We’ve been analyzing the indirect mass effect—how you get work for smaller muscles when you train larger ones, a good thing if you’re careful… [Read more…]
Mass Mantra #50
This quote is from Dr. James DiNicolantonio from his Instagram (@drjamesdinic)… [Read more…]
Indirect Mass Effect, Part 2
Yesterday I mentioned the indirect mass effect—how you get indirect work for smaller muscles when you train larger ones, a good thing if you’re careful… [Read more…]
Indirect Mass Effect, Part 1
In past newsletters, I’ve mentioned how you should be aware of and account for the indirect work smaller muscles get when you train larger ones… [Read more…]
Moment of Bodybuilding Zen 235: Arnold Gets Schooled
You can see the disappointment on Arnold’s face as he finds out that the Women’s Studies class is not what he imagined. Luckily, he attended the first class wearing pants… [Read more…]
Deload Week to Grow More Muscle
Q: You used to talk about taking a reload week after every four weeks of hard training. Do you still subscribe to that? I use the fifth week to do low-intensity workouts to insure full recovery, then I go back to intense ones for four more weeks. Works great. [Read more…]
Mass Mantra #49
This quote from respected hypertrophy researcher Chris Beardsley relates to yesterday’s newsletter on stretch- and contracted-position exercises… [Read more…]
Ideal-Exercise-Only Workout for the Most Mass?
Q: I just read your newsletter on Position-of-Flexion [ideal exercise plus stretch- and contracted-position exercises]. I thought the natural strength curve of muscles is hard at the stretch and then tailing off at contraction. Doug [Brignole] said the ideal exercise is all you need. If others were beneficial, wouldn’t he have said so? [Read more…]
Fewer Reps, More Mass?
Q: After my 20-rep set with a 1/3 tempo on the ideal exercise, I rest 20 seconds, then do a Speed Set (1.5-second reps) on that exercise. You say that you get 10 or fewer Speed Set reps, but I get 13, sometimes more. Should I cut my rest down to 10 seconds so I get fewer reps on my Speed Set? [Read more…]
Moment of Bodybuilding Zen 234: Arnold’s Porterhouse Pecs
Arnold’s Porterhouse pecs often had Joe Weider not only craving a juicy steak but also pondering the possibility of making millions marketing The Bro-ziere… [Read more…]