency Option 2

This option, which works for about 60 percent of the population, consists of a split

workout with four training sessions per week. The basic rule is two days on, one

day off, followed by two days on, two days off: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Fri-

day; or Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

Monday and Thursday

A1. Cyclists Back Squat, 10,12,14,20 on a 2010 tempo, rest 90 sec.

A2. Lying Leg Curl, Feet Inward, 4 x 6-8, 40X0, rest 75 sec.

B1. Lunge, 4 x 10,12,15,20, 20X0, rest 90 sec.

B2. Romanian Deadlift, 4 x 10-12, 4020, rest 75 sec.

C1. Standing Calf Raise, 3 x 12,15,20, 1110, rest 60 sec.

C2. Low Cable Pull-In, 2 x 10-12, 2020, rest 60 sec.

Tuesday and Friday

A1. Incline Dumbbell Press, 8,10,12,15 on a 3010 tempo, rest 75 sec.

A2. Close-Parallel-Grip Chin-Up, 4 x 8-10, 4010, rest 75 sec.

B1. Decline Dumbbell Press, 3 x 10-12, 3010, rest 75 sec.

B2. One-Arm Dumbbell Press, 3 x 10-12, 3010, rest 75 sec.

C1. Decline Dumbbell Triceps Extension, 3 x 10-12, 3110, rest 75 sec.

C2. Seated Offset Dumbbell Curl, 3 x 8-10, 3010, rest 75 sec.

Frequency Option 3

This option, which works for about 20 percent of the population, is for those with

superior recovery ability. This is a three-days-out-of-five training split, designed so

that each body part is trained thoroughly once every five days – as a result, you

have to train at least one day per weekend. For example, Monday, Tuesday, rest

Wednesday, Thursday, rest Friday; followed by Saturday, Sunday, rest Monday,

Tuesday, rest Wednesday; and so on. With these cycles, we often eliminate or

drastically reduce the volume of one body part per phase to permit greater recovery

or to concentrate on select body parts.

Day 1

A1. 25-Degree Incline Dumbbell Press, 6,8,10,12 on a 2210 tempo, rest 100 sec.

A2. Lean-Away Parallel-Grip Chin-Up, 4 x 7-9, 5010, rest 100 sec.

B1. Flat Dumbbell Press, 3 x 10-12, 3010, rest 10 sec. (yes, 10 seconds!)

B2. Incline Cable Fly, 3 x 10-12, 5010, rest 100 sec.

B3. Seated Cable Rowing to Neck, 3 x 8-10, 3110, rest 90 sec.

B4. Decline Barbell Pullover, 3 x 15-20, 2010, rest 90 sec.

C1. Rope Cable Upright Row, 3 x 12-15, 3010, rest 75 sec.

C2. Seated Dumbbell Press, 3 x 8-10, 2012, rest 10 sec. (yes, 10 seconds!)
Day 2

A1. Cyclist Back Squat, 10,12,15,20 on a 2210 tempo, rest 100 sec.

A2. Leverage Leg Press, 4 x 4-6, 5010, rest 100 sec.

B1. Lying Leg Curl, Feet Inward, 3 x 4-6, 5010, rest 100 sec.

B2. Romanian Deadlift, 3 x 4-6, 5010, rest 100 sec.

C1. Standing Calf Raise, 3 x 7-9, 3110, rest 90 sec.

C2. Seated Calf Raise, 3 x 7-9, 5010, rest 90 sec.

Day 3

A1. 10-Degree Decline Close-Grip Bench Press, 6,8,10,12 on a 3210 tempo, rest 75

sec.

A2. Seated Zottmann Curl, 6,8,10,12 on a 3210 tempo, rest 75 sec.

B1. Rope French Press, 3 x 10-12, 3110, rest 10 sec. (yes, 10 seconds!)

B2. Pronated Triceps Pressdown, 3 x 15-20, 3010, rest 90 sec.

B3. Scott Gorilla Bar Reverse Curl, 3 x 7-9, 4010, rest 10 sec. (yes, 10 seconds!)

B4. Low Rope Supinated Curl, 3 x 12-15, 3010, rest 90 sec.

C1. Decline Pronated Wrist Curl, 3 x 12-15, 2010, rest 60 sec.

C2. Gripping Machine, 3 x 15-20, 2010, rest 60 sec.

So there you have it: three options for manipulating training frequency. One of

them will work best for you.

Always take into consideration the 2 Percent Rule of Progress as a practical tool to

guide your training decisions for optimal results.

Chapter 6: Exercise Selection and Exercise Order

The tremendous upper back and erector spinae muscles of Russian weightlifting

champ Anatoly Pisarenko are evident in this great photo by Bruce Klemens. His

best lifts included a 454-pound snatch and a 584-pound clean and jerk, both world

records at the time.

Much of the training talk in gyms is about which exercise will best target a specific

muscle. Many such exercises will be covered in Part II, but before getting into

those chapters, you need to understand the following principles of exercise selec-

tion.
End goal. You must keep the end goal in mind. If your quads are weak, it may be

because your upper quads are more developed than your lower quads. If that is the

case, you should focus on exercises that work the VMO – and even the calves.

Arnold did not have exceptional leg development in his early years as a body-

builder. In his later years, however, he had great VMO and calf development, and

this development led to an overall more symmetrical physique. Likewise, if you

have a thick waist, working the shoulders can give your torso a greater V-taper.

Back to Arnold: When he came to America, it was obvious that his weakness was

his calves – that was made clear when he lost the 1966 NABBA Amateur Mr. Uni-

verse to a much smaller but symmetrical Chet Yorton. Upon the advice of his idol

Reg Park, Arnold made calf training a priority in his training. He worked his calves

as hard and as long as any other body part, rather than pumping out a few sets of

light calf raises at the end of a workout. And to further motivate himself, he cut his

pants off at knee level to call attention to his weakness. The result of his commit-

ment was a pair of diamond-hard calves that stretched the tape to 20 inches.

No “best” exercise. There is no such thing as a “best” exercise for a body part.

Virtually all exercises are good, providing that you include sufficient volume and

intensity of loading. However, if time is a limiting factor, some exercises are known

to recruit more motor units.

For example, parallel bar dips recruit a greater proportion of the motor-unit pool of

the triceps cross-section than, let’s say, triceps kickbacks. Another example comes

from the work of Canadian sports physiologists showing that the incline curl and

Scott curl produce greater motor-unit recruitment than the standing barbell curl,

which in bodybuilding circles is sometimes called “the king of biceps mass exer-

cises.” This is probably because incline curls and Scott curls permit greater neural

drive to the elbow flexors since the postural muscles don’t fire as much during

these exercises due to the support provided by the benches.

Various modern assessment tools such as the MRI and the integrated EMG are

now making exercise selection decisions much easier. (An excellent book on the

use of MRIs in exercise is Target Bodybuilding by Per Tesch.) These tools can as-

sess the percentage of the muscle cross-section activated by various exercises.

From the data from various studies using these devices we now know that decline

triceps extensions with chains are far superior to triceps kickbacks in activating the

triceps.

Instead of providing a “best exercises” list, we list some of the better exercises for

a specific body part. For example, three superior exercises for the triceps are lying

barbell triceps extensions with chains, parallel or V-bar dips, and overhead French

presses. For the biceps, here are three great exercises: incline dumbbell curls, Scott

narrow-grip barbell curls and 80-degree seated Zottman curls.

Hormonal response. Another factor to consider in exercise selection is the hor-

monal response. Although back squats and leg presses are used to train many of

the same muscle groups, the human growth hormone (HGH) response is not the

same. For instance, a 10RM workload yields the highest response in the leg press,

whereas a 25RM workload has the greatest effect in the back squat. The variation in

the HGH response to these exercises is probably due to the differing mechanics of

the two lifts. The larger hormonal responses associated with exercises involving

large amounts of muscle mass – squats, for example – are partially responsible for

indirect strength in untrained muscle groups, even the forearm extensors. So, how

does this apply to training?

When designing workouts for maximal weight loss, you want to get the greatest

hormonal response. For that purpose choose exercises that are multijoint and that

especially affect the lower-body muscles. To maintain a high level of intensity

throughout such a workout, and because it takes longer to recover from lower-

body exercises, alternate between upper- and lower-body exercises.

Agonists and antagonists. It is critical to train the antagonist of the targeted muscle

group. The muscle that causes the primary movement is called the agonist, or

prime mover (i.e., the contraction of this muscle is responsible for the movement).

As this contraction occurs, the opposing muscle, the antagonist, is relaxed. Thus,

when you curl a weight, the biceps is the agonist and the triceps is the antagonist;

but when you perform a triceps pressdown, the triceps is the agonist and the bi-

ceps is the antagonist. By having the agonist and antagonist contract alternately

(such as in a set of an elbow flexion exercise followed by a set of an elbow exten-

sion exercise), you enhance the ability to achieve full motor-unit activation in a

muscle. Programs emphasizing only specific muscle groups will produce muscle imbal-

ances between the agonist and antagonist muscles, thus disrupting body align-

ment and predisposing the trainee to injury. Neglecting to train the antagonists is

counterproductive to the development of an athlete’s maximal strength, starting

strength and explosive strength. What happens is weak antagonists send inhibitory

signals to the brain that shut down force output in the agonists. Compound exer-

cises such as squats and deadlifts simultaneously train various muscle groups,

thus minimizing the probability of muscular imbalance. However, be wary of over-

lapping compound exercises, which are different exercises that work the same

muscle. Examples include overlapping the squat and deadlift, the jerk and

overhead press, and the bench press and close-grip bench press. Overlapping

often is the cause of overuse injuries and extremely slow rates of progress.
Stabilizers and fixators. It’s important to determine which muscles act as stabi-

lizers or fixators in your training goal. Stabilizers and fixators describe the function

of muscles when they are used to anchor a body part so that the prime movers

have a stable base to pull or push from. One pitfall of machine training is that the

movement patterns are predetermined for trainees, thereby reducing the work of

stabilizers and fixators and limiting their opportunity to grow in strength.

Quite often, improperly trained small stabilizing muscle groups will prevent the

trainee from increasing the load on a compound exercise. This is because if the

stabilizers perceive excessive tension on the prime movers, they will shut down

neural output in the prime movers. The problem can be corrected by identifying the

deficient area and training it with specific exercises at the end of the workout.

Adam Nelson, Olympic champion in the shot put, neglected his external rotator

muscles and suffered because of it. The muscle imbalances he developed from

incomplete training caused shoulder pain that prevented him from performing sev-

eral important exercises, such as the power snatch. However, after several weeks of

performing specific exercises for the external rotators, he power snatched 286

pounds for 3 reps; after six months of training, he increased his incline bench

press, using a 3-inch-thick bar, from 385 to 525!

Strength curve. Consider that for long-term development, you need to maintain

strength gains over the entire shape of the natural strength curve, which is the

amount of force a muscle can exert at specific angles. Strength is not gained evenly

throughout the strength curve, as certain angles are more trainable than others. For

example, at X angle of lumbar extension, if you gain X percent in strength, you will

gain Y percent at XXX degrees of lumbar extension.

Trainees who are diagnosed with tendonitis often have abnormal soft-tissue ten-

sion that manifests itself at the tendon level, even though there is nothing wrong

with the tendon. Often this condition can be alleviated by an assortment of soft-

tissue techniques, but the problem will resurface eventually unless the trainee takes

steps to correct the imbalance in the strength curve. For example, bodybuilders

who overemphasize the mid-range of the strength curve, such as by doing only

barbell curls and seated dumbbell curls, will find that the soft-tissue tension that is

masquerading as tendonitis. This condition will often go away by switching the

curl’s point of torque. For example, close-grip Scott curls will emphasize the begin-

ning point of the elbow flexion, while spider curls will influence the end of the

range of motion.
Thick-bar training. We can’t emphasize enough the value of using thick imple-

ments to increase the effectiveness of the strength training process. We strongly

believe in using extra-thick dumbbells (2 to 2 1/2 inches) and barbells (3 inches).

This is not an entirely new concept. Alan Calvert, one of the fathers of weight train-

ing, recommended it in 1924 in his book SuperStrength. We highly recommend

thick bars and dumbbells for all upper-body exercises, and even for deadlifts.

Thick-bar pressing movements (e.g., seated press, incline press, bench press)

should be done in a power rack with safety pins, as the trainee may drop the bar at

first. Many advanced trainees will experience new growth in mass and strength

when switching to thick bars.

We are proponents of thick-bar training for bodybuilders for two main reasons:

First, it increases motor-unit activation. The more motor units you recruit and the

higher their firing rate, the faster you gain in strength. One of the mechanisms re-

sponsible for the enhanced recruitment could well be the fear factor: In the 3-inch

bench press, for example, one must concentrate on not dropping the bar. Chiro-

practors and neurologists were consulted on what they judged was the exact mech-

anism responsible for the strength increase. The best answer that anyone has

come up with is that the thick handles may inhibit an inhibitory reflex. If you inhibit

an inhibition, you are stronger. When doing thick-bar work, you can’t shift effort-

lessly into the mental “autopilot” with which most reps are completed. Everybody

we know who trains using thick bars finds they can handle 10-12 percent more

weight when they return to the smaller-diameter handles.

Second, thick-bar work increases grip strength and forearm development because

the fingers, wrists, thumbs and forearms are more challenged by the bigger diam-

eter. You will find that the muscles that adduct the thumbs will be quite sore when

you start using these bars. For chins and rows, you will find that using straps will

become unnecessary. Hence, your strength will be more functional. Try doing

chins or curls with oversize bars for a new kind of training effect for the elbow flex-

ors. Tape, foam or plastic pipe (or a combination) can be used to thicken your

bars. One elite female judo athlete trained by one of our coaches could do 5 chin-

ups. After six weeks of incrementally increasing the diameter of her chin-up bars

(by adding tape to the bar every workout), she did 5 chin-ups with 45 pounds at-

tached to her waist.

Changing exercises. As a general guideline, exercises should be changed every six

workouts for optimal progress (Table 5).

Table 5
Consider this is only a mathematical average because there is a wide array of differ-

ences among individuals. Elite athletes such as Adam Nelson need to change their

exercises more frequently because their bodies adapt so quickly. Beginning and

intermediate athletes may be able to use the same exercises for a month without

experiencing a drop-off in progress. Another key factor that influences the rate of

change is the nature of the exercise. The upper body needs more frequent changes

in exercises than the lower body. Thus, a bench press improvement cycle would

call for more variations than a deadlift- or squat - improvement cycle (Table 6).

Table 6
As machines are especially popular with bodybuilders, we’ll take a quick look at

some of the most popular units for the upper body and lower body.

A Bodybuilder’s Guide to Resistance Training Machines

Anyone who visits our training facility will see Olympic lifting platforms, Olympic

bars with bumpers, thick bars, thick-handled dumbbells (lots of thick-handled

dumbbells!) and strongman equipment. But they will also see an abundance of

exercise machines, often a half dozen or more machines for one body part. There

are many good reasons to equip your facility this way.

It’s important to have exercise machines because these are often the primary tools

that our trainers have to work with. Also, many of those attending our seminars ei-

ther are gym owners or are trainers who have the ear of those involved in pur-

chasing equipment for the gyms where they work. Because it’s not unusual for

some machines to cost several thousand dollars (in fact, top-of-the-line pec decs

can cost nearly $3,000!), it’s great for our trainers to be able to try out these ma-

chines and compare their features and functions. Plate loaded or selectorized?

Fixed handles or adjustable handles? Chrome plating or chrome-look paint? There

are a lot of features and functions to consider, and nothing beats pumping out a

few reps on a machine to help you make the best decision.

One problem with many exercise machines is that the designers of the machines

often do not have a background in biomechanics or they fail to consult those who

do have such credentials. For example, one way to cut the manufacturing costs of

an exercise machine is to have fewer parts. A fixed backrest costs less than an ad-

justable backrest, and fixed handles cost less than handles that rotate. While cut-

ting corners may be a smart financial decision, these compromises inevitably affect

the function of the machine. Look for companies that they have carefully thought

out the design of their machines as it relates to biomechanics and do not compro-

mise function to save a few dollars.

Although it takes only a few seconds to master the basic lifting techniques of ma-

chine exercises, it’s necessary to follow some guidelines to get the most from your

workout and to ensure maximum safety. Here are a few guidelines that apply to

several popular resistance training machines.

Abdominal crunch and torso twist. Crunch machines allow you to perform abdom-

inal crunch exercises with resistance, either from a seated or a reclined position.

Compared to free-weight crunches, these machines enable you to more easily per-

form this exercise with additional resistance. The major problem with crunch ma-

chines is that when the legs are anchored, as in most of these crunch machines,

you increase the activation of the muscles that flex the hip and, therefore, you can
hyperextend the spine.

To minimize the involvement of the hip flexors, always per-

form these exercises slowly and avoid gripping with the heels. As for the torso twist

machines, this type of exercise places extreme shearing forces on the disks and

does little to work the obliques, as these muscle fibers are primarily aligned diago-

nally to the torso.

Biceps curl and triceps extension. One problem with these machines is that often

in an attempt to cut corners, the manufacturer skimps on the machine’s ability to

adjust to different body types. The seats should be adjustable on all these units,

and it’s best if there are some adjustments on the handles to fit different arm

lengths. If a specific machine causes pain in the wrists or elbows and you have no

indications of soft-tissue damage, you should stick with handles that are attached

to a cable as they often provide the most comfortable feel for the most people.

Hack squat. The hack squat, a favorite of Mr. Olympia competitor Tom Platz, has

much greater hip involvement than the leg press. One EMG study showed that

compared with the squat, the hack squat movement produces similar effects on the

vastus lateralis and more strongly works the glutes and biceps femoris (the ham-

string muscle involved in knee flexion). When it comes to involving the lower back

(erector spinae), the hack squat produces less involvement than the squat pro-

duces but more than the leg press.

To be truly effective, machine hack squats require strong development of the vas-

tus medialis muscles and extremely good stability of the knee joints. Unfortunately,

less than 5 percent of trainees fit in that category, and therefore relatively few peo-

ple can make significant gains from machine hack squats. Hack squats are effective

only when they are performed over a maximal range of motion. However, trainees

often compromise on range due to any number of reasons, such as laziness, a low

pain threshold or the need to show off how much weight they can pack on the

bars. For any or all of these reasons, they practically guarantee themselves poor re-

sults. Machine hack squats seem to be more effective when you rise progressively on the

balls of your feet during the descent. Once you reach the bottom position, concen-

trate on pushing off the balls of your feet to further activate the vastus medialis

muscles. As you ascend, progressively lower your heels to the platform. Also, you

should avoid hack squat machines with a short backrest as they will not adequately

support the lower back. (With some of the popular ones in the ’70s, the backrest

was so short that the pelvis would roll under and cause hyperextenion of the spine.

Hip thrust. The hip thrust is similar to the angled back squat, but the athlete faces

the machine. It has been a popular exercise among football strength coaches, as

they believe it is more similar to the positions that occur in tackling. The same

safety precautions apply with the hip thrust as with other exercises performed on

the hip sled machines. However, because the back is not supported in the hip

thrust, it is much easier for the back to flex.

Leg curl. The first leg curl units included an apparatus called the iron boot. This

was a metal boot that was attached to the feet, and a bar that passed through a

hole in the boot allowed additional weights to be attached. Gravity would come

into play and ensure that the leg curls were performed from a standing position.

The leg curl units with iron boots were superseded by machines with a flat surface

so that you would perform the leg curls from a prone position. The design of this

type of leg curl machine caused the lower back to hyperextend. You could reduce

the problem by placing a rolled-up towel under your hips and concentrating on

tightening your abs to stabilize your pelvis, but this wasn’t a foolproof solution.

Eventually, these machines were replaced with a V-shaped bench that minimizes

the pressure on the back. Other back-friendly options are to use the standing, seat-

ed or kneeling variation of leg curl machines.

Leg press. In the early days of the iron game, athletes would perform vertical leg

presses by balancing the weight across their bare feet (and things got even worse

when this practice was replaced with performing squats while standing on a Swiss

ball!). It wasn’t long before vertical leg press machines were developed with guided

rods to provide stability. Horizontal machines followed, but the most popular are

the incline versions. Design variations make it difficult to compare one’s perfor-

mance on one machine to that on another,

but there is no question that consid-

erably more weight can be used with these machines compared to the weight you

can lift in squats. Mr. Olympia winner Ronnie Coleman could squat with 800

pounds and incline leg press with 2,300 pounds for 8 reps.

The leg press emphasizes the quadriceps, especially the vastus lateralis. The

advantage of leg presses is less stress on the lower back because the back is stabi-

lized. As such, those with lower back injuries or medical conditions that make

squatting painful, such as scoliosis, often can perform the leg press without dis-

comfort. Because of the stress of heavy back squats on the lower back, to get

enough work on the legs many powerlifters include leg presses. Among the power-

lifters who have reportedly performed leg presses are Steve Goggins, who squatted

1,102 pounds at 242 pounds bodyweight, and Andy Bolton, a superheavyweight

who squatted 1,213 pounds.

The biggest concern with these machines is being careful not to allow the weight to

be lowered to a point at which the lower back is rounded at the bottom – compare

this movement to the harmful stress that occurs by performing a rounded-back

deadlift. This is one reason you should only use machines that require you to start

with your legs straight, because you can determine exactly how far you can bend

your knees safely. Conversely, if you start the exercise with knees bent, you have a

tendency to jerk the weight and create adverse pressure on your lower back.
If only for the variety they offer to keep your motivation high, machines have a legit-

imate place in the gym. And while they may not transform you into The Hulk, ma-

chines do provide a way to work your muscles while recovering from whatever

damage you’ve done by pushing yourself too hard in sports or in everyday life. This

brings us to the concept of exercise order.

The Science of Exercise Order

The expression “circuit training” was formally introduced in 1953 by physiologists

at the University of Leeds in England to describe a system of integrating several

components of fitness into a single workout. This was a dramatic shift from the

traditional approach of athletic and physical fitness training of that time.

Traditionally, strength training and energy system training were performed in sepa-

rate training blocks. For example, an athlete might run in the morning and perform

gymnastics or some resistance training in the afternoon; or they might alternate be-

tween days, such as by performing strength training on Monday, Wednesday, and

Friday, and running on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, with Sunday being a day

of rest.
One characteristic of traditional strength training is that all the reps for an exercise

are completed before moving on to the next exercise. This is referred to as station

training, and is ideal for complex movements, such as the Olympic lifts. This

concentration of exercises enables athletes to focus better on technique. A

weightlifter might perform 10 sets of snatches, followed by 10 sets of clean and

jerks, followed by 10 sets of squats. Athletes will often rest 2-4 minutes between

sets, which means such a workout could last for two hours. Circuit training uses a

different approach.

Rather than establishing rest intervals between sets, a circuit combines several

exercises, usually about 10, so that no two muscles are worked at the same time.

The idea is that the workouts are faster and also produce greater aerobic benefits.

It’s also a time saver. Whereas the 30 sets performed by an Olympic lifter with sta-

tion training would take about two hours, 30 sets of a circuit training workout

could be completed in 45 minutes.

There are two major drawbacks with circuit training: (1) any breaks between exer-

cises take the body out of the aerobic zone and (2) the lack of significant rest peri-

ods reduces the amount of weight that can be lifted. As such, circuit training is

appropriate for general fitness training but is inferior to doing strength and energy

system training separately.

A better method of training, which is a variation of circuit training, is called super-

sets. A superset is a pairing of two different exercises. Pairing agonist and antag-

onist muscle groups is the most common form of supersets, but you can also

superset exercises for the same muscle groups to upgrade the training stimulus.

The two major types of these supersets use the principles of pre-exhaustion and

post-exhaustion.

Pre-exhaustion supersets. With pre-exhaustion, a muscle is first fatigued by a sin-

gle-joint exercise and then further exhausted by performing a multijoint exercise

involving the same muscle group. You could perform biceps curls followed by

chin-ups, or lateral raises followed by behind-the-neck presses. It’s an amazingly

effective training system for stimulating muscle growth.

Pre-exhaustion is a training principle that was introduced to the bodybuilding

world in 1968 by Robert Kennedy in Iron Man magazine. Nautilus founder Arthur

Jones popularized this form of training, and he was obsessed with finding the most

painful ways to use this training system.

Jones liked the pre-exhaustion method so much that he even designed several of

his early Nautilus machines to combine two exercises into one to minimize the

amount of rest time between sets. For example,

he designed a leg extension/leg press machine and a lateral raise/overhead press
machine. Possibly because these

machines were much more expensive than single-station units and because fewer

gym members could use them at one time, these units are no longer being pro-

duced.

When selecting exercises for this type of training, consider that for optimal devel-

opment of muscle mass, isolation exercises that recruit few motor units are not as

effective as compound exercises. As such, close-grip bench presses are more effec-

tive than dumbbell triceps kickbacks to use for pre-exhaustion. This is not to say

you should never perform these inferior isolation exercises, but they should not be

emphasized as much.

Post-exhaustion supersets. A post-exhaustion routine is a great plateau buster. As

the name suggests, this is a type of superset in which you first perform a com-

pound exercise and then follow it with an isolation exercise that taps into the same

motor pool of the muscle you want to focus on

To get the most benefit from this variation of supersets, select an exercise that re-

cruits a lot of motor units and follow it with a superior isolation exercise, such as a

Scott curl or a split squat lunge. Just remember that wimpy exercises such as tri-

ceps kickbacks or side adductor raises are not allowed. Two examples of effective

combinations of exercises for post-exhaustion supersets are close-grip chins fol-

lowed by low incline dumbbell curls, and parallel bar dips followed by overhead

rope extensions.
One key to effective program design is knowing how to design supersets. Mas-

tering this aspect of training will enable you to achieve your goals as fast as pos-

sible.
Chapter 7: Recovery

Mike MacDonald held the world record in the bench press in four bodyweight

classes at the same time! He popularized the use of the cambered bar for bench

pressing, which is U-shaped in the center to enable the elbows to drop lower when

the bar touches the chest.

It’s easy to focus all our attention on the “work” of working out – the vein-popping

effort, the sweat-drenched final rep and the pain of making gains. We sometimes

forget that it’s only after the weight is racked that the muscle begins to grow. When

this crucial recovery time is overlooked or underrated, the unfortunate result is

stagnant workouts and mediocre gains.

When it comes to obtaining the best results from the recovery process, today’s

most advanced thinking advocates short workouts. Nearly every expert agrees that

the time in the gym must be less than an hour. The only point they disagree on is

how many of these workouts you should have in a week or even in a day.

Research on hormonal response to exercise indicates that once your warm-up is

finished and you have begun your first working set, you should leave the gym with-

in one hour. The physiological rationale concerns the androgen fluctuation during

the workout.

Workouts exceeding the one-hour mark are known to be associated with rapidly de-

creasing androgen levels. This shift in androgens probably upsets the testosterone-

cortisol ratio. Because this value is very strongly correlated with strength gains, it’s

easy to see that training under depressed androgen levels is counterproductive –

specifically, the catabolic effects of the glucocorticoids negate the anabolic effects

of the androgens. Research shows that a one-hour rest is sufficient to allow testos-

terone levels to return to normal. This is why the approach to strength training has

evolved from the two-hour workouts advocated so heavily in the ’70s to multiple

sessions daily.
Excessively long workouts are immuno-suppressive; that is, they lower the power

of the immune system. This is why overtrained athletes tend to come down with

colds and other viral diseases so frequently. It was shown in an Australian study

that the athletes most often affected with mononucleosis were triathletes, swim-

mers, and rowers – athletes who are submitted to prodigious volumes of work by

their coaches.

Depending on the training intensity and the athlete, 2-10 days of recovery are

necessary for tissue repair and protein synthesis. If the training stimuli are too far

apart, the overcompensation will fade away (involution). If the training stimuli are

too close, then overcompensation does not happen and strength diminishes. Simi-

larly, if maximal-intensity stimuli are overemphasized, a state of general exhaustion

may occur. For this reason you should be careful not to increase stress by having

workouts that are too long; instead, maximize overcompensation by alternating

high- and lower-intensity stimuli.

All stressors have both general and specific effects on the body. For example, a

bodybuilding session will trigger specific adaptations in your body (such as larger

and stronger muscle fibers and an increase in white blood cells). But these effects

will also function as stressors and will trigger a general response from your body

through various neural, hormonal and other biochemical means. If several stres-

sors are imposed on your body concurrently – a condition called cross-

sensitization – the total effect may be more than your systems can handle. The re-

sult is exhaustion and impaired recovery.

Now that we’ve established the importance of recovery, let’s look for ways to en-

hance it. One way is to train twice a day; another is through appropriate supple-

mentation.

Twice-a-Day Training: Better Gains, Better Recovery

A few decades ago when a 500-pound bench press or running 10 seconds flat in

the 100 meters was a big deal, training once a day and perhaps only three days a

week was enough to get the job done. That was then, but to compete at the highest

levels today requires much more time in the gym.You may be wondering if it’s pos-

sible to maintain a high quality of training with longer workouts? The answer is no

– but you can train harder and longer without doing marathon workouts. You sim-

ply increase the frequency of training.

In football, one of the preseason traditions is training twice a day in what are

known as “two-a-days.” Part of the rationale for doing so much work in a single day

is to learn as many new skills and plays as possible, but it also serves as a message

to players that it’s time to get serious about the game.

Other sports also make use of the concept of multiple workouts, but for other rea-

sons. Distance runners, for example, often require a large volume of training that is

difficult to perform all at once and at a high level. Rather than running 10 miles

straight, they might do a morning run of three miles, and then a primary workout of
seven miles later in the day. Splitting up their training this way prevents them from

getting lazy – if they go for a long period without a run, they start thinking twice

about whether this type of commitment is worth the investment in time and en-

ergy.

Another lesson in the recovery mechanism comes from Bulgarian weightlifting

tradition. In the ’70s and for the next three decades, the Russians and Bulgarians

dominated world weightlifting.

Bulgarian training takes into account evidence that the level of testosterone peaks

about 15 minutes into a workout and remains at that level for about 30 minutes –

adding up to 45 minutes, which Bulgarian trainers believe is the optimal duration

for training. After 45 minutes, they take a break. Ivan Abadjiev, who popularized

this concept, would keep his athletes using the heaviest weights possible in work-

outs lasting about 45 minutes. However, to obtain sufficient volume of training to

make continual progress at the highest levels of the sport, Abadjiev found that his

athletes needed to train at least twice a day – sometimes up to five times a day.

Most elite Olympic medalists train in multiple sessions a day (and are submitted

to rigorous doping control as well). But let’s get real: There’s optimal training, and

there’s the fact that training five times a day is not practical for most athletes, re-

gardless of their sport. However, it is often possible to train twice a day.

There are numerous factors that explain why training twice a day is a shortcut to

gains. From a physical perspective, it maximizes anabolism. Because testosterone

and cortisol both come from the same raw material – pregnenolone – you want to

avoid long workouts that deplete the pregnenolone and interfere with testosterone

production. From a psychological perspective, training twice a day allows for

greater concentration during workouts. No matter how driven you are, excessively

long workouts affect your mind. Eventually, you will not look forward to your work-

outs, and your desire to train hard will diminish.

A study in the 2012 European Journal of Applied Physiology shows that training twice

a day increases the ability to produce force at high speeds. By training in a shorter

double session, you will be able to sustain maximal force output better than by

training longer only once a day. Researchers suggest double-session training is so

effective because it increases neuromuscular function and leads to greater motor

unit synchronization so that the nervous system can co-activate numerous muscle

groups to produce force quickly over and over.

Because training volume increases anabolic hormone output, multiple training ses-

sions are great for natural trainers. Conversely, the one-set-to-failure approach of

the so-called high-intensity proponents produces an inferior hormone response.

This is why (despite the fact that such workouts can result in progress for short

periods, especially in overtrained athletes) We cannot recommend that type of

training for long periods for any bodybuilder or strength athlete.

We are firmly convinced that athletes can get more out of their training if they com-

mit to training twice a day; however, career and family commitments may make it

impractical to participate in such an extensive training schedule. If you do have the

time to train twice a day, we have several options and guidelines that will help you

maximize your results, depending on your goals.

Be patient. It can take up to six months to fully adapt to training twice-a-day, al-

though highly-motivated athletes can adapt fully within three months. We suggest

you increase your training volume gradually, such as by starting with two 20-

minute workouts a day. You can also start by just focusing on the weak body parts;

for example, any areas that were deficient in a structural balance test. The results

will encourage you to progress to the entire body.

Keep it short. Excluding warm-up time, your workouts should initially be no longer

than 40 minutes – training longer would be counterproductive. As your body’s

recovery ability increases, you can increase your workout time to 60 minutes, but

no more.

Take long rests between workouts. You need to take plenty of time between work-

outs to achieve an optimal training effect – we suggest about 4-6 hours between

training sessions. This time spread is critical. If you use a shorter one, you will be

too fatigued; and if you use a longer one you will negate the effects from the ner-

vous system activation received in the morning workout.

Exercise scientists refer to this phenomenon as a supercompensation effect, which

is a theoretical model that describes the body’s response to stress: a decrease in

an individual’s fitness preparedness followed by a resistance phase in which the

body adapts to a higher fitness state (Figure 3). Even though supercompensation

usually refers to a longer training period, such as a few weeks, it can also occur

after a single workout (because after a few hours the nervous system will rebound

to a higher level).

Figure 3 Understand training fluctuations. Training twice a day requires a period of adjust-

ment. It is normal to lose some lean muscle mass as you begin this type of training

– sometimes as much as 4-9 pounds during the first five days. And in fact, studies

conducted on American and Finnish weightlifters who trained twice a day for short

periods found that testosterone production can be temporarily depressed when

they start this type of training. However, the testosterone will shoot right back up

during an unloading cycle.

Start twice-a-day training on weekends. It’s best to start twice-a-day training on a

Saturday so you can nap during the first two days of the cycle, which will help you

adapt to the training.

Plan unloading periods. One workout plan that works well with twice-a-day training

is to organize the training into three 5-day cycles. In the first two cycles you train

twice a day, and on the third cycle you unload with a cycle of cutting back to

once-a-day training.

Twice-a-day training must be sequenced properly. We’ve found that you achieve the

best results when you train the same body part twice on the same day. There are

several options to accomplish this, such as the following:

Option A: Hypertrophy

AM: Compound exercises

PM: Isolation exercises

If you are working the pectorals, for example, the morning session could consist of

incline presses and dips, and the evening session would be devoted to isolation

exercises such as the dumbbell fly and various cable exercises.

Powerlifters can also use a similar approach when they desire to move up a weight

class post-competition. Here is an example:

Option B: Hypertrophy

AM: 4-6 reps

PM: 12-20 reps

Working heavy in the morning and doing higher reps in the evening works quite

well; for example, performing sets of 4-6 reps in the morning and sets of 12-15 in

the evening.

Option C: Hypertrophy/Strength

AM: Low reps, fast tempo

PM: Low reps, slow tempo

You could also do the same reps bracket during both workouts but use a different

tempo; for example, performing 4-6 reps on a 20X0 tempo in the morning and 4-6

reps on a 4210 tempo in the evening. The explosive work in the morning tends to

facilitate the evening workout; thus, you can use greater loads than normal in the

evening. The nature of the exercise can take care of that.

One practical way to apply this system would be to perform power cleans in the

morning and deadlifts with chains in the evening. Or, if your primary goal is to im-

prove your jumping ability, the sequence would be plyometrics in the morning and

squats in the evening.

Option D: Rapid strength gains

AM: Relative strength methods

PM: Functional hypertrophy methods

If you are more interested in strength development, your morning workouts should

be in the 1-3 rep range; whereas your evening workouts would max out at 8 reps.

Option E: Rapid strength gains

AM: Relative strength training

PM: Eccentric-only training

In this method, you train heavy in the morning and then perform eccentric-only

training in the evening. For example, heavy front squats for 6 sets of 2-3 reps on a

5011 tempo in the morning, and eccentric back squats of 7 sets of 1 rep on a

10:0:1:1 tempo in the evening. For these squats, use eccentric hooks.

Option F: Olympic weightlifting or powerlifting

AM: Competitive lift or derivative

PM: Assistance work

For an Olympic-style weightlifter, it could be snatches in the morning and front

squats in the evening. For a powerlifter, it could be deadlifts in the morning and

reverse hypers in the evening.

Regarding exercise selection for both workouts, you may want to do the same ones

if strength is your primary goal, or change them completely if hypertrophy is your

main concern. Thus, weightlifters would do back squats twice a day, while a body-

builder may perform bench presses in the morning and incline dumbbell presses

in the afternoon. Or you could just do a slight variation; for example, back squats,

heels flat, in the morning; and back squats, heels elevated, in the evening.

Increasing the Volume

You have to be wise when introducing twice-a-day training by gradually increasing

the volume. Here is a useful formula to accomplish this. (Note that when it says

workout, it is a workout for a given body part, such as legs.)

Eating patterns. Because you have to be properly fueled for a workout, it’s impor-

tant to pay special attention to your eating patterns. Not eating enough in both

quantity and frequency will hamper your gains immediately and may lead you to

incorrectly assume that you are overtrained. You are not overtrained; you are

under-recovered. If you have a hard time putting muscle mass back on during your

unloading phase, take post-workout shakes on your non-training days – lack of

caloric intake during the supercompensation phase is usually the main reason that

people do not achieve new levels of strength.

Chapter 8: Advanced Training Methods

Al Feuerbach broke the world record in the shot put and won the US National

Weightlifting Championships.
Tension is usually associated with negative conditions such as high blood pres-

sure, insomnia, digestive disorders, fingernail chewing, profuse sweating and

offensive body odor. In the world of physique training – that microcosm of

existence doesn’t follow the rules of normal society – tension is a good thing.

In the bodybuilder’s dictionary, the word tension can be found between supersets

and Vanadyl, and is defined as “the degree to which individual muscle fibers are

voluntarily activated.” Increasing muscle tension requires hard work and the disci-

pline to tolerate discomfort, thereby giving support to the axiom “No pain, no

gain.” And judging by the physiques of aerobics instructors, it’s primarily the qual-

ity, not the quantity, of muscle tension that determines how big and strong you can

become.

There are three basic ways to increase the quality of muscle tension when you lift

and thereby improve the overall quality of your training: increasing the load, slow-

ing down the tempo, and combinations of both methods. Let’s take a closer look at

each, then explore in detail two more advanced methods of increasing muscle ten-

sion: drop sets and eccentric training.

Increasing Muscle Tension

Option 1: Increase the Load

The types of muscle fibers that significantly increase in size are called fast-twitch

Type IIa and Type IIb; for maximum development you need to train both types.
Lifting weights between 90 and 100 percent of your 1RM produces maximum

hypertrophy in the Type IIb fibers. Visual proof of this theory can be found in the

physiques of legendary iron athletes such as Roger Estep from powerlifting and

David Rigert and Victor Sots from Olympic lifting.

These great world champions seldom performed more than three consecutive reps

in their training but nevertheless possessed physiques that many competitive

bodybuilders would envy. Another strength athlete with an impressive physique is

British strongman Gary Tailor. Tailor has push pressed, behind-the-neck, 496

pounds for 6 reps and has full-squatted 683 for 3 reps without knee wraps or a

super suit. At 5 feet 10 inches tall and a solid 297 pounds, Tailor has capitalized on

the benefits of heavy weight training to become one of the strongest men in the

world.

Even though it will make you get bigger, training with heavy weights is considered

more conducive to increasing maximal strength. This is because using heavy

weights is more effective for improving intramuscular coordination, which is the

ability of the central nervous system to recruit motor units. Not surprisingly, those

who achieve impressive levels of hypertrophy with this type of training are blessed

with extremely high levels of Type IIb fibers. In fact, muscle biopsies performed on

Finnish weightlifters showed that the hypertrophy displayed by these athletes oc-

curred mainly in the Type IIb fibers.

If you prefer to use primarily low reps in your training but still want to add muscle

mass, you must be aware of the following factors:

More sets are needed to achieve sufficient growth stimulus. Because less mechan-

ical work is performed with low-rep sets, the amount of contractile protein that is

broken down is somewhat limited. The opinion of strength experts Jürgen Hart-

mann, Ph.D., and Harold Tünnemann, Ph.D., of former East Germany is that opti-

mal overload with low reps requires 8-15 sets in that intensity zone. Although most

of us have neither the time nor the desire to commit to so many sets per exercise,

it’s possible to perform this method with fewer sets by using modified drop sets,

described later in this chapter.

It’s a longer process. Although weightlifters often display extremely well-muscled

glutes, quads, traps and erector spinae, it takes them a considerable amount of

time to achieve such development. Often the weightlifters seen competing at in-

ternational competitions have been lifting for 10 years or more and are at the peak

of their athletic careers. In the beginning stages of their careers, their musculature

was considerably less developed. In fact, the first several years of a weightlifter’s

training emphasizes technique rather than strength development.

