In last Monday’s newsletter, I had a quote from Mike Mentzer on how steroids significantly enhance recovery for faster muscle growth…
Most bodybuilders who gain on volume workouts are on drugs…
He said that’s why brief, high-intensity training is the best way to grow for natural bodybuilders—low volume with max effort and full recovery between workouts.
I chimed in with how the Old Man, Young Muscle workout is a step up because, while it is high-intensity, it also emphasizes the ideal exercises (Mentzer never mentioned biomechanics).
And—here’s where I misspoke—that the slow-twitch exhaustion (STX) method and Speed Sets “reduce” muscle damage while amplifying fast-twitch fiber activation in only a few sets…
They don’t reduce damage; they help minimize it as compared to standard training…
You get less damage because you don’t hammer your joints with heavy weights and you do half of your sets with 1.5-second reps….
Those Speed Sets activate fast-twitch fibers from the very first rep and minimize damage due to faster negative strokes.
Slow negatives on every rep don’t do a lot for growth stimulation; however, slow negatives do produce most of the damage from on a standard set…
By minimizing “garbage-negative trauma,” you preserve more recovery ability for more hypertrophy.
I feel better clearing that up. I’m forcing myself to do a 50-rep set of calf raises to failure as punishment.
Your Efficient Mass-Building Handbook: For complete mass workouts that include Speed Sets, the ideal exercise for each muscle, and the best stretch and contracted add-on moves, get your copy of 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
X-Rep.com
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The “New” Perfect Physique
You’ve probably believed that women go crazy over huge muscles. You’ve probably even aspired to look like Arnold at some point.
The picture of the perfect physique seems to have changed over the years…
There were several years when it seemed women preferred a leaner and smaller physique like Brad Pitt’s in Fight Club.
Luckily, that seems to have just been a fad, and a more muscular look has become more desired again. Not pro bodybuilder big, but something in between with good muscularity and chiseled detail…
Alain Gonzales refers to it as the “Athletic-Aesthetic” physique, and women go wild over it.
Check out Alain’s 12-week program here:
Build The Perfect “Athletic-Aesthetic” Physique