In the last training newsletter, I mentioned that most of the ideal exercises are isolation, or single-joint…
Starting body-part routines with them is not only safer but also more hypertrophic. What?
Am I crazy? Aren’t the mass moves—like barbell squats, bench presses, and rows—the best of the best?…
According to respected hypertrophy researcher Chris Beardsley…
When central motor command is sent to more muscles during exercise [as in compound, multi-joint moves], the level of motor unit recruitment in the target muscle is reduced. This likely occurs because the central motor command is limited by the corollary discharge that creates perceived effort in the brain. Sending central motor command to more muscles increases the total level of perceived effort for a given level of central motor command to the target muscle.
So the number of muscle fibers engaged in the target muscle during compound exercises is less than during isolation because your brain can’t focus and perceived effort is amplified…
Is that somewhat counterintuitive? You bet, since you can squat way more than you sissy squat. The sissies are far more isolated…
But isolation means that you can zero in on your quads only, not divide nerve force over multiple muscles. And sissies require little or no extra poundage…
Less coordination is required on the sissies as well, although if you’re not holding onto something, you may be startled by a loud cracking sound when your head hits the floor.
So as I said in the previous newsletter, more fiber recruitment is why you should do the isolated ideal exercise first. And if you can do it one limb at a time, you can get even more fiber recruitment (bi-lateral deficit, as explained in Old Man, Young Muscle).
In OMYM, you perform sissy squats. Then you move to more compound exercises, such as wall squats and/or dumbbell squats…
And if you love barbell squats, have at it—AFTER sissies. Just be careful and keep your form strict…
Remember, the muscle doesn’t know what weight you’re using, only the effort it has to expend.
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
www.X-Rep.com
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ANABOLIC HORMONE RESET SOLUTION
Yes, it is possible to simultaneously build muscle while losing fat…
The right form of intermittent fasting will help you gain more muscle while you burn fat…
That’s because it supercharges your anabolic environment, including testosterone and growth hormone production.
According to Dr. Michael Mosley, it results in “better metabolic adaptations, improved muscle-protein synthesis and a higher anabolic response to post-exercise feedings.” [J App Phys., Jan. 2011: 236-45]
Proper fasting will NOT have you burning muscle—just the opposite as your body fat decreases and your testosterone and growth hormone increase. [Webber, J., et al. (1994). Br J Nutr.]
Still on the fence? Our friend Shaun Hadsall used an approach similar to how The Rock does it, which is explained in the new 1-Day Hormone Reset protocol, developed specifically for the over-40 crowd (women use it too, as you’ll see). Check out his results at the link below…
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