Development occurs primarily in the Type IIb fibers. The reason is that the nervous

system of an advanced weightlifter is so well developed from the emphasis on low

reps and heavy weights that it can bypass the recruitment of the Type IIa fibers. Al-

though years of emphasis on training just the Type IIb fibers can produce remark-

able muscular development, for maximum muscular development a bodybuilder

must also use protocols that will work the Type IIa fibers.

It’s easy to burn out with this training method. Millions of dollars and countless

hours of research have been devoted to studying overtraining. The overtraining that

can occur with low-rep training, according to former Soviet Union strength expert

Vladimir Zatsiorsky, manifests itself in insomnia, anxiety, depression, early morn-

ing fatigue, high blood pressure at rest and an increase in the perceived rate of ef-

fort for a given weight. It’s also possible that this type of training drains the adrenal

glands. We are not saying it’s inevitable that you will overtrain using these methods

but that at the elite levels such training can be extremely complex.

Option 2: Slow Down the Tempo

This concept is a favorite of Arthur Jones, Ken Hutchins and Ellington Darden. This

training protocol is not an exclusively American discovery. Weightlifting coaching

textbooks from Europe, published as far back as 1968, recommend slow-tempo

protocols. In fact, renowned German weightlifting coaches Spitz and Feser told

said they often prescribed slow work for sets of 6 reps for their athletes who need-

ed to increase their lean body mass.

One problem with slow-tempo training is that it recruits primarily lower-threshold

motor units. Any stimulus to the Type IIb fibers will occur only on the last few reps

of a set, if at all, and the recruitment is even less for experienced athletes. Further,

if you’re trying to run faster and jump higher, or if you are in a sport where body-

weight classes are used, such as weightlifting, you want to emphasize training of

the Type IIb fibers. The Type IIa fibers will contribute little to the performance of

these activities and will most likely reduce performance by increasing your body-

weight.

Option 3: Combine Training

We believe the optimal solution to achieving maximal motor-unit activation and

muscle tension is to modify the training load during a set. To better understand

this, let’s look at a conventional set for a bodybuilder who can bench press 300

pounds (lowering the bar for a 4-second count) and can perform 7 reps with 240

pounds.

Now let’s have the same individual perform a 7-rep set, but lift 300 pounds for the

first rep, 285 for the second, and then drop the weight 10 pounds (5 percent) for

every subsequent rep. In most individuals the difference between 1-2RM and 2-3RM

is roughly 5 percent while the difference narrows to about 2 percent between reps

of 4RM and 12RM. The drop in resistance is most effectively accomplished by

using two training partners who will strip the bar at the end of each concentric con-

traction.
As you can see, the average load for the 7-repetition set is 7.4 percent higher in this

protocol versus the first protocol, thereby creating a higher overall level of muscle

tension. Also, the average concentric speed was slower in the second protocol be-

cause each rep represents 100 percent of momentary maximum strength.

One of the keys to ultimate overall gains in muscle mass is to select the appro-

priate combinations of muscle tension protocols. We should also mention that

there are other ways to accomplish this – from impractical methods such as elec-

trostimulation techniques (a popular method of the late Belgium super heavy-

weight weightlifter Serge Reding, the first man to snatch 400 pounds) to simply

the intelligent use of supersets. Muscle tension is a key training variable, and find-

ing ways to achieve the most effective levels of tension requires considerably more

thought than just using a specific number of reps for a set and following the advice

from the gurus to “train hard, but brief.”

Refining Drop Sets

Drop sets are a popular training method in bodybuilding to prolong a set and

thereby prolong muscle tension. With a drop set you perform several sets of the

same exercise, but with no rest between sets and with each subsequent set using

lighter weights than the previous one. For best results from this training method,

you need to take into account how efficiently your nervous system recruits fast-

twitch fibers.
Two of the primary factors that determine neurological efficiency are training expe-

rience and an individual’s ratio of fast- to slow-twitch fibers. Beginning trainees,

particularly women, tend to be less neurologically efficient than advanced body-

builders. This means they can perform more repetitions with weights closer to their

1RM. For example, at 80 percent of their 1RM, the average bodybuilder will be able

to perform about 10 repetitions, while an advanced bodybuilder would probably be

able to perform only 3-5 reps. However, just because a person’s nervous system is

not efficient, that does not necessarily mean they are not strong.

To this day, when you think of big legs, the first name that usually comes to mind

is Tom Platz – his legs have become the standard that all others are measured

against and which few, if any, have equaled. At his best, Platz placed third in the

1979 Mr. Olympia, and in an exhibition in Germany in 1993 Platz beat the world

record holder in the squat, Fred Hatfield, squatting just over 500 pounds for 23

reps to Hatfield’s 12. However, Hatfield did lift more than Platz for a single, 775

pounds to 865.

Drop sets for the neurologically inefficient bodybuilder. Here is an example of how

a bodybuilder who is neurologically inefficient should perform drop sets. The exer-

cise is the incline press, and this bodybuilder’s 1RM is 350 pounds.

All reps are performed at a 2020 tempo; this will produce constant tension in the

muscles to recruit primarily the Type IIa fibers. There is no pause between drops of

weight because this type of bodybuilder is more suited for muscular endurance.
Drop sets for the neurologically efficient bodybuilder. Here is an example of how a

bodybuilder who is neurologically efficient should perform drop sets. Again, the

exercise is the incline press and the bodybuilder’s 1RM is 350 pounds. Notice that

there is a 10-second pause between drops of weight; this will allow this type of

bodybuilder enough time to activate the higher-threshold fibers.

All reps are performed at a 31X1 tempo; that is, a smooth descent of 3 seconds for

the eccentric contraction, a pause of 1 second to eliminate the myotatic compo-

nent, an explosive contraction to tap into the high-threshold fast-twitch fibers, and

a 1-second pause before performing the next repetition. A pause should be taken

where leverage is favorable (e.g., the lockout position in the bench press) so that

the muscles can relax and the blood supply can be augmented. According to Aus-

tralian strength and biomechanics expert Dr. Greg Wilson, this type of training

tempo will enable you to access more of the high-threshold fast-twitch fibers.

Even though the desired speed of the bar displacement is explosive, the bar may

not move very fast because of the high load. Nevertheless, you must still concen-

trate on accelerating the bar through the concentric range. When applying this

technique to exercises with a greater range of motion, such as the squat and the

deadlift, you may want to use 4-5 seconds for the eccentric lowering.
The Science of Eccentric Training

In popular bodybuilding videos often you’ll see the stars lifting barbells and dumb-

bells explosively. You’ll see them jerking up curls and presses, huffing and puffing

their way to a monster pump – and finishing off by slamming the weights back into

the racks in exhaustion. Perhaps this is a bit of Hollywood embellishment, but

somewhere along the way to learning how to “lift things up and put them down,”

bodybuilders, personal trainers, and strength coaches have forgotten about eccen-

tric training.

Just to make certain we’re on the same page, let’s review what happens during an

eccentric contraction: the muscle lengthens while producing tension, thus braking

or controlling the speed of movement. As such, during a bench press, lowering the

weight to the chest would be considered an eccentric contraction. Research shows

that of the three types of contractions, eccentric will produce the most muscle

soreness and muscle mass. Here are examples of how to emphasize eccentric con-

tractions in four popular exercises

Leg curl. Exercise machines offer greater stability than free weights, and with this

machine you can take advantage of this difference by lifting the weight with two

limbs and lowering it with one. Obviously, this technique can also be used with leg

extensions. However, this method should not be used with a conventional leg

press because of the high shearing forces it places on the pelvis.

Back extension. To increase the eccentric overload of this exercise to match the

strength curve, hold a dumbbell close to your chest, proceed to the top position of

the exercise, and then extend the dumbbell in front of you. Lower it slowly. By

changing the leverages during this exercise, you increase the resistance at the top

of the movement. This technique is more difficult than you might think, and most

trainees will find it sufficient to use a light weight (such as 2 1/2 to 5 pounds).

Chin-ups. A lot of trainees, especially women and those who are overweight, can-

not perform a single chin-up (palms facing the body) or pull-up (palms facing

away from the body) in good form. Eccentric training is ideal for quickly achieving

this goal. Have a training partner help you lift one leg (keeping it back, behind you)

and have them assist so that you can lift your chin over the bar. At this point, the

partner lets go (or holds on lightly without providing assistance), and then you

lower yourself to extended arms. Another version is to set a barbell at hip height

(or slightly lower) in a power rack, and then place your rear ankle on the bar – this

will reduce the amount of bodyweight you have to lift. As a general rule, when an

individual can lower their body to a count of 30, they can perform a single concen-

tric rep in good form.

Shoulder external rotation. The rotator cuff muscles are important for sports that

involve throwing because these muscles help decelerate the arm. They are also

important for sports in which there is little eccentric movement, such as

swimming; in such sports structural imbalances often develop that can increase

the risk of injury. With this variation of a standing external rotator cuff movement,

you use your free hand to help you pull the weight to the mid-range position, and

then release it and slowly allow the cable handle to return to the start position. You

will find that you can use considerably more weight with this exercise than you

could in the conventional manner.

Consider that there are two types of eccentric contractions: fast and slow. Per-

forming a heavy squat requires a slow eccentric contraction of the hamstrings, and

sprinting requires fast eccentric contractions of the hamstrings. Because slow

eccentric training is associated with a decrease in the rate of force development, it

should be used mainly in the preparatory period. Fast eccentric training, such as

plyometrics, should be reserved for the competitive period.

Eccentric strength is specific to many sports movements. During the follow-

through of a baseball pitch, the involved muscle groups must provide important

decelerative contractions to preserve healthy joint functioning (arthrokinematics).

It’s interesting that many textbooks on overuse injuries prescribe eccentric training

to rehabilitate overuse injuries yet do not prescribe eccentric training to prevent

them.
Eccentric strength is also important in many sports that require exceptional jump-

ing ability, such as figure skating and gymnastics, as athletes in these sports need

high levels of eccentric strength to control their landings and minimize the stress

on the joints. In a research paper written by New Zealand sport scientist Warren

Frost, major sports were classified according to the level of eccentric activity they

require. The highest levels of eccentric strength were reported to be in sports such

as American football, figure skating, gymnastics and downhill skiing. Sports such

as golf, field hockey, and baseball were considered sports that rely more on con-

centric contractions. (For whatever reason, poker and chess were also examined.

Guess what: neither of these activities requires high levels of either eccentric or

concentric strength – good to know!)

Because fewer motor units of a muscle contract during an eccentric contraction,

eccentric training can generate up to 1.3 times more muscle tension than concen-

tric training. Greater tension provides increased stimulus to the muscle fibers,

which in turn encourages greater biological adaptations. Per Egil “Pella” Refsnes, a

respected strength researcher from Norway, claims that eccentric training is the

single-best method to boost strength levels in elite strength athletes. In fact, eccen-

tric strength can improve performance in many exercises; research has shown that

powerlifters who could lift the heaviest weights in the bench press could also lower

their weights more slowly.

Of course, there are a few disadvantages of eccentric training. Embarking on eccen-

tric training too early in an athlete’s career could damage connective tissues and

place the athlete at a high risk of muscle injury. Further, it takes considerably

longer to recover from workouts that emphasize eccentric contractions versus con-

ventional workouts. Specifically, it can take seven to ten days to completely recover

from an eccentric workout, so this type of training should be avoided with in-

season workouts.

With many exercises that use heavy weights, such as squats, several well-trained

spotters are required. Also, there are several unique pieces of training apparatus

that are especially suited for eccentric training, such as eccentric hooks that release

additional weights when the attached weights touch the floor (so there is more

resistance in the eccentric range than in the concentric). There are now grip

training machines that are specifically suited for eccentric training. As the value of

this type of training becomes more widely recognized, we’re sure we’ll see many

more pieces of equipment that facilitate the use of eccentric movements.

Practical Applications of Eccentric Training

Strength coaches recommend using anywhere from 100 percent to 175 percent of

maximum for optimal loading in eccentric work. However, it’s tempo that dictates

the optimal weight to use in eccentric work; you should have a preset time of low-

ering (e.g., 6 seconds) in your mind before doing your set. Muscle failure in a

properly performed eccentric exercise is associated with a response in which the

muscles are shaking involuntarily as they do their decelerating work.

Athletes should try to visualize their muscles as giant brake systems that decelerate

the resistance. If you start lowering the weight faster than the preset time, it’s time

to terminate the set. And the greater the range of motion in the exercise, the longer

the preset lowering time.

Besides the slow lowering of supramaximal loads, there are many other ways to

perform or combine various forms of eccentric training. Using a method called

complex training, athletes achieve hypertrophy through a combination of lifting

maximal loads (1-5 RM) and fast eccentric training (plyometrics). One example is

to superset 6 sets of 5 reps in the squat with 5 reps of hurdle jumps. The rationale

is that the heavy sets tap into the high-threshold motor units and the plyometrics

create muscle fiber damage that leads to the positive adaptation or hypertrophy of

the high-threshold fast-twitch Type IIb fibers.

Before anyone considers jumping into advanced, complex training methods, we

believe there should be a continuous, progressive buildup of eccentric training.

This progression can be broken down into the following six levels:

Level 1. This level is for the athlete with less than two years of training experience.

No training with eccentric loads is needed; the simple lowering of loads under con-

trol should suffice.

Level 2. Use 70 percent of maximal load (1RM). Go to concentric muscle failure

and then do 2-3 forced repetitions with the same load. Repeat for 2-3 sets. As a vari-

ation, you could perform only 1 forced rep, but try to stop the descending weights

three times for a count of 4 seconds.

Level 3. Use 70 percent of maximal load. Go to concentric muscle failure and then

do 2-3 forced repetitions with 15 percent more weight. Repeat for 2-3 sets.

Level 4. Use 80 percent of maximal load. Go to concentric muscle failure, and then

do 2-3 forced repetitions with 20 percent more weight. Repeat for 3-4 sets. As an

alternative to Levels 3 and 4, a training partner can manually apply resistance (i.e.,

push down on the bar) for the eccentric portion instead of adding weight. These

additional negative repetitions will exhaust eccentric strength levels after you

achieve concentric muscular failure.

Level 5. Using 110-120 percent of maximal load, do 4-6 eccentric-only reps for 4-6

sets, resting 4-5 minutes between sets. Take 8-10 seconds to lower the weight in

each set.

Level 6. Using 125-140 percent of maximal load, do 2-3 eccentric-only reps for 5-6

sets, resting 4-5 minutes between sets. Take 4-6 seconds to lower the weight in

each set.

Embarking on an eccentric strength training cycle exposes you to increased con-

nective tissue damage and myofibrillar damage and higher cortisol levels. Three

supplements to help deal with this stress are BCAAs, beta alanine, and vitamin C.

As you can see, addressing the concept of tension in your workouts requires a con-

siderable amount of planning, but the rewards are well worth the effort.
Chapter 9: The Kaizen Principle

Russia’s Vasily Alexeev was a two-time Olympic champion who broke 80 world

records and was the first man to clean and jerk 500 pounds.
Regardless of where you are in the bodybuilding hierarchy, we’d like to introduce

you to an effective training method that will improve the effectiveness of virtually

any training program you use.

Anyone who has been training for a long time eventually reaches a point of dimin-

ishing returns, making it difficult to produce even a five-pound increase in a partic-

ular exercise. For some reason, you just can’t seem to reach that next personal

record, at least not as quickly as you expect and, hopefully, have become accus-

tomed to. If your personal best in the bench press is 5 reps with 245, when you try

250 you get stuck on 4 reps for several weeks. Although the increase is only five

pounds, it’s still too much. The problem is even more pronounced – and frus-

trating – with exercises that use smaller weights.

When working the external rotators of the delts, for example, you may find that you

can perform 10 reps with 10 pounds on one exercise, but when you increase to 15

pounds you can’t even complete a single rep! As for selectorized exercise ma-

chines, often the only progression with heavier weights is by 10- and 20-pound

increments, which means you may be stuck on the same weight for months.
The Kaizen Method

In the Japanese language, the word Kaizen means “constant and never-ending im-

provement.” This word is used in all areas of Japanese life, whether it is relation-

ships, learning judo or improving the balance of trade. The point here is that the

Japanese look for constant and gradual improvement. The Japanese believe that

very small refinements made on a daily basis will compound with interest to bring

about in the long run progress that most people will envy. Interestingly, there is no

equivalent in English for the word Kaizen.

By following the Kaizen philosophy, Japan progressed from a war-torn country to a

dominant economic power. Kaizen also describes the way in which the legendary

Greek wrestler Milo of Croton built his tremendous strength and physique. Milo

purportedly carried a calf every day until it was a full-grown bull. Although the Milo

story may itself be a bunch of bull, such an approach to training can help you

achieve your goals.

Coach Pat Riley of basketball fame is another person who has used the Kaizen

method to his advantage. Instead of asking his team for large increases in one as-

pect of the game, he asked every player to increase each skill level by only one per-

cent. Multiply the number of skills by the number of players, and you can under-

stand his secret of success.

Applying the Kaizen method to weight training means that instead of making a

jump of five pounds, you can make an even smaller jump (such as by just one

pound). This makes the weight both physiologically and (even more important)

psychologically easier to handle. The Bigger Faster Stronger organization uses the

idea of breaking personal records to help motivate kids, and by accounting for set

and rep records their programs promise that you can “Break eight personal records

a week!” Although the BFS program is marketed primarily to high school and junior

high athletes, with the Kaizen method such results are possible at any age. And just

think about this: Imagine if you could increase the weight for reps by half a pound

a week – in one year that would represent a 26-pound gain! Gets you psyched,

doesn’t it?

You can apply the Kaizen method to your training by using a combination of kilo

plates, pound plates and EZ bar solid collars. For example, 1.25 kg and 2.5 kg plates

weigh 2.75 and 5.5 pounds respectively, and an EZ bar collar weighs about 1.5

pounds. If the base weight on the bar is 225 and your personal best for one rep is

240, you can apply the Kaizen method by increasing the weight in the following

manner:
When Muscles Meet Magnets

The easiest way to apply the Kaizen method is to purchase magnetic add-on

weights, such as PlateMates sold by Benoit Built, Inc. The idea was inspired when

their inventor, Ken Benoit, injured his biceps doing a heavy dumbbell curl on a

Scott bench. During rehabilitation, Ken made the painful discovery that the stan-

dard five-pound increase in dumbbells put excessive stress on his injured arm. By

duct-taping 1 1/4-pound weights to each end of a dumbbell, he was able to achieve

a 2 1/2-pound increment that allowed him to progress in his rehab steadily and

safely.

Later on, Ken came up with the idea of using magnetized plates to save the time

and hassle of taping weights. The product was first used in gyms in the New Eng-

land area and was later mass marketed. Ken made even smaller magnetized disks

so they can be used when training smaller muscles with poor leverage, such as the

rear delts and the rotator cuff muscles.

Another benefit of having these magnetic weights is that you can correct the weight

of poor-quality weight plates. For example, if you have a 25-pound dumbbell that

weighs only 23 pounds, you can add on a two-pound plate to increase it to the

standard of 25 pounds. Although two pounds may not seem like such a big deal,

you may experience a subconscious fear of injury when you realize that your

weights don’t weigh accurately, a fear that may manifest itself in an injury if it dis-

rupts your concentration when you lift.

There are other practical uses for the Kaizen method if you have access to the add-

on magnetic weights. In particular, we’d like to discuss how they can be useful

when using drop sets and wave loading cycles, and even for modifying strength

curves.

Drop sets. With drop sets you perform as many reps as possible with one weight;

then you immediately proceed to the next-lowest available increment and complete

as many reps as you can with that weight. This process usually continues for at

least one more set. This method exhausts a greater percentage of the available

motor unit pool and gives you a great pump! The problem with performing drop

sets with dumbbells is that you must have access to several sets of dumbbells.

With an adjustable dumbbell, this procedure could take several minutes, pre-

venting you from properly using this technique. With the magnetic weights, all you

have to do is peel off the additional weight, a process that takes about a second.

Another problem with drop sets is that with some exercises the normal five-pound

drop in weight may be too much, allowing you to perform too many repetitions to

achieve the desired training effect. This is especially true for the third and subse-

quent drop sets. Magnetic weights will enable you to use the exact amount of resis-

tance to produce the optimal training effect.

Wave loading cycles. With a wave loading cycle you work up to a maximum weight

for a specific number of reps, back down in weight for one or more sets, and then

work your way up to even heavier weights. Especially effective with elite athletes,

this method allows you to handle heavier weights than you could otherwise.

One of our coaches saw an elite weightlifter who competed in the lighter body-

weight classes use this method with front squats. On his first wave during the

workout, he barely completed 350 pounds, but after several of these waves he was

able to lift 413 pounds! Although you would think that an athlete would be tired

after such a first wave, what happens is the undulation in intensity stimulates the

nervous system in such a manner as to allow heavier weights to be used as the

workout progresses – so much for that kooky idea of achieving maximum overload

with just one set!

To show you an example of this method, let’s say a male powerlifter can bench

press 400 pounds. His wave loading cycle might progress as follows:

First wave: 135 x 5, 225 x 3, 315 x 3, 355 x 2, 375 x 2, 390 x 1, miss 400

Second wave: 325 x 3, 365 x 2, 385 x 2, 400 x 1, miss 405

Third wave: 335 x 3, 390 x 2, 405 x 1

Now, enter the Kaizen method. If this athlete had used magnetic weights, on the

second wave he could have made a personal record of 400.5 pounds, thereby

psyching himself up for the 405 (or more) on the next wave.

Modifying strength curves. One of the problems with many exercise machines is

that they often have poor strength curves. The prone leg curl machine is one obvi-

ous example. For most of these units, the weight is easy to lift at the beginning of

the exercise and virtually impossible to complete at the end of the range of motion.

Electing to use the heaviest weight possible, most bodybuilders simply accelerate

the weight at the beginning and use momentum to allow them to complete the

movement. Thus, regardless of the weight selected, you effectively overload only

one section of the movement.

However, by adding a magnetic weight plate to the lever arm of the machine, you

effectively make the exercise more difficult at the beginning; then, as the lever arm

passes neutral, gravity works to decrease the resistance on the way down. Let’s say

you are lifting 50 pounds on the leg curl and add a five-pound magnetic weight to

each end of the lever arm. On the way up the resistance is 60 pounds, and on the

way down it’s 40 pounds. What is happening is that you are modifying the strength

curve to be more in line with the natural strength curve of the hamstrings, enabling

you to more effectively overload the muscle.

The application of Kaizen will bring security to your training life because you know

you are improving in some way every single training day. Don’t worry about main-

taining the quality of your workouts if every day you are working on improving

them. Long live Kaizen!

SECTION 2:

Applying the Poliquin Principles

Poliquin Group Gymnasium, East Greenwich, Rhode Island

Chapter 10: Quads
Joe Weider began publishing Flex magazine in 1983. Many Poliquin Group

instructors have contributed to this popular publication devoted to hardcore

bodybuilding.

There is a sacred code among bodybuilding writers that with every mention of leg

training they must use the expression “The squat is the king of all lower body exer-

cises.” That infamous line joins the ranks of other overused slogans such as “If

you don’t have the squat in your program, you don’t have a program,” “If you don’t

squat, you don’t know squat about leg training,” and “Machines were made to keep

geeks away from squat racks.” Fine, fine – we get the message.

The simple deep knee bend is unquestionably the single most productive leg exer-

cise you can perform. No other weight training exercise works as many major mus-

cle groups, including the quads, as thoroughly or with greater intensity. Addi-

tionally, due to the number of muscle groups involved, the squat burns more calo-

ries than any other weight training exercise and positively stimulates the cardio-

vascular system. But despite its versatility and effectiveness, the squat still has its

critics.
To Squat or Not to Squat

One outspoken critic of the squat was ’60s bodybuilding guru Vince Gironda. He

was nicknamed “Trainer to the Stars” because his clientele included many Holly-

wood celebrities, including Cher, Denzel Washington, and Clint Eastwood; but he

also trained Larry Scott, who won the first Mr. Olympia in 1965, and Mohamed

Makkawy, who twice won the runner-up position in the ’83 and ’84 Olympia. Giron-

da made many valuable contributions to bodybuilding, but his idea that squats

widen the hips was not one of them because anatomically such a comment makes

no sense.

Yes, it’s true that squats work the gluteus maximus, but because neither its inser-

tion nor its origin attachment is at the hips, when it develops, it grows back, not

out. All you have to do is look at the proportions of Olympic lifters, who devote as

much as 25 percent of their training volume to squats, to see that as a group they

do not necessarily possess exceptionally wide hips.

Other outspoken critics of the squat are college professor Karl K. Klein and medical

doctor Fred L. Allman, Jr. In 1961 a study was published by Klein that suggested

squats decrease knee stability, thus increasing the risk of injury to the joint. In 1971

Klein and Allman’s book, The Knee in Sports, was published by Penn State Press. Al-

though many students of the iron game believe that Klein and Allman did not like

squats at all, the truth is they were fine with the parallel squats (i.e., thighs parallel

to the floor) practiced by powerlifters, and they acknowledged parallel squats have

benefits to athletic performance. The squats they disapproved of were the full

squats practiced by weightlifters.

Klein’s study wound up being a great marketing tool for the manufacturers of leg

extension machines. But the fact is that every legitimate study on this subject has

shown that squats will improve knee stability and, therefore, reduce the risk of in-

juries. The National Strength and Conditioning Association has an excellent posi-

tion paper on this subject if you want more information, and there is an article writ-

ten by Dr. Terry Todd that details the flaws in Klein’s work, most notably that

Klein’s findings could not be reproduced. Further, data from Canada’s national

team of Alpine skiers suggest that regular squatting appears to reduce not only the

number of injuries but also the length of time necessary to recover from injuries.
Critics of the squat are finding it hard to support their assertion that it is hard on

the knees, but some are saying that the squat is bad for the back. The reality is that

if someone has a back problem from squatting, usually it can be traced to poor

form. For example, some aerobics instructors have their students perform squats

with a tail-under posture to increase glute development (which it doesn’t). Lifting

with this posture places excessive strain on the ligaments and connective tissues

of the back, especially when the athlete hits the lowest position of the lift.

Some trainers recommend squatting with a flat back, a form that is often taught in

aerobics classes. In his self-published book Facts and Fallacies of Fitness (1998),

the late Dr. Mel Siff gave his perspective on that technique: “Keeping the back ‘flat’

is common advice in the gymnasium training environment, yet its validity is rarely

questioned. A flat back devoid of any curvature is not only virtually impossible for a

normal person to achieve, but it also reduces the ability of the spine to absorb or

distribute shock and stress effectively. The healthy spine is meant to have several

different curvatures, whereas the straight spine suggests the presence of a specific

type of pathology.”

To protect the ligament structures of the back, always keep a slight arch in the

lower back when you squat. This technique does increase the stress on the lumbar

muscles, but a muscle can recover from a mild tear in 3-8 days, whereas a ligament

strain requires at least 21 days. Also, many muscle injuries can be avoided simply

by following a sensible training program.

As for upper back or neck injuries, these problems usually occur only when some-

one is using poor technique, such as looking down or looking up excessively. Also,

some beginners find squats uncomfortable on the upper back area and may try to

minimize their discomfort by rolling a towel around the bar. This is a bad idea. The

larger diameter of the bar can be harmful to the neck and increases the risk of the

bar rolling down the back. As for overcoming the discomfort of having a naked bar

on your back, work on building up your traps and realize that just as with a bicycle

seat, most individuals will simply get used to it with time.

Finally, there should be no concern that the squat will damage the heart. Although

it’s true that performing the squat will temporarily raise blood pressure, the heart

adapts to this stress in a positive fashion by hypertrophying the left ventricle. Inter-

estingly, the increase in blood pressure is three times higher when performing leg

presses at a 45-degree angle than when performing squats. Obviously, if you suffer

from cardiovascular disease or if it runs in your family, you should consult an ex-

perienced sports medicine practitioner before engaging in a serious squat pro-

gram.

Although we started this chapter praising the squat as the king of exercises, we’re

going to throw a wrench into this discussion: the deadlift.

Squats vs. Deadlifts

Paul Anderson popularized the squat, performing feats that to this day could only
be matched by a few. He was that good, and although his records have been bro-

ken, his legacy as one of the strongest men of all time will endure forever. And just

as Anderson popularized the squat, there is one person who popularized the dead-

lift: Bob Peoples, the first man to deadlift 700 pounds.

Born in northern Tennessee on August 2, 1910, Peoples grew up admiring strength.

Peoples did not have an inspirational background of being a weakling and having

to overcome that adversity, as he was always strong. And although he grew up on a

farm living a modest life and didn’t have a gym, he made do at first with a few

dumbbells his father had. Later Peoples improvised, making homemade resistance

training equipment that included a set of 50-gallon barrels that he filled with rocks

and joined with a pipe.

When he was 25 years old, Peoples could deadlift 500 pounds. In 1940, he

established a Southern record of 600 pounds in the deadlift, and in 1946 he lifted a

world record of 651-1/4 pounds at 175 pounds bodyweight. And on October 4,

1947, he hit the big 7-0-0 – at least, he thought he did, as the lift was officially

weighed at 699. But the lift Peoples was most remembered for occurred on March

5, 1949, when he did 725-1/2 pounds at 178 pounds bodyweight at a competition in

Johnson City, Tennessee. This record stood for over two decades.
Peoples was a master of the deadlift, and his accomplishments secured his legacy

in iron game history. But just how valuable is the deadlift? To answer that question,

let’s see how the deadlift stacks up against the squat.

Convenience. Because you can squat more weight than you can lift from the

ground to overhead, to use enough weight in the squat you need to have a power

rack or a pair of squat racks. And although weightlifters use bumper plates and will

simply dump a squat onto the platform if they miss a lift, this technique takes

some skill. It’s better to have spotters. With the deadlift, spotters are not necessary

– you just lift the weight.

Technique. The deadlift is much easier to master technique-wise – it is a more nat-

ural movement to bend over and pick up an object than to squat down. Yes, there

are some athletes who lack the body awareness (proprioception) to arch their

lower back to get into the proper set position for the deadlift, but this problem usu-

ally is easily corrected. Those who find arching the back a major issue can use a

hex bar that places the hands at the sides, making it easier to arch the back. Also,

with the squat, those athletes who are relatively tall or who have tight calves often

have trouble mastering the lift.

Versatility. Just as there are many types of squats, there are many types of deadlifts.

A hex bar enables greater emphasis on the quadriceps, and long-range deadlifts

(such as by using a snatch grip and standing on a small platform) increase the in-

volvement of the VMO (the vastus medialis oblique). It’s also relatively easy to per-

form eccentric contractions.

Muscle group stimulation. The deadlift works the same muscles as the squat, but

because you hold the bar in the deadlift, you are working more on the upper body

muscles, especially the traps and the grip. Yes, upper back strength is needed to

squat, but supplementary lifts are often needed because the lift doesn’t adequately

develop upper back strength.

Strength curve. By performing the deadlift in a power rack, you can overload all

areas of the strength curve. Negatives certainly can be performed in the squat, but

they are not as convenient and should be performed with spotters. After the finish

of the last rep of a set of deadlifts, you are in a perfect position to lower the bar

slowly to focus on eccentric contraction.

Repetitions. It’s much easier to perform higher reps in the deadlift. The squat caus-

es breathlessness, especially the front squat.

Core development. To develop the so-called core muscles, try a one-arm deadlift,

placing the bar at your side. With the squat you would add more weight to one side

than the other, but due to the compressive forces on the disks this may not be

advisable.

Honesty. One thing that attracts people to the deadlift is that it is a pure test of

strength, as assistive gear does little to help the lift. The use of gear is one reason

that world records in the squat occur more steadily than world records set in the

deadlift. But with the use of gear, and also individual differences in judging depth,

it’s difficult to determine just how strong an athlete is. With a deadlift, you either

make it or you don’t.

Intensity. It’s easier to go all out in the deadlift – again, you just lift the weight.

With the squat, you have to guess how much you can lift.

The bottom line is that the deadlift is a valuable exercise that can help an individual

enjoy significant gains in overall strength and muscle size. Yes, the squat is the

king of lifts, but as Bob Peoples’ accomplishments suggest, the deadlift runs a

close second.
Mastering the Squat

One common myth in bodybuilding is that there is one single way to perform an

exercise. The truth is that variations in technique force future adaptations for

growth, so you should vary the types of squats you perform. The two squats that

are used most often are commonly referred to as the Olympic lifting (or body-

building) squat and the powerlifting squat. With the Olympic lifting squat, the back

is kept as vertical as possible and there is considerable forward movement of the

knees. In the powerlifting squat there is considerable forward bending from the

waist and minimal forward movement of the knees. Also, to use more weight,

powerlifters often do not squat as deeply as Olympic lifters.

Which style is best? Neither and both. The fields of biomechanics and neurophys-

iology tell us that even slight variations of movement (e.g., how deeply we squat,

how much we bend forward from the waist, or how much we move the knees)

stimulate different muscular recruitment patterns. Therefore, to stimulate the most

motor units, and, therefore, stimulate more growth, bodybuilders will benefit from

occasionally squatting like powerlifters. Conversely, deep squats will help a power-

lifter because they will increase development of the VMO, thereby increasing knee

stability.

If squats are the mainstay of your leg training routine and you want to increase the

recruitment of the vastus medialis muscle, you have the choices of (a) using a spe-

cific foot position, and (b) overloading the bottom position.

The foot position that maximizes the recruitment of the vastus medialis calls for

placing the load over the arch of the foot. This is best accomplished by using a nar-

row stance and elevating and moving the center of gravity of the body forward by

using something to elevate the heels. Doing more work in the bottom position in-

creases the recruitment of the vastus medialis muscle, which plays a major role in

getting you out of the bottom position.

To develop the vastus medialis muscle, there are two techniques we use with

Olympic athletes that you may want to try.

Cyclist squats. Olympic-level cyclists use these to attain world record perfor-

mances in track events. In this variation of the back squat, you want to use a board

to rest your heels on in a narrow stance (four to six inches between the heels). The

best type of board for this is wedged, so that the pressure on your foot arch is min-

imal. The higher the wedge, the more recruitment of the vastus medialis you will

get. You will also find that you will squat more upright when using the wedged

board so less recruitment will occur in the gluteal muscles.

One-and-a-quarter squats. This exercise has been used in training Olympic skiers

to offset the enormous development of their vastus lateralis muscles and prepare

their knees for the lateral stress of skiing. Squat down for a 5-second count until

you hit the bottom position, come up a quarter of the way at a slow and deliberate

pace, go back down, and then come up until your knees are just short of lockout.

That one-and-a-quarter movement consists of 1 rep. Performing 4-5 sets of 4-8 reps

of the one-and-a-quarter squats will stimulate record growth in your vastus medi-

alis muscles.

Regardless of the type of squat performed, there is no reason to believe that an in-

tense squat workout will always result in vomiting, a belief that is often promoted

in hardcore muscle magazines and is discussed in detail in Samuel Wilson Fussel-

l’s controversial book Muscle: Confessions of an Unlikely Bodybuilder. If vomiting is a

problem, you can usually avoid it by not eating too close to a squat workout and by

not consuming slow-to-digest protein foods.

The Case for Front Squats

The back squat is universally accepted as the single best exercises for total body

strength. However, the best way to assess an athlete’s lower body strength is the

front squat. Here are five good reasons why:

1. First, there is the force-velocity curve to consider, which is represented by a

graph showing an inverse relationship between force and speed (Figure 4). As

such, movement speed will decrease as the weight increases. A power snatch will

assess the velocity side of a force-velocity curve; the front squat will assess the

force side.

Figure 4
2. Second, the front squat is the most honest test for lower body strength. That’s

because if you cheat, you can seriously injure yourself. If you cheat on the front

squat, such as shooting the hips back during the concentric contraction, you will

likely drop the bar. This increases the odds of a serious injury; thus, the incentive

to be honest is very high in the front squat. Cheating is easier in the back squat

than in the front squat, so the front squat provides a more objective interpretation

of maximal strength levels.

3. A third reason we like the front squat is it will immediately access your flexibility

because you will not be able to perform the exercise properly unless your flexibility

is superior in all the major joints. When coaches give strength tests that require

flexibility, their athletes have a strong incentive to train for flexibility. This is obvi-

ously not the case when performing the back squat, but it is particularly true for

bench press addicts who have problems supporting the bar in the correct position

on the clavicles. If an athlete has very tight forearms and external rotators of the

shoulder, it will be very hard to hold the bar. This deficiency can be corrected by

learning proper technique from an experienced weightlifting coach.

4. A fourth reason can be found in sports science research. EMG data suggest that

the front squat is more effective than the back squat for activating the vastus later-

alis and the rectus femoris. Further, biomechanical analysis indicates that the front

squat places less compressive forces on the knee. In other words, the front squat

works the quads harder with less stress on the knees.

5. A fifth reason is that the front squat is a favorite among strength coaches world-

wide. In one survey of top European coaches who were asked to list their three fa-

vorite strength exercises, the consensus was the power snatch, the incline bench

press and the front squat. And based upon the emphasis on the power clean

among American strength coaches, especially at the college level, the front squat

would be a more appropriate selection than the back squat.

When comparing the front squat to the back squat, weightlifting coaches believe

the front squat has more transfer to making improvements in the clean and the

power clean. This makes sense, as the starting position of a front squat more

closely approximates the start position of a clean due to the trunk being more up-

right than in the back squat. The back squat would be considered more specific to

the snatch, as the wider grip forces the athlete to start with a back angle that is

closer to parallel to the floor. For a competitive weightlifter, the front squat will

obviously help in recovering from the bottom “rack” position of the clean.
As such, if an athlete’s power clean or clean is considered relatively weak compared to
their

other strength tests, it would be appropriate for that athlete to focus more on the

front squat.

What is considered a good result in the front squat? Top super heavyweight

weightlifters such as Paul Anderson, Vladimir Marchuk, Alexander Kurlovich and

Mark Henry front squatted at least 317.5 700 pounds!; and absolute clean and jerk

world record holder Leonid Taranenko did 661 pounds for 3 reps. Two other

weightlifters who deserve mention are three-time Olympic champion Pyrros Dimas

of Greece and Dursun Sevinc of Turkey; both weighed 187 pounds and lifted more

than 600 pounds in the front squat. The all-time record appears to be held by

Derek Kendall, who did 823 pounds using the technique with his arms crossed in

front.

What ratio should you expect between your front squat and the back squat? If you

are going all the way down in both exercises, generally the ratio of front squat to

back squat is about 85 percent. So if you can back squat 200 pounds, you should

be able to front squat 170 pounds. One reason few athletes achieve this ratio is that

they do not back-squat all the way down, thus inflating the amount they can lift in

this exercise.
To perform the exercise, use a pronated (palms down) grip as you would for a

power clean. Squat down until the hamstrings completely cover the gastrocnemius

(upper calf) muscles. You should not be able to see daylight between the ham-

strings and calf muscles. Keep your trunk upright, and push your elbows up and in.

If you cannot keep your elbows up and in, the external rotators of the humerus are

too tight. Find a good soft-tissue practitioner who can help you develop rapid in-

creases in mobility. There are many forms of these techniques available to give the

soft tissues the proper elasticity, from ART™ to Applied Kinesiology, and the FAT

tool.

Athletes who have a tight shoulder girdle may want to try using lifting straps to

hold up the bar. To use them, hook the straps around the bar at shoulder width, or

whatever position you find most comfortable. Place your shoulders under the bar

and grasp the straps with your palms facing each other (i.e., semi-supinated or

neutral). How high up you grab the straps is determined by your flexibility, such

that those with poor flexibility will have more space between the bar and their

hands. Now lift the weight off the squat rack and start squatting. You’ll find that

using straps in this manner enables you to keep your elbows high without discom-

fort.

During the front squat two spotters are best, but an experienced coach can safely

perform a single spot.

Squatting Alternatives

Although the squat is a great exercise for improving knee stability, for some indi-

viduals the compressive forces that the squat places on the lower back make it

uncomfortable to perform the exercise for prolonged periods. Also, some people

get burned out on the squat and begin looking for alternatives to keep their interest

piqued. For these individuals, there are several devices that may provide variety to

keep the legs growing big and strong with minimal stress on the lower back – and

without resorting to geek exercises like knee extensions.

Regarding machines that attempt to duplicate the squat, the basic problem is that

although they may reduce the pressure on the back, they may place significant

stress on the knees. Take, for example, the ever popular Smith machine, which

forces the barbell to move along a straight, guided path.

Most Smith machines have the bar moving strictly vertically while another version

has the bar moving at a slight angle. The design of the Smith machines makes it

possible to squat in a manner that allows the user to lean back against the barbell,

thereby supporting the back and minimizing hip extension during the exercise.

