Q: At 52, Old Man Young Muscle workout has been a godsend for me. I’m bigger and stronger, and all of my aches and pains from the ego lifting I did in my youth are almost completely gone. My question is, I’m to the point where I get 25 reps on free-hand sissy squats. Do you use a weight vest to increase resistance? What do you suggest? [Read more…]
The Ultimate Quad-Mass Workout (no barbell squats)
You saw a couple of examples of the new Postions-of-Flexion mass method applied to chest—without barbell bench presses, which are inefficient…
Remember, the new POF is no longer midrange + stretch + contracted; it’s now the ideal exercise + the missing positions. [Read more…]
Barbell Squats Suck for Max Thigh Size
Most bodybuilders believe that they have to prioritize barbell squats for the best and fastest thigh development. Not true…
In fact, the barbell squat is inferior to some other more biomechanically correct exercises, which trigger maximum loading and growth stimulation in all the muscles of the front thigh. [Read more…]
New 6-minute Quad Workout
Q: I tried your updated version of Mike Mentzer’s quad workout. Took less than six minutes. Great, but I don’t have a machine to end with cable squats. I did barbell squats after my two sets of sissies instead. Is that my best home-gym option? I have a squat rack. [Read more…]
Mentzer’s High Intensity: Right or Wrong? Part 5
Yesterday I mentioned that Mentzer’s high-intensity workouts weren’t as efficient as they could’ve been due to not emphasizing the biomechanically ideal exercises as well as not applying the latest hypertrophy research (he died in 2001).
His methods could’ve been significantly better at stimulating mass with a few tweaks. Let’s review his go-to quad routine: [Read more…]
Cable Squats or Sissy Squats?
Q: I was wondering about Brignole squat [a.k.a. cable squat]. Do you think they are as good or better than sissy squats for quad mass? [Read more…]
Moment of Bodybuilding Zen 206: Mike Mentzer’s Hoedown Pose
This was one of Mike Mentzer’s signature poses, one leg out in front to highlight the sartorius, the rope-like muscle running down his thigh. [Read more…]
Mass-Machine Leg Training, Part 2
After dinner, my daughter and her fiancé followed me back into my home gym… [Read more…]
Mass-Machine Leg Training, Part 1
My daughter and her firefighter husband-to-be were over again, grilling me about my training and theirs… [Read more…]
Limited-Equipment Supersets for Leg Mass
Yesterday I went over an upper-body workout in a bare-bones home gym using Doug “Mr. Universe” Brignole’s superset method.
Keep in mind that Doug usually performs four supersets, or rounds, of two exercises back to back, with reps falling like this: 30, 20, 15, 10. [Read more…]