Q: In your early e-books, like The Ultimate Mass Workout, you say that generating maximum force is the key to muscle mass. To me, it doesn’t seem like you ever exert max force with 4X training because you are using moderate weights. Do you still think creating maximum force is the way to build the most mass?
A: Yes, we believe force is one of the big keys to packing on muscle mass—but there’s more than one way to get enough…
Most would agree that using heavy poundages for around eight reps can generate enough force to trigger mass increases. Add end-of-set X-Rep partials at the semi-stretch position, and you get even more force output and fiber activation…
Another way to get enough mass-building force is through cumulative measures—as with 4X. In other words, even though the early sets in a 4X sequence aren’t to exhaustion and you use moderate poundages, many fast-twitch growth fibers are still firing with all-out force…
Remember, for 4X you take a weight with which you can get 15 reps, but you only do 10; rest 30 seconds, then do it again. The third and fourth sets will be tough—generating the most force/fiber activation—and if you get 10 on your last set, add a little weight to that exercise at your next workout…
On every one of those sets, you will have fibers firing all out. That’s due to the all-or-none principle, which states that a muscle fiber fires completely or not at all. So when you take a weight with which you can get 15 reps, but you only do 10 on that first set, you are still firing a number of fibers completely and thoroughly. Now you rest for 30 seconds and then do it again. The next set will fire a number of those same fibers from set 1, but bring in more to get you to 10 reps—and so on over four sets…
A top pro bodybuilder who trained with an approach similar to 4X is Danny Padilla. He said that he thought of each set as knocking off soldiers as it progressed, and each set knocked off more soldiers, or growth fibers. It worked for him…
He usually “knocked off soldiers” over six sets with the same weight. We like four because that seems to allow a heavy enough poundage to provide the best balance of power and density mass stimulation. With six sets the weight is lighter and emphasizes density (not a bad thing, just different).
We have found that using a 4X sequence on each of the 3 Positions-of-Flexion exercises is a complete full-range mass-building workout for any bodypart. For example, for triceps, it’s lying extensions (midrange), overhead extension (stretch), and pushdowns (contracted). If you do a 4X sequence for each exercise, your triceps workout will take less than 15 minutes—and the pump and growth ache will be off the charts! (There are complete POF 4X routines in the 4X Mass Workout e-book.)
As for end-of-set X-Rep partials, you can still add them to the fourth set of a 4X sequence at exhaustion—if you can stand the pain. They will increase force and maximize your gains!
Note: For more on 4X training, Danny Padilla, Bodybuilder X, and others who have used similar mass-building programs, see The X-traordinary 4X Mass Workout. For more on max force and to learn the ultimate exercise for every body part, see The Ultimate Mass Workout.
Till next time, train hard—and smart—for BIG results.
—Steve Holman and Jonathan Lawson
www.X-Rep.com
Use This Cardio Trick…
To BOOST Testosterone!
If you want to build muscle (who doesn’t?) and ramp up your testosterone levels while burning a ton of fat at the same time, you need to try this workout if you haven’t already…
–> Use this cutting-edge cardio trick to boost testosterone and muscle growth
Note: This is NOT traditional HIIT or boring steady-state cardio