What this does is take the hamstrings out of the movement, which is bad because

the hamstrings help stabilize the kneecap.

The result is unnaturally high shearing

forces that try to pull the joint apart, as well as tremendous stress on the anterior

cruciate ligament (ACL), one of the primary ligaments in the knee capsule that pro-

vides stability to the knee. For this reason, our advice is to use the Smith machine

infrequently or not at all.

All the squatting-alternative devices have this factor in common: they displace the

center of mass of the resistance to reduce the stress on the skeletal and muscular

structures. Let’s examine a few other alternatives to traditional squats.

Barbell hack squats. This exercise was popularized in the bodybuilding world by

Russian wrestler Georg Karl Julius Hackenschmidt. Of German and Swedish de-

scent, Hackenschmidt was born in 1878 in Estonia and walked the talk of physical

and athletic fitness until his death in 1968 in England. When he was 18 years old,

he could lift 200 pounds overhead with just one arm, and in 1898 he exceeded

strongman legend Eugen Sandow’s world-record one-arm overhead lift of 255

pounds with a best of 269 pounds – later he did 279. That same year he also

snatched 196.5 pounds with his right hand, a world record.

The hack squat – a low-cost alternative to back squatting – will promote top-level

growth in the vastus medialis, a muscle of the lower leg that crosses the kneecap.

Granted, using a barbell instead of a machine makes the movement uncomfortable

and reduces the amount of weight that can be used, but its effectiveness overrides

the concern about comfort.

To perform a true barbell hack squat, you need a barbell and an adjustable rack so

you can place the barbell at an optimal height for picking up and racking the bar.

Your heels should be elevated by a wedged board or a two-by-four so you can

squat with a straight back and so your hips will be under your shoulders in the bot-

tom position (we prefer to use a wedged board instead of a two-by-four, so the

exercise is more comfortable for the arches).

Set the wedge or two-by-four in the middle of the power rack. Set a barbell on the

rack so it is about 4-6 inches lower than your gluteal line. Standing with your back

to the bar, grab the barbell, preferably with straps. This is one of the rare instances

in which we recommend the use of straps.

Walk forward until your heels rest on the board. Initiate the squatting motion by

allowing your knees to travel as far forward as possible, without allowing your

glutes to move back. Keep a slight arch in your lower back. Once your knees have

gone as far forward as possible, lower your hips to the bottom position of the

squat. Be sure to keep your back upright by pushing the bottom of your sternum

up. Don’t allow the shoulders to round forward, and be certain your hips are under

your shoulders in the bottom position.

Buffalo bar. Some trainees will complain of the following when using a straight bar

during squatting: sore wrists and shoulders, and uncomfortable pressure on the

neck. The buffalo bar is in fact just a very stiff, slightly cambered bar that makes

squatting more comfortable for people who have a hard time supporting a straight

bar. It provides a more comfortable variation of the back squat for those who are

trapezius challenged.
The buffalo bar is also great for high-rep squatting. Bodybuilding programs tend to

work in cycles, with so-called revolutionary new programs evolving every five to ten

years. One of these programs is high-rep squatting, often supersetted with

pullovers to expand the rib cage. This method was first promoted in the ’70s by

Peary Rader, Ironman’s founding publisher, and then by the late-great Don Ross in

his many books and articles, and most recently by Randall Strossen of Milo maga-

zine in his late-’80s book Super Squats. Although there is still no concrete evidence

that the pullover will expand the rib cage any more than will breathing hard after

exercise, for short-term purposes this can cause extreme soreness and serve as a

satisfying introduction to non-bodybuilders about how hard weight training can be.

Supersetting pullovers aside, there is still some merit to high-rep squatting. The

downside is that most bars will undulate when you perform multiple reps, which

can hurt the tempo and place some jarring compressive forces on the lower back.

Because the buffalo bar is stiff, there is no undulation of the bar when doing fast,

multiple reps. We recommend the bar for high-rep squatting or even high-rep

lunges. The stability also makes the bar ideal for the good morning exercise.
Magic Circle squats. The Magic Circle came to life as the Douglass Frame. It was a

rectangular frame draped over the shoulders with supporting harnesses. Later on,

its inventor, James Douglass, further refined his invention by shaping it into a cir-

cle. The new design was popularized by Ironman’s Peary Rader, who sold it

through his Body Culture Equipment company. It has been resurrected periodically

by various authors, such as American weightlifting coach Carl Miller in the mid-

’70s and later by Randall Strossen in Super Squats. Compared to barbell squats,

the Magic Circle lowers the center of gravity dramatically, thus reducing the stress

on the lower back. It is another favorite of those authors who endorse high-rep

squatting for bulking up.

The Magic Circle is an apparatus that can be used for the home gym owner, but it

will never become a popular item in a commercial gym because of the space it

would take up as a permanent station, not to mention the liability of squatting in a

circle of steel with no safety supports. Also, it takes time to get in and out of it and

requires a good sense of balance.

Front harness squats. The front harness squat allows you to squat without strug-

gling to hold the bar. Some people like to use the harness on the Smith machine,

but as you’ve already learned, we hold a poor opinion of any work done on the

Smith machine. The front harness is good for people with weak rhomboids that

limit their squatting poundages. People with large arms (over 18 inches) may still

find it hard to use.

Manta Ray. The Manta Ray was designed originally to protect the upper vertebrae

of beginning lifters. Powerlifters who strain their shoulders or their brachialis mus-

cles by doing scores of reps with low-bar squatting will benefit enormously by

shifting to Manta Ray squats until their injuries recede.

The Manta Ray provides at a very low cost an effective variation for the back squat.

By displacing the center of mass of the resistance, you change the motor recruit-

ment pattern, thus fostering further adaptations in the squatting muscles. Also,

those with large trapezius development may find it uncomfortable because it’s a

“one size, fits all.”

Safety squat bar. The safety squat bar was developed in Germany more than 40

years ago, yet there are people in the US who claim to have invented it about 15

years ago. Bobsled superstar Pierre Lueders has used this bar to improve his

squatting poundages. It is very good for people who have encountered injuries in

the L-5 vertebra region, as it lowers the center of mass of the resistance. There are

three ways to use the bar:

• Holding on to the racks in front of you

• Using locked arms, parallel to the ground in front of you, with the fingertips

brushing against the racks (this style ensures that your back stays as upright as

possible)

• Holding on to the yoke

There are some flexibility restrictions with this bar. Some people complain of pain

in the wrists, elbows or shoulder girdle. However, the safety squat bar has many

advantages. When using a straight bar, there is always a chance that you will lean

forward or round your back, thereby increasing the potential for serious injury to

the lower back. With the safety squat bar, the center of mass of the resistance is

lower and more in line with the midline of the body. This prevents the excessive

forward leaning associated with straight-bar squatting.

In some instances, trainees have lost balance forward or backward, greatly compro-

mising their safety. Once again, since the resistance is closer to the center of grav-

ity when using the safety squat bar, it is much easier to balance high loads. The

padded yoke reduces compressive forces by redistributing the load.

With the safety squat bar you can spot yourself if you get stuck in a position by

simply pressing on your quadriceps or pulling up on the racks since your hands

are free to help you go through the sticking point. There are varying degrees of

quality in the safety squat bars available.

The Zane Leg Blaster. This device was first introduced to the bodybuilding world as

the Moore Leg Blaster; however, it didn’t become popular until it was endorsed by

Mr. Olympia Frank Zane. We guess nobody had ever heard of Moore? In a short

time (and by being mentioned in a few issues of Muscle and Fitness), it became

known as the Zane Leg Blaster.

Whether it’s called the Moore or the Zane Leg Blaster, it is still a toy. If you have ac-

cess to it, it can provide variety to your leg workouts; but it is certainly not neces-

sary for ultimate leg development. And if it allows anyone to get down to full

squats, all the better. As with the Magic Circle, it is more likely to be bought by the

home gym fanatic than by the gym owner.

For Your Consideration: Step-ups

OK, relax. We’re not going to tell you to stop squatting, but we want you to take a

look at one lower body exercise that we commonly prescribe to our clients to com-

plement squats or serve as a substitute for them. It’s a class of exercises called

step-ups.
Gin Miller is credited with creating step training in 1989, a choreographed aerobic

training program that incorporates the use of low step platforms. Step training be-

came so popular that now the exercise is often associated with aerobic fitness and

so-called muscle toning. But the truth is that the step-up and its many variations

are versatile lower-body exercises that can be used for rehabilitation, structural bal-

ance, body composition training and high-performance athletic fitness.

Cross training refers to the concept that because individual sports each focus on

certain muscles more than on others, an athlete can achieve balanced muscle

development and thereby help avoid injuries, especially overuse injuries, by varying

the sports they play. As such, a distance runner could swim in the off-season to de-

velop their upper body, and a golfer might play tennis to balance out the muscles

in their back and abdominals. But the issue with most athletes is that regardless of

the sports played, the lower body muscles do not receive a lot of work throughout

a full range of motion, and this creates muscle imbalances. Consequently, step-ups

have always been a part of our structural balance programs.

To recap, structural balance refers to the major muscles of the body being in bal-

ance with each other. This means the balance between opposing muscle pairs

(such as the biceps and triceps for the arms, and quadriceps and hamstrings for

the legs) and also between the limbs (such as the right leg and the left leg). So it’s

not enough just to have the proper strength ratio between the hamstrings and
quadriceps, for example; the strength of the quadriceps and hamstrings on the

right leg should be equal to the strength of those muscles on the left leg.

One example of the consequences of structural imbalance can be seen in the in-

creasing number of knee injuries among female athletes. The American Orthopedic

Society for Sports Medicine reports that each year more than 20,000 high school

female athletes suffer serious knee injuries, usually involving the anterior cruciate

ligament (ACL). Developing structural balance in all the muscles that affect the

knee is one important step to dealing with this problem. However, the concept of

structural balance extends beyond injury prevention; it can also help with knee

rehabilitation.

The progression of step-ups we use now in our training, and which is taught in the

PICP Level 2 class, consists of the Poliquin step-up, Petersen step-up, step-up and

side step-up. The progression of implements used to add resistance is dumbbell,

barbell on back, barbell on front. From there, we move into split squats, lunges

and then squats. From a periodization perspective, this progression would best be

applied at the end of a sports season, when structural imbalances are usually at

their worst.
The step-ups with weights is an exercise that has been heavily promoted by Angel

Spassov, who was a strength coach in Bulgaria. However, former Bulgarian na-

tional team head coach Ivan Abadjiev says that this exercise was not used by any

member of the national teams he coached. That being said, it was reported that

Russian weightlifter Leonid Taranenko, who still holds the record for the all-time

best clean and jerk with a lift of 586.4. pounds, performed high step-ups when he

felt his lower back was excessively fatigued from squats. This makes sense. Com-

pared to the body position in squats, during step-ups the torso is more perpen-

dicular to the floor, requiring less work from the erector spinae muscles that help

extend the spine.

Performing step-ups with a barbell on his shoulders, Taranenko reportedly lifted as

much as 396 pounds. However, we recommend that anyone who performs this

exercise with heavy weights should have at least one rear spotter (but preferably

one rear spotter and two side spotters). What spotters must know is that lateral

stability is compromised on this exercise, so they must be aware of tilting. And for

maximum safety, trainees should perform heavy step-ups inside a power rack, with

the safety rods set at an appropriate height so that in the case of a miss, the barbell

doesn’t drop more than a few inches.

Regarding teaching tips, the important point is that the top leg does all the work.

One of our trainers worked with a female figure skater of 115 pounds who could

perform 255 pounds in a step-up with the front leg parallel to the ground. But the

catch is she was pushing off with the back leg – an impressive lift, but it’s not what

we’re looking for. Next, the rear leg must be kept straight (of course, it will be

flexed slightly when landing), and the toes of the bottom leg will lift (dorsi flex) to

help prevent the trainee from pushing off. The top leg is turned out five degrees,

which is anatomically more in line with how the upper thigh bone inserts into the

pelvis.

With few exceptions, we’ve found that among the elite athletes we work with, one

leg is often significantly stronger than the other. We’ve found that starting these

athletes with a cycle of single-leg exercises results in greater long-term progress in

the squat than if they perform only squats. One variety of step-ups we often use

with athletes is the side step-up. The start position of this exercise is with the body

sideways to the platform, with the leg closest to the platform resting on the plat-

form. Again, the athlete steps up until the working leg is straight. The side step-up

places more emphasis on the vastus lateralis and also on the inner thigh muscle

groups called the adductors, which are important for athletes because they help

stabilize the leg during movement.

There are many other useful varieties of step-ups. Additionally, there are adjustable

step-up platforms that help the user perform these exercises conventionally and

safely. But be aware that not all platforms are equal regarding safety: Several years

ago a lawsuit was filed against a D1 college when a female athlete suffered a seri-

ous injury when performing barbell step-ups on a technique platform attached to a

power rack.

This platform had a V-shape that did not provide optimal support for the foot, and

in fact this platform was not designed for this purpose. In contrast, the Atlantis Leg

Platform, for example, is adjustable in one-inch increments, from 7 inches to 31

inches. It has a nonslip platform, and a handle is positioned at the front of the unit

to enable the upper body to assist with the concentric portion of the exercise, mak-

ing it invaluable for rehabilitation. Again, the squat is still the king of all exercises,

but the versatility of the step-up makes it a key exercise in any physical and athletic

fitness training program.

The Road Less Traveled: Split Squats

In the PICP courses, we spend a considerable amount of time not only discussing

the value of split squats but also having our students perform many variations of

these exercises in the practical portions of these classes, as they are seldom per-

formed properly.
Because there is some confusion about terminology, it’s important to recognize

that the difference between a split squat and a lunge is that with the split squat, you

use a stationary stance where you go up and down on the forward leg.

Split squats (along with lunges) have been popular among women because they

are promoted as being good for working the glutes. In the ’90s, one popular wom-

en’s program called Freestyle promoted split squats and lunges as the primary leg

exercises for women. The program evolved into a book (which, we learned, sold re-

portedly 50,000 copies), a DVD and a certification course.

In the weightlifting community, barbell split squats were heavily promoted by Angel

Spassov when he lectured in the US in the late 1980s. In the variation he favored,

the back leg is elevated on a low platform (about four inches), a position that puts

greater stress on the quadriceps because there is more weight on the front leg.

Spassov believed split squats were great exercises for athletes, and apparently they

were used for a time by junior weightlifters in his country to develop leg strength

for the classical lifts. Many personal trainers promote a back split squat for ath-

letes, but the back foot is placed on a platform that is much higher than either

Spassov or we recommend. The result is that this type of squat places the lower

back in extreme hyperextension, which should provide chiropractors with many

new clients.
Properly performed split squats should make you sore not only in the glutes but

also in the hamstrings, quadriceps, and adductors. We have seen many sprinters,

jumpers and bobsledders add inches to their already well-hypertrophied legs by

supplementing their squatting programs with lunges or split squats.

We also like to use them if the athlete’s lower back has not yet recovered from a

squat or deadlift session. They provide plenty of leg training without overloading

the spine. In our opinion, in lower-body-dominated sports like soccer and Amer-

ican football, they are the best prevention tools against groin pulls.

Regardless of the set-rep protocol you use with this exercise, always start with the

weaker leg first to help correct muscle imbalances faster. And now, here is how to

perform split squats properly:

Starting Position Setup

• Stand facing away from a barbell placed on a squat rack.

• Using your index fingers, set up a reference point on the bar (use the knurling to

determine the width of the grip).

• Keep your index fingers as close as possible to the outside of the shoulders.

• Duck under the bar and place the bar on the thick area of the trapezius muscle.

• Keep your chin up slightly.

• Focus your eyes on the opposite wall at a point that’s slightly higher than your

eyes to maintain proper neck alignment.

• Keep your feet shoulder-width apart.

• Take a big step directly forward with your nondominant leg to reach the initial

starting position.

Descent

• Move your front knee directly forward, maximally before lowering your hips.

• Lower the hips, keeping your back as erect as possible and your chest up.

• Lower your body under control until your hamstrings come in contact with your

calves.

• Make a conscious effort to keep your elbows under the bar throughout the move-

ment. This will ensure that the load is kept as close as possible to the center of

gravity.

• Make sure your knee travels forward and over your toes throughout the descent.

• Inhale through your mouth throughout the descent.

Ascent

• First, raise the hips.

• Keep your torso as perpendicular to the floor as possible throughout the ascent,

particularly at the sticking point.

• Exhale throughout the ascent.

Watch-Fors

• Keep your trunk as erect as possible throughout the movement.

Safety Concerns

• Keep the eccentric lowering under control.

• Do not lean forward.

• Because heavy weights can be used and lateral stability is compromised, you

should perform the exercise inside a power rack with the safety pins set at the

appropriate height to catch the weight should you lose your balance. Of course, a

spotter can also help you maintain control.

To change the resistance curve on this movement, you place the barbell on the

clavicles using a front squat grip. You can also perform the exercise either with

dumbbells or by holding a single-handle cable hooked to a low pulley using the

contralateral hand.

The squat is unquestionably the most effective exercise for increasing muscle bulk

in all the major lower body muscles, so it has earned its title of “king.” Additionally,

the squat is one of the most effective exercises to improve knee stability, rehabil-

itate knee injuries and develop overall strength.

Chapter 11: Hamstrings

Robert Kennedy founded MuscleMag International in 1974, a popular hardcore

bodybuilding magazine. The magazine ceased publication in 2013, approximately a

year after Kennedy died.

Ask gold medal decathlete Dan O’Brien what the most important body part in his

weight training regimen is and he won’t hesitate in answering, “Hamstrings.” It’s

true – the hamstrings are essential to a track and field athlete’s speed and dynamic

power.

Elite-level bodybuilders also know the importance of fully developed hamstrings,

where every detail of this powerful muscle group stands in relief. Yet for many

bodybuilders, the hamstrings fall into the don’t-train-what-you-can’t-see category,

and they may know only one or two exercises to work these muscles. Thanks to

new information and new equipment, there are many more options now.

A properly designed hamstring specialization program can, in as little as 12 weeks,

dramatically change the appearance of your legs. We’re not saying your inner

thighs will touch when you’re standing with your feet apart, but you’ll have delin-

eated muscle where none was before. What’s more, such a program can increase

your bodyweight 10 to 20 pounds and reduce your risk of injury – a must if you’re

using weight training to improve performance in another sport. Now let’s take an

in-depth look at serious hamstring training.

Functional Anatomy of the Hamstrings

The hamstring muscle group is composed of three separate muscles: the

semimembranosus and the semitendinosus, which collectively are referred to as

the medial hamstrings; and the biceps femoris, which is often called the leg biceps.

The medial hamstrings cross the hip and the knee joint and are involved in extend-

ing the hip and flexing the knee; they also assist in turning the knee inward (medial

rotation). The leg biceps, like its cousin the biceps brachii, consists of two heads:

the long head and the short head. The long head crosses both the hip and the knee

joint and is, therefore, involved in extending the hip and flexing the knee. The short

head also flexes the knee, but because it does not cross the knee joint, it cannot ex-

tend the hip. However, both heads assist in turning the foot outward (lateral rota-

tion of the knee).

In addition to these three hamstring muscles, there are additional muscles that are

considered synergistic to the hamstrings in that they assist in flexing the knee and

extending the hip. The muscles that assist the hamstrings in their knee flexor

function are the sartorius, gracilis and gastrocnemius. The muscles that assist the

hamstrings in their hip extensor function are the glutes and the erector spinae

muscles. Track and field coaches tailor their training to capitalize on the fact that

the hamstrings are connected as a chain to the glutes and back extensors – or, to

be more specific, a posterior chain of muscle.

This anatomy lesson is not just academic. First, the information above implies that

for complete development, your hamstring workouts should involve exercises for

both the hip extension function and the knee flexor function. Also, understanding

these specific muscle functions enables coaches to determine which muscles are

weak and need remedial specialization. Here are a few examples.

If the knee flexion function is deficient, you might prescribe variations of leg curl

exercises such as seated, prone, kneeling and standing. MRI studies show the bi-

ceps femoris, semitendinosus, sartorius and gracilis are recruited when performing

this movement.

Myths About Hamstrings

There are many myths about hamstring training that prevent many bodybuilders

and other athletes from achieving maximum development in this area. Here are

four of the most common statements that are simply wrong:

“Bodybuilders have the best hamstring development of all athletes.” Not quite.

Without question, the athletes who possess the best hamstring development are

sprinters – just look at the development of these athletes the next time there’s a

track competition on television. Mr. Olympia finalist Robby Robinson has some of

the best hamstrings in the bodybuilding world in his era, and it comes as no sur-

prise that he did lots of sprinting in his youth.

Sprinters achieve excellent hamstring development because the hamstrings are one

of the primary muscle groups used in running. Sprinting also requires extreme

force production and, because the athlete leans forward during the start of a sprint,

the fast-twitch fibers of the hamstrings must contract with maximum intensity to

propel the body forward. Bobsledders also have excellent hamstring development

because not only do they sprint, but they do so while pushing a sled that can weigh

over 600 pounds! The hamstring development of Ian Danney, a 180-pound bob-

sledder who can front squat 418 pounds for 2 reps, is equal to that of any profes-

sional bodybuilder. Incidentally, Danney is now one of the most sought-after pro

football strength coaches in the US, training as many as 60 NFL players every off-

season.

“Leg curls are the best hamstring exercise.” For knee joint integrity, most physio-

therapists recommend a 66 percent hams-to-quad ratio – which means that the

hamstrings can produce 66 percent of the force of the quadriceps. When the skiers

on the Canadian Olympic team performed only half squats, the average ham/quad

ratio was 58 percent. After 11 weeks of deep squats, it improved to 79 percent. (In-

credibly, the best sprinters will have 125 percent, almost twice the percentage

physiotherapists recommend.)
A simple way to determine your ham/quad ratio is to test your maximum front

squat, which ideally should be 85 percent of your back squat. If you want your

ham/quad ratio assessed in a laboratory, make sure it’s done on a Kin-Com ma-

chine. Not only is the Kin-Com machine the best available, but it also measures

eccentric strength.

“Cams provides an ideal resistance curve for the hamstrings.” During knee flexion,

the hamstrings express a force curve of a descending shape; that is, the muscles

produce less force at the end of the movement. Most shell-shaped cams provide

increasing resistance, so by overloading the weak points of the movement and

underloading the strong points, you disturb the force production of the hamstrings

and therefore increase the risk of injury.

Besides having the wrong force curve, the first leg curl machines with cams had a

flat surface that could aggravate or cause a low-back injury, especially for indi-

viduals with a lot of fat stored in their abdominal wall. This machine should have

been designed with a “hump” shape to position the hamstrings in a better pre-

stretch position.
“Hamstrings respond best to high reps.” This is probably one of the biggest rea-

sons that most bodybuilders do not have impressive hamstrings. Earlier we

praised the hamstring development of sprinters. How far do sprinters run? Answer:

Generally about 200 meters or less. How long does it take to run 200 meters? The

world record is 19.19 seconds. Although the time under tension is short, these ath-

letes show enormous hamstring development because the hamstrings are com-

posed primarily of fast-twitch fibers and respond better to heavy weights and low

reps.

Numerous studies on the relationship between maximal-strength tests and the

number of repetitions performed (at a given maximum) have repeatedly shown that

the hamstrings are not gifted for reps. Although you may be able to perform 10-12

reps at 70 percent of your maximum on the bench press, you will probably be able

to complete only 7 or 8 reps at the same percentage on the leg curl. If you use

15-20 reps per set on hamstring exercises – a repetition range often promoted by

the Nautilus disciples – your training intensity would be approximately 50-55 per-

cent of your maximum. Such a low intensity level would not provide enough

tension for these numerous fast-twitch muscles to grow.

Top 10 Hamstring Training Tips

Now let’s examine training methods that will help you achieve optimal hamstring

development.

Tip 1: Select exercises for both functions of the hamstrings. Magnetic Resonance

Imaging (MRI) technology has demonstrated that leg curls do only part of the job

in recruiting the hamstrings. For example, the supine leg curl involves the biceps

femoris, semitendinosus, Sartorius, and gracilis. The semi-stiff-leg deadlift and the

good morning involve the adductor magnus, adductor brevis, biceps femoris, and

semitendinosus. Therefore, your hamstring workouts should involve exercises for

both the hip extension function (good morning and semi stiff-leg deadlift) and the

knee flexor function (seated and prone leg curl).

Tip 2: Include exercise variations that train one leg at a time. When we test athletes

on the Kin-Com unit, we often find strength disparities between the two legs, even

among top-level athletes. The dominant leg of some athletes is as much as 20 per-

cent stronger than the nondominant leg – these athletes need single-limb training

to prevent injuries. (Incidentally, the dominant leg is not necessarily on the same

side as the dominant hand; in other words, it is not because you are right-handed

that your right leg may be dominant in the lower body.) Also, because of a neuro-

logical effect called the bilateral deficit, the hamstrings will contract harder if they

are trained one leg at a time.

Tip 3: Stretch the hamstrings at both the hip joint and the knee joint to facilitate re-

cruitment. This means the knees must be extended and the hips flexed in the start-

ing position. Thus, before lifting the weight in the standing leg curl, you would

need to bend forward from the waist and start with the legs straight.

Tip 4: Stretch the quadriceps between sets of hamstring work. Increasing the range

of motion of your hamstrings will increase the amount of muscle mass used dur-

ing the exercise and, therefore, the effectiveness of the exercise. Stretching the

quadriceps, which is the antagonist of the hamstrings, is one way to increase your

range of motion because this will reduce muscle tension that can shorten the mus-

cle.

Tip 5: Use eccentric training. Eccentric (negative) training refers to the lowering

portion of an exercise, as opposed to concentric (positive) training, which refers to

the lifting portion. The hamstrings respond well to eccentric work. Triple jumpers

and long jumpers are known for their hamstring development. Besides the sprint-

ing they do, these athletes have to absorb high-impact landings that prompt high

levels of eccentric contractions from the hamstrings.

Tip 6: Emphasize low reps and multiple sets. Because of the high fast-twitch

composition of the hamstrings, there is little point in training with high repetitions.

When you use more than 8 reps during hamstring exercises, you are training below

70 percent of your 1RM (one-repetition maximum), an intensity level that will not

create sufficient tension to elicit increases in hypertrophy and strength.

Tip 7: Strive for balance between the medial and lateral heads of the hamstrings.

The body never lies. To test if there is a head of the hamstrings that needs remedial

specialization, select a weight you can do for 6RM in the leg curl with your feet in

the neutral position. As you reach muscular failure, your feet will rotate in one

direction if there is an imbalance between the two heads of the hamstrings. If they

turn towards the midline of the body (medial rotation), your biceps femoris is

weaker in comparison to your semitendinosus and your semimembranosus. If

your feet turn away from the midline of the body (lateral rotation), your semitendi-

nosus and semimembranosus are weaker in comparison to your biceps femoris.

Tip 8: Even if you have balanced hamstring development, vary your lifting position

frequently. Variety is an essential requirement for maximal hamstring development

because each exercise offers a unique pattern of overload. You probably have more

hamstring exercises at your disposal than you think. Let’s say that your gym has

the four major types of leg curl units: seated, lying, standing and bent-over kneel-

ing. This will give you an arsenal of 12 hamstring curl exercises: 4 machines x 3

foot positions (neutral, inward, outward) = 12 permutations.

Tip 9: Train the hamstrings first in your leg workout. There is plenty of empirical

evidence that muscles trained early in a workout make greater progress than mus-

cles trained at the end of a workout.

Tip 10: Use strategies for optimal recovery. The hamstrings have a high fast-twitch

makeup and thus take a long time for recovery. A 30-day hamstring specialization

cycle for someone with great quads would look like this:

Notice that the number of sets is significantly lower during the last two workout

days of the cycle. Why? To comply with the unloading principle. If you lower the

volume after the third week yet maintain or even increase the intensity, your super-

compensation (gains) will be of a greater magnitude than if you keep the volume

constant. The exact physiological mechanism is somewhat unclear but appears to

be of a neuroendocrine nature. This is the same mechanism that accounts for the

boost in muscle mass and strength when people first embark on a low-volume

training schedule.

Incorporate these 10 tips into your routine and you’ll immediately begin to see and

feel the results. Keep in mind that optimal hamstring development requires more

than just a few sets of leg curls at the end of your workout. You need to make ham-

strings a priority in your training and work them as hard as you would your arms or

chest.
Now let’s take a close look at two exceptional hamstring exercises, one focused on

knee extension and one on hip extension. Let’s start with knee extension.

Knee Extension Function

The Glute-Ham Raise: You Can Have it All

We often talk about the benefits of focusing on exercises that give you the most

bang for your buck. These are exercises that involve a large amount of muscle

mass and create high levels of muscle tension. Cable crossovers? No, despite the

fact that they look good in photo spreads. Triceps kickbacks? Hell, no! Squats and

deadlifts? Yes, absolutely. Add to that list the glute-ham raise (Figure 5).
Figure 5 - Glute-Ham Raise (BFS Photo)

The glute-ham raise – or, more appropriately, the glute-ham-gastrocnemius raise,

because it also works the calves – enables an athlete to work two functions of the

hamstrings: knee extension and hip extension. It also works the entire length of the

erector spinae muscles, especially the middle portion, which is often exposed to

high forces in athletics. The back extension is a good exercise, but because the legs

are straight throughout the exercise, it works only hip extension and not knee

extension.
Further, some sports scientists consider the glute-ham raise a more nat-

ural movement because in this exercise the hip and knee extensors work together

instead of in isolation.

What many trainers don’t realize is that although the quads are impressive mus-

cles, it’s been estimated that approximately 40 percent of the power for sprinting

comes from the glutes, 25 percent from the hamstrings, and about 5 percent from

the calves. That’s why it’s imperative that all athletes concentrate on strengthening

these muscles with assistance exercises such as the glute-ham raise.

The glute-ham raise to be one of the most important exercises for preventing back

and knee injuries. The spine is exposed to great compressive forces in many

sports, and we’ve found that athletes who are weak in the hamstrings, glutes, and

lower back not only are more likely to injure their lower back but also are especially

prone to tearing their ACL. Because the glute-ham exercise increases muscle mass

and strength in the back, glutes and hamstrings, athletes who include this exercise

in their programs are better able to withstand the compressive loads and other dis-

ruptive forces that occur in sports such as football and Alpine skiing. Further, the

glute-ham raise strengthens the spine without the high compressive forces that

exercises such as deadlifts place on the spine.

For trainees who think they can do fine by focusing on core lifts such as power

cleans and squats, consider the adage that a chain is only as strong as its weakest

link – and in power cleans and squats that weak link is often the lower back and

hamstrings. In those exercises, the lower back muscles help transfer the force from

the legs to the upper body and then to the bar, so neglecting the back will compro-

mise a trainee’s technique or will force them to use lighter weights. If heavy

weights are used without adequately strengthening the muscles of the spine, the

back will round, placing harmful stress on the ligaments and disks of the back.

The Russian advantage. Russian weightlifting coaches placed a great deal of

emphasis on the erector spinae muscles. In fact, at the 1968 Olympic Games in

Mexico City, US weightlifter Tommy Suggs observed that the Russians would as-

sess their competition by the thickness of their erector spinae muscles. As a

Russian coach or athlete shook a competitor’s hand, he would reach behind the

athlete with his free hand and touch the athlete’s back muscles to check their tone

and thickness. Another US weightlifter who attended training hall sessions in Rus-

sia said that he saw the Russian athletes perform back extension movements such

as the glute-ham raise twice, once at the beginning of the workout as a warm-up

with no additional resistance and again at the end of the workout with resistance as

a strengthening exercise.
The first appearance of the glute-ham raise in American print media was in 1971 in

Strength and Health magazine, which showed photos of Russian weightlifters per-

forming the lift on a pommel horse, with the athletes securing their feet on wooden

stall bars. The rounded edges of the pommel horse allowed the athletes to flex

their knees at the top to achieving a greater range of motion. In later years, they

would secure their legs with straps attached to the stall bars.

Design. Because most gyms in the US did not (and still do not) have stall bars and

pommel horses, eventually a special exercise unit was developed to perform the

glute-ham raise. Rather than having a flat bench on which to rest the upper thighs,

the bench was curved to facilitate the bending of the knees – we especially like the

versions that have two pads, separated down the center, making it more comfort-

able for men. The better units have a footplate that secures the ankles between two

roller pads; also, the footplate is adjustable vertically and horizontally to accom-

modate all body types.

Adjustments. Before performing the glute-ham exercise, it’s important to adjust the

machine for your height. Start by adjusting the footplate so that when your feet are

secured, your upper thighs are resting on the center of the bench and you can hang

your upper body over the edge of the bench so that it is perpendicular to the floor.
Next, adjust the height of the footplate to a comfortable position – if the footplate

is too low, the pad will dig into your thighs.

Begin by lying facedown on the unit. Using the hand grips for support, place your

feet on the footplate with your toes pointed downward. Hang over the bench, bend-

ing at the hips so your upper back is at a 90-degree angle to your lower body. Place

your hands across your chest, and raise your trunk so your upper body is perpen-

dicular to the floor – keep your back straight (i.e., in a neutral position) throughout

the exercise. From here, continue raising your trunk by flexing your knees – you

should be pushing the footplate with the balls of your feet to activate your calves,

as they are involved in knee flexion. If you are not strong enough to lift your trunk

to this position, try the exercise with your hands on your hips, as this will lower

your center of mass. If it’s still too difficult, a training partner can essentially re-

duce the weight of your upper body by standing in front of you and pushing up-

ward on your shoulders.

Adding resistance. When this version of the exercise becomes easy, perform the

eccentric portion of the exercise with your hands placed behind your head – this

moves the center of mass closer to your head. In other words, perform the concen-

tric portion with your hands across your chest (which will make the movement eas-

ier), and at the top of the movement place your hands behind your head for the

eccentric portion (which will make the exercise harder).

Soon you will be able to perform all the reps with your hands behind your head. You also
can make the

exercise more difficult by placing your knees on the pad (which requires moving

the footplate closer to the pad) and raising the height of the footplate.

When you become strong enough to add more resistance, you have several op-

tions. For example, you can hold a medicine ball, weight plate or dumbbell against

your chest. If you are strong enough, you can place a barbell behind your shoul-

ders; position the bar the same as you would when doing a back squat – not on

your neck. We do not recommend bands or chains because the glute-ham move-

ment has a descending resistance curve, meaning that this exercise becomes hard-

er as you reach the top of the movement. Using chains or bands would make the

exercise too difficult at the end of the movement instead of at the beginning, where

you are stronger.

Besides changing your hand position from the chest to behind your head, you can

change the position of the additional weight to increase the eccentric overload.

Here’s how to do it: Grasp a weight plate or dumbbell and hold it against your

chest. Perform the concentric portion of the exercise, and then at the top position

extend the weight in front of you and slowly return to the start position. Extending

your arms increases the lever arm, thereby increasing the resistance during the

eccentric portion of the exercise.

This is surprisingly difficult. If you can perform 10 perfect repetitions of this exercise in the
normal fashion, you might find that just

five pounds of additional resistance is all that is necessary to sufficiently overload

your muscles. Because the hamstrings are composed primarily of fast-twitch mus-

cle fibers, they respond well to this variation because you can create a higher level

of muscle tension with eccentric contractions.

Because you are weaker during the second portion of the exercise, you can perform

a form of pre-exhaustion to more effectively match the strength curve of the mus-

cles. For example, you can perform 5 repetitions of back extensions (i.e., the first

part of the exercise) with resistance, and then immediately perform 5 reps of the

full movements – what you’ll find is that during the last several reps, the exercise

will feel “smooth” throughout the entire movement. You also can use a form of

post-exhaustion by performing 5 full repetitions without resistance, and then grasp-

ing a weight and immediately performing 5 back extensions.

We should also mention that the glute-ham raise can be used to resolve structural

imbalances between the medial hamstrings (semitendinosus and semimem-

branosus), which rotate the foot inward, and the lateral hamstrings (biceps

femoris), which rotate the foot outward. For example, if an athlete runs with their

feet turned excessively outward, we would have them perform the glute-ham raise

with their feet turned slightly inward.

If they run with their feet turned excessively inward, we would have them perform the
exercise with their feet turned slightly out- ward.

The glute-ham raise is a must for athletes who want to run faster and jump higher.

But more than that, it is an exercise that will help improve athletes’ structural bal-

ance so they can perform better with less risk of injury.

Now let’s look at an exercise that will focus on the hip extension function of the

hamstrings.

Hip Extension Function

The Evolution of Lower Back Training

For nearly two decades we have been promoting the reverse hyper exercise. Al-

though a relatively simple movement, it has multiple benefits in terms of spinal

health and athletic performance. Here we’ll take a closer look at these benefits and

at how the design of reverse hyper machines continues to evolve.

In the early days of the iron game and the strength coaching profession, athletes

would perform many great exercises that worked the lower back – powerful

multijoint movements such as squats, deadlifts, good mornings and power cleans.

But these exercises gradually were de-emphasized, and now the lower back is often

a weak link in an athlete’s development.

One individual we can point to for this unfortunate trend is Arthur Jones. Jones

said it would be better for athletes and muscle builders alike to avoid squats and

instead focus on isolation movements with machines. Jones’s observation was that

since muscles function in a rotary fashion, barbells are inadequate tools because

they provide unidirectional resistance, which is why barbell exercises have sticking

points. As such, his opinion was that the only way to work the muscles evenly

through a full range of motion was with machines possessing shell-shaped cams

that provided heavier resistance when the athlete was stronger. Jones figured that

an ideal lower body workout would include just one set of four exercises; namely,

leg extensions supersetted with leg presses (using the Nautilus Compound Leg

Machine), leg curl (Nautilus Leg Curl machine), and the hip and lower back ma-

chine (Nautilus Hip and Back Machine). The last machine, which is no longer

manufactured, produced a motion resembling that of a squat but performed from a

supine position. Nice try.

According to German sports scientist Dietmar Schmidtbleicher, machine exercises

(especially when performed on variable resistance machines such as those pro-

duced by Nautilus) are not as neuromuscularly challenging as complex exercises

with free weights. In other words, drawing on Gestalt psychology, the “whole” of a

complex exercise such as a squat or a deadlift “is greater than the sum of its parts.”

In fact, one of our colleagues came across a bodybuilder who could routinely

pump out sets of 10 reps with 800 pounds on the incline leg press but struggled

trying to do 3 reps with a parallel squat with 225 pounds – that’s just wrong.

What Jones did get right was the importance of training the glutes and hips, espe-

cially for athletes. The three major gluteal muscles are the gluteus maximus,

medius, and minimus. They are a key muscle group for running, jumping and kick-

ing because they work with the hamstrings and lower back muscles to extend the

trunk and pull the pelvis backward. The erector spinae contains three parallel sets

of muscles (iliocostalis, longissimus and spinalis) that run from the sacrum to the

base of the neck. These muscles extend and laterally flex the spine.

Although squats and deadlifts strengthen the erector spinae muscles in compound

exercises, if these muscles are relatively weak they will hold back your progress in

these exercises. For example, a weakness in the erector spinae muscles could re-

sult in an athlete rounding their spine during the squat or deadlift, increasing the

risk of injuring the disks of the spine.

You are only as strong as your weakest link,and this explains the search for special
assistance exercises that target these mus- cles.

Further, strengthening the erector spinae creates what is known as an “irradiation

effect,” such that when you strengthen this muscle group, you also strengthen

many other muscle groups. For example, by strengthening your lower back you can

increase your performance in the military press and biceps curl. Nevertheless,

many strength coaches persist in focusing their lower body training on exercises

for the quadriceps.

The Reverse Hyper, Then and Now

The reverse back extension has been used in gymnastics for a long time. There are

two gymnastics books, one from East Germany and the other from Hungary, that

show this exercise being performed with resistance over a pommel horse, with the

athlete holding a medicine ball between their feet or, alternatively, having a

kettlebell strapped to their ankles. The German physiotherapy book Training Ther-

apy: Prophylaxis and Rehabilitation by Rolf Gustavsen and Renate Streeck shows the

performance of this exercise using cables for resistance.

Another interesting variation was developed by American weightlifter Roger Quinn.

At a bodyweight of 181 pounds, Quinn snatched 303 pounds, clean and jerked 385

at the 1972 Olympic Trials, and attempted a 402 jerk to try to make the US Olympic

Team. Impressive, but even more so was the fact that chronic knee injuries pre-

vented Quinn from squatting heavy. As such, he would focus on the Olympic lifts

and then substitute a combination of other exercises for squats. One of these was

a reverse hyper using manual resistance.

Quinn describes this exercise in an article he wrote that was published in the

March 1974 issue of International Olympic Lifter. Lying facedown on a pommel

horse, Quinn had his coach, Bob Hise, Sr., apply manual resistance to his legs.

