I bring up the word “efficiency” a lot. That’s because time is precious, especially when you get old. I try not to waste it because, well, you never know when…let’s not go there…
Unfortunately, I feel as if I’ve squandered a lot of time in the gym over the years. Why? Primarily because I never quite wrapped my head around what each muscle does and how best to train them for growth…
Doug Brignole, Mr. America and Mr. Universe winner, opened my eyes. His biomechanics knowledge and analysis of how muscles function changed the way I train—and gain…
Sure, all of my workouts over the decades have been learning experiences—and I did manage to build in some efficiency along the way…
I trained hard, but there were plenty of missteps, like choosing the wrong exercises and trying to use joint-busting poundages, a combination that usually resulted in injuries, missed workouts and, of course, less muscle stimulation…
Oh, look, here’s one…
And therein lies mistake #1: Not emphasizing the ideal exercise for each muscle.
Now I don’t think those ideal moves are the be all end all for building mass. If you’ve read Old Man, Young Muscle, you know that I add on an exercise or two with specific purposes…
Studies show everything from triggering unique muscle-fiber recruitment order to hypertrophic occlusion to anabolic hormone release to stretch-overload growth activation.
And that’s mistake number 2: Not knowing why you’re doing a specific exercise.
Is the move you’ve chosen to emphasize maximum fiber recruitment? Or is it one you should do after the ideal exercise to get stretch overload or continuous tension for blood/lactic acid accumulation?
Of course, there are other mistakes: not varying your rep range—high reps and low reps have different mass-building effects; using sloppy form—although “speed” reps can trigger unique hypertrophy (see the new ebook).
But the above errors are two big ones…
It may be a cliché to say, but I wish I had my current muscle-building knowledge back in my younger days. That’s when I had better recovery, more testosterone, and a higher capacity for growth—not to mention no droopy boob skin.
New: Get the ideal exercise for each muscle, the best add-on moves for ultimate mass, complete 35-minute workouts, exercise start/finish photos, and details on building muscle fast and efficiently in Old Man, Young Muscle.
And you still get The Muscle-On, Belly-Gone “Diet” ebook FREE for a limited time when you add Old Man, Young Muscle to your mass-building library. Go HERE.
Till next time, train hard—and smart—for BIG results.
Steve Holman
Former Editor in Chief, Iron Man Magazine
www.X-Rep.com
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