Q: I’m getting some wicked pumps with Pre-Ex 3X. But I’ve been reading about your high-tension-time training methods. Do you think using higher reps on the pre-ex exercises is a good idea so I get 60 to 90 seconds of tension time?
A: Interesting idea. Optimal hypertrophic tension time is said to be 40 to 60 seconds, and many researchers extend that to 90 seconds. Most bodybuilders do sets that last only around 20 seconds…
Those shorter tension times are more for strength building and could be the very reason mass gains are so slow for most—they’re not getting to the optimal size-building time zone.
One way around that is supersets. If you do two exercises back to back, 20 seconds each, that’s 40 seconds of tension time. Bam, you’ve hit the hypertrophic sweet spot.
It’s one reason Pre-Ex 3X works so well to pack on mass—plus, it eliminates the weak-link muscle from stifling growth stimulation. For example, stiff-arm pulldowns supersetted with pulldowns…
The first exercise pre-fatigues your lats without involving your smaller biceps. Then when you do pulldowns immediately after, your biceps and lats are more equal in strength, so your bi’s push your lats past the growth threshold…
On the other hand, when you do pulldowns first, your smaller biceps give out first, before your bigger, more powerful lats. That means your lats get cheated out of growth stimulation. They want more, but your biceps crap out early. Pre-ex solves that…
As for tension time, 20 seconds on each set is fine—because 20 plus 20 is 40 seconds. But what if you want to get up into the high-end hypertrophic zone, 60 to 90 seconds? We suggest one of our favorite fat-to-muscle tactics: X-centric training…
Do your stiff-arm pulldowns in standard style, then when you move to pulldowns, use a slightly lighter weight than usual and pull down in one second, but take a full six seconds on the negative stroke. If you get 7 negative-accentuated reps, that’s 49 seconds on pulldowns. Add that to the 20 on your first exercise, and you have 69 seconds of tension time…
You pushed—or pulled, in this case—into the high-end hypertrophy zone. Plus, you get some unique growth stimulation with the X-centric sets. The slow negative triggers more trauma in the myofibrils, the actin and myosin strands. That will cause them to grow thicker via remodeling…
Bonus: Pre-Ex plus X-centric training also helps you get LEANER. As those microtears repair over the next few days, your metabolism is jacked—and most of the process is fueled by body fat. So as your muscles rebuild, you get leaner. Nice!
Another lean-machine accelerator: The higher tension-time combo produces more muscle burn, which has been shown to cause growth hormone to churn. GH helps amplify other anabolic hormones and is also a potent FAT BURNER…
Pre-Ex + X-centric is a combo to grow—and will help get your abs to show.
Click either of the covers below for more info on each e-book (both include alternate, easy-to-follow home-gym training routines, too).
Till next time, train hard—and smart—for BIG results.
—Steve Holman and Jonathan Lawson
www.X-Rep.com
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