Quinn’s legs were straight throughout the exercise to avoid stressing his knees.

“These reverse hyperextensions…seem to work the buttock muscles in the same

fashion that the two-hand curl works the biceps,” said Quinn. “I feel that this exer-

cise comes close to really isolating the buttocks while at the same time employing

the spinal erector muscles of the lower back.”

In a physical therapy textbook from Australia published in the early ’80s called Pos-

ture Makes Perfect, Dr. Victor Barker provided an illustration of a reverse hyper per-

formed on a specially designed bench that enables the user to anchor the torso

and lift the legs. The resistance was applied to the back of the lower legs with the

roller pad of a leg extension machine.

As for the first working prototypes of a re-verse hyper machine, powerlifting guru Louie
Simmons received the first patent on

a machine.

Simmons also suffered a back injury and sought to rehab it by developing a reverse

hyper extension machine. The resistance was applied by a strap that wrapped

around the ankle. The strap attached to a lever arm that had a pivot point under the

bench. This design enabled the legs to be pulled in line with and even under the

hips, increasing the range of motion of the exercise and thus providing traction on

the erector spinae. In 1993, Simmons received a patent for the first reverse hyper

machine, and it became a hit with powerlifters and, later, with strength coaches.

Because so many basic weight training movements require the lower back to be

arched, using the reverse hyper can help decrease muscle tension in the lower

back. Further, the movement is ideal for many individuals with disk injuries be-

cause the compressive forces on the spine can be much lower on a reverse hyper

machine than on conventional back machines. Research by Alf Nachemson of Swe-

den in 1975 showed that leaning forward about 15 degrees from a seated position

can nearly double the compressive forces on the L2-3 vertebrae. We should also

note that because the feet are not in contact with the floor or a footplate, the re-

verse hyper is an ideal exercise for those with a foot injury.

Many design changes have been made in reverse hyper machines to make the exer-

cise more comfortable. Instead of positioning the pivot point of the lever arm

under the chest, some machines place it in line with the axis of rotation of the hips.

Ultimately, the strap was replaced with roller pads, some of which are adjustable,

as the strap would often slip during the performance of the exercise. Some newer

units have a step to make it easier to enter and exit the machine.

Another valuable feature, one that is included on the Atlantis version, is a range-

limiter device. For those with flexibility issues, this design prevents the lever arm

from swinging too far forward and causing injury. Finally, there have been many

changes in the machine’s support pad.

The first hyper extension machines had the chest pad horizontal to the floor. In

later versions, the chest (or torso) pad is tilted downward so that the head is lower

than the hips. This latter design has two advantages. First, it reduces the stress on

the lower back by posteriorly rotating the pelvis and flattening the lower back into a

neutral spine. With a conventional chest pad, lifting the legs to parallel can place a

high level of stress on the L3 to L5 vertebrae – a situation you want to avoid; it’s

important not to hyperextend the spine (and as such, the exercise should be called

a reverse back extension). Also, this position changes the resistance curve so that

more resistance is felt earlier in the movement; in the Atlantis version, two weight

holders are provided to overload either the beginning or end range of the exercise.
But this pad has evolved a step further.

Many chest pads have a slit in the center at one end, making it more comfortable

for men. Atlantis took it a step further with what we would describe as a half-moon

pelvic bench rather than a chest pad to reduce the stress on the abdomen, a com-

mon complaint among users (especially women) of other reverse hyper machines.

Those who experience abdominal discomfort when performing this exercise usu-

ally are improperly positioned on the chest pad.

Expanding your options. Although the reverse hyper is a valuable exercise, we still

recommend the performance of other back exercises such as conventional and in-

cline back extensions. For example, from a muscle recruitment standpoint, it ap-

pears that incline back extensions and reverse hypers target more of the lumbar

spine below L3, and conventional back extensions recruit more of the spine above

L3. Thus, in a six-week program, a trainer could perform reverse hypers for two

weeks, followed by two weeks of back extensions, followed by two weeks of incline

back extensions.

Because the erector spinae are composed of both high-threshold motor units and

low-threshold motor units, you should perform a combination of high-rep and low-

rep protocols. The low reps will help with performance in heavy compound exer-

cises such as squats,

and the higher reps are important to help prevent and reha- bilitate conditions that cause
back pain. In fact, the current thinking in back pain

rehabilitation is that muscular endurance is more important than absolute

strength. For more on this subject, we highly recommend Dr. Stuart McGill’s

extensively researched but highly readable textbook, Low Back Disorders, 2nd Edition

(Human Kinetics, 2007).

The reverse hyper has gone through many changes, especially in the past two

decades, and all for the better. We strongly recommend you incorporate this exer-

cise into your workout programs. Now let’s look at a killer workout that works all

aspects of the hamstrings.

The morning workout. The morning workout of this hamstring specialization pro-

gram focuses on the knee flexor function of the hamstrings. The muscles involved

in this function have a higher fast-twitch muscle fiber makeup, and as such, a low-

rep tri-set method is best to develop them.

Tri-sets are effective here because they extend the training stimulus to a wider pool

of motor units, along with increasing the total time under tension for the asso-

ciated muscle fibers. Tri-sets entail performing three different exercises with min-

imal rest between sets. Simply adding a 15-second rest between exercises makes a

world of difference in terms of training response, as this short rest makes it pos-

sible to use significantly greater loads than if no rest is taken, thereby putting
greater tension on the muscles. Hypertrophy is determined in large part by the

product of time under tension and load. If you move immediately from one exer-

cise to another (as opposed to taking a 15-second rest), the reduced loads that

must be used produce a suboptimal training effect.

Finally, note that the foot position is different in every exercise. Because of the dif-

ferent line of pull of the various hamstring muscles, a variety of foot positions is

necessary to maximize recruitment of the entire motor-unit pool of the hamstrings.

Also, it is normal to have to reduce the weight 4-5 percent with each successive tri-

set due to fatigue.

A1. Lying Leg Curls, Feet Inward, 4 sets x 4-6 reps, 40X0, rest 15 sec.

A2. Lying Leg Curls, Feet Neutral, 4 sets x 4-6 reps, 40X0, rest 15 sec.

A3. Lying Leg Curls, Feet Outward, 4 sets 4-6 reps, 40X0, rest 240 sec.

Another technique point that needs to be brought up with leg curl exercises is the

flexion and extension of the calf. When your feet are pointed away from the body

(i.e., plantar flexion), the gastrocnemius (upper calf muscle) is somewhat inhibited

in its function as a knee flexor. The gastrocnemius is a biarticular muscle in that it

crosses two joints, in this case the knee joint and the ankle. However, the muscle

fibers are too short in the gastrocnemius to do both knee flexion and plantar flex-

ion at the same time. Therefore, this calf muscle is more effective as a knee flexor

when the toes are pulled towards the body (i.e., dorsiflexion)
and more effective as a plantar flexor if the knee is locked in extension.

This muscle contraction effect can be clearly illustrated when driving a car while

sitting too close to the steering wheel. When the knees are bent, the gastrocnemius

becomes ineffective, and it is thus more difficult to apply the brakes. It is the same

reason that seated calf raises are prescribed to recruit the soleus (lower calf) mus-

cle at the expense of the gastrocnemius muscle.

Conversely, when you bend the knee with the feet in plantar flexion, the overload

shifts from the gastrocnemius to the hamstrings, making it a more effective ham-

string exercise. The cramping you are experiencing comes from the gastrocnemius,

which is used to the old motor pattern trying to activate itself. This situation is only

temporary. The way to get around the problem rapidly is to do the concentric con-

traction with the feet dorsiflexed and lower the resistance for the eccentric contrac-

tion with the feet plantar flexed. And because you are stronger eccentrically than

concentrically, the hamstrings will start getting a greater overload during that

eccentric lowering because the gastrocnemius will be inactive due to the plantar-

flexed position. This is a much more effective way to do leg curls. But we have a

few more tips before getting into the evening workout.

You should stretch the quadriceps between sets of hamstring exercises. Increasing

the range of motion of your quadriceps before a leg curl exercise will increase the

amount of motor units used in the hamstrings during the exercise and, therefore,

the effectiveness of the chosen exercise. The quadriceps is the antagonist muscle

to the hamstrings, so stretching the quadriceps will allow the hamstrings to relax.

Thus, the force of the contraction in the hamstrings will be much greater in the

subsequent contraction.

Finally, consider that this leg curl workout is designed for someone who is struc-

turally balanced for knee flexion strength. You can determine this by using the sim-

ple structural balance test described in Tip 7 earlier in this chapter: Select a weight

you can do for 6RM in the leg curl with your feet in the neutral position. As you

reach muscular failure, your feet will rotate in one direction if there is an imbalance

between the two heads of the hamstrings. If they turn towards the midline of the

body (medial rotation), your biceps femoris is weaker in comparison to your semi-

tendinosus and your semimembranosus. If your feet turn away from the midline of

the body (lateral rotation), your semitendinosus and semimembranosus are weak-

er in comparison to your biceps femoris.

The evening workout. The evening workout focuses on the hip extension function

of the hamstrings. The synergistic glutes and erector spinae are added into the mix

to extend the time under tension for the hamstrings, and a higher rep bracket is

used to exhaust all available motor units. As with the morning workout, this pro-

gram uses tri-sets, but you can expect to reduce the weight about 6-7 percent on

each successive tri-set of these exercises.

A-1. Standing Good Mornings, 4 sets x 6-8 reps, 4020, rest 10 sec.

A-2. Romanian Deadlifts, 4 sets x 8-10 reps, 4020, rest 10 sec.

A-3. Reverse Hypers, 4 sets x 15-20 reps, 20X0, rest 120 sec.

After this workout you will probably find yourself feeling as though you are six

inches shorter because of the “pump” in your lower back muscles. To prevent this

from happening (and to help avoid potential muscle spasms later in the evening or

the next day), simply stretch your hip flexors statically between sets. Also, because

the hip flexors are the antagonists to the hip extensors, stretching the hip flexors

will increase the force of the contraction of the hip extensors.

A word of caution: If during the evening workout you are forced to drop the initial

load by more than 20 percent for any of the given exercises, you are doing too

much work for your level of conditioning. For example, if in A1 you were using 100

pounds for your first set, and by the second round you could use only 75 pounds
in the good morning, you would stop. By the next workout, you should be able to

do at least a second round of tri-sets. It is not uncommon for trainees to do poorly

in the evening workout, as they are still wiped out from the morning workout.

Hence, we strongly recommend taking a shake with Quadricarb and Whey Stronger

right after the morning workout. Quadricarb will replenish glycogen stores, and

Whey Stronger is one of the purest forms of whey protein on the market. Using

these products will make a significant difference in how you handle the evening

workout.

If you can’t train twice a day, do the full morning routine unchanged, followed im-

mediately by the evening routine for only two sets. Also, do not do this routine

more than once every five days, and for no more than six weeks.

Now you’re prepared to turn your hamstring training around. Very soon, you’ll see

some amazing results – and once you’ve developed these monster muscles, you’ll

enjoy showing them off.

Chapter 12: Calves
Sultan Rakhmanov was the 1980 Olympic Champion. Twice he broke the world

record in the snatch with a best result of 443 pounds.

In all the classical statues from ancient Greece, the strongest and most powerful

heroes had great calves – and with good reason. The calves are the focal point of

the entire physique. At all levels of bodybuilding competitions, from local shows to

the Mr. Olympia, the calves are the first place the audience and judges look to eval-

uate the contestants.

Yeah, right.

Although well-developed calves are an essential aspect of a symmetrical physique,

they are not given much attention by the average bodybuilder, or any other athlete

for that matter. The calves are not a showy muscle and are often overshadowed by

the muscles of the arms, chest and shoulders. However, great calves can make a

big difference on the posing dais, even creating an illusion that the thighs are big-

ger than they are. Arnold, for example, did not have exceptionally large thighs, but

his calf development was so amazing that you seldom heard anything negative

about his legs from bodybuilding writers of the day.

As for symmetry, bodybuilding guru Vince Gironda, and later Nautilus founder

Arthur Jones, believed that the body is resistant to unsymmetrical development,

which Jones called an “indirect effect.” As Jones said in his first book on training,

Bulletin #1: “While it is certainly possible to build an obvious degree of dispropor-

tionate muscular size through the employment of an unbalanced program of exer-

cises – and a training program limited to squats would be just that – there seems

to be a definite limit to the degree of such disproportionate development that the

body will permit; for example, it is difficult to build the size of the arms beyond a

certain point, unless the large muscles of the legs are also being exercised.”

In addition to the factor of symmetry in calf development, you should consider

genetics. True mesomorphs are born with naturally developed calves. Long-term

kinanthropometric studies on more than 40,000 Polish students revealed that to

be born with great calves, more than any other anthropometric measure (i.e.,

shoulder width, wrist girth, etc.), points to having an advantage in building greater

overall muscle mass and strength throughout one’s life. The most important factor

for calf mass is the length of the muscle belly. The lower your muscle belly inserts

on the bone, particularly the gastrocnemius, the greater your bodybuilding poten-

tial. Turn-of-the-century French naturopaths had a saying: “Short tendons, big

muscles.” It’s true.

Chris Dickerson, who won the 1982 Mr. Olympia at age 43, had low muscle bellies

and reportedly trained his calves only twice a week because any more frequently

would have made them too large for the rest of his body. Arthur Jones wrote in

Nautilus Bulletin #2 that Dickerson was one of two surviving triplets. Jones met

Dickerson’s surviving brother, and although the brother didn’t train, Jones said the

brother had better calves than Chris did. There was also a rumor that one finalist in

a Mr. Olympia competition demanded that one of his competitors be x-rayed for

calf implants because his lower leg muscles had grown unbelievably fast during

the previous two years.

Upon hearing such stories, those who have poor calf development may use them

as an excuse not to train the calves. Or they may even seek out the alternative of

calf implants. Once only whispered about in professional bodybuilding circles, calf

implants are becoming more common among the average population.

According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, “Increased full-

ness of the calf can be achieved using implants made of hard silicone which are in-

serted from behind the knee and moved into position underneath the calf muscle.”

Because this surgery is considered elective, it’s unlikely that health insurance will

cover the expenses. Also, consider that there are health risks associated with any

surgery, and that there is no guarantee that the results will be exactly what you ex-

pect.
We don’t want to make an absolute statement that we against calf implants,

especially because there are many medical issues, such as polio, in which calf aug-

mentation surgery is the only answer to achieving normal calf development. But

the fact is, plateaus in calf development can often be overcome by using the appro-

priate training protocols. In fact, gains of 1.25 inches in calf circumference in just

eight weeks are not uncommon when using the approach we’re about to share with

you.

If you have short muscle bellies and are into athletic activities other than body-

building, you’ll be happy to hear that short muscle bellies are an advantage. A calf

developed mainly near the knee area, on the other hand, has a great moment of

inertia, thus favoring faster leg turnover, and provides better leverage for jumping.

One widespread myth about calf training is that people’s calves are accustomed to

a lot of work from standing and walking for several hours a day, and, therefore,

they must perform high-volume calf work to shock them into growth. The reality is

that other than letter carriers, who else does that much standing around and walk-

ing today? There is indeed a relationship between volume and hypertrophy, but it’s

also true that one good calf workout in your weekly training schedule should pro-

duce impressive calf development.

Another myth about calf training is that because the calves are so far away from the

heart, it’s hard to get a good pump because of the poorer blood supply. Nonsense.

Any cardiologist or vascular surgeon who hears this will probably rupture their

spleen with laughter. Although there is no physiological basis for this faulty belief,

it has been passed on to many generations of gym rats. The truth is that the blood

supply is ample enough, and the pump is dependent upon nutrient storage (i.e.,

glycogen).

6 Ways to Fail

There are several reasons that bodybuilders have problems in improving their calf

development. Here are six of the most common:

1. Giving up too soon. Many bodybuilders buy into the “Calves can’t be built –

you’ve got to be born with them” nonsense, and as such do not commit to consis-

tent training. If a law were imposed in gyms that for every set of biceps curls you

do you must also perform a set of calf raises, a year from now you would see the

average calf measurement increase by at least two inches!

2. Lack of stretch when performing calf raises. Most bodybuilders who complain

about poor calf development use short, bouncy movements. On the contrary,

range of motion is critical to fully develop the calf muscles, which is why we

recommend exercising the calves on blocks that are at least six inches high and

slightly rounded. Rounding also makes the exercise more comfortable, as straight
boards can dig into your arches. The best calf blocks are covered with rubber so

that you can do your calf training in bare feet for an even greater range of motion.

Because many bodybuilders are not accustomed to working the calves through a

full range of motion, for your next six calf workouts you should hold the bottom

position for at least four seconds to relearn how to stretch.

3. Insufficient eccentric overload. Volleyball players and dancers are known for their

superb calf development, and some exercise scientists suggest that it comes from

jumping. This is partly true, but we believe the hypertrophy comes primarily from

the landing portion of jumps. Studies in the field of biomechanics have shown the

calves take a major portion of the load created during the landing of a jump. Nega-

tive accentuated training, in which you raise with two calves and lower with one, is

particularly good for calf training.

4. Bending the knees during straight-leg calf exercises. Bodybuilders who unlock

their knees as they perform standing calf raises are cheating. To convince their

poor egos that they are strong, they transfer the bearing of the load to the quads

and glutes by bending the knees.

5. Blocked neural supply. An impingement of the nerve supply by a traumatized

spine can block the neural output to the calf, forcing you to use loads that are not

heavy enough to elicit a hypertrophy response. A simple spine-screening process

and subsequent adjustments by a qualified health practitioner such as an os-

teopath or a chiropractor can often help your calves achieve additional levels of

growth in just a few weeks.

6. Excess connective tissue. If there is too much connective tissue in the calf re-

gion, there is no room for the muscle to grow. To resolve this problem, there is a

surgical procedure available which entails opening up the fascia with a scalpel to

allow room for the muscle to grow. However, sports medicine pioneer Dr. Mike

Leahy can accomplish the same results with his Active Release Techniques® Treat-

ment, and clients can often achieve visible results after their first visit!

Overcoming Sticking Points in Calf Training

Your calves can grow, but you must have not only the knowledge of how to train

them but also the desire to endure the pain required to make them grow. For those

willing to make a serious commitment to developing the calves, here are six prac-

tical tips (you can call them secrets if you like) that will vastly increase the effec-

tiveness of your training.

1. Use the appropriate repetition protocols. How many reps you should perform in

calf work depends on which exercise you are doing. In exercises where the knee is
bent, such as seated calf raises, the soleus muscle handles most of the load. The

soleus is part of what kinesiologists call the anti-gravity muscles, that is, the mus-

cles that fire when you are in the standing position.

Muscle biopsies and autopsies have revealed that the soleus is composed of ap-

proximately 88 percent slow-twitch muscle fibers, and, therefore, responds better

to high reps. As such, performing sets that can be completed in less than 40 sec-

onds won’t do much for optimal development of the soleus. In exercises where the

knee is straight, such as donkey calf raises and standing calf raises, the gastroc-

nemius handles most of the load. The gastrocnemius is composed of approx-

imately 60 percent fast-twitch muscle and responds best to sets that can be com-

pleted in approximately 20-40 seconds.

2. Pause in the bottom position. This simple trick will do a lot to promote growth in

the calf muscles. After you have completed the eccentric (lowering) part of every

lift, pause in the bottom position before performing the concentric (lifting) part.

The length of the pause should be 1-4 seconds (depending on the repetition brack-

et); and the higher the number of reps, the shorter the pause. To give you an idea

of how this can work, for sets of 35-50 reps you may only pause 1 second at the

bottom. For sets of 6-8 reps, the pause may need to be extended to 4 seconds.
3. Reduce lifting speed. One effective method to stimulate calf growth is to take 5

seconds to lift the weight and 5 seconds to lower it. Because you won’t use a signif-

icant amount of momentum to help you complete the exercise, after 6-8 reps at

this slow tempo you will feel a significant buildup of intramuscular tension in the

calf muscles.

4. Vary foot placement. The width of foot placement has more to do with calf

recruitment than foot orientation. However, there are MRI studies showing that

turning the foot in or keeping it neutral during donkey calf raises decreases the re-

cruitment of the medial (inside) portion of the calves and increases recruitment of

the lateral (outside) portion. In contrast, turning your feet out may increase the in-

volvement of the lateral head and reduce recruitment of the medial head.

5. Stretch your calves. Tightness in your Achilles tendons may be holding back your

calf development. Here’s what you can do:

First, establish a marker of your flexibility by squatting down with an empty bar on

your back. Once you reach the bottom position, pay attention to your body

mechanics by assessing the angle of your shin in relation to the floor. Now you are

ready to perform a workout to stretch your calves maximally.

The conventional static calf stretches won’t just cut it. The calf complex tends to be

very hard to stretch compared to other muscles, such as the hamstrings. You will
need the extra resistance provided by weight machines. The best way to stretch

your calves is to use two calf machines, typically the standing type and the seated

type. Let’s start with the standing variation.

Start by positioning your shoulders under the pads of the standing calf raise ma-

chine. Lock your knees, and then lower your heels as low as possible, keeping your

knees locked as you do so, as this will ensure that both the soleus and the gastroc-

nemius are fully stretched. If you unlock the knees, the gastrocnemius will not be

stretched fully. Hold the stretch for a full 15 seconds. Bend your knees to lower the

shoulder pads, and take a 5-second break during which you increase the weight by

2-3 plates. Repeat this “stretch-rest-add weight” process for another 3-5 reps.

When stretching calves in an upright position, a great way to increase the stretch in

the bottom position is to contract the glutes at that bottom-range point. Because

the fascial planes extend throughout the entire lower body posterior chain, tight-

ening the glutes enables you to feel the intensity of the stretch build up in the calf

muscle complex.

From here you proceed to the seated calf raise machine to give your soleus mus-

cles a greater stretch. Use the same training methodology by holding the stretch

for 15 seconds, resting 5 seconds, adding weight, etc. Repeat this for a total of 5-6

reps. By this time your calves should have achieved their maximum length for the

day. Now go back to the squat rack and test your marker again. If your knees are
moving farther than before your stretching routine, this indicates your flexibility

was a limiting factor in your calf development.

6. Try unilateral training. If you have difficulty feeling your calf muscles when train-

ing, you should find yourself in a new growth spurt once you start unilateral calf

training. Experiment with single-leg calf raises on the standing calf raise machine

or single-leg calf presses on the leg press. Concentrating your neural drive on a

single limb will enable you to maximize the load on the calf muscle.

7. Perform calf raises on a hack squat machine. Since both your body and the calf

block are at a 45-degree angle, it will be easier mechanically to reach the top por-

tion of the range. This effect will change the resistance pattern of the calf muscles,

thereby promoting new growth.

8. Train the muscles involved in dorsiflexion. For maximum lower-leg devel-

opment, all areas of the lower leg should be trained – and this includes the mus-

cles on the front of the calf. When you perform these exercises, be sure to pause in

the bottom position for 1-4 seconds. Also, it’s important to stretch the gastroc-

nemius and soleus muscles between every set of tibialis anterior work. Since the

calf muscles are rather resilient to stretch, we would use the standing calf machine

to provide enough load to stretch the calf.

Now that you have some insight into some solid training theory, let’s look at two

workout protocols to get you started: the Explosive Calf Training Workout and the

Luke Sauder Calf Workout.

Explosive Calf Training Workout. When standard resistance training protocols fail

to work, what we find often resolves the problem is changing the tempo of the

exercises by working the calves explosively. If you need proof, look at the calf

development of elite volleyball players, ballet dancers or even weightlifters. Yes,

weightlifters.

When weightlifters pull weights off the floor or drive a barbell during the jerk, they

flex their calves explosively – after all, in weightlifting, as in many sports, speed

kills! The weightlifter who had the most impressive calf development in the history

of the sport was Belgium’s Serge Reding, the first man to snatch 400 pounds (in

1973). Reding was one of the most physically impressive athletes of all time, in any

sport. At a height of 5 foot 8, Reding had calves that measured over 20 inches and

thighs over 31 inches. And talk about explosive calves – he reportedly could do

multiple jumps of more than a foot off the ground while holding 286 pounds!

However, before you perform any explosive calf work, we suggest you pay attention

to thoroughly warming up your calves by doing progressively heavier sets of stand-

ing calf raises. Make certain you perform a full range of motion on every rep. Don’t
go to failure on these sets; just warm up. Here’s how to do it:

The first exercise is a jump squat. Place a barbell across your traps – a loaded bar-

bell that represents 25 percent of your bodyweight. As an alternative overload

implement you can use a sandbag with handles. You want to stay away from doing

jump squats with dumbbells, because upon landing, the dumbbells will place

undue stress on the soft tissue and joint structures of the shoulder girdle. Jump up

and down for a set of 12 reps. Rest for two minutes between sets, and do 5 total

sets. Make sure to keep the duration of ground contact to a minimum, and go for

maximal height, keeping the involvement of the knee extensors to a minimum. In

other words, you want your heels to touch the floor for the very strict minimum

amount of time.

One very important tip: With this exercise air time is more important than load, so

don’t go for heavy loads – go for air time. Those who use loads that far exceed their

stretch-shortening cycle capabilities will encounter problems. In other words, they

spend way too much time on the ground, which negates the positive transfer of

this exercise. The hypertrophy and strength gains in your calves will be coming

from the fast eccentric loading caused by the landings. Jump squats performed

with too much weight do not provide sufficient acceleration, and, therefore, ground

contact lasts too long, which entirely defeats the purpose of this exercise.
We prefer you use the same load on the barbell for six workouts and do not in-

crease the load for the duration of the cycle. You should just concentrate on in-

creasing the acceleration of the barbell. You should be consistent with each land-

ing. Often, in athletes who have structural balance issues or who are plagued with

coordination problems, the landing patterns are inconsistent from one rep to an-

other. So for example, someone whose knees buckle in for both the pre-loading

and landing of jump squats is not ready for jump squats or is using too great a

load to maintain proper jumping mechanics. When you try these jump squats, you

can expect soreness in your calves over the next few days.

After completing six workouts of 5 straight sets of 12 reps, you can perform another

six workouts but with a different protocol. Specifically, jump for 6 reps with a bar-

bell representing 30 percent of bodyweight, then put the barbell on the floor and

immediately perform another 6 reps with just your bodyweight. Perform 5 of these

drop sets, resting three minutes between drop sets.

These exercises may not seem like much work, but the rewards will surprise you.

Best of all, you won’t have to make any more excuses for poor lower leg devel-

opment.
The Luke Sauder Calf Workout. Luke Sauder was an alpine skier who competed in

the Winter Olympics in Nagano who developed impressive calves. Sauder had

wanted a calf routine because big calves prevent knee injuries in alpine skiing (they

provide a cushion to prevent the skier’s knees from reaching too acute an angle as

they jet down a mountain). Here is the workout he used with great results.

Day 1: High Volume

A1. Seated Calf Raise, 3 x 10-5-5 (one set of 10 reps, followed by 2 sets of 5 reps),

1010, no rest

A2. Donkey Calf Raise, 3 x 30-50, 10X0, rest 120 sec.

B: Standing Calf Raise, 10 x 10-30, 11X0 tempo, rest 10 sec.*

*In other words, do one, long, extended set, resting 10 sec. between each mini-set

and lowering the weight in between.

After day one, you’ll probably have to call the fire department to extinguish the fire

in your calves. You may also find that you have the same walk as Homer Simp-

son’s 80-year-old father.

Day 2: Low Volume (to be performed 48 hours after Day 1)

Exercise A: Triple Drop Standing Calf Raise, 3 x 10-10-10 (i.e., 3 drop sets) at a 1210

tempo,** resting 90 sec. between sets.

**The pause is taken in the bottom stretch position, and be sure to take the full 2

sec.

This routine produces freaky size increases. As you can see, it uses a great number

of total reps. Building calves require both a high frequency of training and high vol-

ume, but you can’t have both high volume and high frequency in a short time pe-

riod. Therefore, we advise training them twice over a five-day cycle, one workout

being very high sets (16) and high total reps (250-510 reps), and the other being

low sets (3) for a low number of total reps (90). We’ve known people to gain 5/8th

inch to a full inch with this routine in as little as 30 days.

Whether or not calves will ever achieve the respect of other muscle groups is a

question that we’re sure will be covered by other writers who can’t think of any-

thing else to write about. Our intent is to show those who want to develop bigger

calves how to do it. Calf development probably won’t change your life, but you’ll be

surprised – and perhaps even shocked – at how much your calves can grow.
Chapter 13: Chest
Muscle Media 2000 was a popular print magazine founded by Bill Phillips in 1992

and has continued as an online magazine under the name Muscle Media.

We often get questions such as “What are the best exercises to target the upper

and lower pecs?” The first step in being able to answer this question is to look at

the anatomy of the chest muscles.

The pectoralis major is one muscle with two heads, clavicular and sternocostal,

that cover the chest and insert on the upper arm bone (humerus). The clavicular

head originates at the center portion of the collarbone (clavicle), and in lay lan-

guage, this area is referred to as the upper pecs. One of its primary functions is to

raise the arm. The sternocostal head originates at the costal cartilage of the first six

ribs and the adjoining section of the breast bone (sternum), and the area is called

the lower pecs. One of the primary functions of the lower pecs is to lower the arm.

One method of determining how muscles are activated during an exercise is called

electromyography (EMG), a diagnostic tool with a history that spans several cen-

turies and includes a working prototype first presented in 1890, at which time the

term electromyography was introduced. In its present form, an EMG involves plac-

ing small electrodes in the skin with a needle, or on the skin with surgical tape.

These electrodes collect information about the electrical activity of the muscle and

send this information to a machine that translates this into data representing the
degree of muscular contraction.

In researching the upper pecs/lower pecs question, we found a study that com-

pared muscle activation between the incline bench press and the decline bench

press. The authors concluded that the lower portion of the pectorals was more ac-

tive during decline presses than during incline presses, but that neither exercise

completely isolated these muscles. From this data, you can conclude that exercises

that position the hands farther from the center of gravity (e.g., incline bench press-

es), will more strongly work the upper pecs, and exercises that position the hands

closer to the center of gravity (e.g., bench presses) work the lower pecs. However,

this study did not look at the flat bench press, a consideration that turns out to

have significant ramifications in exercise selection.

Another study that did EMG measurements of the incline, flat, and decline presses

found that the maximum recruitment of the upper pecs was with an incline press,

and the maximum recruitment of the lower pecs was with a flat, not decline, press.

The study also looked at hand spacing, and what’s interesting is that a wider grip

did not significantly increase the involvement of the lower pecs in flat bench press-

es. With this information, we could now confidently answer this pec training ques-

tion by saying that incline presses would be best for the upper pecs, and flat bench

presses would be best for the lower pecs. But there’s more.
One EMG study that examined the differences between muscle activation during

the barbell bench press, the dumbbell bench press, and the dumbbell fly. What the

researchers found was that the dumbbell fly had less muscle activation time than

either the barbell bench press or the dumbbell bench press. With this information,

we could expand our answer by saying that the dumbbell fly is an inferior exercise

for developing the lower pecs.

The next step was to search for research that looks at various hand positions, and

one study that looked at the differences in hand positions using a special bar called

a Football Bar. What this two-month study found was that of three grips tested, the

thumbs-out grip produced the greatest increases in strength (a 12.3 percent aver-

age improvement compared to a 6.2 percent improvement in the conventional

bench press). Again, this gave us more practical information to use in program de-

sign, and also regarding exercise equipment purchases.

Hopefully, this discussion has given you an appreciation of the amount of educa-

tion that is required to become an elite personal trainer or strength coach. The idea

is to give the best answers on how to train properly, not the simplest ones. Our

experience has shown that a variety of angles is necessary to achieve maximum

development. This is because each angle taps into different motor units, and vary-

ing the angles will be less stressful on the rotator cuff muscles.
Regardless of the angle used on the bench, it’s important to pay attention to head

posture while pressing. To lift the highest load, the back of your head should make

contact with the bench’s upholstery – in fact, you should be pressing your head

into the bench (as in performing a neck extension). Pressing your head into the

bench increases your strength by creating a neural response that activates the mus-

cles used in the bench press.

Pressing Secrets

Now we’re going to share some little-known facts about training presses. First, im-

proving dumbbell pressing strength improves barbell pressing strength, but not

necessarily vice versa at the same percentage. Because of the physiological law of

specificity, strength is gained only in the range in which it is trained. Dumbbell

work, if performed properly, increases strength through a greater range than barbell

work. We are not suggesting that you should stay away from barbell exercises, of

course, but that if you are pressed for time, dumbbell pressing provides a greater

return on your investment than barbells. As a rule of thumb, for fast increases in

pressing strength we use dumbbells in the accumulation phases and barbells in

the intensification phases. Dumbbells also offer the advantage of correcting the

bilateral deficit often seen in trainees.

Next, supine presses have the greatest transfer effect to all presses. All pressing

exercises have some degree of transfer to the other ones. If you concentrated on

dips, for example, your overhead presses would increase and vice versa. But all fac-

tors being equal, the supine press (i.e., bench press) is the pressing exercise that

transfers the most to the other extremities due to the combination of the amount

of weight used, the intermediate motor pattern, and the muscles recruited.

Another interesting observation about presses, which relates to our concept of

structural balance, is that all factors being equal, incline presses are the best pre-

dictor lift of all presses. Incline presses have been shown to be the pressing exer-

cise with the least percentage of improvement growth. Interestingly enough, it is

also the pressing exercise most related to all throwing patterns. But let’s make

something clear before we go any further. Incline pressing 600 pounds does not

guarantee you a gold medal in the shot put at the Olympics, but improving your in-

cline press strongly correlates with improving shot put performance. Thus, if you

already have good mechanics in putting the shot or throwing baseballs, concen-

trating on improving incline presses will do more for your shot put performance

than spending hours at the dipping station will.

Next, throughout the years, for all lower body sports that require speed, we have

found there is an optimal ratio that, when achieved, translates into short-distance

improvement. For example, in short-track speedskating, when the incline press

reaches 85 percent of the front squat, you get the best potential speed for the 500

meters. Of course, the skater should also work on getting their front squat num-

bers as high as possible.

Finally, we’ve also found that using accommodating loading devices accelerate

progress in pressing exercises. Presses share this common force pattern: The end

portion of the concentric range is much stronger than the start portion. Therefore,

using bands and chains allows for a greater overload in the end range by more

closely matching the strength curve. From experience, for every workout using

chains, one workout should be done with bands. Using bands in every workout

tends to result in overused tendons. Very strong athletes often get better results

with this progression:

Workout 1: barbell plus chains

Workout 2: barbell plus bands

Workout 3: barbell only

Any strength coach who uses the advice given above will make faster gains with

their athletes, and bodybuilders will develop a much more balanced physique.

Regarding exercise machines, regardless of your training goal, we would advise you

to avoid Smith machines. Because the shoulder operates in three planes, the fixed-

bar pathway of a Smith machine does not allow alteration for efficient movement of

the joint, thereby predisposing the shoulder to harmful overload via lack of ac-

commodation. If you are interested in training longevity, you are far better off stick-

ing to standard barbell and dumbbell exercises.

Another problem is that because the Smith machine balances the weight for you,

shoulder stabilizers such as the rotator cuff muscles do not need to work hard.

This creates an imbalance in these muscles, predisposing the individual to injury.

In contrast, due to the mechanics of the human shoulder joint, during a free-weight

bench press the body will alter the natural bar pathway to accommodate efficient

movement at the shoulder.

Keys to Bench Press Success

Although the bench press seems like a simple lift, to achieve optimum results you

must consider all the variables that contribute to success. The first step, therefore,

is to learn proper form from a qualified powerlifting coach. In the sport of power-

lifting, there is only one coach whose worldwide acclaim and accomplishments
have rightfully earned him guru status, and that man is Louie Simmons. Simmons

has trained more athletes to achieve 1,000-pound squats, 700-pound benches or

800-pound deadlifts than any other coach. Because we get a lot of letters from

bodybuilders and other athletes who are obsessed with improving their bench

press, we thought we’d share some of Simmons’ ideas on this topic.

Simmons says that correct bench press form should be practiced on every rep and

in every set of every training session. One of his favorite teaching techniques is to

tell his athletes to imagine pushing themselves through the bench – that is, push-

ing away from the bar. He says it’s also important – and this has been proven by

biomechanical studies on elite athletes – to emphasize controlling the descent of

the bar. In addition to giving you greater control of the bar path, lowering the

weight slowly and under control at all points of the exercise will minimize the

stress on the shoulders.

A major mistake that Simmons says most athletes make is that they train the bench

press too often and too heavy. In fact, he believes that you don’t have to perform

the bench press to improve it. “The bench press itself does not stall,” says Sim-

mons. “When your bench press fails to go up, what is holding you back is a weak

muscle – and the way to strengthen a weak muscle is with assistance exercises.”

The secret, then, to improving your bench press is to determine which muscles are
the weak links in your bench press, and then perform the appropriate exercises to

strengthen them. “It should also be clear that the body is always changing; there-

fore, the training of the lifter should also change,” says Simmons. Now let’s look

another reason for a lack of progress in the bench press: injuries.

One obvious reason for injuries in bench pressing is poor form. We can get insight

on this factor from Dr. Richard Dominguez, an orthopedic surgeon who worked

with top bodybuilder Bob Gajda, who won the 1966 AAU Mr. America and later

earned a Ph.D. Dominguez and Gajda co-authored Total Body Training, a fitness

training book published in 1982 that was ahead of its time. In one interview with

the editor of a popular strength training magazine, Dominguez said that among the

athletes he’s seen who needed shoulder surgery from lifting weights there were two

major reasons they became injured performing bench presses: lowering the bar too

quickly (and often, as a result, bouncing the barbell off the chest) and using too

wide of a grip. Further, it’s important to have a training partner help you lift the bar

to the correct position, rather than lifting it off the supports yourself and placing

excessive stress on the rotator cuff muscles, particularly the subscapularis.

The bench press places a lot of stress on the joints, and this may be largely be-

cause the shoulder blades are not allowed to move freely during the exercise be-

cause they are pinned against the bench. This would explain why Olympic lifters,

despite the dynamic nature of their sport, in which they basically throw weights

overhead, usually are less likely to suffer from shoulder pain than powerlifters. As

such, the higher the volume and frequency of training, the more at risk the athlete

is of developing shoulder problems.

One of the highest-volume training programs is that used by many Russian power-

lifters. The Russians, who have been dominating the sport of powerlifting for the

past decade, often use programs that are characterized by lots of sets, high fre-

quency and very few assistance exercises – training that is modeled after Olympic

lifting programs. One accomplished Russian powerlifting coach who promotes

such training is Boris Ivanovich Sheiko.

Sheiko has published many sample workout programs. In one preparatory program

we saw, he recommended up to 40 sets of bench presses per week, sometimes

even performing the bench press twice in the same workout (a method we first

heard about from Canadian weightlifting coach Pierre Roy, who called this method

Doublé, which is a French word that means “done twice”). Because of the high

volume, the load was generally low, focusing on weights that were about 70-80 per-

cent of the 1-repetition maximum.

In American powerlifting, the most famous and successful powerlifting coach is

Louie Simmons of the famous Westside Barbell Club. In contrast to the Russian

system, Simmons would focus much of the training on assistance exercises that

worked on the weakest part of the bench press. If a lifter had an especially hard

time driving the barbell off the chest, Simmons might suggest work with a cam-

bered bar. However, because the newer bench press shirts assist so much with the

start of a lift, the primary assistance exercises for the bench press have been on the

lockout portion of the exercise, such as board presses. How much do shirts help

the bench press? Well, one powerlifter who broke the absolute world record in this

lift said that during the training cycle the barbell never touched his chest once and

that the only time it did was during the competition!

Our approach is to simply incorporate more variety in the exercise selection and

also change these exercises more frequently. A general guideline we use is to

change the exercises every six workouts. As such, an athlete may do bench presses

for two weeks, followed by incline presses for two weeks, and then dips for two

weeks, and then go back to the bench press. Such an approach prevents plateaus,

and also the variety reduces the risk of overuse injuries.

Pain-Free Bench Pressing

Training programs notwithstanding, there are several common reasons for shoul-

der pain from bench pressing. For example, if the strength ratio between two mus-

cle groups is off-kilter, you can experience faulty alignment. If the strength of your

pecs is far greater than that of the external rotators of the humerus (teres minor

and infraspinatus), you’ll likely feel a sharp pain in the superior anterior portion of

the upper arm (this problem is often misdiagnosed as bicipital tendonitis).

You should also consider that a muscle imbalance may be not only in the pressing

muscles but also in the agonists and the synergists – if the antagonists are too

weak, they send a message to the brain to shut down the agonists. So if your upper

back is not as strong as your pecs and your triceps, your potential to improve in

the bench press is compromised. It may seem odd to improve your bench press

with rows and even chin-ups, but having worked with many elite athletes, we can

tell you this is the case.

