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F the Details—Shut Up and Train?

Steve doing Smith machine squats, Jonathan spotting

You may have seen some bodybuilders say to stop analyzing your workouts—just do plenty of sets on the big exercises, and you’ll grow.

That may work if you’re young and/or on anabolic drugs. But as you age, you must get more analytical to continue making progress as well as avoid injury… [Read more…]

Filed Under: X Files Tagged With: biomechanics, grow, muscle gains, muscle growth, muscular gains, train to gain

Mass Mantra #39

Mike Mentzer in a relaxed pose in a gym

Here’s another quote from former pro bodybuilder Mike Mentzer that’s especially pertinent today… [Read more…]

Filed Under: X Files Tagged With: efficiency of effort, fast mass, hypertrophy, mass gains, mass mantra, mike mentzer, muscle gains, steroids

Mass Mantra #26

Steve in a most muscular pose and a side casual pose in April 2023

Here’s a quote from one of the most respected hypertrophy researchers today, Brad Schoenfeld, Ph.D.… [Read more…]

Filed Under: X Files Tagged With: Brad Schoenfeld, efficient gaining, hypertrophy, muscle gains, older bodybuilder, strength gains

Failure Training and Faster Mass Gains

Steve holding a sword to Jonathan doing curls

Q: I feel as though I need to train all of my sets to failure to get a good muscle-building workout. In Old Man Young Muscle, you take all of your sets to failure, but you’ve backed off of that. Why? [Read more…]

Filed Under: X Files Tagged With: failure, mass gains, muscle failure, muscle gains, muscle growth, size principle of muscle fiber recruitment, train to failure

Fatigue, Failure, and More Muscle Mass (new research)

Arnold resting between sets...and looking huge

When confronted with study results that contradict something a trainee is doing, most will say, “Well, it works for me.”…

There’s something to be said for that response. Everyone is an individual and may respond to different methods. One example I’ve used in the past is rest between sets…

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Filed Under: X Files Tagged With: failure, fatigue, mass gains, muscle gains, muscle mass, neuromuscular efficiency, research, rest between sets

Speed Your Mass Gains

Muscle-fiber illustration on Jonathan's arm while doing barbell curls.

In a number of recent newsletters, I’ve mentioned the term “garbage negatives.”

It basically refers to the negative, or eccentric, stroke on a standard-tempo set. Lowering slowly is easy thanks to “friction” in the muscle—actin-myosin pairings “dragging” across one another… [Read more…]

Filed Under: X Files Tagged With: actin-myosin strands, garbage negatives, hypertrophy, mass gains, muscle gains

20 Pounds of Muscle in 10 Weeks?

Jonathan's 10-Week Size Surge Results, front and back

Q: Your recent truth about muscle growth newsletters were enlightening. You’re right about growth not being visibly noticeable on a day-to-day or even week-to-week basis. You also said that 20 pounds of muscle a year is spectacular, but didn’t Jonathan gain 20 pounds of muscle in only 10 weeks with the Size Surge workout?

A: Your memory serves you well. Yes, Jonathan did pack on an incredible 20 pounds of muscle in 10 weeks; however, he was regaining a lot of that beef… [Read more…]

Filed Under: X Files Tagged With: 20 pounds in 10 weeks, mass gains, muscle gains, phase training, Size Surge

My Mistake: Change-to-Gain Mass Omission

Jonathan Lawson overhead DB triceps extensions top - Speed-Stretch for Ultimate Mass?

In my excitement putting together my list of change-to-gain tactics, I left out a key one—probably because I only use it about once a month…

I meant to include it within #1, exercise switch, because it is just that—although more of an exercise shuffle… [Read more…]

Filed Under: X Files Tagged With: change to gain, mass gaining, mass gains, muscle gaining, muscle gains

The Truth About Muscle Growth, Part 3

Jonathan Lawson in a most muscular pose

You saw some of the problems in getting giant leaps in muscle mass for the average drug-free bodybuilder… [Read more…]

Filed Under: X Files Tagged With: mass gains, muscle gains, muscle growth, natural bodybuilding

The Truth About Muscle Growth, Part 2

Jonathan doing dumbbell shrugs

Yesterday I explained the misguided notion that you should be stronger and bigger at every workout. (Photo of Jonathan Lawson by Michael Neveux) [Read more…]

Filed Under: X Files Tagged With: atrophy, hypertrophy, mass gains, muscle gains, muscle growth

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