big arms Archives - X-REP.COM

Simplify for Size: Back to Basics to Add Slabs of Muscle

Q: In one of your recent newsletters I noticed that you guys recommended using The Basic X-traordinary X-Rep Workout to an advanced trainee. Can someone who’s been training a while really make new gains with such an abbreviated basic program?

A: Absolutely! And the gains can be outstanding, especially after an extreme peaking cycle. When you’ve been training toward a peak day, like a competition, photoshoot, or any other specific goal, you bring yourself to the brink of overtraining—but that’s a good thing, and incredible things happen when you simplify for size… [Read more…]

Moment of Bodybuilding Zen 5: Sergio Oliva’s arm

This Art Zeller photo of Sergio Oliva taken in the ’60s is a true classic. Its motivational value is obvious. Can you imagine yourself out at a club playing pool with an arm like that hanging out of your polo shirt? Damn!

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One-Set Triple HIT for Shocking New Muscle Growth

Q: I’m into high-intensity training, doing one all-out work set per exercise. But I just read your 3D Muscle Building e-book and see the logic in Positions-of-Flexion mass training. Do you think I could combine the two and get good mass results doing one work set for each of the three positions for each bodypart? Like, for my quads, I would do squats (midrange), sissy squats (stretch), and leg extensions (contracted), one all-out set for each.

A: That’s an excellent way to get acquainted with the mass-building power of 3D POF. In fact, we’ve used a similar program over the winter years ago with good results. The only problem was that when motivation was low, which it can be when it’s cold outside, gains aren’t so great. To make that 3D triple HIT approach build muscle as quickly as possible, you have to be gung-ho and train every work set like it’s the last set of your life. Summer is probably a better time to lock in that mindset.

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Small Bones, Big Arms

Q: I’ve been training like a madman for six months, but my arms haven’t budged. I’m getting stronger, and I do see more veins on my biceps, but my arms are still skinny. A guy at the gym told me it’s because I have small bones. My wrists are under 7 inches around, and he said I can’t expect much size with small wrists. Is that true?

A: Um, in a word, NO. It’s not true. The size of your wrist has nothing to do with where your biceps and triceps attach, how much muscle-fiber density your muscles have, or your ability to pack on muscle mass.

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5-Minute Blasts for Fast Arm Mass

Q: Help! I need more arm mass, and I’m hoping to add about an inch quickly. I’m using the Direct/Indirect 4X Mass Workout [pages 30-32]. It has only one direct arm workout a week [on Wednesday with delts]. Can I add some extra arm work on Friday when I train chest and back again?

A: Absolutely, but you don’t want to do full arm workouts on Friday’s chest/back day. Instead, we’ve found a couple of quick-hit two-move combos that will do the trick to get your arm mass up so they’ll be looking huge and thick. [Read more…]

Arm Bomb to Get Your Freak On

Q: I’ve been using the POF Direct/Indirect Mass Workout in the 4X 2.0 e-book. Doing great! I’m loving it and I feel much bigger already. But my arms are my weakest muscle groups, so I’m thinking about doing a second arm workout on Saturday. That would have me training five days a week instead of four. Is that okay?

A: That’s a great program—and because you’re using moderate-weight, growth-threshold training, you can tolerate more frequent work for most bodyparts; however… [Read more…]

Best Moves for Big Arms

Q: I love [3D Positions of Flexion training]. It makes sense and has helped me bring up my chest and delts with fewer sets. My question is about biceps. For the contracted-position exercise, which is best: one-arm spider curls or concentration curls? Or are they about the same?

A: In the X-traordinary Arms e-book we explain the in-for-out/out-for-in principle. For biceps that means that to focus on the outer head for peak, you use an inner-grip exercise. Concentration curls are about as “in” as you can get… [Read more…]

Old School, New Muscle Arm Size

Q: I’m 55, so I appreciate that you have sections in Anabolic Reload and Stretch Overload for us old guys. My plan is to use the Pure-Positions Workout in Stretch Overload first for a few months, as it is slightly less traumatic. I like an all-isolation “contracted-position” day, all-midrange day, and an all-stretch day. My question is about no direct arm work on Wednesday, the all-midrange workout. I understand that the big exercises for chest and back train arms on that day, but my arms are a weak point. Can I add an exercise for bi’s and tri’s for more arm size?

A: Questions like this confirm our suspicions that many trainees get our ebooks and go right to the workouts—most don’t read the chapter text that goes with it… [Read more…]

Full Inch of New Arm Muscle in 3 Weeks

Q: You guys are awesome! Anabolic Reload put a half-inch on my arms in less than a month. My arms have always lagged, so I’m blown away. I hit each muscle twice a week with about 12 sets. I didn’t want to reduce my sets on all, so I just did [STX] for arms. I started with the high-rep set followed by a heavy set, then I added a rest/pause every arm workout like the program says. My sleeves got tight almost immediately. Just want to thank you for getting my puny arms up bigger than they’ve ever been. I plan on trying this for each muscle through the winter. [Read more…]

Big Arms, Veins, and Muscle Gains

Q: I notice you guys never really mention doing dips for triceps. I know Mike Mentzer said that the parallel bar dip is one of the best triceps exercises—and he had some big arms with some of the biggest, most vascular tri’s I’ve ever seen from the “moderate-steroid era.” Do you consider dips a good triceps move?

A: Dips can work well as a compound, or midrange, exercise for triceps—in place of close-grip bench presses, for example… [Read more…]