One reason many athletes don’t achieve their goals is that their approach to train-

ing is too simplistic, especially among stronger athletes. The basic rule is “The

stronger an athlete is, the more complex the program should be.” Case in point:

Most athletes with a big bench know that rotator cuff training is important to pre-

vent injuries from bench pressing, so they may occasionally include a few light sets

of rotator cuff work in their workouts. However, this approach is simply not good

enough for serious athletes.

Our research has found that rotator cuff strength should be about 9.8 percent of

what you can lift in the bench press. Such a strength ratio is not going to be

accomplished by tacking on a set of some external rotation exercise with a five-

pound dumbbell. In fact, former pro hockey player Jim McKenzie, improved his 14-

inch, close-grip bench by 49 pounds in nine weeks, from 281 to 330- pounds, by

focusing on rotator cuff strength – in fact, he did no benching at all during this

training program! He then switched to a bench press specialization program, and

three weeks later he did 380 pounds in this exercise.

To help determine structural balance you can use radar graphs, which are

so-named because they resemble a radar screen. A radar graph displays values that

revolve around a central point. The central point is zero, and increasing values are

represented farther out from the center. Unlike bar graphs or pie charts, radar

graphs enable you to display values that are on different scales to illustrate sym-

metry.

The Value of Bands

Training with bands is a very effective method to improve both maximal strength

and power, particularly for the extensor chains. Therefore, presses, deadlifts, and

squat variations benefit greatly from band training. Here are six special consid-

erations to know about band training:

1. Use in only one workout out of two. More often than that tends to bring on ten-

dinitis.

2. Concentrate on acceleration.

3. Make sure the bands are anchored properly. The Poliquin racks provide attach-

ments that will suit your biomechanics in a matter of seconds.

4. Make sure you have a spotter. Getting pinned with bands can make your life

miserable.

5. Sets/reps: 8-10 sets of 1-3 reps works best. We consider band training more suit-

ed for neural drive training. If, for example, you are incline pressing with bands, we

would pair them with wide-grip pulls for 8-10 sets of 1-3 reps. Rest 2 minutes be-

tween pressing and pull-ups; rest 2 minutes after pull-ups before returning to

presses.

6. Bands are well suited for the pressing and squatting exercises for the neural

drive of the Modified Hepburn method, as seen on this site.

7. In essence, band training is another variation of tempo training you can use to

accelerate your gains.

8. Use band training for training the extensor chains, as they have ascending

strength curves in the concentric ranges, meaning that you get stronger as you

shorten the muscle. Therefore, they help match the resistance curve to your natural

strength curves.

9. Band training for the flexor chains (e.g., curls) should be of high resistance, so

much that they only allow you to overload the early start of the concentric range.
They are a great addition for the development of functional hypertrophy. For exam-

ple, in chin-ups you can do 6 reps to failure, and then immediately attach the band

to your chinning/climbing belt and do 4-6 short-range partial reps in the stretched

position; hold the top position for 4 seconds.

Rediscover Dips

Although there has been a recent upsurge in the popularity of chin-ups, we haven’t

seen much enthusiasm for parallel bar dips. Bodybuilders say this exercise tears

apart the shoulders, personal trainers say it’s too difficult, and strength coaches

complain that it’s not sports specific. As such, it’s time for a closer look at an exer-

cise that was once a staple in athletic and physical fitness programs.

If you go back to the early days when YMCAs were the gym of choice, you’ll find

that dip stations – or perhaps gymnastic parallel bars – were often available. But

now, except for those revolutionary “suspension rings” that have been hitting the

strength circuit, gymnastic equipment, and dedicated dip machines simply are not

available. At least with chin-ups you can use a crossbar in a power rack. However,

even if you wanted to perform dips, you now lack the means to do them.

When you think of dips, you usually think of chins. When dips are combined with

chin-ups, as they often were in bygone days, you have a great upper body combo.
Even if you don’t do a single fly, pulldown, triceps pressdown or biceps curl – you

can develop great upper body strength and muscle mass with chins and dips. If

you doubt us, just look at the upper body development of gymnasts, whose condi-

tioning programs never includes barbells and dumbbells. Chins and dips are exer-

cises that give you the most bang for your buck. And the old-time bodybuilders

knew this – especially Brooklyn’s Marvin Eder.

Eder’s most significant bodybuilding accomplishment was placing third in the 1951

AAU Mr. America, considered one of the most prestigious competitions at the

time. He weighed 198 pounds at 5 feet 8 inches and sported 19-inch arms. As with

many bodybuilders in his era, Eder complemented his muscle building workouts

with Olympic lifts and power lifts – pound-for-pound, Eder had few equals. Among

his most notable strength feats were a 355 clean and press, 285 snatch, 345 clean

and jerk (with a 365 clean), 665 full squat and (just for fun) 300 pounds for squats

for 50 reps! But it was his upper body strength that was especially impressive. Here

are some of his lifts: bench press 515 (raw); wide-grip chins, 8 reps with 80

pounds; 8 consecutive one-arm chins with one arm; and a parallel bar dip with 400

pounds for 7 reps plus 1 rep with an additional 434 pounds (accomplished by hav-

ing two men hang from his feet).

In the area of muscular endurance, in 1954 Jack La LaLanne completed 1,000 ver-

tical dips in less than 35 minutes without leaving the bars. And although Simon

Kent completed 3,989 dips in 1998 for a Guinness world record, we’ve seen a video

clip of his performance showing that his arms never came close to being parallel to

the floor.

Powerlifters used to be big on dips. Pat Casey, the first man to officially bench

press 600 pounds (raw), weighed 340 pounds and could perform a parallel bar dip

with an additional 380 pounds. However, now that bench shirts help with the drive

off the chest, the exercise has been replaced in favor of board or towel presses.

And while pressdowns and French presses are fine for bodybuilders, as they offer

different recruitment patterns, such isolation movements are not nearly as effective

as dips. But the primary reason most athletes avoid dips is laziness – they are hard

work!

As for terminology, the standing position is with the arms extended so that the

body is balanced by the hands on the bars. The movement begins with the exten-

sor muscles, such as the triceps, contracting to control the descent of the move-

ment. As with the descent of the bench press, the descent in dips must be con-

trolled to avoid injury. Total Body Training author Dr. Richard Dominguez said that

rapid descent in the bench press was a primary cause of injury among his body-

building clientele who required shoulder surgery.

Dips work the anterior shoulders, pectorals, and triceps – many of the same mus-

cle groups worked by the bench press. In our list of best-ever triceps exercises, we

would be hard-pressed to find one equal to dips. According to MRI research by Per

A. Tesch, Ph.D., dips are superior to close-grip bench presses for developing all

three heads of the triceps. As a bonus, the trapezius and many other back muscles

are involved in dips to provide stability.

Dips are hard work, and women and heavier individuals often have trouble per-

forming a single repetition. Let’s start with the easy way out. If you are not strong

enough to do dips, there are many variations of dip-assisting machines that will

help you. With some designs, you stand on a footplate, and with others, such as

one manufactured by Atlantis, you kneel on a platform. With these devices, the

platform connects with a pulley mechanism to a weight stack. Increasing the

weight, in turn, produces more upward force to the platform, such that virtually

anyone can perform the exercise through a full range of motion.

But you don’t need a high-tech machine to do dips. Here are two variations: (1)

Starting with the arms extended in the locked position, flex one knee and have a

training partner grasp that ankle and provide as much assistance as needed – be

careful not to knee your training partner. (2) Stand inside a power rack and place a

barbell on the safety pins, set slightly above mid-thigh level. Both of these varia-

tions effectively reduce the amount of weight your upper body must lift.
Vince Gironda recommended using a reverse grip in dips. The trainee would round

the upper back, chin to chest, elbows pointed straight out, feet together, toes

pointed down and under the face. Such a variation was a bit harsh on the shoul-

ders. And regarding those who encounter shoulder injuries from dips, the problem

often can be traced to structural imbalances. Further, dips are best performed on a

V-shaped dip apparatus, which accommodates a greater variety of body types.

As your dipping strength increases, you will need to increase resistance by (1) hav-

ing a training partner pull down on your ankles, (2) holding a dumbbell between

your ankles or (3) using a chin/dip belt (alternatively, the belts used by mountain

climbers are good for this purpose). Holding a dumbbell securely is more difficult

to coordinate compared to using the belt, and eventually the weights you will use

on this exercise will become too heavy to hold in this manner.

Another great variation is to attach lifting chains to a chin/dip belt, as the chains

will make the exercise more difficult at the top of the movement, where you are

strongest.

Dips are a great exercise for bodybuilders, powerlifters and anyone who just wants

to be strong. For old times’ sake, at least, give this “old school” exercise a chance –

you might just love it!

The Pullover Effect

The pullover was a key exercise in the early days of the iron game. One early 20th

century strongman and professional wrestler who excelled in this exercise was

Georg Karl Julius Hackenschmidt.

Hackenschmidt, who was born in 1878 in Estonia, won wrestling tournaments all

over the world and is credited with developing the bear hug. One of Hacken-

schmidt’s favorite exercises was to assume a wrestler’s bridge, supporting his

upper body with the strength of his neck muscles, and from this position perform

a pullover and press – that is, pulling the bar to the chest and then bench pressing

it. Just performing a wrestler’s bridge is hard enough for the average person, but

Hackenschmidt was so strong he once did it with 311 pounds, a world record that

stood for 50 years.

Before discussing the many variations of pullover exercises that you might want to

consider adding to your workouts, we must mention the Nautilus pullover ma-

chine. Of course, the individual who designed the Nautilus pullover was the

company’s founder, Arthur Jones. It was a remarkable invention.

Jones’s pullover machine was a good idea, but with a little creativity, you can ade-

quately stress all areas of the strength curve. Before we go into some of these exer-

cises, recognize that free-weight pullovers work more than the lats, biceps, and

forearms.

In addition to working the lats, the pullover develops the pectoralis major and pec-

toralis minor, as these chest muscles are involved in many shoulder movements.

The pullover also works the muscles attached to the ribs called serratus anterior –

serratus is Latin for “saw” (which is a fair description of a rib). The serratus also

pulls the scapula (shoulder blades) forward, such as when throwing a punch

(which is why the serratus is also called the boxer’s muscle), and produces an up-

ward rotation of the scapula when lifting the weight overhead. If you lift one arm in

a pullover motion, by placing your other hand over the serratus you can feel it con-

tracting. Also, the rectus abdominus is activated during pullovers, contracting pri-

marily isometrically.

Now let’s look at a few pullover variations.

Three ways to provide resistance in pullovers are with barbells (an EZ curl bar is

usually more comfortable than a straight bar), dumbbells and cables. Because

bands overload only the end range of an exercise, their use is limited. Barbells tend

to be the best, as the stability required to use dumbbells reduces the weight you

can use.
The key to getting the resistance curve of an exercise to overload a specific part of

the strength curve is to change body position. As such, you can perform pullovers

on a flat, incline or decline bench. In the early days of the iron game, rounded

benches called “moon benches” were commonly available, and they increased the

range of motion of pullover exercises. Swiss balls can be used for this purpose, but

the instability of these balls not only increases the chance of injury but also re-

duces the intensity of the exercise because they force you to use less weight.

Two basic types of pullovers are straight-arm and bent-arm. Considerably less

weight can be used with the straight-arm pullover; with the bent-arm pullover, it’s

especially important to have the feet anchored. Many popular bodybuilding writers

have advocated the use of high-repetition squats supersetted with pullovers to ex-

pand the rib cage by lengthening the costal cartilage. However, the costal cartilage

gradually ossifies as adolescents mature, and, therefore, exercise will have little ef-

fect on lengthening it in adults. Also, consider that the heavy breathing caused by

heavy squats may be enough to cause lengthening of the costal cartilage – but

again, only in adolescents.

When performing pullovers on a bench, it’s important to have your head supported

to avoid straining your neck. One popular bodybuilding writer suffered severe

nerve damage from performing dumbbell pullovers across a bench with her head

hyperextended – this caused her chronic pain for many years and required a con-

siderable amount of physical therapy to manage – this is another reason to avoid

performing the exercise with Swiss balls.

One interesting variation of the pullover used in the early days of bodybuilding was

to perform it from a supine (face up) position with a barbell resting behind the

trainee on an elevated platform (6-10 inches). This limited the range of motion and

(as with a box squat) dissipated the kinetic energy that developed as the weight

was lowered behind the head. As such, a trainee could superset a set of these types

of pullovers with a full-range type of moment – thus more effectively overloading

more areas of the strength curve.

We mentioned cables. By using an overhead pulley system and performing the

exercise seated or kneeling, you can perform a pullover motion from a vertical

position. If you’re facing the machine, this would primarily overload the midrange

portion of the strength curve. The late sports scientist Dr. Mel Siff cited a study

that found this type of exercise creates a stronger contraction of the rectus abdomi-

nus muscle than conventional sit-ups do. For those with back pain, such an exer-

cise could strengthen this muscle without aggravating their condition. Further,

those with back pain should avoid hyperextending the spine during the stretched

position of conventional pullover exercises, as this action places considerable

stress on the lumbar vertebrae.

In the early days of the Iron Game, the pullover was a key exercise for bodybuilders

or anyone simply wanting to get strong. It’s been all but forgotten in today’s world

of strength and conditioning, but the pullover and its many variations deserve a

second look.

Many exercise machines require you to start the exercise in a biomechanically weak

position. If you lift the first repetition too quickly, trying to jerk the weight to get the

weight moving, you put yourself at a high risk of injury. Examples of such ma-

chines include many pec dec and incline leg press machines.

Most pec dec machines start with the shoulder in a position of external rotation

with the forearms perpendicular the floor, rather than a stronger position in which

the forearms are parallel to the floor. The shoulder joint is extremely vulnerable to

injury in external rotation. If you are going to perform this exercise, either start the

movement very slowly or have a training partner pull the lever arms forward for the

first repetition so you can begin the exercise in a stronger position.

We haven’t given you a simple answer to the question of how to develop a chest

that is thick, wide and high, but that is because there is no simple answer. You

have to become a student of the game because – to borrow from that series of

public service announcements – “The more you know, the more you grow!”
Chapter 14: Shoulders
When he was seven years old, Marvin Phillips had his right arm torn completely off

just below the shoulder. Doctors were able to reattach the arm, and eventually he

built that arm up to 20 ½ inches and could bench press 500 pounds.

The modern-day version of the sport of weightlifting consists of two lifts, the

snatch and the clean and jerk. For a time, there were three lifts. The press was

adopted as a competitive weightlifting exercise after the 1928 Olympics (and was

eliminated in 1972), and was considered more of a test of strength than the other

two lifts. The result was that extremely strong men who did not excel in the snatch,

which was considered more a test of speed and agility, could make up the differ-

ence with a good result in the press.

Heyday of the Press

Besides being performed by competitive weightlifters, overhead presses were also

key exercises for bodybuilders – and for that matter any athlete who wanted to be

strong. They did military presses, behind-the-neck presses, dumbbell presses – if

you wanted to get strong, you lifted weights overhead. So whereas the typical

weight trainer today often has accelerated chest and biceps development from an

overemphasis on bench presses and curls, their predecessors often had excep-

tional development of the chest and shoulders. This pattern even carried over to

the physique competitors.

Two of the most famous bodybuilders of their era were John Grimek and Steve

Reeves. After Grimek won his second AAU Mr. America title in 1941, the organizers

of the event established a rule that a competitor could not win the title more than

once, as it was obvious to the organizers of the event that no one could defeat

Grimek. Reeves won the AAU Mr. America title in 1947 and the Mr. Universe title in

1950, and when Reeves appeared in a series of Hercules movies, many young men

were bitten by the bodybuilding bug. Moreover, both Reeves and Grimek were ex-

tremely strong.
Grimek was a champion weightlifter, having represented the US in the 1936

Olympics, and had overhead pressed 285 pounds in competition. Grimek used a

pressing style in which he started from a layback position, but his technique was

within the rules, as he maintained that layback throughout the press. Although

Reeves was not a competitive lifter, he did show raw potential to become a good

lifter. Reeves could clean 225 pounds from a kneeling position, and he once did a

400-pound deadlift by grasping the outside lip of the inside 45-pound plates with

just his fingers!

Reeves and Grimek were the best bodybuilders of their day, but if you look at

physique photos of them in their prime, you’ll see that they had relatively weak pec-

toral development compared to their delts. This was perhaps a result of concen-

trating more on overhead press movements – more specifically, “strict” overhead

press movements.
A Question of Speed

In Grimek’s era, the performance of presses was extremely strict and relied mainly

on tremendous shoulder and triceps strength – until the rules relaxed and the

game changed.

After cleaning the weight, a lifter had to assume an upright position with the legs

straight – at this point the referee would give the lifter a signal to begin the press.

Then, using the dynamic start, the lifter would lean back, explosively whip the

weight up with the strength of their abdominals and hip flexors, and then lean back

again – a whipping movement that could be described as a slingshot. It was pos-

sible to cheat by starting with the legs slightly flexed (a posture that was difficult

for the judges to see if the lifter had extremely large quads), and then straightening

them as he finished the extension of the torso. The US lifter who excelled in this lift

and is credited for introducing it in the US was Tony Garcy.

Garcy represented the US in the 1960 and 1964 Olympics, and broke American

records in the press in both the 148- and 165-pound bodyweight divisions. In 1967

Garcy broke Tommy Kono’s clean and jerk record with 375.75 pounds – in compar-

ison, consider that at the 2011 Senior Nationals, the second highest clean and jerk

in the 169-pound class was 341 pounds. Here is how Don Reed, a former editor for

Strength and Health magazine and member of the York Barbell Club, described

Garcy’s technique:
“I remember hearing Steve Stanko [former US heavyweight champion] describe the

initial reaction to the Garcy press. He power cleaned the weight and sank into the

forward-leaning slouch. The three judges looked at each other, and then the head

judge shrugged and made the handclap signal. The weight flashed up, almost as

fast as a jerk – boom, there it was! Again the judges looked at each other and then

three thumbs lifted (no white lights yet). The crowd roared, and the modern

Olympic press was born.”

The combination of the dynamic start and layback enabled the lifter to drive the

weight more easily through the sticking point. It was also a difficult technique to

master, and the result is that the weightlifters who had tremendous upper body

strength lost much of their advantage. It also led to more record-breaking over the

years.

In 1936, the 300-pound barrier was broken in the press by German heavyweight

Sepp Manger, and 19 years later Paul Anderson exceeded the 400-pound mark, a

remarkable lift, as it surpassed the world record held by Canada’s Doug Hepburn

by 22 pounds. Anderson broke the record twice more, finishing his career with

408.5, and then Russia’s Yury Vlasov took over in 1962 with a new standard of 410.

But just 10 years later, after changes in judging criteria, the great Vasily Alexeev

bumped the record to 521. That represents an increase of 111 pounds, compared to

an increase of just 55 pounds in the clean and jerk during that same period. Like-

wise,
the 198-pound press record was 351.5 pounds in 1962 by Russia’s Vasily

Stepanovs, but 10 years later his comrade David Rigert kicked that up 85 pounds

with a best of 436.5 pounds – a huge jump compared to an increase of only 39.5

pounds in the clean and jerk in the same 10 years.

No discussion about overhead pressing would be complete without mentioning

strongman Doug Hepburn, who in the 1950s could press 175 pounds overhead

with his right hand and could do a 350-pound behind-the-neck press. When was

the last time you saw anyone in your gym doing any overhead presses with three

45s slapped on each end of a barbell? Back then even bodybuilders were strong.

For example, Reg Park could perform standing dumbbell presses with 140-pound

dumbbells, a one-arm dumbbell press with 165 pounds for 2 reps, and a behind-

the-neck press with 300 pounds; Bill Pearl could perform a 310-pound seated be-

hind-the-neck press and a 320-pound military press. Both these men – who were as

strong as they looked – did these lifts nearly a half century ago!
Stop the Presses!

The Olympic press was eliminated from competition in 1972 for several reasons,

one possibly being the tremendous stress the lift put on the lower back. One of the

most common complaints among lifters was not an injury to the shoulder or knee,

but lower back pain (one former US champion described the sensation of doing a

press as having a little man jump up and down on his fifth lumbar vertebra). How-

ever, Dr. Mel Siff examined the research on this subject and found that the major

cause of back pain appeared to be from rising out of the clean, not from pressing.

Another possible reason for the elimination of the press was time. In the days of

the press, athletes were allowed two minutes’ rest between attempts – three min-

utes if a lifter was following himself. With three lifts, and three attempts allowed for

each lift, the competitions often finished late in the day. All this concentrated lifting

was quite an ordeal. At the 1972 Olympics, over the span of several hours Vasily

Alexeev pressed 518 pounds, then snatched 385, and finished with a clean and jerk

of 507. Can you imagine having to clean a maximum weight, then having to come

back perhaps two hours later and do it all over again?

But the number-one issue with the press was the difficulty in judging it, which led

to many accusations about political shenanigans among referees. During the 1972

Olympics, US middleweight Russ Knipp pressed a world record, one that would

have lived forever in the record books, but it was turned down due to Knipp’s
apparent use of a knee kick. We should note that the motion to eliminate the press

had been brought up after the 1964 and 1968 Olympics as well.

With the press eliminated, the popularity of the sport of weightlifting declined and

was replaced by enthusiasm for powerlifting and even bodybuilding and strong-

man. During the ’70s, the popularity of Arnold Schwarzenegger boosted those pur-

suits, and it is not surprising that the US saw a gradual decrease in interest in

weightlifting.

Getting back to our point about presses being potentially bad for weightlifting, this

is true – especially if they are overworked. Although you would think that presses

would help lifters, they can hurt them because of the timing. With the press, the

upper body will be tense at the start, and tensing the shoulders reduces the

amount of tension that can be produced by the legs. In fact, historically many of

the best jerkers have been terrible pressers – one of our trainers jerked 335 off the

racks, but the same day got pinned with a 205-pound bench press! This same phe-

nomenon applied to throwers.

In the ’70s and ’80s, one of the most noticeable differences between the European

throwers and their US counterparts was in upper body hypertrophy. Whereas many

US throwers displayed tremendous upper body development, the Europeans had

relatively smaller upper bodies with more of a “Christmas tree” type of shape.

As for push presses and push jerks, these exercises teach the athlete not only to

use the arms differently from how they are used during the jerk but also to position

the hips behind the bar rather than directly under the bar as during a jerk. A few

weightlifters have reached elite level using this style in competition, such as three-

time Olympic champion Pyrros Dimas and Russia’s Viktor Sots, a two-time world

champion who broke six world records using this style, but they are the exceptions

– and some people question whether Sots was actually human, as he reportedly

could military press 413 pounds from a full squat position!

The main issue is with the timing. In the jerk, the arms and shoulders should

achieve their most powerful contraction after the leg drive, not at the initial drive

off the chest as with the press (which is needed to help drive the bar past the stick-

ing point). Here is another way to describe it: Just as one of the primary purposes

of the arms in lifting should be to help pull the body under the barbell, the major

contribution of the arms and shoulders in jerking should be to push the body

under the barbell. There’s more.

Russian researcher L.N. Sokolov believed that weightlifters who were good

pressers were limited in the jerk because their upper body “muscle tonus” affected

their speed of movement. In an article, he wrote for Tyazhelaya Atletika that was

published in 1971 Sokolov said, “…strengthening the muscles of the arms and

shoulder girdle (and this is an obligatory condition to obtain high results in the

press) has a negative influence on the assimilation of the technique of the tempo

exercises.”

Due to the negative effects on the jerk caused by having high levels of strength in

the upper body pressing muscles, weightlifters were forced to rethink the way they

designed their workouts. Many of the auxiliary exercises were eliminated, and soon

the trend in lifting (pioneered by Bulgarian coach Ivan Abadjiev) was to focus sim-

ply on the classical movements and squats.

Even so, during an off-season training cycle for a weightlifter – as well as for any-

one involved in throwing sports – we believe it would make sense from a structural

balance standpoint to perform some overhead presses, preferably with dumbbells.

The Pros of Pressing

Even if you’re not a competitive weightlifter, there are many other good reasons to

include presses in your workouts. Here are five:

Reason #1: It develops the deltoids, traps and triceps. Sure, you can isolate each of

these muscles, but an overhead press does it all at once. This makes it a very

economical exercise, which is great for those who need to keep their workouts

brief. Do the math. Either you can perform 3 sets of a standing overhead press or

you can do all this: 3 sets of lateral raises (for the deltoids), 3 sets of upright rows

(for the traps) and 3 sets of standing French presses (for the triceps). Even if you

perform a tri-set, the workout time saved by performing an overhead press is

considerable. What’s more, multijoint exercises often work single muscle groups

harder due to the inferior force curves involved in many isolation exercises. For

example, the triceps kickback and the dumbbell lateral raise only apply a large

amount of tension during a very small part of the midrange portion of these exer-

cises.

Reason #2: It improves results in the bench press. One of the best ways to get a

great bench press is to train overhead pressing strength. Because of various inhi-

bition mechanisms, your bench press progress is often stalled until you spend

time on the overhead press. Powerlifting legend Ed Coan said he was able to break

a lengthy plateau by working on his overhead strength.

Reason #3: It can prevent shoulder injuries. Training only the bench press shortens

the subscapularis muscle, puts pressure on the shoulder joint and may injure the

shoulder.

Reason #4: It’s a great conditioner for the lower back and other core muscles. A

weakness in the lower back becomes obvious during the performance of the over-

head press. One could argue that other predictors such as external rotator strength

pinpoint the cause, but overhead pressing strength is a better predictor.

Reason #5. It’s a great diagnostic tool for strength coaches. Nick Liatsos, a Boston-

based physical therapist who has treated many strength athletes, has made the

same observation. Liatsos also believes that one should be able to press behind

the neck to demonstrate healthy shoulder function and that the strength ratio of

the behind-the-neck press to the bench press is a predictor of shoulder health.

When we perform upper-extremity structural balance testing as outlined in the

Level 1 PICP practical course, we can identify a strong correlation between shoulder

pain and lack of overhead strength. Here are two ratios that apply to this corre-

lation:
• The ratio of the seated dumbbell overhead press to the bench press. The weight

done for 8 reps on each dumbbell should represent 29 percent of the close-grip

bench press measure. In other words, a man able to close-grip bench about 220

pounds for a single would use a pair of 65’s for 8 reps in the seated dumbbell over-

head presses.

• The ratio of the behind-the-neck press to the bench press. The weight for a 1 RM

behind-the-neck press from a seated position should represent 66 percent of the

weight used for a 1 RM in the close-grip bench press. That load is lifted from a

dead-stop position with the bar resting on the traps, not from a weight handed off

in the lock-out position.

The ultimate message here is that coaches must be very careful to limit the time

spent on exercises that have little carryover to an athlete’s sport. Overhead presses

can have a place in any athlete’s strength and conditioning program, but some ath-

letes need to be careful not to overemphasize them in their training. Athletes need

to train hard, but they also need to train smart.

Getting Serious with Shoulders

The typical male superhero always possesses wide, full deltoids. In fact, while pre-

paring for the title role in the 1978 film Superman, Christopher Reeve underwent a

strenuous weight training program that emphasized shoulder width to produce the

much-admired V-taper associated with his character. David Prowse, the weightlifter

who trained him for the role, said that he had Reeve do minimal chest and trapez-

ius work so as not to detract from his delt development – a strategy designed to

make Reeve look more like a gymnast than a bodybuilder. It worked, and Reeve’s

Superman movies inspired many of us to “Fight for Truth, Justice and the Amer-

ican Way.” Or at least, to do a few extra sets of delt work.

For a bodybuilder, interest in shoulder work seems to come only after a prolonged

period of chest specialization. The primary reason is that the chest muscles de-

velop quickly and receive considerable development from bench pressing, an

unfortunate (and unnecessary) mainstay of the routines of most bodybuilders. In

fact, it’s rare to find a gym that doesn’t have at least a dozen rookie male body-

builders whose misguided training methods make them look as though they have

breasts instead of pecs.

Symmetry and Structural Balance

The first thing we do when a bodybuilding consults with us we look for the weak

points in their physique and strength levels – a process called structural balance.

Then we develop a short-term plan, usually six weeks for experienced bodybuilders

and four weeks for beginners, that addresses those weak points. We believe this is

the best way to approach training for today’s physique competitor. Although Tom

Platz’s freaky legs helped him place high in the Mr. Olympia many years ago, he

would have had a more symmetrical physique (and might even have won the

competition) if he had focused less on his legs and more on his upper body.

Balanced development is also important because often a body part looks small

when adjacent muscle groups are small. For example, increasing the size of your

calves will give the illusion that your thighs are bigger than they are. This effect also

works in reverse – women will wear high heels so that their calves and their thighs

look smaller. In addition to making the waist look smaller, having well-developed

deltoids makes the arms look bigger as you get more of a 3-D look.

Keys to Shoulder Girth

Wide shoulders are a result of (1) bioacromial width and (2) how much muscle

mass you possess.

1. Bioacromial width. This is the technical term for the length of the bones of your

shoulders. Although there is speculation that weight training can increase bone

length, we haven’t seen any convincing studies on this subject. By the age of 21

your shoulder bones will be about as wide as they’re going to get, and there’s prob-

ably nothing you can do to influence their growth beyond what will be obtained by

having a diet that contains adequate amounts of calcium.

Although there is apparently nothing you can do to increase your bioacromial

width, there are ways (other than malnutrition) to decrease it. If anabolic steroids

are taken before the age 21, steroids can prematurely close the growth plates lo-

cated in the bones and thereby reduce growth potential. Injury that occurs from im-

properly designed workouts could also cause the growth plates to prematurely

close, but such injuries are rare. After all, many weightlifters start lifting weights in

prepubescence, especially in European countries, without suffering from these ef-

fects. The studies available on this subject conclude that two of the major causes

of such injuries are poor lifting technique and use of maximal weights by indi-

viduals who are not adequately prepared to lift them. For more on this subject and

on other injuries that could occur to youngsters who lift weights, we recommend

the second edition of the excellent weight training textbook Designing Resistance

Training Programs by Steven Fleck and William Kraemer.

2. Muscle growth. The second factor that determines shoulder width, and the one

that is more under your control, is muscle growth. The deltoid is a muscle group

with three heads: anterior (front), medial (side) and posterior (rear) heads. To

achieve that melon-like deltoid shape, you need to develop each head equally, and

later in this chapter we will present several effective workouts to help you accom-

plish this. But first, we believe it’s important to look closely at what most strength

training experts (and self-proclaimed experts) consider the most basic shoulder

exercise, the military press.

The Military Press

This is a tremendous shoulder exercise for all levels of strength trainers. Because

your elbows are flared out during the exercise, most of the work is done by the lat-

eral head of the deltoids; the anterior deltoid works only at the beginning of the

movement. The military press is also an excellent exercise for the serratus anterior

because one of its functions is to pull the scapulae upward.

Pressing Problems

One common story we hear from frustrated individuals is that they don’t perform

either the military press or the behind-the-neck press because it hurts their shoul-

ders. Here’s the typical scenario: They start with the behind-the-neck press; then

when that exercise becomes too painful, they switch to the military press, which in

short order pinches so badly they try the incline press and finally the bench press.
Eventually, even the bench press causes pain, and they are forced to regress to a

geek routine of lateral raises. Let’s take a closer look at the real cause of shoulder

pain.

There are several reasons the shoulder can become injured from overhead presses

such as the military press. The first is a lack of attention to training the external

rotators of the humerus. These muscles need special attention to prevent injury.

According to sports medicine guru Dr. Mike Leahy, a muscle imbalance between

the prime movers of the shoulders and the external rotators is one of the major

causes of shoulder injury. Although it means setting aside your ego and per-

forming exercises that don’t allow you to use heavy weights, a few minutes a week

performing exercises for the external rotators will do wonders for preventing chron-

ic shoulder problems.

Another reason many bodybuilders develop problems from overhead presses is

muscle imbalances. If bodybuilders don’t perform enough work for their upper-

back muscles, particularly those that help extend the spine, they develop a hump-

back appearance that is more appropriate for lower primates. This type of posture

puts considerable stress on the shoulder capsule when they perform behind-

the-neck presses or behind-the-neck pulldowns, a stress that can eventually cause

permanent instability in the joint.

Regarding lifting technique, the most common technical fault is not performing the

exercise throughout a full range of motion, preferring instead to lower the weight

only to ear level. Although you will get considerable triceps training out of this

practice, you will get very little in terms of shoulder development, and this may

contribute to the development of postural problems that can eventually cause in-

jury.

Tips on Shoulder Workout Design

Unless you are a powerlifter or a weightlifter, we really can’t see the need to per-

form any isolation work for the anterior deltoid with exercises such as the front

dumbbell raise. The anterior deltoids usually receive more than enough devel-

opment from the high volume of chest work that most lifters employ; additional

work will probably result in overtraining. What most bodybuilders need is to work

very hard on exercises for the lateral and posterior heads of the deltoids.

Regardless of the exercises performed, one of the most confusing aspects of de-

signing a shoulder workout (or any workout, for that matter) is determining how

many sets and reps to perform. Powerlifters and weightlifters have built impressive

shoulders using low reps for multiple sets, whereas there are plenty of body-

builders who have achieved fantastic deltoid development by concentrating on

high reps and fewer sets. We believe that the best approach is a combination of

both methods, which means that you would perform periods of high reps,
alter- nated with periods of lower reps.

If you need to get into a shoulder specialization program, you will have to cut back

on the amount of work you devote to other body parts, particularly the chest mus-

cles. For maximum results, the shoulders should be trained first in a training ses-

sion.

First-time clients of mine are surprised about how little shoulder work we prescribe

in our bodybuilding programs. This is because if you train properly in the major

compound movements such as presses and chins, there is no need for direct del-

toid work. However, if you’ve found that your shoulders need special attention,

experiment with the following routines.

Pre-exhaustion shoulder routine. This routine is particularly effective for body-

builders who lack medial and posterior deltoid development. To maximize the pre-

exhaustion effect, it is designed so that there is no rest between the first and sec-

ond exercises of each superset.

Notes: Regarding standing lateral raises: (1) We call these lateral raises rather than

the redundant name side lateral raises; (2) you should maintain a 5-degree bend in

the elbows; and (3) concentrate on accelerating the dumbbells during the

concentric contraction, not swinging the weights with the help of the lower back.
When performing the cable upright row, grip the bar so your thumbs are just out-

side your lateral thigh sweep, and pull the bar only until it is level with the clavicles.

Also, if you find this exercise strains your wrists, try using the rope handle normally

used for triceps extensions instead of a straight bar. For the bent-over lateral rais-

es, rest your forehead on an incline bench and bend your knees slightly to alleviate

the stress on your lower back.

Heavy-light pressing routine. This method will improve both mass and strength in

the motor units involved in pressing movements – but expect to experience some

deep soreness from it. The rationale is that you knock off high-threshold motor

units in the first exercise, and proceed to further exhaust the lower-threshold motor

units as you go through your routine. Also, by switching slightly the groove of the

fundamental exercise as you go through the routine, you will be able to draw from

a wider motor unit pool.

Make sure to rest 4-5 days between these workouts, and never perform this routine

for more than four workouts in a row.

Notes: When using any of the Hammer equipment, consider that the leverages are

such that you can often handle 2-3 times as much as you could in the barbell ver-

sion of the same exercise. Everybody wants wide shoulders, but bodybuilders need wide
shoulders to set off

the rest of their physique and give it balance.

16-Week Pressing Specialization Program

If you have at least two years of training experience and have been neglecting

overhead presses and want to make amends, we have just the training program for

you.

This specialization program consists of a series of four workouts, with each work-

out consisting of four training sessions. Once you’ve done the exercise for four

workouts, move to the next phase. You should perform every workout from a

phase every five days. Once you have done the workout four times, proceed to the

next phase.

Pair each exercise with an antagonistic exercise of your choice. For the shoulders,

antagonistic work could consist of vertical pulling exercises such as pull-ups, one-

arm pull-ups, and one-arm pulley pull-ups. Be certain to use similar loading param-

eters for these exercises. With the first workout, for example, you could superset

the presses with chin-ups for 5 sets of 6-8 reps on a 40X0 tempo followed by 90

seconds’ rest.

When using any specialization program for the overhead press, make certain to in-

clude some rhomboid and external rotator exercises. Also, a great way to catch up

on overhead work is to forgo the bench press and its variations for 12 weeks or so.

Don’t freak out – your bench press won’t sink to abysmal levels. In fact, it’ll jolt to

new levels once you return to doing it!

Workouts 1-4: One-Arm Braced, Overhead Dumbbell Press, 5 x 5-8 reps, 40X0, rest

10 sec. between arms, rest 90 sec. after set.

You can apply the 5 Percent Solution to this set-rep scheme. This means you’ll in-

crease the amount of resistance by 4-5 percent each workout while simultaneously

reducing the number of reps by 1 rep each training session, as follows:

• 1st training session, 8 reps

• 2nd training session, 7 reps

• 3rd training session, 6 reps

• 4th training session, 5 reps

This exercise allows for a greater range of motion in the pressing range than in the

two-hand dumbbell press because the scapulae can move more freely. Throughout

the exercise, you keep your hand in a semi-supinated position so your palms face

your head. This hand position, which by the way is the position that places the

least stress on the shoulder joint (and is one reason we like the way that log press

apparatus are designed – with parallel grip handles – for strongman competitions).

By training only one side at a time, you’ll allow the scapulae to move over a greater

distance.
The key technique point in this exercise is the word “braced,” because by holding

on to a power rack post (or other sturdy object) with your free hand as you per-

form, you’ll be able to use more weight in the exercise. While standing, hold a

dumbbell in your nondominant hand (always work your weaker limb first). If you’re

holding the dumbbell in your left hand, your right leg should be positioned slightly

forward in a semi-lunge position; and your right arm is extended at shoulder level,

holding on to the power rack post.

Make an extra effort to bring your biceps as close to your head as possible when

you’ve nearly completed the concentric (lifting) range. Again, we said biceps-

to-head, not head-to-biceps. Again, the extra range comes in handy to restore

shoulder health. Do not wear a belt, and make sure you keep your legs out of the

movement! Once your legs are in the starting position, don’t move them until the

set is over. And always match the reps performed with your dominant arm – don’t

perform more reps on your dominant arm, as it will accentuate the discrepancy be-

tween your two arms.

If you’re structurally balanced, you should be able to do 8 reps at a weight that is

about 29 percent of your best single in the bench press.

Workouts 5-8: Seated 80 Degree Barbell Overhead Presses, 5,3,2,5,3,2, 31X0, rest 2

minutes.

Start the exercise from the bottom position – you want to unrack the barbell from

pins set up for the front squat – and sit down on the bench. Then, lift your feet and

lock them up against the foot pad so your lower back is pressed firmly against the

seat pad.

Make certain that your arms are in line with your ears when you reach the end of

the concentric range. This will ensure optimal movement of the shoulder girdle

and will promote shoulder longevity. Again, do not wear a belt.

Workouts 9 to 12: Seated Press Behind Neck with Chains, 3 x 5, 30X0, then 3 x 3,

30X0, rest 2 minutes.

You are performing a total of 6 sets for this exercise: 3 sets of 5 reps and then 3

sets of 3 reps. The chains will slow down the concentric range to 2-3 seconds, but

the idea is to concentrate on moving the load as rapidly as possible. Intent is the

key.
Whether you’re doing presses behind the neck or in front, place your dominant leg

about 10 to 12 inches forward of your other foot. This diminishes pressure on your

lower back compared to the standard feet-aligned technique. Within the first

workout, you’ll know how effective your lower back training has been. Trainees with

poor lower back strength will find it hard to stabilize their trunk during this exer-

cise. Therefore, if you can sense that your lower back is limiting your overhead

power, it’s time you devote more effort to increasing the loads you can handle in

lower back work.

Start the exercise from the bottom position – you want to unrack it from pins set

up for the back squat – and sit down on a regular flat bench. Don’t use lower back

support; you’ll be fine. No belt! Make sure your hands are as close as possible dur-

ing the initial setup, so the range of motion is maximal.

Workouts 13 to 16: Standing Barbell Overhead Press, 8 x 1, then 3 x 3-5, 20X0, rest 2

minutes before doing the antagonistic exercise and another 2 minutes before re-

turning to it. A 20X0 tempo is recommended.

Select a weight with which you can complete all 8 singles, and then drop the weight

15 percent and do 3 sets of 3-5 reps. When you can complete all 8 singles, increase

the weight 5 pounds in the next workout for both the singles and the multiple-rep

sets. Because the law of repeated efforts comes into play with this type of set-rep

protocol, you can expect major gains in strength during this last phase. And be-

cause all these singles potentiate your nervous system, the functional hypertrophy

work done at the end will pay off even more. This is brutal yet very rewarding work.

