Not many people knew that Bruce Lee was only 3’4”, which is why he was called “The Little Dragon.” You can see that in this photo. He is using his famous ear parry to divert the fist of a young Malcom X. [Read more…]
Super Split for Size and Strength
Q: I’m a big fan of your workouts and have purchased most of your e-books. Thanks for all the advice and keep up the inspiring work! I have a 15-year-old son who’s starting to get serious about lifting. He wants to play football, so he’s looking to improve his overall size and strength. Would you recommend your 4X Mass Workout for him? I’m trying to figure out which of your programs would be best for someone his age.
A: For football, your son will want to concentrate on building strength and power with size as an after-effect. The 4X Mass Workout is primarily for muscle mass with less of a strength emphasis… [Read more…]
Try These 3 Wicked Mass Tactics for New Size Now
Q: I like the idea of training quads by doing front squats supersetted with back squats. My quads get almost a pre-ex effect from the strict fronts, then my glutes get better leverage on the backs to drive my quads for more growth. But I’m not very strong on fronts and can get a lot of reps when I immediately go to back squats after. Should I just do high reps on the back squats—say 6 on the fronts and 12-15 on the backs?
A: Definitely an option—if you don’t get too breathless. When training quads with higher reps, the lungs often fail before the target muscles. That’s a problem, to a degree…
You do want the breathlessness, as that’s hypoxia that can boost metabolic/anabolic drive for new size. Here are a few other options…
[Read more…]Workout Density for Muscle Immensity
Q: I’ve been intrigued by your explanation of workout density being the reason your 10×10 program builds mass. Do you think that’s the reason drop sets are also so effective?
A: Workout density is Vince Gironda’s term to express getting more work done in a given time frame. For example, most trainees do a set, rest for two to three minutes, do another set, and so on. In 10 minutes you only do two or three sets…
[Read more…]Muscle-On, Fat-Off Eating—”Diet” Only 2 Days a Week
Q: I started cleaning up my diet shortly after New Year’s with your X-treme Lean Diet. I lost about 8 pounds of fat, but my losses have stalled. Should I reduce my portions again (I’ve done this twice already)? Or should I do more cardio? Any help would be appreciated. Abs and veins are the goals.
A: Fat loss is a long-term proposition if you want to retain as much muscle as possible. Losing two pounds a week is the most you should shoot for…
[Read more…]Try This Odd Mass Attack for Wide Delts and a Broad Back
One of Arnold’s favorite mass-building methods was antagonist-muscle supersets—chest/
Alternating two opposing muscle groups can do good things for anabolic drive, muscle stimulation, and even fat-burning metabolism. The problem is, it’s hard to superset in a crowded gym.
[Read more…]Anabolic Drive and 10X Muscle Mass
Q: The 10×10 method sounds great in a number of ways for building muscle size, but one concern I have is the lack of anabolic hormone stimulation. Aren’t heavy, low-rep sets best for that? Should I combine 10×10 with heavier workouts to get that essential anabolic environment for best gains?
A: While doing a number of heavy-weight, low-rep sets can contribute to anabolic drive and hormone release, it may not be the best or most-efficient route. According to a report from Jerry Brainum, three groups were compared, and all subject performed the squat: [Read more…]
Are squats destroying your knees? (quick-fix video)
In the Ultimate Mass Workout, the official X-Rep manual, we identify squatting-type moves as the best quad builders…
Plus, higher-rep squats have been shown to boost metabolic and anabolic drive, rapidly accelerating muscle gains—10 to 20 solid pounds in only a month. You get new growth all over, even in your arms and torso. [Read more…]
3 wicked mass tactics for new size (pain to gain)
Q: I like the idea of training quads by doing front squats supersetted with back squats. My quads get almost a pre-ex effect from the strict fronts, then my glutes get better leverage on the backs to drive my quads for more growth. But I’m not very strong on fronts and can get a lot of reps when I immediately go to back squats after. Should I just do high reps on the back squats—say 6 on the fronts and 12-15 on the backs? [Read more…]
Build Your Future Freak Physique Now
Q: Now that the weather has cooled down a bunch, I’m looking for a mass workout program for winter, to build as much size as possible. Then I’ll start to lean out in the early spring thaw. What type of program should I use? Big, basic power-bodybuilding routine or something like 4X Positions of Flexion? I can’t decide.
A: Winter is a long haul, so why not do both? A good place to start is with something like Jonathan’s Size Surge program—but you can do it with a few twists… [Read more…]