I mentioned how getting back in touch with former Mr. America Doug Brignole transformed my outlook on training as well as my physique…
Doug recently won the 2019 AAU Drug-Free Mr. Universe at age 62. Here’s a shot from that contest (photo Lance Kincaid)…
That’s a feat worthy of praise, but even more incredible…
He did it using only a handful of “ideal” exercises. Through his research, he discovered these to be the best—biomechanically precise for triggering optimal hypertrophy in each target muscle…
Those “ideal” exercises did not include back squats, overhead presses or rows, to name a few of the bodybuilding staples he found to be inefficient when analyzed through the lens of physics.
But wait! Aren’t those the big basics everyone who wants the most mass should be doing? Not necessarily—at least, those are moves you should NOT be emphasizing for target-muscle size…
Take the overhead press, for example. If you want to look wide, you must focus on the head at the side, the medial.
But overhead presses only stress the side head moderately, forcing the front heads to get the most work. But even worse, driving your arms overhead impinges the shoulder joint on every rep. Not good…
It’s why so many bodybuilders have shoulder problems and often have to have surgery to repair the shoulder capsule. Heck, my right shoulder still clicks with twinges of pain if I simulate an overhead press—even without weight in my hand…
So what’s the best shoulder builder?
Incline one-arm laterals (pic below). Why? You get an almost perfect line of force. Your side head works with an ideal direction of resistance—the target muscle pulling directly toward its origin at the collarbone. Also…
The resistance curve is ideal, with early phase loading at the stretch and resistance lessening at contraction. Muscles are strongest at stretch and weakest at contraction…
In other words, an ideal exercise should be harder near the stretch and easiest at contraction. Here’s a snapshot from page 14 of Old Man Young Muscle to help clarify…
In contrast, a standing lateral raise is giving you zero resistance at the bottom stretch and way too much at the top contraction.
The incline one-arm version is much better—dare I say perfect?
The ideal direction of resistance and the perfect resistance curve are but two of the factors that determine a biomechanically correct exercise….
My top-five factors, which I extracted from Doug’s 16, are explained in the new ebook. You’ll also see every ideal exercise for each target muscle, many of Brignole’s findings and my takeaways from his research…
Those conclusions and emphasizing each ideal exercise in my bare-bones home gym allowed me to muscle up my physique with only 35-minute workouts three days a week.
It’s exciting mass-building info that will change the way you train and gain—without joint pain—forever.
Till next time, train hard—and smart—for BIG results.
—Steve Holman and Jonathan Lawson
www.X-Rep.com
New Release…
For a limited time, you can get the brand-new Old Man, Young Muscle at 25% off (introductory price)
PLUS you’ll get the Muscle-On, Belly-Gone “Diet” ebook F-R-E-E
That’s a two-days-a-week, shred-your-physique eating plan that can recharge your anabolic environment, build more muscle, and melt body fat (see Steve’s photo on the cover).
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