When you grip the bar, make sure your index fingers are just outside the medial

deltoids in the start position to maximize the efficiency of the exercise. Keep your

legs out of it – don’t turn the exercise into a push press. Again, we don’t want you

to use a weightlifting belt for this exercise, so be careful about leaning back exces-

sively because it places adverse stress on the lower lumbar vertebrae (and changes

the training effect by turning it into a standing incline press).

Making overhead pressing a regular part of your training will help develop impres-

sive and powerful shoulders. And if you follow the advice in this chapter and try

this shoulder specialization program, overhead pressing will become one of your

strengths.
External Rotators: Keeping the Shoulders Healthy

If you scan old issues of Muscle Builder, you’ll notice that physiques have changed

radically over the years. Jack Delinger shocked the 1950s bodybuilding public with

his awesome 50-inch chest. When Larry Scott’s arms bulged past the 20-inch

mark, he made history. However, placed side by side with physique photos of

today, the stars of yesteryear are just tiny pinpoints of light. Today’s obsession with

big, bigger, biggest has produced dimensions and cuts that are truly mind-

boggling. Unfortunately, this preoccupation with developing big, showy muscles

has resulted in many a bodybuilder overlooking some of the smaller muscles,

especially the external rotators of the shoulders. Such an oversight has put an early

end to many physique careers.

When we speak about external rotation of the shoulder, we’re referring to the mo-

tion of moving the biceps away from the body or backwards. When tennis pro

Roger Federer follows through on a backhand, he’s performing external rotation.

When Cochise raises his hand to say “How!” to John Wayne, he’s performing exter-

nal rotation. Although many muscles are involved in these activities, the two most

important ones are the teres minor and the infraspinatus. These muscles lie adja-

cent to one another, originate on the scapula and insert on the humerus, and com-

prise two of the four muscles known as the rotator cuff. From a biomechanical per-

spective, the teres minor and the infraspinatus help stabilize the shoulder and are

therefore crucial for protecting this area from injury.

Injury prevention is only part of the benefit of training the external rotator muscles

– these muscles can dramatically improve posture and enhance the physique.

Interestingly, many individuals report that they feel more comfortable in their dress

shirts after training the external rotators. This improved fit is a result of their shoul-

der blades moving back into proper alignment. Plus, the added mass on the lateral

borders of the upper back finesses the symmetry of the back. One reason Robby

Robinson possessed one of the best backs in the business was that he had an im-

pressive, three-dimensional look – every single muscle that makes up the upper

back structure was fully developed. Such a level of physical refinement set Robin-

son apart from his competitors, and he deserves recognition for setting a standard

that few have equaled.

To quote Dan Pfaff, trainer of Olympic gold medalist and world record holder

Donovan Bailey, “There is a very fine line between physiotherapy and the training of

the elite athlete.” What Pfaff means is that when training high-performance ath-

letes, you must give special attention to keeping the body healthy. When we design

off-season workouts for athletes, our first priority is to correct the muscle imbal-

ances that develop from all the specific training that occurs in the athlete’s sport.

Taking the example of an alpine skier, our first priority in the off-season would be

to have him or her perform exercises to balance the quad strength developed from

skiing.
Bodybuilders take pride in the fact that their sport requires its athletes to train every

major body part. Major is the operative word here, and it has been our experience

that the external rotators are among the most seriously neglected muscles in the

typical bodybuilder’s routine. The following are categories of bodybuilders who

most likely need to pay special attention to the external rotators:

Anyone who does a lot of chest and back work. Almost any exercise you perform for

the pecs and lats places a lot of work on the internal rotators, so people who al-

ways begin their workouts with the bench press are prime candidates for external

rotator work. And, because these individuals’ egos often discourage them from

performing exercises that don’t allow them to lift heavy weights, they seldom work

the external rotators and thus commonly complain of myriad shoulder injuries.

Bodybuilders striving for the ultimate in back development. When the infraspinatus

and teres minor are fully developed, the contrast between these muscles and the

lats is amazingly amplified. When a great bodybuilder hits a back double biceps

pose, the deep etches between these muscles are visually stunning and give the

look of muscle built on muscle.

Individuals who want to increase their bench presses. If the external rotators are

weak, the prime movers of the upper body will shut down when exposed to high

levels of tension. When we design workouts to improve the bench press, the first

muscles we emphasize are the external rotators – sometimes we even start work-

outs with these exercises! As for the effectiveness of this strategy, we’ve seen many

athletes improve their bench press and chin-up performances by as much as 15

percent in less than a month.

Individuals with rounded shoulders. Strengthening the external rotators will help

improve the posture of the shoulders, thereby reducing stress on the skeleton.

Often, such poor posture is the result of working long hours hunched at a desk,

especially a desk that is not ergonomically designed. Rounded shoulders also

seem more prevalent in tall individuals, who often fall into the habit of rounding

their shoulders to help them look down at the vertically challenged.

Athletes in sports where the lats or pecs are the prime movers. These sports in-

clude rowing, canoeing, swimming, baseball and volleyball. After many years of

training, the bodies of these athletes adapt by progressively shortening the length

of the pectoral and latissimus dorsi major muscle groups. For these athletes, part

of their training must also include specific stretches for these muscles.
Basic Concepts

To get the most out of training the external rotators, here are 10 basic concepts you

must consider.

1. Exercise throughout a full range of motion. Make sure to work your muscles

through the full range of motion in all these exercises – if you shorten the range of

motion, there is no point in doing the exercises. When using dumbbells or pulleys,

pay particular attention to lowering the resistance completely in the stretched posi-

tion.

2. Stretch the internal rotators between sets. Between every set of exercises for the

external rotators, stretch the pecs and the lats. You won’t fatigue as quickly in the

subsequent sets, plus you will increase your range of motion.

3. Perform relatively high reps. Perform at least 6 reps per set for the external rota-

tors, and in many cases up to 20 reps per set. The basic goal is to be certain that

the muscles are loaded for at least 40 seconds but for no more than 70 seconds.

4. Avoid high-speed movements. The external rotators respond best to slow-to-

medi- speeds of contraction – that is, 2-5 seconds for each concentric contraction

and each eccentric contraction. Move the resistance smoothly at a constant speed

throughout the entire range of motion.

5. Provide sufficient variety in exercise selection. If you have neglected these mus-

cles for a long time, you should do at least two exercises for 3 sets each. Rotate the

exercises every six workouts. After 10-12 weeks of specialized work for the external

rotators, you may only need to perform one exercise during each training phase.

6. Maintain correct head position. You should always hold your head in the neutral

position when performing exercises for the external rotators. The best way to en-

sure this posture is to be conscious of raising the bottom portion of the sternum.

7. Maintain correct wrist position. When training the external rotators, keep the

wrist in a neutral position to minimize the stress on the elbow.

8. Apply gradual overload. The teres minor and the infraspinatus are relatively weak

muscles. Most of you will have to use five-pound dumbbells or the smallest plate

on the pulley device when you first try these exercises. Because most gyms don’t

have intermediate dumbbells such as the 7.5 pound and the 12.5 pound, we strong-

ly recommend that you invest in a set of PlateMates, which are magnetized micro-

increment weights that come in 5/8-, 1 1/4-, and 3 3/4-pound sizes. These plates

enable you to progressively increase the resistance on the muscles, thus bringing

about faster strength gains.

9. Work the nondominant arm first. The number of repetitions you can perform for

your nondominant (and usually weaker) arm will tell you how many reps you

should perform for your dominant arm. Thus, if you can complete only 8 reps per

set with your left arm, perform only 8 reps with your right arm. As your left arm be-

comes stronger, you will be able to increase the workload on your right arm.

10. Consider soft-tissue treatments. If you have difficulty doing front presses be-

cause of a flexibility issue, ART may help. A qualified practitioner who will release

the shoulder girdle muscles and a few forearm muscles should be able to set you

on the right track in a matter of only a few treatments. To find an ART practitioner

in your area, go to www.activerelease.com. Depending on his or her sports biome-

chanics background, the practitioner may choose one area over another to empha-

size, but here is a list of muscles that are good starting points:
• deep and superficial forearm flexors

• infraspinatus

• latissimus dorsi

• long head of the triceps

• pronator teres

• serratus

• subscapularis

• subscapularis tied to serratus

• teres major

• teres major tied to latissimus dorsi

• teres minor

Although training the external rotators won’t make as dramatic a change in your

physical appearance as a hard-core specialization program of squats, chin-ups or

bench presses, developing these muscles is important. The exercises and training

principles we’ve outlined will increase your training longevity, increase perfor-

mance in pressing and chinning, and improve your posture. Not a bad payoff for

such small muscles, but as they say, good things often come in small packages
Chapter 15: Upper Back

Mr. America magazine was published between 1958 and 1973. Dave “The Blond Bomber,”
shown on this cover, was a popular bodybuilding champion who appeared in movies and
television. Isolation exercises such as reverse flys and upright rows are essential in the
train- ing of elite-level bodybuilders. Only by performing a wide variety of exercises,
each of which stresses the various muscle fibers from different angles, can
bodybuilders refine their muscles to achieve an aesthetic, symmetrical physique. The
primary goal of non-elite bodybuilders, however, is to pack on as much muscle mass
as quickly as possible. For that, they must concentrate on the basics. For the upper back,
the best bulking-up exercises – exercises that we consider essential for all bodybuilders –
are chin-ups.
 Chin-Ups Rule Chins are exercises that many physique stars forget about or shy away from
– per- haps because the exercises were associated with high school calisthenics classes or
military training. But if you look at the physiques of male gymnasts, athletes who rely
heavily on these exercises, you see that they possess a lot of beef on the chest, shoulders
and upper back. As a matter of fact, look into the backgrounds of many physique stars and
you’ll find high school gymnastics – particularly among female bodybuilders. Although we
don’t mind an occasional pulldown exercise for the sake of adding variety to your
workouts, we strongly believe that the chin-up should be a key exer- cise for a
bodybuilder. The effectiveness of chin-ups is clearly seen in the superb upper-back
development of Olympic gymnasts who compete in the still rings. Evidence is also available
in the pictures of old-time strongmen who more often than not possessed tremen- dous lat
development. Former Mr. America and circa 1980 strongman Mike Dayton held a world
record for one-arm chins and often opened his show doing a hundred chins off a ceiling
girder. Going back even further into the history of the iron game, you can read about the
magnificent upper bodies of the Greek Olympians – all thanks to chin-ups. Unfortunately,
somewhere in the evolution of bodybuilding, we got distracted, and the chin-up has
followed the way of the full squat and the standing military press, only reappearing in
bodybuilding magazines when the editorial staff can think of nothing else to write
about. The fact is, the chin-up is one of the best all-around exercises for the upper body,

nvolving the latissimus dorsi, teres major, posterior deltoid, rhomboids, the ster- nal
portion of the pectoralis major, the lower portions of the trapezius, and the elbow flexors.
A chin-up specialization program will not only add impressive width and thickness to your
back but will also pack solid inches on your arms by pro- moting the growth of your biceps,
brachialis, brachioradialis and pronator teres. You only have to look at the arm
development of Germany’s Andreas Wecker and Italy’s Yuri Chechi, Olympic gold medalists
in gymnastics, to be convinced. These individuals are known not for their volume of
training on the Scott bench but their countless chin-ups on the various gymnastics
apparatus. Further, the chin-up is not just for gymnasts and bodybuilders. A wide variety of
sports requires strength in these muscles, particularly sports that require powerful upper-
body pulling ac- tions, such as judo and wrestling. We can already hear many lazy readers
saying, “We’ll just substitute pulldowns for chins.” Sure, go ahead, but you won’t get the
same results. There are many neuro- physiological reasons that chin-ups are superior to
pulldowns that we won’t get into, but we can say for certain that a great back can be built
much faster through chin-ups than through pulldowns.
Very much the same way that squats and dead- lifts cannot be matched for lower body
development, chin-ups cannot be matched for upper body development. Okay, what
about the bent-over row – isn’t that a great exercise for upper back development? Yes, it
is, but not the way it is commonly performed by most body- builders. The two biggest
errors we see in this exercise are rounding the back in- stead of maintaining a good arch,
and cheating so that instead of pulling with the lats, the bodybuilder lets the legs do most
of the work. As for the best grip to use and where to pull the bar, again a key training
principle to development is variety: use wide grips and shoulder-width grips; pull to the
chest and pull to the abdominal region. There are many ways you can perform chins to
emphasize specific areas. For exam- ple, you can get a tremendous biceps workout by
performing chins with a narrower grip. In fact, if you include chins in your workout, you
may not need to perform specific biceps exercises! One reason chins are so effective is that
you have to move your entire bodyweight, and the stabilization required to do this (as
opposed to using pulldown machines) involves more muscle mass. It’s also difficult to cheat
when performing these exer- cises – for example, on the lat pulldown, you can cheat by
crunching forward with the abdominals. This is also one reason the strength from chin-ups
carries over well to pulldowns, but it often does not work the other way around. Now let’s
begin with a few basic concepts.

Chin-Up Basics Chin-ups are performed with either a semi-supinated grip (palms facing
each other) or with a supinated grip (palms facing your body); when performed with your
hands spaced shoulder-width apart, this exercise offers the greatest range of motion for
the lats and biceps. Pull-ups are a variation of chin-ups and are per- formed with a
pronated grip (palms facing away from you); one advantage is that they work the forearm
muscles more and tend to put less stress on the wrists. Regardless of the type of chin-up or
pull-up you perform, your legs, torso and upper arms should remain aligned. Also, to
achieve the fullest range of motion and thereby recruit the most muscle mass, at the start
position your arms should be straight and your shoulder blades elevated. These exercises
should begin with the combined bending of the elbows and squeezing of the shoulder
blades, and should wind up with full contraction of all the muscles at the end of the
exercise.
The breathing pattern is to inhale (or hold your breath) as you begin pulling and exhale as
you lower yourself. Performing chins requires a base level of strength. Women and heavier
persons of both sexes may not have enough strength to perform multiple repetitions
properly. We don’t advocate the use of the chin-up machine because it doesn’t work
the stabilizing muscles of the upper back. Instead, we prefer clients to develop ade- quate
base chin-up strength by having a spotter assist them. Simply bend your knees and have
the spotter lift your ankles with just enough assistance to allow you to clear the bar.
Another way is to climb onto a bench so that you can start with your chin over the bar, and
lower yourself slowly – performing these negative repetitions will eventually enable you to
perform chin-ups in the normal fashion.

Variations. The variations are what make chins such an agreeable exercise. For example,
narrow-grip chins with your hands about six inches apart will work the bi- ceps brachii
while pull-ups with the same hand spacing will work the brachialis and brachioradialis
muscles. Also, performing the exercise with a V-handle (so that your palms face each
other), will enable you to increase the work on your rhom- boids and lower lat region. To
add more resistance you can have a spotter pull down on your ankles, or you can wear a
chinning weight belt or hold a dumbbell between your ankles. What’s great about these
methods is that as you fatigue, you can reduce the resistance by releasing the weight (but
please, not in the top position).

Grip. There is no such thing as a “best grip” for performing chins. Empirically speaking, the
athletes we know with the best upper-back development use a variety of grips to recruit as
many back muscles as possible.

Supinated chin-up. The most basic chin-up is the supinated chin-up. Begin this exercise by
grasping the bar with a supinated grip. Your hands should be spaced shoulder-width apart
(or slightly narrower), and your arms should be fully extended with the torso in line with
the upper arms. Begin the ascent by drawing the elbows down and back, a technique that
empha- sizes the relatively strong muscles of the upper back and elbow flexors, and
con- tinue until your chin clears the bar. It’s important during this portion of the exer- cise
that the pulling and leaning-back actions be performed simultaneously. The legs should
stay in line with the torso as much as possible, and there should be no flexion of the hips.
At this point you lower yourself to the start position, fully ex- tending your arms and
elevating your shoulder blades. This last point is extremely important because to achieve a
full range of motion, the upper arms and scapulae adductors must be stretched on every
repetition.

As for breathing, you should in- hale when you start the exercise and exhale as you begin
the descent.

Wrist straps. These can be used if you have weak forearms, and you are at risk of losing
your grip or if you find that your forearms are fatiguing before your upper back. However,
you should always perform at least one set of chins without straps to strengthen your grip.
For athletes other than bodybuilders, we prefer that straps not be used. In the real world
of sports, you need to use your lats without the help of crutches like straps. An excellent
way to improve your grip is to finish your chinning workout with one set performed on a
thicker bar. If you don’t have bars of different widths, simply wrap a towel or piece of foam
rubber around the bar you normally use.

Chin-Up Progressions Undoubtedly, the chin-up requires a certain amount of strength. If

you’re a novice bodybuilder, or if you’re returning to the weightroom after an extended
layoff, using a progression series we designed will help you quickly develop this
minimum strength level. Using this type of progression, one strength coach was able to
in- crease the Women’s Canadian National Ski Team’s average number of chin-ups from
zero to 12 reps in 11 weeks! 1. The first progression uses a spotter and starts by hanging
from the chin-up bar with the knees bent. During the ascent, the spotter should support
you by holding your ankles. If extra assistance is required during this phase, you can extend
your legs against the spotter’s base of support. Once you’re able to perform 12
repeti- tions in this style with minimal assistance, you’re ready to move on to the next
pro- gression. 2. In the second progression the same starting position is used, but this
time, only one ankle should be in the spotter’s hands – the extra weight of your free leg
will increase the overload on the muscles. When you can perform 12 repetitions
with minimal assistance, you can move on to the next level. 3. In the third progression the
exercise is performed in the same manner, but this time, the spotter will hold you at your
waist. As your strength increases, you will find that you require assistance only in certain
parts of the exercise. At these parts of the movement, your spotter should offer only
enough assistance to help you clear the bar. When you can perform the full range of
movement without any assistance, you’re ready to use additional resistance. An increase in
overload is accomplished by using the following methods: 1. Holding a dumbbell between
the ankles 2. Wearing a power hook attached to a weightlifting belt 3. Wearing a chin/dip
belt with weights attached to it

Chin-Up Variations As gymnasts, wrestlers and judokas have proven throughout the years,
there are many effective variations of this exercise that can boost your strength and
back development. Here are a few:

Narrow Parallel-Grip Chin-Up. A narrow, parallel grip provides a greater overload for the
shoulder extensors, and many gyms are equipped with V-handles on their chin-up stations
that are set 6-8 inches apart. Focus on bringing your lower chest to the handles as you pull
yourself up. This variation is for the advanced body- builder.

Narrow Supinated-Grip Chin-Up. This variation increases the overload on your elbow
flexors, and in fact, we consider it more of an upper-arm exercise than a torso exercise. In
this chin-up the grip is supinated, and you leave only 4-6 inches between your little fingers.

Medium Parallel-Grip Chin-Up. In this variation, the chin-up handles are 22-24 inches
apart, and your hands are semi-supinated (palms facing each other). This hand position
places your elbow flexors in their most effective line of pull, and therefore this is the type of
chin-up in which you are most likely to be able to use additional resistance. You will also
find that this grip creates the least amount of stress on your wrists, elbows, and
shoulders.

Sternum Chin-Up. Popularized by Vince Gironda, this chin-up requires you to hold your
torso in a layback posture throughout the entire movement. As you pull your- self to the
bar, extend your head back as far away from the bar as possible and arch your spine.
Towards the end point of the movement, your hips and legs will be at about a 45-degree
angle to the floor. Keep pulling until your collarbones pass the bar, your lower sternum
makes contact with the bar, and your head is parallel to

the floor. You can use either a supinated or a pronated grip, and vary it from nar- row to
shoulder width, the latter requiring more strength. We consider the sternum chin-up the
king of compound exercises for the upper back. Not only does it create a great overload on
the scapulae retractors, but it works more than just the lats. The beginning of the
movement is more like a clas- sical chin, the midrange resembles the effect of the pullover
motion, and the end position duplicates the finishing motion of a rowing movement. If you
are an ad- vanced trainee, especially if you are pressed for time, make the sternum chin-up
a staple of your back routine.
Narrow Pronated Pull-Up. With this pull-up, you use a narrow, pronated grip so that your
hands are spaced 4-6 inches apart. Because in this anatomical position the biceps brachii
have a rather ineffective line of pull, this grip increases the over- load on the brachialis and

brachioradialis muscles. The narrow pronated pull-up is another very effective upper-arm
builder, particularly if your brachialis muscles are underdeveloped, and it tends to be easier
on your wrists than the supinated grip.

Mixed-Grip Chin-Up. Here’s one you may have never seen before. In this variation you use
a mixed grip: one hand pronated, one hand supinated. For example, on your first set, with
your left hand use a supinated grip, and with your right hand use a pronated grip – this
variation places a greater portion of the load on your left arm. The stronger the trainee,
the wider the grip. Make sure to perform an equal amount of work for both arms by
reversing the grip on each alternating set.

Mixed-Grip Chin-Up II. This is an even more advanced version of the mixed-grip chin-up
and is performed by placing your support hand on the wrist of your work- ing arm. The
stronger the trainee, the lower the hand is placed on the working arm.

Subscapularis Pull-Up. This is a brutal exercise. To perform the subscapularis

pull-up you assume the starting position of the wide-grip pull-up and pull yourself to the
bar until your upper pecs make contact with the chin-up bar. This is where the fun begins.
At the top of the movement you push yourself away from the bar and lower yourself under
control, a technique that will shock your subscapularis muscles. Now let’s pull everything
together that we’ve covered so far by providing examples of two effective workouts.

The Gymnast’s Extended-Set Back Routine. This routine is for the advanced trainee only
and is inspired by the routines that Olympic gymnasts perform to condition their powerful
backs. You must be able to complete 12 shoulder-width supinated chins in strict form to do
this routine. 1. Wide-Grip Pull-ups: as many reps as possible 2. Rest 10 sec. 3. Medium-
Grip Pull-ups: as many reps as possible 4. Rest 10 sec. 5. Medium-Grip Chin-ups: as many
reps as possible 6. Rest 10 sec. 7. Narrow-Grip Chin-ups 8. Rest 3 min. 9. Repeat steps 1 to
8 twice, and then cry and curse!

André “The Flying Squirrel” Routine. This routine is named after André Benoit, holder of
the fastest start in luge doubles at the Lillehammer Olympics, who could do wide-grip pull-
ups with a 120-pound dumbbell for a set of 3 reps on a 4010 tempo. It is reserved for
people who can chin-up with at least 33 percent of their bodyweight as an additional load
for 8 reps using a supinated, shoulder-width grip

1. Sternum Chin-ups: 5 x 4-6 on a 6010 tempo, rest 4 min. between sets. 2.

Subscapularis Pull-ups: 3 x max reps on a 5010 tempo, rest 3 min. between sets. 3.
Negative Close-Grip Chins: 3 x 4-6, rest 3 min. between sets, lowering the body for
a 6- to 8-second count on every rep. Use additional loads if possible. Now that you
understand why you should perform chin-ups and how to incor- porate them into
your workouts, you can rest assured that you will soon be able to achieve
outstanding back development. Of course, you’re bound to get stared at when you
start performing these exercises and routines, but those looks of puzzle- ment will
quickly turn to looks of admiration as your back begins to take on new and
pterodactyl-like proportions!
2. Crab-tastic Shoulders In the early days of professional bodybuilding, if the top
competitors had stood be- hind a translucent white screen, you could have told
who they were by their signa- ture poses. There was Larry Scott’s one-arm biceps,
Franco Columbu’s lat spread, Frank Zane’s abdominal vacuum, Mike Katz’s side
chest and Schwarzenegger’s double biceps – and pretty much any position that had
Tom Platz flexing his legs could be considered a signature pose. But if there is one
signature pose that de- fined this golden age of bodybuilding, it was Lou Ferrigno
at his most muscular, the so-called “crab” pose. Although there are several
variations, the basic crab pose is where you hunch for- ward, one leg slightly in
front of the other, with your arms together in front and your fists together – then
you flex your muscles as hard as possible to emphasize your muscularity. In fact,
the pose is so effective for bringing out the definition of your pecs, shoulders, delts
and traps that it is also considered to be the mandatory “most muscular” pose.

Not everyone can do the crab pose well. Schwarzenegger has stated that he pre- ferred a
variation that was more aesthetic, involving him twisting his hips and lay- ing one hand on
top of the wrist of the other to bring out the arms. Likewise, Schwarzenegger’s training
partner Franco Columbu preferred a most muscular shot with his hands on his hips. And
although today’s bodybuilders have so much mass that they all tend to have impressive
crab poses, Lou Ferrigno is the one who set the standard for this pose. Ferrigno won the
IFBB Mr. Universe title twice and placed second in the 1974 Mr. Olympia. Unlike
Schwarzenegger, whose recent beach photos suggest that he probably needs to rethink his
swimwear collection, Ferrigno has always been in shape. In 1993, despite being in his 40s
and competing against a new standard of competitors, Ferrigno placed 10th in the Mr.
Olympia – in fact, he looked as good, if not better, than he did nearly two decades earlier!
Now in his 60s, Ferrigno still looks great, and he is always willing to hit a biceps pose with
his fans at the many conventions he

attends. Ferrigno had roles in several movies, including the 1977 documentary Pumping Ir
on, but he became a household name when he was cast as the Hulk in the tele- vision serie
s The Incredible Hulk (1977-1982). In this role, he often performed a most muscular pose
before he would “Hulk out” and smash pretty much anything that got in his way. The result
is that the crab became a standard pose in athletics. In fact, after tennis star Novak
Djokovic’s win in the 2012 Australian Open, Djokovic did his own bit of hulking out by
ripping off his shirt and hitting several most muscular poses. Although his win over Rafael
Nadal had been impressive, Djokovic’s most muscular pose was, well – not so much. The
trick to doing the crab pose is to be able to “pop” your traps, giving the neck a somewhat
freaky appearance. In the early days of bodybuilding, where trainees

would often do Olympic lifting movements, specialized training for these muscles was not
necessary. In fact, many top weightlifters were also competitors; Sergio Oliva was one, and
his upper trap development gave him an especially impressive most muscular pose.

Lifting Styles and Shrug Variations Although most Olympic lifters now use the squat style
of lifting, in the past the split style was favored by many lifters. The bottom position was
more secure in the split style than in the squat style, and it took less effort to recover to the
standing position – thus enabling the athlete to be fresher for the press or for
performing the jerk. But to perform the split style, the athlete had to lift the bar higher to
secure the weight overhead, as in the snatch or the clean. This meant the traps would
have to be involved more in lifting the weight and shrugging the bar, in contrast to
the squat style, in which the traps can help a lifter move under the weight more quickly. In
addition to helping develop the traps, shrugging exercises have a good carryover effect,
especially to the neck muscles involved in extension, such as the suboc- cipitals, splenius
capitis, and semispinalis capitis. For wrestlers, football players and athletes involved in
many other contact sports, these muscles play a vital role. Another little-known benefit of
having strong traps is that it enables you to use heavier weights in standing curl
exercises. The shoulder shrug with a barbell is a simple exercise that will develop the
upper traps. One key training tip is to slightly curl the wrists under so that the elbows point
out, not back. This will help ensure that the bar travels straight up, and as such it will
provide a greater range of motion for the traps. But although this exer- cise is a good one,
there are several that are better: dumbbell, trap bar, and hex bar shrugs, in particular

Specialty bars and machines. The hex bar and the Atlantis shrug and deadlift ma- chine
enable the use to perform shrugs with the arms at their sides with a neutral grip. The trap
bar, which was invented by accomplished deadlifter Al Gerard, has a triangle shape. The
hex bar is a later variation of the trap bar and has a hexagonal shape that provides more
room for the legs and also tends to be more stable. But the key advantage to dumbbells
and these two specialty bars is that they enable the exercise to be performed with the
arms at the side of the body and with the hands in a neutral position, thus providing a
greater range of motion and a more vertical line of resistance than a straight bar provides.
This technique helps correct the internally rotated shoulder and arm posture commonly
associated with indi- viduals who have bench pressed excessively for years. We should also
mention that Atlantis makes a shrug machine that places the hands in this position; and
be- cause this machine is more stable than dumbbells or barbells, it enables athletes to
work at a higher intensity level.

One-arm barbell shrug. One of our favorite shrugs is the one-arm barbell shrug. As oppos
ed to dumbbell shrugs, it is a much smoother motion, as there is no friction from having
the weights sliding up the legs. Also, with the trap bar and the hex bar, the range of
motion is greater because the arms are positioned more perpendicular to the floor, not out
to the sides. Another reason we like the one-arm barbell shrug is that the exercise requires
the infraspinatus and teres minor to be recruited isometrically so as to prevent the bar- bell
from moving medially (towards the front of the body). This additional work develops
superior shoulder integrity that is valuable for athletes such as football and rugby players,
athletes who experience a high degree of disruptive forces to the shoulders during their
sports
To get the most out of your one-arm barbell shrugs, perform the exercise in a power rack
with the barbell set across the pins. You can then brace yourself with your free hand
against one of the power rack posts, which will allow you to keep your torso in an upright
position. Also, to increase time under tension – which fa- vors the development of greater
hypertrophy – pause for a predetermined time (one to six seconds, for example) at the end
of the concentric range of motion. This paused variation is one that we prescribe for
someone recovering from shoul- der surgery, as these individuals often cannot handle high
loads but still need the hypertrophy to rehabilitate quickly. Regarding the use of straps, we
would only recommend them if the weight is so heavy that your grip gives out – so no
straps for sets of 1-3 reps. Unless you are a weightlifter and have slabs of muscle on your
upper back, be sure to frequently include some shoulder shrugs in your workouts. After all,
everyone needs to be able to hulk out every once in a while.
Chapter 16: Arms

Iron Man magazine was first published in 1936. Arnold appeared on its cover 21 times, and
as shown here had arms that were among the best in the business. The muscles closest to
the heart of a bodybuilder are not the pectorals but the arms. No other body part
exemplifies strength and muscular development like big, sleeve-splitting arms. Seriously,
would Arnold Schwarzenegger have become a box office cash cow without his high-caliber
guns? Would Sergio Oliva have earned the nickname “The Myth” if he hadn’t had arms
that exceeded the circumference of his head? And without his 22-inch, “bone-crushing
pythons,” Terry Bollea would never have become Hulk Hogan. Massive arms are essential
to a bodybuilder, but it takes a smart approach to get them to fill out your shirtsleeves. In
the past, the bodybuilding press would often list the poundages the top cham- pions could
handle in their favorite lifts. We knew that Reg Park was the first body- builder to bench
press 500 pounds, that Bill Pearl could do 310 in a seated behind- the-neck press, and that
Franco Columbu could deadlift around 780, which ex- ceeded the world record at his
bodyweight. But with the exception of Ronnie Cole- man, it would be difficult to find the
poundages hoisted by today’s best.
Pictures in competition? Sure. Oiled-up training photos in a bikini? No problem. But for
some reason we’ve lost interest in learning if today’s bodybuilders are as strong as
they look. One issue could simply be embarrassment. When Lou Ferrigno completed a
310- pound jerk from the stands during the Superstars competition in 1976, the lay pub- lic
was impressed. But, of course, the weightlifting community would jump on this by
explaining that athletes who weighed at least 100 pounds less than Big Louie could exceed
this poundage. And Reg Park’s 500-pound benchmark doesn’t seem so amazing when you
consider that a 165-pound woman has hoisted 530 pounds in this lift and the absolute
women’s record is 600.8 pounds. Ouch! There’s the same issue with arm wrestling. You’d
think that someone with large bi- ceps would be the best arm wrestler, but it’s not
necessarily the case. John
Brzenk is considered by many to be the greatest arm wrestler ever, and, in fact, the Guin- n
ess Book of World Records regards him as the “Greatest Arm Wrestler of All Time.” But at
Brzenk’s height of 6 feet 1 inch, his right biceps measured 18 inches at its largest and his
right forearm 16 inches – not exactly the type of arm that is
featured on the cover of Guys with Arms Larger Than Their Heads magazine. Factors such a
s speed and technique are critical in arm wrestling, and in fact Brzenk himself will tell you
that the best training for his sport is not biceps curls but arm wrestling. One issue that
often complicates the measurement of upper body strength is the enormous variety of
exercises bodybuilders use. When you consider that using thick bars and bands increase
the difficulty of an exercise without adding additional weight, it becomes increasingly
difficult to determine exactly how much a trainee can lift. Also, you’ve got to take into
account that many of the exercises that were common in the early days of weight training
are no longer being performed. When was the last time you saw a bodybuilder do a power
clean or military press? Likewise, chin- ups have been replaced by lat pulldowns, bench
presses by pec decs, and squats by leg extension machines. As for leg presses, as there is
apparently not enough room on the weight pegs to handle those powerful legs, thus
requiring the spec- tacle of having training partners standing on the machine. Then there’s
the late Bob “Father of American Weightlifting” Hoffman of the fa- mous York Barbell Club.
 Hoffman wrote Big Arms: How to Develop Them, which was first published in 1939 and
was reprinted six more times (the last version in 1972). In this 240-page classic, Hoffman
discussed many amazing feats of upper body strength by bodybuilders and weightlifters,
but there was a conspicuous lack of information about performances in isolation
movements such as barbell biceps curls. Maybe, just maybe, he didn’t care? Hoffman’s
training philosophy for developing mighty guns could be summarized in the following
passage from his book: “…you can get all the arm that any man would want, a pair of
arms, with Triceps and Biceps which will possess classical contours, that will symbolize
great power and strength if you will practice just the two hands curl in its various forms,
the side press, military press with dumbbells, bent press, alternate press; in briefer words,
a variety of curling and pressing move- ments with the addition of a little upright and bent
over rowing.” Uh, thanks, Bob! As a result of all this distraction, nobody knows what the
heck a good result is in a barbell curl, much less a Scott curl with a dumbbell! And the
result often is a lack of structural balance that can compromise physical performance and
increase the risk of shoulder injuries. In the PICP Level 1 course, we devote a considerable
amount of time to

determining the optimal lifting norms for arm strength. The following are a few examples
of our structural balance tests.

Structural Balance of the Arms A flexor is a muscle that reduces the angle between a pair
of bones, so an elbow flexor is a muscle that bends the arm. An example of an elbow flexor
is the biceps brachii. Three basic exercises used in our structural balance program for the
elbow flexors are Scott reverse curls, Scott supinated close-grip curls, and incline curls
with dumbbells. We selected these exercises because they minimize the possibility
of cheating. Every rep should be performed with full extension, and the forearms must
make contact with the biceps at the top of the concentric range (also known as the
position of peak contraction).

Scott Reverse Curls. A Scott bench is another name for a preacher bench, and the bench
reduces the chance of cheating during the exercise. An optimal ratio would be 60 percent
of bodyweight for 6 reps.
Scott Supinated Close-Grip Curls. The grip for this exercise is slightly narrower than
biacromial width, which is the distance between the outside edges of your shoulders. In
1982 IFBB World Champion Jorma Räty’s performed multiple sets of curls for 6 reps on the
barbell Scott curl using 154 pounds; he weighed about 198 pounds. Besides being a
bodybuilder, he also had excelled at powerlifting and Olympic lifting. Ideally, you should be
able to use 73 percent of bodyweight for 6 reps.

Incline Curl with Dumbbells. Use a 45-degree incline bench. Each dumbbell should represe
nt 36 percent of bodyweight for 6 reps.

An extensor is a muscle that increases the angle between a pair of bones, so an elbow
extensor is a muscle that straightens the arm (in the opposite direction from an elbow
flexor). An example of an elbow extensor of the upper arm is the triceps. Here are two
elbow extensor exercises used in our structural balance assessment:

Close-Grip Bench Press. Use a grip with the hands 14 inches apart, not a very nar- row
grip (4 to 6 inches) because a narrow grip creates tremendous stress on the wrists and
elbows. Use 158 percent of bodyweight for 6 reps.

Dips. V-shaped dip bars are recommended; the athlete jumps from the foot sup- ports to
the arms-locked position. By the way, for a dip to be considered a dip, in the bottom
position you should be able to pinch a sheet of paper between your elbow flexors and your
forearms. If not, you are not going low enough. Use 185 per- cent of bodyweight for 6 reps
– what this means is your bodyweight plus 85 per- cent tied to it, preferably using a loaded
pin tied to a climbing belt. Having strong arms is good. Having large arms is good. But the
best of both worlds – and the true measure of success in bodybuilding and functional
hyper- trophy for athletic and physical fitness – is an optimal balance of strength and
size! 7 Principles of Superior Arm Training To ensure that your workouts are on the right
track, follow these seven principles:
 1. Plan variety in your training. There’s no such thing as a single, perfect workout. To
continually shock your arms into growth you must experiment with a variety of workout
programs, especially as you progress to the higher levels of arm devel- opment. Whereas
beginners can make excellent progress by changing their work- outs only once a month,
advanced bodybuilders must alter some aspect of their program at least every two weeks –
sometimes even every week!

Using a variety of exercises is especially important in arm training because each exercise
targets a specific area. In the biceps, for example, Scott bench curls emphasize the first
part of elbow flexion, standing cable curls stress the midrange, and concentration curls
emphasize the end range. Variety in your exercise selection is essential because the order
of recruitment for motor units is fixed for a muscle during a specific exercise. This means
that certain motor units within a muscle have a low recruitment threshold for exercise X
and a high recruitment threshold for exercise Y. Varying the order of recruitment for motor
units produces positive effects that reinforce the theory long argued by bodybuilders that
full development of a muscle occurs only when it is exercised through all its possible
movements. There is a wide variety of arm exercises available to the bodybuilder. Curls
can be performed seated, standing, inclined, lying or even kneeling. They can be
per- formed with a variety of equipment: barbells, dumbbells, cables, EZ bars,
parallel handles, Scott bench and the Spider bench. Even the width and thickness of
the grip can be changed to recruit different motor units and experience
accelerated growth. Changing the exercise also allows you to emphasize specific parts of
the strength curve. How many times have you seen guys do both standing barbell curls
and seated dumbbell curls in the same biceps workout? What a waste of time!
Both exercises overload the midrange of the elbow flexors strength curve. Scott curls at a
45-degree angle overload the first third of the elbow flexors strength curve; con- centration
curls stress the top part of that strength curve.
2. Stress form, not weight. Due to impatience (and sometimes ego), the biggest mistake
people make in arm training is to sacrifice proper form for more weight.

Because improper technique does not target the muscles properly, this error can slow
progress and cause injury. Therefore, always stress proper technique in your arm training –
and of course, it’s a good idea to ask an exercise instructor to teach you the proper form of
any exercise you’ve never performed before. Improper technique in any bodybuilding
exercise leads to snails-pace progress and eventually to injury. Many bodybuilders perform
arm training in a position of rounded (protracted) shoulders – this problem can be
exemplified by putting a bodybuilder in a perfect posture and having them perform
dumbbell curls with a weight they normally use for a 10-rep set. By the second rep you’ll
see that they will go back to the rounded shoulder posture or will fail to raise the
dumbbells beyond the 30-degree mark – this is because their strength levels have adapted
to poor posture. The result is arm development without associated stabilizer
strength- ening, a condition that predisposes the shoulder to a repetitive stress injury. For
optimal training of the arm and shoulder complex, you must exercise with good postural
alignment. Postural training is an especially complex subject and is certainly beyond the
scope of this chapter. In elbow flexor training, the trainee should concentrate on keeping
the elbow as close as possible to the ground at all times.

3. Concentrate. One key to proper form is concentration, and enhanced concen- tration
enables you to use safely heavier loads and maximize tension on the work- ing muscles –
factors that always lead to bigger gains. Here are some tips that will help you
concentrate:

• Always begin the set with the end in mind. You should have a clear picture of the goal
you want to achieve. If you have problems with goal setting and time manage- ment,
consult these excellent books: The Aladdin Factor by Canfield and Hansen,

First Things First by Covey, Merrill & Merrill, and Life 101 by Peter McWilliams. An- thony
Robbins may be a popular motivation guru, but after all the hoopla you may find that his
material leaves you unsatisfied.
• Always know how many reps you are going for. Counting the reps backward (e.g., 6,5,4,
3,2,1) is an effective trick staying focused on the task. When counting reps in the regular
fashion, most people get anxious during the set about achieving the de- sired goal and
forget about focusing on the set.

• Focus on “feeling” the muscle, not just the weight. This is a favorite from heavy- weight
bodybuilding champion Jusup Wilcosz, an ex-Mr. Universe and training buddy of
Schwarzenegger. If you have problems feeling an exercise, slowing down your movements
will allow you to perform the task better.

