This quote from respected hypertrophy researcher Chris Beardsley relates to yesterday’s newsletter on stretch- and contracted-position exercises… [Read more…]
Occlusion and the Mass-Exercise Shuffle
In Old Man, Young Muscle I talk about mechanical tension as being one of the bigger mass triggers.
It’s basically providing the target muscle with enough resistance to elicit activation of fast-twitch growth fibers. [Read more…]
New View on HEAVY Loads for Mass
Mechanical tension, or mechanical loading, is resistance stress on the muscle fibers. It’s the big key to hypertrophy.
And for the purpose of muscle growth, we want mechanical loading that targets fast-twitch engagement. That occurs optimally with a cascade effect, activating slow-twitch fibers first followed by fast-twitch… [Read more…]
Moment of Bodybuilding Zen 110: Arnold Vs. Son Posedown
Check out Arnold in his prime below compared to his son Joseph, early 20s, hitting a double biceps pose. The resemblance is uncanny. Are genetics important in bodybuilding? Absolutely, as is the case in most sports. [Read more…]
Moment of Bodybuilding Zen 56: Arnold at Age 19
This photo of Arnold at age 19 from his book Education of a Bodybuilder, shows his incredible genetics: chest structure, long biceps, wide shoulders/small waist. [Read more…]
Moment of Bodybuilding Zen 48: Bob Paris Before and After
The last time we talked about Bob Paris was Zen 29, but we revisit because his physique always inspires us. [Read more…]
Moment of Bodybuilding Zen 41: Shawn Ray
Shawn Ray is often referred to as the uncrowned Mr. Olympia, taking second in that contest twice: ’94 and ’96. His physique was almost flawless as this classic pose shows… [Read more…]
Moment of Bodybuilding Zen 37: Frank Zane’s Perfection Progression
In our Zen 33 newsletter, we had before and after pictures of Frank Zane. We found a few others in our archive that show his progression from skinny teen, age 17, to bulky 20-year-old to Olympia physique perfection… [Read more…]
Moment of Bodybuilding Zen 33: Frank Zane Before and After
To be fair, the Frank Zane before picture on the left was taken after a few years of training. And you can see his genetic predisposition for bodybuilding. Heck, many guys at our gyms would kill to look like his “before” pic. LOL. [Read more…]
Moment of Bodybuilding Zen 21: Arnold’s Delts
Arnold was revered for his arms, particularly his sky-high biceps—but check out Arnold’s delts in the photo below. They were really popping that day. [Read more…]