Dedicated to Your Physical Transformation
I’ve mentioned how the mind, as in perceptions and attitude, can affect muscle gains.
While I’m no psychologist, I know that what and how you think can often determine outcomes. To paraphrase martial-arts star Bruce Lee…
Don’t ever say negative things about yourself; it can program the warrior within for retreat and possible defeat. [Read more…]
Q: Love Old Man, Young Muscle. It’s helped me get bigger with shorter workouts. My joint pain is almost gone too. In the ebook, you mention your runs. You’re doing four miles twice a week. Don’t you think that is detracting from your muscle-building endeavors? I’ve heard cardio makes it harder to put on mass.
A: I’ve seen studies that show cardio can make it harder to build muscle, and I’ve seen others that say just the opposite—with a boost in testosterone. [Read more…]
Mr. America/Mr. Universe Doug Brignole sent me into mind-bending mode by recommending that I delve into researcher Chris Beardsley’s work…
I’ve quoted Beardsley in this newsletter on a number of occasions, as he discusses many things that verify what I do in the gym, and his ideas have helped me tweak my workouts for significantly better mass gains—like [Read more…]
A few newsletters back I discussed energy cost and how multi-joint exercises that don’t optimally load the target muscle can take from your hypertrophy gains in exchange for some strength…
However, I also mentioned that you can focus on barbell squats at one leg workout and the ideal quad exercise at the next. Just keep in mind that it’s not the most efficient muscle-building strategy… [Read more…]
In a previous newsletter I mentioned the importance of focusing on one thing in your workouts.
That’s called specificity of training. [Read more…]
When I’m not writing this newsletter, I’m usually working out, on a run, or answering emails—or napping from all that activity.
One common question I get is, “What’s the best rep range for building mass?” [Read more…]
Q: I’ve been following your newsletters. Interesting ideas. One question I have is that you talk about emphasizing the ideal exercise for mass for each target muscle, but then say that you follow it with a less efficient one. Why not just do the ideal exercise only for all sets and then move to the next muscle?
A: We’ve found that different exercises can have unique mass-building effects—and research backs that up… [Read more…]
I’ve had a few skeptics say that my progress with 35-minute workouts three days a week is impossible, especially for an old man…
That I’m lying, on steroids or both. Nope—and no Photoshop either… [Read more…]
Q: Just read The Ultimate Power-Density Mass Workout. Absolutely great! I read it all in one sitting. It really made me think, so I’m redesigning my workout using your programs. But don’t higher-rep warmup sets cover the endurance component of the 2A fibers? And what about X Reps? They extend a set, so I would think they also affect the endurance side of the important 2As as well.
A: You’re right on both counts—to a degree. Warm-up sets aren’t intense, so very few fibers are involved—and many that are fall into the slow-twitch category, rather than the important fast-twitch 2As. [Read more…]
After more than 50 years in the muscle-building game combined, we’ve seen lots of anabolic “magic potions” come and go—like powdered deer antler…
But a few have risen above as solid mass builders. In fact, without them, your gains may be sluggish or even nonexistent.
These are the ones that work big time, and they’re especially critical for older bodybuilders (like us). Let’s count down our top 4 muscle-size nutrients… [Read more…]