4. Perform the most effective exercises first. You should always perform exercises that
recruit the maximum amount of muscle fibers early in your arm training work- out. For
example, exercises that work the long head of the triceps should be per- formed after
exercises that work all three heads. A practical way to determine which exercises activate
the most muscle fibers is by how much weight is used. Triceps kickbacks, therefore, are
obviously not as effec- tive as triceps pushdowns or close-grip bench presses. You may also
want to give pre-exhaustion a try, a training principle that was introduced to the
bodybuilding world in 1968 by Robert Kennedy. With pre-exhaustion, the agonist muscle is
first pre-fatigued by a single-joint exer- cise; that muscle is then further exhausted by a
two-joint exercise involving the same muscle group and additional muscle groups. For
example, you could pre- exhaust the long head of the triceps with the lying triceps EZ bar
extension, and im- mediately follow it with a two-joint compound exercise that involves all
heads of the triceps, such as the triceps and shoulder dip. For the brachialis, you could
pre- exhaust by supersetting standing EZ bar reverse curls with incline hammer dumb- bell
curls. Finally, consider that isolation exercises that recruit few motor units are not
as effective as compound exercises for optimal development of muscle mass. For example,
parallel bar dips and close-grip bench presses are more effective than dumbbell triceps
kickbacks. This is not to say you should never perform these infe- rior isolation exercises,
but they should not be emphasized as much as the com- pound movements.
5. Work all three heads of the triceps. When we design workouts, we tend to favor certain
exercises over others. Because there are three heads of the triceps, it’s easy to ignore one.
From experience, the long head appears to suffer the most neglect. One reason is that,
according to research in the fields of biomechanics and neuro- physiology, the triceps
respond only to high loads. Two of our favorite exercises for the long head of the triceps
are the overhead dumbbell triceps extension, using a reverse grip, and the close-grip
triceps pressdown with a straight bar. To work all three heads of the triceps, we find that
the triceps and shoulder dip is one of the most effective because you can use heavy loads.
Also, it is a good idea to start your triceps training with an exercise that either targets all
three heads or hits directly the long head of the triceps. Of course, if one of the other
triceps heads is proportionally weak, you’d want to train that one first.

6. Emphasize the brachialis. The brachialis is the muscle shaped like a golf ball (or a
grapefruit if you’re built like former Mr. Olympia Dorian Yates) that lies between the
triceps and the biceps. Although it is involved in any exercise that flexes the upper arm, the
brachialis often becomes a weak link in arm development. In fact,

many bodybuilders have found that adding specific brachialis exercises to their workouts
can increase their arm size by as much as one inch in a month! When the forearm is
supinated (palms up), the biceps have an effective line of pull. When the forearm is
pronated (palms down), the biceps is rather ineffective at flex- ing the elbow. This is why
you normally handle 28-34 percent less in reverse curls than you do in conventional barbell
curls. When your forearm is pronated, the brachialis is primarily responsible for generating
force. As such, the basic exercise for the brachialis is the reverse curl, which can be
performed with a straight bar, EZ curl bar or dumbbells. Also effective are hammer
curls. Pausing for a 2-second count at 30-90 degrees after initiating the reverse curl
will further increase the involvement of the brachialis – but make certain to continue the
upward movement in a controlled fashion. If you have to lean back or move the elbows out
to complete the concentric range, the resistance is too heavy. In all brachialis exercises,
make certain that your wrists stay in a neutral position. Bend- ing them back towards you
or curling with them into a gooseneck position de- creases the recruitment of the brachialis
muscle.
 7. Do more work for the long head of the biceps. Primarily due to poor exercise technique
, the long head of the biceps is often underdeveloped in bodybuilders. It is most effectively
worked when the elbows are aligned with the torso or are slightly behind it. Two of our
favorite exercises for this area include dumbbell curls, per- formed on an incline bench, and
standing barbell curls using an arm blaster. Table 7 lists other effective exercises for the
long head of the biceps.

Top 7 Biceps Movements There are scores of biceps movements. Furthermore, there are
hundreds of ways to do those biceps movements. The trouble is, unless you’re involved in
this busi- ness full-time, you tend to adopt certain exercises and do them over and
over again, to the exclusion of all others. In no way does the following list even scratch the
surface of the incredibly broad spectrum of biceps movements. It is simply a list of seven of
our favorites, in no particular order. Obviously, many of them will be familiar to you.
However, it’s a good idea to read the descriptions anyway because you might discover a
new way to do that particular movement, or you might find that you’ve been doing it
incor- rectly.

1. Single-Arm Dumbbell Scott Curls. The Scott curl is usually called the preacher curl in the
US (the exercise resembles a preacher leaning over his pulpit to preach his sermon).
However, in most other places around the world, it’s called the Scott curl in honor of two-
time Mr. Olympia Larry Scott, who helped popularize the bench by slaving on it for years to
develop his massive arms. Most biceps exercises require some assistance and stabilization
work by other muscle groups, but the Scott bench was designed so that you could isolate
the elbow flexors. By taking out the possibility of using body English, the assistance

muscles are excluded from participating in the movement. Regardless of the intent of the
designer, we continue to see trainee after trainee using terrible form on the bench – so
bad, in fact, that it reminds us of a penguin having an epileptic seizure. In fact, one Mr.
Olympia finalist tore his biceps be- cause he failed to use proper form on the bench. The
Scott bench is used to isolate the medial (short head) of the brachialis muscle. A lot of
bodybuilding quasi-kinesiologists, however, will say that a 90-degree incli- nation on the
padded surface will work the lower biceps. Too bad there’s no such thing as a “lower”
biceps. If you feel soreness after a Scott bench workout, it’s be- cause you’ve worked the
short head of the biceps brachii and the brachialis. Since the distal insertions of both of
these muscles are in the crook of the elbow, people invented the term “lower”
biceps. Most gyms have a standing Scott curl and a seated Scott curl. We prefer the
seated version because it minimizes cheating. Simply sit on the bench, holding a dumb- bell
in one hand, with your arm fully extended. Use your free hand to lock your tri- ceps in
position. As you curl the weight, keep your neck aligned by looking straight ahead. Here’s
the tricky part: Be sure to work only in the range where the tension is put on the elbow
flexors. If you curl the weight up too high, you’ll lose the tension on the elbow flexors, and
you’ll compromise your results. In other words, don’t curl the weight up until your forearm
touches your biceps. Conversely, make sure you lower the weight all the way. Because the
initial portion of the movement is a lot harder than it is in a standard barbell curl, many
trainees make the mistake of not lowering the barbell all the way. You might also want to
try varying the angle of the support pad by turning it around (most Scott benches allow
you to remove the pad and flip it around 180 degrees to use the alternate, steeper side of
the support pad). This will vary motor unit recruitment.
 2. Incline Dumbbell Curl with Offset Grip. You can use the Scott bench for this movement,
too. However, you’ll be holding the dumbbells with an offset grip – that is, an
asymmetrical grip where the thumb side of your hand rests against the inside plate of the
dumbbell. This will increase the involvement of the short head of the biceps. Start with the
dumbbells in a semi-supinated (hammer) grip and curl the weight to about 40 degrees.
Then, turn your palm up (supinate) and complete the curl. Be- cause you’re holding the
dumbbell in an asymmetrical fashion, you’ll be forced to activate the short head of the
biceps to complete the supination movement. Do the movement at a very slow tempo to
create high intramuscular tension.

3. Incline Dumbbell Curl. This is a very simple and common movement, yet many trainees
fail to do it correctly. Too bad, because this is the most effective exercise for isolating the
long head of the biceps. The incline position allows the elbows to be drawn back, away
from the body, thus recruiting the long head. This exercise was first popularized by ’50s
bodybuilder Steve Reeves (of Hercules fame) to give his biceps a godly look. Recline on a
multi-angle bench with a dumbbell in each hand. The more flexible you are, the lower you
can set the bench, but bringing it down to a flat position may be too hard on your rotator
cuffs. As a rule of thumb, the lower the angle of the bench, the more recruitment of the
long head of the biceps, especially if the angle of the bench is 30 degrees or lower.
Conversely, the steeper the angle, the less the shoulders are extended, and the less the
elbows are behind the midline of the body (and thus, less recruitment of the long head)

With your arms fully stretched out, curl the dumbbells up simultaneously while keeping the
elbows directly in line with the ground for at least the first 90 degrees. (In other words,
pretend your elbows are rifles and keep them pointed at the ground.) After the first 90
degrees, however, your elbows will begin to come slight- ly forward, especially if you’re
using gargantuan weights. Don’t worry about it, though, as long as you kept them in line
for the first 90 degrees of the movement. Keep the palms supinated at all times so that the
elbow flexors are well stretched. Here’s a tip: If you have a forward head posture –
meaning your head comes off the bench no matter how hard you try to keep it down – roll
up a towel and place it between your neck and the bench. You’ll find that it increases your
strength. We recommend that you keep the incline dumbbell curl as a staple of your
arm workouts, especially if you want to do specialized work for the long head of the bi-

ceps. Just make sure you change the angle of the bench every six workouts so that you
don’t adapt.

4. Concentration Dumbbell Curls. This is one of the most basic of all exercises. In fact, a
neophyte, if left alone, would no doubt “invent” this movement after a work- out or two. It
probably got its name from the undivided attention a trainee usually gives to the arm
being worked. Furthermore, it’s a physiological fact that you can increase muscle
facilitation when you look at it. The concentration curl can be performed in either a
standing or a seated position, but we prefer the seated type. When you’re standing, your
nervous system is “dis- tracted” because it’s maintaining balance. If, however, you sit
down during this movement, it will allow full attention to the movement at hand, and your
neural drive will be enhanced. Sit on a bench and lean over. Grab a dumbbell. Sit back and
rest your triceps against your inner thigh. Keep a slight arch in your back while leaning
over the dumbbell. Make sure to curl the dumbbell slowly and deliberately until full range
is completed. By that time, the dumbbell should be near your pectoral muscle. It’s crucial
that you lower the dumbbell until your arm is fully extended and that you make an effort
to frequently vary the angle at which you curl the dumbbell to- wards you. (Go ahead and
vary the angle on each rep if you like.) This will ensure that you recruit and knock off
different motor units. Concentration curls allow you the luxury of performing 1 to 2 forced
reps on your own once you’ve achieved concentric muscle failure. We often employ a
variation of this movement in which we back up against a wall, bend over, and place
the glutes against it using a narrow grip on an EZ curl bar instead of working with
a dumbbell. We then plant our elbows against the inner thighs and curl the weight up,
being careful not to adopt a rounded back position. You may prefer doing a freestanding
version where you don’t back up against a wall, but many people end up using too much
upper body swing to complete the movement. If that’s the case, we recommend lying
facedown on an incline bench and extend your upper torso over the edge. This will allow
superior isolation of the elbow flexors.
5. Seated Zottmann Curls. This is one of the best upper arm thickening exercises because it
thoroughly stresses all the elbow flexors. It feels uncomfortable at first, so it may take a
few workouts to get used to this movement. To begin, sit at the edge of a flat bench while
grasping two dumbbells. Fully extend your arms downward and keep your palms facing
forward. Begin curling the weight, but keep your palms extended away from your body to
prevent the forearm flexors from being recruited. The natural tendency is to curl the wrist
upwards, but we’re asking you to extend the hand backwards. Once you reach the top,
pronate the forearms. In other words, rotate your hands so your palms are now
facing downwards and straighten the wrists so that, in effect, you’re ready to do
the eccentric portion of a reverse dumbbell curl. Keeping your wrists in a neutral position,
slowly lower the dumbbells. Keep your el- bows glued to your sides throughout the entire
exercise. If your elbows tend to flare out, that means your brachialis muscles are weak in
relation to your biceps brachii. If that’s the case, you’ll need to use slightly less weight so
you can do the eccentric portion of the movement correctly.

6. Swiss Ball Incline Dumbbell Curls. Many trainees are resistant to the concept of the
Swiss ball, but we have a few words of encouragement for them: Get over it! The Swiss ball
is a useful bodybuilding tool (when used properly). Squat down in front of a Swiss ball and
rest your back and triceps against the sur- face of the ball (a 65-centimeter ball should
suffice for most trainees, but if you’re a pro basketball player you might need to use a 75-
centimeter ball). Grab your work- ing pair of dumbbells. Perform the concentric range of a
seated dumbbell curl, initiating the movement from the elbows in a smooth fashion. Make
sure that the wrists are bent back again so that you’ll isolate the elbow flexors instead of
the forearm flexors. Once you’ve completed the concentric portion of the movement, raise
your hips so your thighs are parallel to the floor. Simply push down on the floor with your
feet and roll your body and the ball back so that it raises your torso and hips. Now, while
remaining in this hips-elevated position, lower the dumbbells away from you. At this point,
the brachialis anticus and the short head of the biceps are
fully activated. Keep your wrists cocked back as you lower the weights. After your arms
are fully extended, lower your hips and start over again. If you’re excessively masochistic,
or you simply want to trash your brachialis mus- cles, adopt the Zottmann style of curling
to this exercise.

7. Close-Grip Supinated Chin-Ups. We’ve met a lot of people who’ve packed inches on
their elbow flexors simply by doing chinning exercises. However, the main rea- son they did
chinning movements was that they didn’t have access to a wide vari- ety of equipment.
Necessity, as they say, is the mother of invention. These indi- viduals, however, were
determined to achieve international success, regardless of the limitations imposed on
them. You can list Boyer Coe and Arnold Schwarzeneg- ger as part of this group. Grasp the
chin-up bar with a close, supinated grip. The palms of the hands should be facing you, and
your pinky fingers should be 4-6 inches apart. Hang below the bar and then pull yourself up
until your chin clears the bar. This movement should be done very slowly, taking 15
seconds or so. Then, slowly lower yourself to the start position. Don’t shortchange yourself
by not coming all the way down; range of motion is critical. If your arms haven’t grown for
a while, consider adopting this movement. It’s a surefire mass builder. Regardless of which
of these exercises you decide to adopt, make sure that they, too, don’t become habit. Try
mixing one or two into your biceps workout, and after six workouts or so, replace them
with one or two other biceps exercises. Variety is not only the spice of life; it’s the main
ingredient of bodybuilding and strength training success.

Top 7 Triceps Movements Of all the essential exercises to develop the largest muscle of
the upper arm, press- downs are, by far, the most popular in gyms throughout the United
States. They are easy to perform and are especially popular in magazine photo spreads
because the triceps really pop out on the exercises. The lower body equivalent would be
leg extensions, which showcase the separation of the major muscles of the upper leg. But
as with leg extensions, pressdowns are not particularly effective for building ei- ther
strength or mass. Just take a look at the triceps of powerlifters and strongman
competitors. They are plenty massive, but very few competitors will waste their time on
pressdowns. Along the same line, look at your average gymnasts – most have massive
triceps that were built largely by doing plenty of dips and pressing motions. Because so
many trainees are fond of pressdowns and are unsure about what might be better, we
offer for your consideration the following “top 7 list” of triceps exercises, in order of good
to better to best.

1. Seated Half Press in Power Rack. As a testimony to the effectiveness of this exer- cise,
consider that Pat Casey is the first man to have bench pressed 600 pounds and that seated
presses were one of his favorite exercises – he claims a personal best of 400 pounds. This
variation of the seated press is one that powerlifting guru Louie Simmons has promoted
extensively; it is excellent for packing meat on the lateral head of the triceps, which are
often the most underdeveloped of the triceps muscles. You can tell when the lateral head is
developed, though, as it will make the back of the triceps look like an X, in addition to
making you appear to be con- siderably wider.

Place an adjustable incline bench inside a power rack, setting the inclination of the bench
at 80-90 degrees (in relation to the floor). The seat portion should be angled also so that
you won’t slip off when executing the exercise. Adjust the pins in the power rack so the bar
is at the hairline level for the starting position. Your grip on the bar should be about
shoulder width. Your elbows should be pointing outward. Simply press the weight up as if
you were doing a conventional press. However, in the bottom position let the weight come
to a complete stop against the pins. We’ve found that using dead stops of 2-4 seconds in
the bottom position is most effec- tive with this exercise. They will help you build up your
triceps, as each rep forces you to fight against inertia. A recommended tempo for this
exercise is either 2211 (2 seconds to lower, a 2-second pause, followed by a 1-second lift
and a 1-second pause) or 3211, depending on your arm length.

2. Lying Triceps Extension. There are several possible bar pathways for the lying tri- ceps
extension. You can bring the bar to the bridge of your nose, to your hairline or your
forehead (aka skull crushers). These exercises also can be done by using a handle attached
to a low pulley machine. Trying to figure out which is best is futile because you’ll adapt to a
particular movement in a matter of a few workouts. It’s important not to turn this
movement into a lat exercise. It’s all too easy to do, as the impulse is to employ a pullover
motion while extending your forearms. Also, make certain to keep your wrists in a neutral
position to minimize the stress on your elbows.
 3. Decline Dumbbell Triceps Extension. MRI studies have shown that the decline dumbbell
triceps extension is one of the most effective movements when it comes to recruiting the
triceps. It provides a great stretch of the triceps. Lie on a decline bench and hook your feet
under the padded rollers while holding a

pair of dumbbells. Press the dumbbells upward in a bench press fashion. You’re now ready
to start the exercise. Use a semi-supinated grip so your palms are facing each other. Keep

your elbows stationary and lower the dumbbells until your fore- arms make contact with
your biceps. At this point, the end of the dumbbell will probably be making contact with
your shoulders. Lift the dumbbells back to the starting position by extending your elbows.
Your elbows, of course, should be the only joint moving during this exercise. For the sake
of variety, you can add a pronating motion at the end of the elbow extension (turning your
palms away from you), which will further recruit the small anconeus muscle.

4. Seated EZ-Bar French Press. Sit on a flat bench with an EZ bar racked on your clavicles.
Hold the bar with a pronated (palms down) grip. The grip width should be slightly
narrower than shoulder width. Press the weight overhead until your el- bows are just short
of reaching the lockout position – this is where you’ll begin the exercise. Start by lowering
the bar behind your head until your forearms make contact with your biceps – at this point,
you should feel a good stretch on the long head of the triceps. Now extend the elbows,
using only your triceps strength, to push the bar back to the start position. To ensure
triceps isolation, your forearms are the only body part that should be moving during this
exercise.

5. Decline Elbows-Under Bar Close-Grip Bench Press. You’ll perform this exercise in almost
the same manner as the conventional close-grip bench press, except that it’s done in a
decline position and your elbows are pointing outward so they are aligned with the bar,
especially during the eccentric portion of the lifts. Perform this exercise on a decline bench
that is set between 10 and 25 degrees of declination in relation to the floor. Lift the barbell
off the rack and hold at arm’s length. Bring the bar to a point about two inches above your
nipples, and keep your elbows extended just short of lockout during the pressing portion of
the move- ment.

6. Close-Grip Bench Press. From a supine position (lying on a bench), lift the bar- bell off
the rack and hold at arm’s length. Bring the bar to the lower portion of your sternum, and
extend your elbows just short of lockout during the pressing move- ment. The name of the
exercise itself is a misnomer because we advise most individuals to use a 14-inch grip. We
don’t like the very narrow grip (4-6 inches) that you see all around the country, as it
creates enormous strain on the wrists and elbows. As soon as the bar is 4-6 inches above
your chest, concentrate on pushing the bar back toward the uprights and move your
elbows under the bar for a greater biome- chanical advantage. Locking out your elbows
will take the precious muscle-building tension away from your triceps, so just go to 95
percent of lockout. Of course, we suggest having a partner help with unracking and

racking the barbell not only for obvious safety reasons but also to ensure the longevity of
your rotator cuff mus- cles. And the number-one exercise for developing the triceps is…

7. Convergent Bar Dips (aka V-Bar Dips). This is the absolute king of triceps builders. Yet,
like other ever-demanding movements such as squats and chins, it rarely makes the pages
of general fitness magazines. Dips were a key exercise for bodybuilders of the past, and as
a result those muscle builders were as strong as they looked. One of the best dippers who
made the cover of many muscle magazines is Marvin Eder. Eder could perform a single
repe- tition with 434 pounds at a bodyweight of 198 pounds. Pat Casey, incidentally, at
a bodyweight of 300 pounds, could perform a single rep with 380 pounds strapped to his
waist. To start the exercise, grasp the bars and boost yourself up until you’ve
stabilized yourself at arm’s length over the handles. If you have access to the better V-
shaped dipping bar, use as narrow a grip as possible without compromising shoulder
in- tegrity. Begin the exercise by lowering your body as far as possible in between the bars,
making sure to keep lowering until your biceps make contact with your fore- arms. In other
words, your triceps must get fully stretched. Once you reach the bot- tom position, press
yourself back up by extending your elbows. Try to stay as up- right as possible throughout
the range of motion. If you lean too far forward, you’ll just be bringing your pecs into the
movement. If you can’t lower yourself under control until the biceps make contact with
the forearms, perform the decline close-grip bench press movement until your
elbow extension strength is sufficient. Performing an incomplete range in the triceps dip is
a complete waste of your time. Further, don’t cheat yourself by performing chopped reps –
that is, not going all the way down and coming up only three- fourths of the way. Keep in
mind that your elbows should travel to only 98 percent of full elbow extension to maintain
maximal tension on your triceps. At first, your bodyweight will probably suffice as the
means of resistance. As you get stronger, you can progressively increase the resistance by
holding a dumbbell between your legs or by hooking a plate or dumbbell in the specialized
chin/dip belt. There are a lot of models on the market, but we prefer the ones that consist
of standard leather lifting belts with hooks sewn into the belt. Belts that tree climbers use
are the best, and can be bought inexpensively on eBay. Of course, adding chains to the belt
will help match the resistance curve even better. And please, don’t resort to the dangerous
version where you put your feet on a bench in front of you and your hands behind you. This
exercise, along with Smith machine pressing exercises, is one of the major causes of
shoulder impingement syndrome in the bodybuilding community. Okay, so it’s not realistic
for you to use all these movements in any one workout. Don’t sweat it. Think of this list as
a menu of triceps movements, and use it to plan current and future workouts.

Top 5 Ways to Grow Big Forearms Biceps and triceps get the bulk of attention in arm
training, but you should not for- get to train the forearms. Yes, when Sergio Oliva and
Casey Viator were at their peak condition their biceps and triceps development were
among the best in their day, but their arm development was made even more impressive
by massive fore- arms. To help you fulfill your potential in lower arm development, here
are five guidelines to get you started.

1. Work forearms frequently. Your forearms can handle a lot of work. Forearm flex- ors
and extensors can be done at least twice in a five-day cycle. The grip can be trained daily.
Don’t let anyone tell you that it will lead to overtraining.

2. Make sure your pronated curling strength is structurally balanced with

your supinated curling grip. You should be able to reverse curl 82 percent of what you curl
supinated. If not, your brachialis anticus and your brachioradialis muscles need some
specialized work. If you are balanced, your neutral grip (hammer grip) should be 15
percent stronger than your supinated grip. In other words, if you can curl a pair of 50-
pound dumbbells in a supinated grip for 6 reps, you should be able to curl a pair of 57.5-
pound weights for the same number of reps with a neutral

grip.

3. Work on supinators and pronators every second workout. Often, when a new client
complains of elbow pain, the first thing we do is assess the strength of their supinators and
pronators. It usually is pathetic. Once they work on these neglected muscles and bring
them up to par, the elbow pain disappears by itself.

4. Work on grip every forearm workout. Always end your forearm workout with grip
work. We have more than two dozen gripping devices at the Poliquin Strength Institute, as
we believe in having a lot of options for our training – and to prevent boredom.

5. Work with thick-handled equipment. The key to thick-grip training is to vary the thickn
ess of the handles the same way you vary other loading parameters, such as reps, sets,
tempo, rest intervals and frequency. The key is to continually provide new methods to
simulate growth, so try to change the grip diameter with each training cycle.

Advanced Techniques for Breaking Arm Size Barriers Next we’ll share an extremely
effective training method for the biceps and triceps to perform in the power rack. We
developed this routine by combining ideas from articles by Anthony Ditillo and the late Don
Ross. Most intermediate bodybuilders will increase their standing curling poundages by 5-
25 pounds and their close-grip bench press poundages by 30-45 pounds in just 3-4 weeks
using this training sys- tem. This routine makes use of what exercise physiologists call
“functional isometric contractions.” In the early ’60s this method was known in the iron
game as “isometronics,” which is a term coined from the combination of isometrics
and isotonics (or, more properly, auxotonics).

With isometronics you take advantage of the joint-angle specificity of strength gains
caused by isometric training. Thus, during every set performed in the power rack, you will
do a functional isometric contraction after pre-fatiguing the muscle with heavy partial
repetitions. For both the biceps and triceps workouts presented here, you will be working
at three ranges – low range, midrange and top range. For each of these ranges you will
select a weight you can move from the starting position to the pins placed at the end of
range of motion. Here’s how to do it: Perform 4-6 partial reps in the normal fashion. When
you come to the end of the last concentric repetition, press the bar against the top pins.
Press as hard as pos- sible for 6-8 seconds, trying to rip through the pins! Do not hold your
breath dur- ing the isometric contraction; instead, use a very brief cycle of breathing,
alter- nating rapidly between short inhaling and short exhaling. If you’ve performed
this set properly, you should not be able to perform another repetition – if you can,
the weight you used was too light. Building strong muscular arms is a function of
experimentation and variation. Win- ners always find solutions; losers find excuses.
Chapter 17: Abdominals

Muscle and Fitness began publishing in 1980. Although not as hardcore as it’s sister public
ation Flex, much of its focus is on weight training for physical fitness and athletic
performance. A defined, hard midsection sends out a powerful signal about the shape
you’re in. Abs of steel are perhaps the most sought-after body part of the hardbody
gener- ation – even beer commercials use actors with washboard abs! In spite of
such attention to what appears to be a relatively small muscle group, it’s not uncommon to
hear the complaint that “no matter how much I work them, I just can’t get my abs in
shape!” Frustrated, we turn to abdominal crunch machines or Roman chair sit-ups and
seriously consider buying one of those plastic gut-busting gadgets at our local sporting
goods store.

The fact is, most of what we hear about abdominal training is untrue, and there is so much
misinformation that it’s difficult to separate fact from fiction – and from fraud. What
expert do we believe – the professional bodybuilder, the physical ther- apist or the
“Personal Trainer to the Stars”? What a mess! But before you grind out another crunch or

devote any more time, effort and money in search of the perfect waistline, understand that
a little training knowledge can go a long way towards getting you those sought-after six-
pack abs. Let’s start with the concept of “core” training.

Training “the core.” One popular theory in the area of rehabilitation and sports per- forma
nce is the concept of training “the core.” From the attention it has received, not just within
the strength training community but also the media, you would think that the core muscles
should be the focus of your training. So-called core training is done primarily with Swiss
balls, BOSU® balls, rocker boards and other such equipment designed to throw you off
balance – and supposedly activate the abdominals in a way that no other exercises can
duplicate. Not quite. The problem with this functional training approach is that it is based
on two hy- potheses: (1) to train for stability you have to train on unstable equipment and
(2) the primary muscles responsible for stability are the abdominals. The problem
with these ideas is that from the get-go there has been little interest in testing them
– coaches simply pulled out their credit cards and started buying a lot of colorful balls and
rubber tubing. But one coach who decided to challenge this thinking is PICP coach Michael
Jonathan Wahl.

Instability training. Wahl decided to study the effectiveness of instability training to see if
the techniques do offer greater benefits compared to traditional training. Functional
trainers obviously believe that squatting on a BOSU ball has some advantage over regular
squatting, so Wahl decided to try to figure out what that

advantage might be – or if indeed there is any difference. He also decided he would use
elite athletes in his study because he didn’t assume you could apply the data from
recreationally trained subjects to elite athletes. In fact, this is a common prob- lem with
many studies on strength training – just because one workout protocol is extremely
effective for a group of untrained, unmotivated college students doesn’t mean that same
workout protocol will work for an intermediate or advanced ath- lete. Rather than using
unmotivated college students looking to fulfill requirements for a grade, Wahls recruited
16 athletes who played at the college level or higher. One of these subjects was a world-
champion kickboxer, and all the subjects were in the top 10 percentile for upper body and
lower body strength according to the Amer- ican College of Sports Medicine guidelines.
Testing was performed with an elec- tromyogram, which records electrical activity in
muscles.

Wahl found that the brain motor patterns the athletes exhibited when performing unstable
exercises were identical to those exhibited when they used a stable sur- face. However, the
training effect is reduced when exercising on unstable surfaces because a trainee is forced
to use less resistance. Further, Wahl makes the point that free-weight training is unstable
by nature: “Remember the first time you did a bench press and your arms went
everywhere and you had trouble stabilizing your joints? Sure, a Swiss ball exercise can be
taxing for someone who has never done any exercise before; but get a first-year physics
student to explain the disrupted torque on the body that occurs when someone squats 500
pounds and you’ll see that the entire muscle system has to work tremendously hard to
handle that type of weight. When an athlete turns their ankle, it’s often because they are
not strong enough to handle the disruptive force of the activity, so why not train to get
used to that excessive force using the principle of progressive resistance?”

From this perspective, what does Wahl see as the functional value of these types
of exercises? Very little. “If any movement deviates 2.5 percent or more from the orig- inal
motor program, the skills are not going to transfer,” says Wahl. “Baseball play- ers and
javelin throwers both throw implements, but EMGs show that these move- ments are not
similar, and, therefore, the skills from performing one of these activ- ities does not transfer
to the other.” As such, being able to squat and juggle while balancing on a BOSU is not
necessarily going to improve your regular squat, but it will certainly improve your ability to
squat and juggle while balancing on a BOSU ball! While the jury may still be out about the
value of unstable exercises, the scientific research suggests that this type of exercise has
little practical value for an elite ath- lete, and it also has a high risk of injury by its very
nature. And for a bodybuilder, it will do little to improve abdominal development. With the
issues of stability and core training out of the way, let’s look at some basic anatomy
concerning the abdominals.
Rectus Abdominis: The Six-
Pack Midsection anatomy. Many personal trainers and strength coaches firmly empha- siz
e that the rectus abdominis, the muscle responsible for shaping the envied six- pack, is just
a single, long muscle that extends from the top of the sternum and rib cage to the pubic
bone. While it’s true the lower abdominals don’t really exist from an anatomical
standpoint, for training purposes the rectus abdominis can be di- vided into two sections:
the supraumbilical, the area above the bellybutton; and the subumbilical, the area below
the bellybutton. Although the entire rectus abdominis is activated to some degree in
virtually every exercise, it’s possible to emphasize specific segments of the muscle, such as
by positioning your body differently. This effect is similar to what happens
when bodybuilders attempt to develop specific areas of the pectorals by performing bench
presses on an incline or a decline.

Targeting Your
Training Subumbilical section: the lower abs. This area plays an important function in mai
n- taining proper posture, and in fact the excessive lumbar curvature displayed by some
gymnasts may be due in part to weakness in the lower abdominals. Such a posture reduces
the shock absorbing qualities of the spine, and as such may con- tribute to lower back pain.
The problem is further compounded if there is a strength imbalance between the two sides
of the subumbilical muscle, an imbal- ance that creates excessive rotation of the spine,
which places harmful stress on the disks. In terms of athletic performance, when the pelvis
is rotated forward due to muscle imbalance, the lower abdominals are stretched and
become difficult to contract – this affects overall performance. Thus, a volleyball player
with weak lower abdom- inal muscles would not be able to generate as much power when
they serve. Weak lower abs can also change running mechanics. In fact, before his gold
medal win in the 1996 Olympics, 100-meter sprinter Donovan Bailey’s primary focus in his
train- ing was the lower abdominals. So the underlying principle here is to train
muscles first (with exercises that affect the lower abdominals), and then movements
(with compound exercises). How do you know if you have weak lower abdominals? One
popular test is to lie on your back with your knees bent at 90 degrees. Place your hands
just above the hip- bone, and then lift your elbows off the floor and rest your head on the
ground. Now try to lift your upper legs straight up. If you can’t perform this test
without moving your knees towards your head, or if you have to brace your elbows on
the floor or raise your head to perform the movement, then you have weak
lower abdominals. This test can also be used to train the abdominals. When you first
perform this pelvic tilt exercise, you may not be able to lift your hips at all. That’s OK – as
long as you are contracting the muscles, you will get a train- ing effect. Soon you will be

able to perform it easily. At this point, you can make the exercise more difficult by holding
a weight, such as a medicine ball, between your knees. A few sets of 15-20 reps (because
the range of motion is small) will get the job done. If you want to take lower abdominal
training a step further, you can perform a sim- ple leg lowering exercise. This exercise,
which is discussed in the physical
therapy textbook Muscles: Testing and Function is considered a test of coordination betwe
en the upper and lower abdominals. The difference between this test and a conven- tional
leg raise is that you need to keep your lower back pressed against the floor throughout the
movement. To score 100 percent on the test, a male should be able to lower his legs all the
way to the floor, and a female should be able to lower until her legs are about 15 degrees
from the floor. If you cannot pass the test, simply per- form it throughout a partial range of
motion, starting from a vertical position and lowering until you start to feel your back arch.
A few sets, with about 45-60 sec- onds of time under tension, will suffice. And to make the
exercise more difficult, simply hold a weight, such as a medicine ball, between your
feet. Although lower abdominal exercises have value, don’t go overboard with them. Use
them for a few weeks to correct structural imbalances. Now let’s look at the second-most
controversial abdominal muscle group – the obliques.

The obliques and rotational strength. Many strength coaches mistakenly believe

that basic multijoint movements such as squats and power cleans will not
improve rotational strength. After all, most exercises occur in the vertical and
horizontal planes, but may leave out rotary movements that occur in sports. As such,
rota- tional strength is lacking, and the best way to develop this is to use kettlebells, elastic
tubing, or medicine balls with ropes. However, for a bodybuilder, it’s best not to do any of
these oblique exercises. Let’s get some answers. A bodybuilder only needs a minimal
amount of strength to prevent injuries in heavy multijoint movements such as squats, so
working the obliques is not a good idea for them. The basic idea in bodybuilding is to
develop an “X” shape, and a thick waist would detract from that ideal. Of course, athletic
performance is an- other matter. First, it’s important to understand that trunk stability
plays a major role in rotation. If an athlete can stabilize their trunk when they encounter
impact during sports, whether it’s hitting a baseball or swinging a tennis racket, they will
produce more force. This is where exercises such as the overhead squat and the farmer’s
walk are especially valuable. Next, coaches and athletes need to understand that there
are two basic types of rotation: rotation coupled with extension, and rotation coupled with

flexion. Swing- ing a tennis racket from down to up during a return is rotation coupled with
exten- sion; bringing the racket from up to down during a serve is rotation coupled
with extension. This is how they generate powerful rotational force, by acting as
force transducers and not as force producers. Regardless of the type of rotation being
performed, there is no single muscle that causes rotation, which is why focusing on
isolation exercises for muscles such as the obliques tends not to transfer well to most
athletic movements. There are many machines that limit the spine to one type of rotation
for the obliques. For example, there is one machine at which you sit down, grasp handles in
front of you, and then twist to each side. Is this a valuable exercise to isolate the obliques?
No. What many coaches don’t understand is that although these muscles are
justifiably called obliques because they have oblique fibers, the fact is that most of
these oblique fibers are not transverse to the trunk – most oblique fibers are arranged in a
diagonal alignment that are not suited to producing strictly horizontal
movement. Consider the biceps, which has fibers arranged longitudinally. You would not
work the biceps by pulling your arm across your body because it’s not a natural
move- ment pattern for the biceps, right? Similarly, in the case of the obliques you want
to perform movements that are natural to them. Rotating the spine on a single axis is not a
natural movement pattern, especially when performed seated, and creates large shearing
forces on the spine that can easily damage the disks. This move- ment pattern is even
riskier when performed with resistance – although performing high reps with just a stick
(in a misguided attempt to trim the waist) will also pro- duce high shearing forces on the
spine. Even worse is a popular trunk-twist exercise performed with a rope attached to
a medicine ball – the trainee stands with their back against a wall and slams the ball side
to side at high speed. Stuart McGill, one of the foremost authorities on lower back pain,
did research on this type of exercise and found that it’s a great way to blow out a disk. As
for fat loss, the energy expenditure is so low in trunk twists that it will have little effect on
“burning” off fat. But for anyone who wants to do a more specific exercise for rotation
strength that strongly involves the obliques, we recommend many of the popular wood-
chop exercises performed with cables.
Supraumbilical section: the upper abs. Whereas the lower abs are trained effectively with
pelvic tilt exercises, the supraumbilical section of the abdominals is trained dynamically by
conventional exercises that flex the spine, such as crunches. As for Swiss ball crunches, they
do train the rectus abdominus; but because the much greater range of motion puts the
abdominals at risk for injury, you have to start these exercises with no resistance. One
popular exercise to work the rectus abdominus with minimal involvement of the hip flexors
is the reverse sit-up. Position yourself on a sit-up board, facing away from the rollers and
grasp the handle. Keep your arms slightly bent to minimize the stress on your shoulders.
Bend your knees so that your upper thighs are perpen- dicular to the floor; your feet should
be off the floor and should not touch the floor throughout the exercise. Now lift your hips
up and towards you as far as comfort- able, and then return to the start. To increase the
difficulty of the exercise, perform it on an incline or from a hanging position. You can also
attach a low pulley cable to an ankle attachment, thus giving you a precise increase in
resistance. Another variation of the reverse crunch is with the legs straight. Start in the
same position as for the reverse crunch, but with your legs straight and perpendicular
to the floor. Lift your hips straight up and then return to the start, but do not allow your
legs to move towards your head. To increase the difficulty of the exercise, per- form it on
an incline bench or use ankle weights. Regarding organizing the exercises in a workout, or
for long-term planning, always focus on the weakest area first. This means lower abs first,
then obliques, and then upper abdominals. Unless the individual is especially weak,
training the abs once every five days is sufficient – again, we only recommend specific
abdominal train- ing for short periods (and for athletes, the best place to insert them in a
yearlong periodization plan would be during preparation phases). But seriously, the idea
of performing specific abdominal exercises may not be necessary for many indi- viduals.
Let’s take a closer look.
The best abdominal exercises. Despite all the cool toys available to develop the abdominal
s, the fact is an athlete can develop tremendous abdominals without ever performing a sit-
up, crunch or anything involving all those fancy circus balls and other gimmicks on the
market. Core training, to use the popular buzzword, doesn’t have to be complex
training. As evidenced by the muscular midsections of powerlifters and weightlifters,
simply performing total-body lifts such as squats, power cleans, and deadlifts can
develop impressive abdominals. In fact, a study published in Physical Therapy in Sport in 20
11 found that competitive female weightlifters had significantly stronger internal and
external oblique muscles than a recreationally active control group. Their inter- nal
obliques were the thickest, followed by external, and then by transverse abdo- minis – this
represents a structurally balanced relationship. It’s no big surprise to anyone who has
done heavy Olympic lifting that it builds the abdominals. Research shows that the
strenuous overload of fast-twitch abdominal fibers required from the snatch and clean and
jerk is the reason for greater size and strength in the subjects’ lateral abdominals.
Research also points to the role of the internal obliques as part of the muscular system
that transfers the load between the pelvis and thorax, as well as handling the stress of
repeated rapid lifts required from the snatch and clean. Transverse abdominis strength
and size is further developed through the stabi- lization required in the catch portion of the
snatch and clean, and because of intra- abdominal pressure that is commonly increased in
weightlifters versus recreational trainees. Clearly, Olympic lifts are an excellent addition to
your ab program if you are trying to get stronger and more powerful.
The truth about belly fat. The misconceptions about how to lose fat are extensive

and are commonly spread by uninformed fitness professionals and the main- stream news
media. For example, a recent research study from Duke University ti- tled “The Effects of
Aerobic Versus Resistance Training on Visceral and Liver Fat Stores, and Liver Enzymes,”
reported that aerobic training is significantly more effective at burning fat than resistance
training alone and equally as effective as resistance and aerobic training together. Not so
fast – this conclusion would hold up only if you were comparing resistance training on
Cybex machines with intense aerobic training for 40 minutes a session! What many of the
news reports didn’t clarify about this study is that the resistance program consisted of
eight Cybex machine exercises used three times a week, whereas the aerobic training
program was performed at 75 percent of maximal oxy- gen uptake for a total of 12 miles a
week. The resistance program used Cybex ma- chines with what appears to be a muscular
endurance training program (but by using 8-12 reps for 3 sets, could this be for
hypertrophy instead? – the weight or percentage of the 1RM isn’t mentioned in the study,
so we don’t know for sure), whereas the aerobic training group exercised at a fairly
vigorous intensity (75 per- cent of the max oxygen uptake is 80 percent of heart rate max).
Once we take those facts into consideration, it’s not surprising that the aerobic exercise
performed in this particular study was more effective than machine lifting at burning
fat. Another concern with how the study results were presented is that most of the news
reports proclaimed that jogging or cardio was best for burning belly fat.
This implies that cardio will help you lose subcutaneous fat (the “grabbable” fat covering t
he abdominals just under the skin). Actually, the study tested the effects of
exer- cise on visceral fat – the type of fat that is deep inside the body and surrounds the or
gans or even gets into organs such as the liver. Although this fat can make your stomach
stick out, it’s not what most people think of when they talk about losing abdominal fat. It’s
too bad that the results of this study were misrepresented in the

media, because the research provides valuable insight into strategies for losing fat to
prevent disease. In fact, there are a number of recent studies that can guide you in
designing the best fat-burning programs for health and a lean physique. Let’s review them
here.

More about subcutaneous fat. Subcutaneous fat is directly below the outermost layer of
skin. This is fat that you can pinch with your fingers and can be tested with calipers.
Subcutaneous fat in the stomach area covers the abdominal muscles, and if you have too
much of it, you won’t be able to see your ab muscles. In compar- ison, visceral fat is
located between organs, deep inside the body. You can’t grab it, although it will make a
stomach stick out if you have a lot of it. There is evidence that men tend to have more
visceral fat, and women tend to have more subcu- taneous fat. Once women reach
menopause and lose estrogen, they begin to de- velop more visceral fat as well.

More about visceral fat. Visceral fat sits deep behind the abdominal wall and sur- rounds
the organs within the peritoneal cavity. Visceral fat negatively affects health by increasing
inflammation in the organs, in part because it releases substances called adipokines, which
are cell-to-cell signaling proteins that increase blood pres- sure and interfere with insulin
health. Visceral fat also decreases the amount of adiponectin in the body, an essential
hormone for fat burning that helps speed up metabolism, which means there are more
triglycerides getting into the blood- stream. The combination of decreased insulin
sensitivity, greater hypertension, and elevated triglycerides often results in atherosclerosis
and higher LDL cholesterol (the bad kind) and is an important factor in the development of
diabetes. The most effective way to get rid of visceral fat is to do high-intensity intervals
and strength training. Of course, for best results, you should do what you enjoy most

because there’s more chance you’ll stick with it. Fortunately, the evidence shows there are
many effective options. Some individuals won’t stick with a workout pro- gram that is
extremely hard; and overweight or novice exercisers may not be ready for high-intensity
intervals, meaning it is valuable to present alternatives that can help decrease visceral fat.
Let’s start with the most effective strategy.
 High-intensity training. High-intensity training, or HIT, is effective because it in- creases
fat burning both during and after exercise and may decrease appetite after exercise.
During exercise and after HIT, fat burning increases to remove built-up lactate and
hydrogen ions. Elevated growth hormone also supports fat burning and is a result of HIT
programs. The very best protocol for visceral fat loss and a lean physique is high-
intensity interval sprints and a resistance training program. This will allow you to burn
vis- ceral fat and build muscle. Having more muscle elevates metabolism and supports a
better hormonal and biochemical environment by lowering adipokines – those evil
chemicals that create more fat and break down muscle. A dual program of HIT, or at least
strenuous aerobic training, combined with resis- tance training is clearly essential for
health. You’ll be getting rid of the unhealthy fat and building up an arsenal of muscle to
protect against future fat attacks. You’ll also be more anabolic due to bursts of growth
hormone, and you’ll have the ben- efit of acute elevations in testosterone if the volume
and weight lifted in the train- ing program is significant. The Duke study shows that
steady-state aerobic training at a vigorous intensity such as 75 percent of the maximal
oxygen uptake does burn visceral fat and can im- prove metabolic biomarkers and that
such a protocol is better than a training pro- tocol consisting solely of machine resistance.
But that doesn’t mean that aerobic training is better than all resistance protocols. Based
on the clear evidence that high-intensity anaerobic-style exercise is best for burning
visceral and total body fat, it’s reasonable to make the conclusion that high-intensity
resistance training would be effective as well. For example, circuit training with heavy
weights can be effective for hypertrophy, and it triggers a re- lease of potent growth
hormone, leading to more fat burning. And as mentioned above, it’s clear that pairing both
aerobic and anaerobic training with weight train- ing will provide better long-term overall
results, despite the fact that the Duke study is skewed toward aerobic training for visceral
fat loss. Achieving an impressive six-pack is not that complicated. If you follow the
advice in this chapter, you can have great abs much faster than you might expect.
Chapter 18: Nutrition

A three-time world powerlifting champion who bench pressed 612 pounds wearing only a
T-shirt, Doug Young was one of the most physically impressive powerlifters in the
70s. There is a preponderance of great information available on how to eat well,
and there is also a lot of nonsense (you can’t solve all your problems by simply drink- ing
protein shakes and carrots all day). To get you started on eating well, here are 14
principles of good nutrition:
Principle #1. Always eat breakfast – opt for a high-protein, low-glycemic meal. When we’
re asked for the single best dietary tip for optimal leanness, energy, and sus- tained mental
focus, we invariably recommend to try the rotating meat and nuts breakfast. Clients
ranging from NHL and NFL stars to corporate executives rave about the increased mental
acuity and focused energy they derive from this food combination. The meat allows for a
slow and steady rise in blood sugar. The nuts provide a great source of healthy smart fats
that allow the blood sugar to remain stable for an extended period. Here is a sample five-
day rotation of a meat/nuts breakfast. You do not add any- thing to it – no beverages or
other foods.

Day 1 1-2 buffalo meat patties

1 handful of macadamia nuts

Day 2 1 large venison steak

1 handful of cashew nuts

Day 3 1-2 lean turkey burgers

1 handful of almonds

Day 4 2 lean ground beef patties

1 handful of Brazil nuts

Day 5 2 chicken breasts

1 handful of hazelnuts
Principle #2. Eliminate all processed foods from your diet – don’t ever eat
them. Processed foods are one of the major causes of obesity. For more information
on this subject check out the books by Gary Taubes, such as Why We Get Fat and Good Cal
ories, Bad Calories.

Principle #3. Don’t avoid fat – just be sure to eat smart fats such as those found in fish and
wild meats, coconut oil, olive oil, avocados, and nuts. Despite what many of the celebrity
fitness gurus would have you believe, saturated fats are essential to our health. In fact,
foods high in saturated fat were a key part of the diets of our Paleolithic ancestors, and
our genetic code has not changed significantly since then.

Principle #4. Consume a high-quality, high-protein diet to increase resting meta- bolic
rate and the amount of energy required to digest food.

Principle #5. Eat antioxidant-rich foods such as berries, dark chocolate, leafy greens and
olive oil to prevent inflammation.

Principle #6. The darker the fruit, the better. Dark fruits tend to have very thin skin, meani
ng they need to produce more antioxidants to protect themselves from the sun. In
contrast, light-colored fruits with thick skins such as bananas and melons have lower
antioxidant content. Dark red, blue and purple fruits are great anti- inflammatory foods
because the extra antioxidants help get rid of free radicals that cause aging and
inflammation. Berries with high antioxidant content such as bilberries, blueberries,
cranberries and raspberries decrease glucose response in healthy subjects, slowing
digestion. When you compare berries and cherries with bananas and pineapple, the latter
two fruits have a significantly higher glycemic index. Of course, this applies to fruits in their
natural state; when grapes become raisins, their glycemic index goes up be- cause of
dehydration of the fruit. The bioactive polyphenols that dark-colored fruits contain
promote greater insulin sensitivity. Also, there is evidence that adding berries rich in
polyphenols to high- glycemic foods that normally trigger a negatively high spike in
glucose can mod- erate the body’s response, producing a remarkably low insulin response.
Take note that it is necessary to fully chew berries or fruit to release the polyphenols to
work their magic on the glycemic index of carbs.

Principle #7. Eliminate all sugar and all sweeteners – cane sugar, agave, maple syrup –
all of it. Wakefulness, energy expenditure, and the brain’s reward center are all
downregulated when we eat sugar. A network of transmitters in the brain re- sponds to
the food you eat, and if you eat carbs, especially sugary carbs, the net- work is inhibited,
slowing energy use and making you less alert.

Principle #8. Consider eliminating gluten, wheat, and other grains to support
in- sulin health. Humans have never had adequate stomach enzymes to break down gluten
so that it can be properly digested, a problem that has been made much worse by the
genetic engineering of wheat over the last 100 years. Wheat raises the blood sugar levels
quickly in the same way as plain table sugar. Foods based on white flour, such as white
bread and many cereals, are a poor source of fiber, and they have a high glycemic content,
meaning they cause a quick spike in insulin. The presence of insulin tells the liver that food
intake is meeting energy requirements, so lipolysis, or the breakdown of fat for energy
from body stores, becomes unnecessary. The insulin spike stops the body from burning
fat for fuel. Any excess sugar or food intake is saved for future energy requirements and is
stored as fat. Constantly high insulin levels will make the body resistant to insulin and will
lead to diabetes. This is why it’s best to eliminate grains, partic- ularly white grains, and
it’s important to do resistance training – you’ll improve in- sulin sensitivity. An allergy to
gluten is called celiac disease and means that the sufferer will have serious digestive
damage from eating foods containing gluten, which causes a wide variety of other health
issues. Among these problems are weakness, anemia, malnutrition, osteoarthritis, bone
disorders, stomach cancer, and abdominal bloat- ing – all problems that will trip you up if
you want to gain muscle and lose fat. You can be allergic to wheat or be sensitive to gluten
without having celiac disease; and even if your body isn’t intolerant to wheat and gluten,
removing them from the diet is recommended for optimal body composition, digestion,
and health. Not only does gluten raise insulin levels in the body and provide a large
carbo- hydrate and caloric punch, it also causes the body to release cortisol in response
to the gluten allergy stressor. Research shows that cortisol partially inhibits the harm- ful
effect of gluten in the body. The problem is that cortisol results in muscle degradation and
elevated levels suppress the immune response and lead to hor- monal imbalances, fatigue,
depression, insomnia, and illness. If you are transitioning to a whole-food-based diet at
the same time you are elimi- nating gluten, it may be helpful to use gluten-free substitutes
to help you make the transition.

However, be cautious about eating a lot of high-carb substitutes be- cause this may
compromise body composition and insulin health.

Principle #9. The main source of carbs should be fibrous. Fibrous carbs, including many
green vegetables, typically have very low carbohydrate content. Their inherent high fiber
brings about a very moderate insulin response, thus making them an ideal fat loss food.
Research shows that the higher fiber content of most vegetables will delay carbohydrate
absorption, favorably modifying the glucose response. Dark green vegetables usually have
a large antioxidant content as well (not as great as dark fruits, but still a sizeable amount).
The best sources of fibrous carbs include these vegetables:

• Kale

• Broccoli

• Lettuce

• Cabbage

• Cauliflower

• Mushrooms

• Green beans

• Onions

• Asparagus

• Cucumber

• Spinach
• All forms of peppers

• Zucchini

• Cauliflower

Principle #10. Limit fructose in the diet to only fruit sources. Eliminate all fructose- based
corn syrup – that means you have to be a label reader, as so many modern- day foods are
designed to turn us into Corn People. One of the worst sources of glycated fructose is low
quality protein bars that contain high fructose corn syrup. Even though fruits are loaded
with nutrients, they also contain fructose. Con- suming too much fructose can slow down
thyroid function, reducing metabolism and negatively affecting body composition.
Research shows that excess fructose in rats results in decreased ATP in the liver, leading to
less thyroid hormone uptake and a reduction in fat burning. Too much fructose in the diet
also increases glycation. Glycation in layman’s terms is browning, like the browning that
makes a crust on bread. Glycation is the cross linking of proteins (and DNA molecules)
caused by sugar aldehydes reacting with the amino acids on the protein molecule to create
Advanced Glycosylation End Products (AGEs). If you want to see protein cross-linking in
action, cut an apple in half and watch it turn yellow! Why is fructose the worst glycation
agent? Because it does not raise insulin. In other words, the fructose is not getting into
muscle cells, meaning it lingers in the body and wreaks metabolic havoc. As nutrition
expert Robert Crayhon used to say, fructose is like the guest that won’t go home once the
party is over. One study compared the effect of a diet high in fructose with one high in
glucose. After ten weeks, the fructose group had significantly elevated levels of
cholesterol and insulin, while insulin sensitivity and fat metabolism decreased. They
also gained significantly more total fat and an even greater percentage of abdominal
fat than the glucose group. Further research shows that this extra insulin causes
dys- function of cells, and in addition to the negative effect on body composition,
it accelerates aging, vascular degeneration, and development of diabetes.
Principle #11. Consume enough fiber – shoot for at least 25 grams a day. Low fiber intake
leads to poorer insulin health and more belly fat gain. First, you need to get enough fiber
every day, because without adequate fiber, inflammatory markers rise, compromising
health and body composition. The best solution is to eat a high- protein diet that is high in
fiber from low-glycemic vegetables and fruit. You want to avoid the carbohydrate-rich
cereal fibers because they can persistently elevate in- sulin levels that lead to fat gain and
diabetes. You may want to take supplemental fiber because the body will adapt very
quickly to certain fibers, meaning that it’s useful to rotate the kind of fiber you take every
week or so.

Principle #12. Ensure you have a healthy gut – compromised gastrointestinal health leads
directly to elevated cortisol and belly fat gain. We recommend taking a probi- otic to
support gut health and ensure you have adequate stomach acid.

Principle #13. Drink at least 3 liters of water a day to stay hydrated and detoxify the body.
Hydration is the greatest determinant of strength. A decline of 1.5 percent in water levels
will produce a 10 percent drop in your maximal strength. The leaner you are, the worse the
effect of dehydration. Make sure you weigh the same or more at the end of your training
session. High water levels equal more sets and reps, which equal greater changes. Here is
a formula to determine how much you should drink, including metric measurements: Drink
0.6-0.7 ounces of water per pound of bodyweight, or drink 39 milliliters per kilogram of
bodyweight. Therefore,

• a 200-pound man should drink 120 to 140 ounces.

• a man weighing 91 kilograms should drink 3.55 to 4.14 liters.

Principle #14. Eliminate alcohol, juice, soda and sports drinks. Stick to water, tea or coffee
. Nutritional status and hydration at the time of drinking will influence recov- ery, which is
one reason that avoiding alcohol intake after competition or hard training is so important.
After an all-out competition or training session, if hydra- tion, protein intake or the body’s
internal antioxidant system is compromised, alco- hol will halt recovery until it is fully
eliminated from the body. Now that we’ve looked at food, the next step is to look at
supplements, which will be covered in the next chapter.

Chapter 19: Supplements

One of the most common questions those in the nutritional supplement industry get asked
is, “Why do I need to take supplements – can’t I get all the nutrients I need simply by
eating well?” The short answer is “No.” And this is not just our opinion. Although the fields
of functional medicine and traditional medicine clash in many areas, they both agree that
nutritional supplements have merit. Take vitamins,
for example. In a study published in the June 19, 2002, issue of The Journal of the American
Medical Association, the authors noted that vitamin deficiencies are asso- ciated with
many chronic diseases such as coronary heart disease, cancer, and osteoporosis. They also
found that “elderly people, vegans, alcohol-dependent individuals and patients with
malabsorption are at high risk of inadequate intake or absorption of several
vitamins.” The authors concluded that “it appears prudent for all adults to take vitamin
supplements.” It follows that those who eat well would not have to take as pow- erful a
vitamin supplement as those with a poor diet, which begs the question “How many
Americans eat well?” Since 1979, the US government has sponsored a continuing research
project
called Healthy People, which provides goals for the US to improve the health of its popu- la
tion in 10-year increments. According to “Healthy People 2010,” which
involved approximately 350 national organizations and 270 state agencies, only three
per- cent of Americans eat at least three servings of vegetables daily and only 28
percent eat two servings of fruit. Note that we don’t take the position that only those with
a poor diet need supple- ments, as this downplays the importance of eating well. Dr.
Robert A. Rakowski, a clinical nutritionist and the clinic director of the Natural Medicine
Center in Hous- ton, Texas, says, “Taking supplements in the absence of a good diet is still
a poor diet with supplements.” Our opinion is that the initial goals regarding nutrition
should be to improve our diets and to use supplements to ensure we are receiving the
essential nutrients. After that, we can start looking at all the performance and other health
benefits of targeted supplementation. These benefits include improving workout
recovery, countering the effects of environmental toxins, accelerating fat loss and
lowering the risk of coronary heart disease. Going further, here are 10 specific reasons
to take supplements.

Reason #1: Insufficient nutrients in our food. We can’t get all the essential nutrients we
need from food alone. Of course, nature intended our food supply to provide us with the
nutrients we need – and those nutrients were sufficient in our food of 100 years ago. But
our food today is highly processed, genetically modified an

prepared in a way that often destroys much of the nutritional content. According to Dr.
Rakowski, our farm industry’s fertilizers often contain only nitrogen, phos- phorus, and
potassium: “It takes 17 elements to make a healthy plant, and we only put three back in.
So what happens is this malnutrition in the plants becomes malnutrition in the animals and
becomes malnutrition in humans.”

Reason #2: Poor digestion. If our digestive systems functioned optimally, we wouldn’t
need as many high-quality nutrients in supplement form – but that is not the case. It is
estimated that one-half of the US population produces insufficient stomach acid, which
diminishes the ability to absorb nutrients from food and can increase inflammation,
stomach bacteria and numerous other health issues such as bloating, stomach pain and
even depression.

Reason #3: Poor food preparation. When you cook food improperly you risk reduc- ing its
nutritional value. Also, many foods that are used in fast-food restaurants are highly
processed. For example, the processing that converts brown rice into white rice reduces
the fiber content by about 75 percent and also reduces nutrients such as iron, niacin,
thiamin, folacin, potassium and vitamins E and B6.

Reason #4: Environmental toxins. The US Environmental Protection Agency pub- lished a
report in 2002 that said more than 7.1 billion pounds of 650 different chemicals had been
released into the air or water – and 266 of these chemicals are associated with birth
defects. For more than years Dr. Mark Schauss, MBA, DB, has extensively studied medical
research concerning the effects of toxins on our health. Says Schauss, “In a study by an
environmental group on people not work- ing in industry, such as teachers and journalists,
the researchers found that the blood of the subjects contained nearly 100 chemicals that
did not exist 40 years ago.” Fortunately, many of these pollutants can be detoxified by
natural supple- ments such as glycine, vitamin C, selenium, and N-acetylcysteine.

Reason #5: Obesity. In a study published in the July 2004 International Journal of Obesity, r
esearchers found that when rats are exposed to toxins, their body temper- ature drops.
Schauss says that such hypothermia may be a protective response to reduce the effects of
toxins. As for human body temperature, there is a debate with- in the American Medical
Association about redefining the average healthy body temperature, reducing it from 98.6
degrees Fahrenheit to 98.0 degrees. It’s not be- cause 98.0 degrees is healthier but
because fewer patients coming in for doctor’s visits have a temperature of
98.6. In his book Victory over a Toxic World, Schauss says that the chemical load in a toxic
person may impair their ability to burn calories by about seven percent. Using the example
of someone who normally consumes 2,500 calories a day, the lower metabolic rate would
create 47,815 extra calories in one year. “Typically, if you burn 3,500 calories you lose one
pound,” says Schauss. “Take those 47,815 calories and divide this by 3,500 and you get
13.66 pounds worth of weight gain a year. Do that for 10 years and you have increased
your weight by 136.6 pounds, and you are now officially obese.” It’s estimated that 50
percent of the population in the US is overweight or obese and at current rates that
percentage will increase to 75 percent by 2015. Using sup- plements for detoxification is
one way to combat the growing obesity problem.

Reason #6: Insomnia and stress. The National Center for Sleep Disorders Research reports
that the symptoms of insomnia affect between 30 and 40 percent of adults, and that 10 to
15 percent of adults say they have chronic insomnia. Insomnia has many adverse effects on
our health; for example, a survey of 1.1 million Americans by the American Cancer Society
found that those who slept less than six hours per night had significantly higher mortality
rates than those who slept approximately seven hours per night.

There are many supplements that can help ensure a good night’s sleep. For those who
have a hard time falling asleep due to anxiety, phosphatidylserine can lower cortisol, a
hormone associated with stress. For those who have trouble staying asleep, magnesium
sulfate and vitamin E supplements may help.

Reason #7: Hormone imbalances. Although both testosterone and estrogen are present in
both males and females, estrogen is considered the female hormone and testosterone the
male hormone. A decrease in testosterone makes it difficult for men to gain muscle mass,
and an excess of estrogen makes it difficult for both men and women to lose fat once it is
acquired. But there are many other hormone imbalances that can affect body fat
storage. BioSignature Modulation teaches that many individuals have stubborn
problem areas due to imbalances in their body biochemistry, especially with
hormones. During a BioSignature assessment, skinfold measurements are taken in 12
major body fat sites. If the triceps carry a relatively high percentage of fat, this would
indi- cate a problem with androgens; if fat content in the upper-back skinfold is high, there
may be a problem with insulin. By identifying which hormones are causing the fat
imbalance, a precise supplement protocol can be prescribed to restore the hormone
balance so the individual can lose the excess body fat.
 Reason #8: Weight loss programs. When people cut calories to lose weight, they also
reduce the amount of nutrients they consume and they may become nutrient deficient.
Also, as people lose weight, often their protein requirements increase, as the body will
start relying on protein as an energy source. Using a protein supple- ment will enable the
dieter to avoid muscle loss, prevent hunger and also stabilize blood glucose. Further, a
supplement can provide the extra protein without adding additional calories from
carbohydrates or fat.

Reason #9: Quality of life. There are many nutrients that can improve our quality of life.
One such nutrient is resveratrol (discovered in 1939), which is a compound found in plants
that ensure healthy plant development by protecting plants from fungi and bacteria. In
humans, the properties of resveratrol include the following: raises metabolism, increases
energy, suppresses appetite, stabilizes blood sugar, accelerates the breakdown of fat
stores, improves insulin sensitivity and carbo- hydrate metabolism, reduces inflammation,
increases muscle mass, suppresses estrogen and protects the stomach lining. Among the
most common sources of resveratrol are red grapes, peanuts, pista- chios, blueberries,
cranberries, huckleberries, raspberries, lingonberries and mul- berries; it can also be found
in dark chocolate. However, it is difficult to get the dosages of resveratrol you would need
from food or wine – in fact, you would need to consume at least 1,000 bottles of red wine a
day to duplicate the dosages given to mice in some resveratrol studies. A resveratrol
supplement would be the only practical alternative.
Reason #10: Athletic performance. Supplements help athletes achieve physical su- periorit
y over their competitors. Particularly valuable are the amino acids leucine, isoleucine, and
valine, which are collectively known as branched chained amino acids (BCAAs). Unlike
other amino acids, BCAAs are used as a form of energy by muscle cells and can be used
during training to increase the quality of the workout. BCAAs have numerous other
benefits for athletes, including modifying hormone profiles to increase muscle mass and
strength while reducing body fat. BCAAs also can help reduce post-workout muscle
soreness. There you have it: 10 good reasons we need to take supplements. Now on to
the next discussion: peri-workout nutrition.

The Science of Peri-Workout Nutrition In the early days of muscle building, bodybuilders
and others using weight training to build mass were primarily concerned with what
supplements they took after a workout. Often many took none, believing that just a
protein shake would suffice. That may have been better than nothing, but to achieve the
best results from hard workouts, trainees should consider the concept of peri-workout
nutrition, which is a term that describes what nutrients you consume before, during and
after a work- out.

Before Training A pre-workout supplement should contain specific nutrients to prepare

your body’s biochemistry for the demands of intense training. This formula will improve
and sustain energy, decrease oxidative stress, improve focus, increase hydration
and electrolyte balance, maintain proper pH levels and provide essential micronu- trients.
Let’s take a closer look at these nutrients.
 Electrolytes. Electrolytes are salts that when dissolved in water split into molecules called
ions. The most common electrolyte in your body is sodium chloride, or table salt. Ions allow
electrical impulses to travel throughout the body. Among many other functions, these
electrical impulses enable your muscles to contract; in fact, if your diet did not contain
electrolytes, your heart would stop. Sodium is an electrolyte that controls how much water
is present outside the cells, whereas potassium is an electrolyte that controls how much
water is present inside the cells. Of course, water is necessary for hydration to occur, but if
the electrolyte concentrations are not balanced the water you consume may be quickly
excreted out of the body. There are many commercial sports drinks that contain
electrolytes. Unfortunately,

the most popular ones also contain a high amount of calories, often in the form of high
fructose corn syrup, and chemical additives that leave the body dehydrated and
metabolically imbalanced. Decreased gastric emptying associated with high- intensity
exercise can be further reduced by the consumption of these hypertonic carbohydrate
beverages, leading to a host of metabolic problems.

Magnesium. Magnesium is the fourth most abundant mineral found in the body and is
involved in hundreds of biochemical reactions that dictate optimal meta- bolic function,
including energy production, cardiovascular regulation, and exer- cise performance.
Approximately 66 percent of magnesium is found in bone, with 33 percent in skeletal and
cardiac muscle. Research reports that the content of magnesium in our foods has
significantly decreased over the past few decades, and approximately 75 percent of
Americans are deficient in this essential mineral. For these reasons, dietary
supplementation with magnesium should positively influence athletic performance.
 Adenosine triphosphate and D-Ribose. Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is the pri- mary
source of energy for the cells. The amount of ATP stored in the muscle that is available for
immediate use during exercise is extremely limited. However, D- Ribose is a simple sugar
that helps replenish ATP stores and serves as the biochemical backbone for RNA
(ribonucleic acid), which is essential for genetic transcription. The availability of ribose in
the muscle is a limiting factor for the rate of ATP resynthesis. Studies have reported
benefits to performance when using ri- bose supplementation.

Tyrosine. Increased brain dopamine availability appears to be a major factor in pro- longed
exercise tolerance in the heat. Tyrosine is an amino acid made from phenyl- alanine.
Tyrosine supports catecholamine synthesis (dopamine, epinephrine, norepinephrine) and
also helps regulate thyroid hormones that are essential for

metabolic and thermal regulation. Oral L-tyrosine administration is also reported to be

associated with increased constant-load, submaximal exercise capacity in the heat.

Creatine. Creatine is stored primarily in skeletal muscle and is converted to phos- phocrea
tine, which is used to create ATP and thus energy for high-intensity muscle contraction.
Chronic supplementation with creatine monohydrate has been shown to promote
increases in total intramuscular creatine, phosphocreatine, skeletal muscle mass, lean
body mass and muscle fiber size. Creatine can also act as an antioxidant, which was
demonstrated by a decrease in oxidative stress markers in a study of creatine use in
resistance exercise. Supple- mentation with a magnesium-creatine chelate has
demonstrated improved perfor- mance, body mass, peak power, and intracellular water,
with less muscle soreness, compared to creatine monohydrate and placebo.

L-carnitine. The amino acid L-carnitine has many functions, including supporting heart
function, fat metabolism, energy production, neurotransmitter activity, and pH
regulation/intracellular acidosis.

Pantothenic acid. Pantothenic acid (Vitamin B2) has been reported to reduce blood lactat
e concentration.
 Vitamin C. Exercise leads to the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) via several
sources in the skeletal muscle. During exercise, the mitochondrial electron transport chain
in the muscle cells produces ROS, along with an elevation in oxy- gen consumption, leading
to increased oxidative stress on proteins and their func- tional ability. Vitamin C
supplementation in athletes has been shown to reduce blood markers of oxidative stress
and protect proteins from oxidative damage.

Choline. Choline plays a major role in many physiological and biochemical path- ways,
including neurotransmitter synthesis (acetylcholine), cell-membrane sig- naling
(phospholipids), lipid transport (lipoproteins), and in improving methy- lation reactions
(reduction of homocysteine). Strenuous and prolonged exercise can lead to stress on
several of these metabolic pathways, increasing the need for choline.

During Training Before a workout or athletic event, you want to consume substances to
increase your focus and energy level. As you train or compete, however, you want a
product that will sustain your energy level and electrolyte balance. As such, the first
ingre- dient in an intra workout drink should be electrolytes. Now let’s look at energy.

BCAAs. Protein is broken down into organic compounds called amino acids. A pro- tein is c
onsidered complete when it has the appropriate quantities of amino acids for optimal
absorption. Leucine, isoleucine and valine are essential amino acids that belong to what
is known as branch chain amino acids (BCAAs). In contrast to other amino acids that are
broken down by the liver, BCAAs can be broken down by the muscles and be used as an
immediate energy source to help prevent fatigue. For athletes who are trying to build
muscle, these amino acids are especially important because they compose about one-third
of the body’s skeletal muscle. Research shows that BCAAs can also help build muscle and
strength. In an Italian study involving natural bodybuilders, researchers found that taking
0.2 grams of BCAAs per 2.2 pounds (1 kilo) of bodyweight 30 minutes before workouts and
30 minutes after workouts resulted in greater increases in lean body mass and strength in
the bench press and squat.

BCAAs have been shown to reduce muscle soreness in both trained and
untrained individuals, prolong endurance performance in the heat, and help maintain
mental functioning during training and competition. For football players, BCAAs would
be especially valuable during two-a-days. Likewise, athletes who practice for
excep- tionally long periods, such as gymnasts whose workouts might last as long as
five hours in a single day, could improve the overall quality of their training with BCAAs.

Beta alanine. Beta alanine is a nonessential amino that helps athletes gain strength, incre
ase muscle mass, and lose bodyfat. Let’s look at some
research. A study on beta alanine published in the July 2011 issue of the Journal of Strengt
h and Conditioning Research involved 22 collegiate wrestlers and 15 collegiate football pla
yers. These sports require high levels of anaerobic power as they are charac- terized by
having bouts of high-intensity (75-100 percent effort) with short (5-45 seconds) rest
periods. The study lasted eight weeks, and the time period was the early season for the
wrestlers and the in-season for the football players. It’s important to consider that this
type of study is known as “double-blind, place- bo-con-trolled.” More specifically,
approximately half of the wrestlers and half of the football players were given a beta
alanine supplement while the others were given a placebo. The results were
remarkable. For the wrestlers, those taking beta alanine increased their lean mass by an
average of 1.1 pounds whereas the control group lost lean mass. For the football players, t
he beta alanine group gained an average of 2.1 pounds of lean mass to an average of 1.1
pounds for the control. Further, the beta alanine group experienced no changes in the
bodyfat levels whereas the control group gained an average of .8 percent bodyfat.

After Training Although protein powders may seem like a relatively new athletic
performance product, its beginnings can be traced to the Mongols and their powerful
leader Genghis Kahn. The Mongols would evaporate milk by allowing it to dry in the
sun, and would reportedly take the chalklike substance with them on long journeys
of conquest. This powder was a great idea because milk contains protein, and
protein helps to build and maintain muscle. Protein powders have evolved
considerably since then. In 1802 Russian doctor Osip Krichevsky introduced an efficient
process for pro- ducing dried milk. Today powdered milk is usually created by a process
known as spray drying, which involves rapidly dying milk with hot gas. It is a process that
is used for many other types of foods and also pharmaceuticals. With powdered milk there
is little risk of bacterial contamination because of the lack of moisture, and as such the
bacteria will not have an environment to grow. This means they can be stored without
refrigeration. A major advantage of protein powders is that they are convenient. In a
world where everyone is overwhelmed with a busy life, it often becomes difficult to find the
time to prepare high-protein meals of fish, lean meats, and eggs.

Just mix the powder with water, juice or milk, and you’re good to go. Also, it gives precise
control over your nutrition. If you just want protein and minimal amounts of fat or
carbohy- drates, a protein powder is the answer. The biggest boost to protein powders
came from bodybuilders seeking an effective way to increase their protein intake without
consuming large amounts of food. The most popular type of protein today is whey, which
is made from milk. Whey protein is water-soluble and as such is quickly digested in the
body and less likely to cause digestive issues. Another type of protein powder made from
milk is called casein,

but it is much harder to digest and with many individuals can cause gas, bloating and even
diarrhea. This is one reason the popular recommendation of drinking chocolate milk as a
post-workout drink is not a good idea for many athletes. How much protein does an
athlete need? The Institute of Medicine recommends a minimum protein intake of 0.85
grams of protein per kilogram (2.2 pounds) of bodyweight for those who exercise. That’s
conservative, especially if an athlete
is trying to lose fat while building muscle. A review published in 2011 in the Journal of Spor
ts Sciences found that protein consumption as high as 2 grams per 2.2 pounds (1 kilo) of
bodyweight may be necessary “…in preventing lean mass losses during periods of energy
restriction to promote fat loss.” A three-ounce steak has about 21 grams of protein and an
egg about six grams. It can be difficult for many athletes to consume enough protein from
food, which is why supplementing with a protein drink is a good idea. Having a protein
drink is a good first step to sound sports nutrition, but for opti- mal recovery, a post-
workout drink needs more than just protein. It also needs carbs. When you train, your
muscles use a stored form of carbohydrates called glycogen for energy. The best type of
carbohydrate post-workout is dextrose because it is rapidly digested, making it ideal for
replenishing glycogen. Using fructose in a post-workout formula is not only less effective
but also is often associated with digestive issues such as belching and flatulence. Taking a
post-workout recovery formula to the next level is to add specific vitamins and minerals, as
these substances can be depleted during exercise.

For example,
a study published in January 1976 in Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism found that vitami
n B2 is an antioxidant that may improve neuromuscular function and

recovery. Another important substance to look for in a post-workout recovery formula is

glu- tamine, an amino acid that is depleted during exercise – in fact, 60 percent of
the body’s glutamine is stored in skeletal muscle. Glutamine is especially popular in post-
workout formula because it helps protect GI integrity, among its many
other functions. Certainly many great athletes became great without ever consuming
protein pow- ders or post-workout formulas, but this is more of a case of achieving success
de- spite mediocre nutritional practices rather than because of it. If you’re looking for an
edge, follow the lead of Genghis Kahn and take a closer look at sports nutrition.
Glossary

Abadjiev, Ivan: former head coach of the Bulgarian National Weightlifting Team whose
training methods revolutionized the sport

Active release technique: a soft-tissue treatment created by Dr. Michael Leahy

Agonists and Antagonists: the agonist is the muscle that causes the primary move- ment;
the opposing muscle, the antagonist, is relaxed during this movement

Alexeev, Vasily: a Russian weightlifter who broke 80 world records and was the first man
to clean and jerk 500 pounds

Concentric Contraction: the type of contraction in which a muscle shortens, such as when
an individual curls a barbell to the shoulders; if X is used in the formula, it implies explosive
action with full acceleration

Cortisol: a hormone produced by the adrenal glands

Critical drop-off point: the point at which an individual experiences a 5-7 percent drop in
performance; at this time, the person should move to another exercise or body part

Cross-sensitization: the total effects of following a program that is more than an individual
’s combined systems can handle; effects include exhaustion and im- paired recovery

Cross-training: the concept that because individual sports each focus on certain muscles
more than on others, an athlete can achieve balanced muscle devel- opment and thereby
help avoid injuries
Circuit training: a training system introduced in 1953 by physiologists at the

University of Leeds in England to describe a system of integrating several compo- nents of

fitness into a single workout

Danney, Ian: a 180-pound bobsledder who could front squat 418 pounds for 2 reps and
who is now one of the most sought-after pro football strength coaches in the US

Descending Sets: a training method in which virtually no rest time is taken between weight
changes

Draper, Dave: famous 1970s bodybuilder, known as the Blond Bomber, who ap- peared on
television and in films

Eccentric Contraction: the type of contraction in which a muscle lengthens

Eder, Marvin: a bodybuilder with exceptional upper body strength who placed third in the
1951 AAU Mr. America

Functional isometric Contraction: a term coined from the combination of isomet- rics and
isotonics

German Body Comp program: a workout system characterized by short rest inter- vals and
multijoint movements to generate maximum growth-hormone production

German Volume Training: a workout that produces results from prolonged muscle tension
instead of high levels of muscle tension

Giant Set: three exercises for the same muscle group performed in sequence

Gironda, Vince: a bodybuilding trainer who was nicknamed “Trainer to the Stars” because
his clientele included many Hollywood celebrities; Gironda also trained Mr. Olympia Larry
Scott

Hackenschmidt, Georg Karl Julius: a Russian wrestler born in 1878 in Estonia known for his
physical conditioning

Insomnia: a general term describing the inability to sleep well

Isokinetic Equipment: exercise equipment that allows an individual to train at a spe- cific
speed
Isometric Pause: the isometric pause that usually occurs between the eccentric (lowering)
phase and the concentric (lifting) phase of a repetition, such as when a barbell makes
contact with the chest during the bench press

Kaizen Principle: an approach that advocates “constant and never-ending improve- ment”
(from the Japanese word Kaizen)

Klein, Karl K.: outspoken critic of the squat who suggested that squats decrease knee
stability, thus increasing the risk of injury to the joint

Magnesium: the fourth-most abundant mineral in the body; approximately 66 per- cent of
magnesium is found in bone and 33 percent in skeletal and cardiac muscle; it is involved in
300 essential biochemical reactions in the body

Medial Hamstrings: the semitendinosus and semimembranosus

Milo of Croton: a Greek wrestler who purportedly built his tremendous strength and
physique by carrying a calf every day until it was a full-grown bull

Neural-Metabolic Continuum: a graph showing the influence of muscle tension on the

nervous system

Olympic-style weightlifting: competition that consists of the snatch and the clean and jerk;
also known simply as weightlifting

Overload principle: the concept that a muscle will get bigger or stronger only if overload is
applied to it

Park, Reg: a former competitive bodybuilder who was the first bodybuilder to bench press
500 pounds

Peri-Workout Nutrition: supplements taken immediately before, during and after a worko
ut

Platz, Tom: former Mr. Olympia competitor known for his remarkable leg devel- opment

Plukfelder, Michael Rudolf: a Russian weightlifting coach who trained Olympic weightlifti
ng champions Vasily Alexeev and David Rigert
Post-Exhaustion Superset: type of superset in which an individual first performs a compou
nd exercise and then follows it with an isolation exercise that taps into the same motor
pool of the muscle receiving the focus

Pre-Exhaustion Superset: a muscle is first fatigued by a single-joint exercise and then

further exhausted by performing a multijoint exercise involving the same mus- cle group
and additional muscle groups

Principle of Individualization: the concept that the number of sets in a workout should be
individualized because each individual has a unique response to a given program

Rambie, Bala: Romanian exercise scientist who defected to West Germany and who discov
ered that the lactic acid pathway is better for fat loss than the commonly ac- cepted
aerobic pathway

Reeves, Steve: AAU Mr. America in 1947, 1950 Mr. Universe, film actor in Hercules films

Rep: a complete movement of an exercise, from start to finish

Relative Strength: ratio of strength to muscle mass

Repetition Maximum: the weight that can be lifted in an exercise for a single repe- tition;
also known as 1Rm

Rigert, David: a Russian weightlifter who set his first world record in 1971 and went on to
break 68 world records and win an olympic gold medal

Set: a single series of reps

Sheiko, Boris Ivanovich: an accomplished Russian powerlifting coach who pro- motes a
high-volume training system
Speed of Contraction: rate of movement of the implement or limb involved in any given
strength exercise; it is described or measured scientifically in terms of de- grees per second

Stabilizers and Fixators: terms that describe the function of muscles when they are used
to anchor a body part so that the prime movers have a stable base to pull or push from

Strength Curve: the natural strength curve is the amount of force a muscle can exert at
specific angles

Subcutaneous Fat: a type of fat located just below the outermost layer of skin; subcutaneo
us fat levels are tested with calipers or by pinching between the fingers

Supercompensation Effect: the body’s response to stress in which a decrease in an indivi

dual’s fitness preparedness is followed by a resistance phase that results in the body
adapting to a higher fitness state

Superset: a pairing of two different exercises for different muscle groups performed in
sequence; pairing agonist and antagonist muscle groups is the most common form of
superset

Tempo: total amount of time it takes to complete an entire repetition

Tempo Prescription: a four-digit abbreviation that describes the four types of mus- cular
contractions during a repetition, such as 4210

Time Under Tension (tut): the time it takes for a contracted muscle or muscle group to
complete a set

Training Frequency: the number of training sessions performed per week

Training Volume: the total number of repetitions completed in a given time frame

2 Percent Rule: a training approach in which an individual trains hard but comes back for
another workout only when the load can be increased by at least 2 percent
Viator, Casey: a teenager who worked with Nautilus inventor Arthur Jones and in 1971b
ecame the youngest person ever to win the prestigious amateur competition AAU Mr.
America

Visceral Fat: a type of fat that sits deep behind the abdominal wall and surrounds the
organs within the peritoneal cavity

Wave Loading: a training method in which an individual works up to a maximum weight

for a specific number of reps, backs down in weight for one or more sets,

and then works up to even heavier weights

Weil, Rick: former world record holder in the bench press who recommended one session
per week per muscle group

Yorton, Chet: a bodybuilder who was known for his symmetrical physique and de- feate
d Arnold Schwarzenegger in the 1966 NABBA Amateur Mr. Universe
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