occlusion Archives - Page 6 of 6

Two Moves for More Mass

Q: I just got your X-traordinary X-Rep Workout ebook, printed out the basic routine and took it to the gym. Deep pump and a fast workout. I notice that for some bodyparts you have one big exercise for both the power work and density finish. For others, you have a different exercise for the drop-set finisher. Why didn’t you use two exercises, [one for power and one for density], for every bodypart? It makes sense that you’d train the muscle more completely with two exercises instead of only one.

A: For the most part, it depends on the complexity of the muscle. For example, your deltoid has three heads. While an overhead press trains all of them, it primarily targets the front head with only minor emphasis on the other two. [Read more…]

Triple-Size Your Muscles With Tri-Angle Workouts

Q: I’ve been reading up on your POF mass-training system, and I think I understand it. I’m just not sure how training a muscle with only two sets on two or three exercises can produce serious muscle growth. Most pros do four or five exercises for four or five sets for each bodypart or more.

A: Positions of Flexion is one of the most efficient mass-building workout styles out there. We’ll explain why in a moment. First, we feel the need for a reality check: All the pros are taking significant amounts of drugs that jack up their recovery and muscle-building abilities. That’s on top of their already superior genetics. [Read more…]

The Most Important Muscle-Building Exercises

Q: I know the big midrange exercises, like squats and presses, are most important for mass, but after that, do you think the stretch-position exercise or the contracted-position exercise is the best followup for extra muscle growth? The reason I ask is that I don’t have a lot of time to train, so I’m going to do the Ultimate Exercise for each bodypart [identified in The Ultimate Mass Workout e-book] and one more, either stretch or contracted, whichever you say will give me the most growth.

A: Interesting dilemma, but both the stretch- and contracted-position exercises are important for different reasons. Each triggers growth along different pathways (but there is an easy solution to your problem, as you’ll see)… [Read more…]

Lean-Machine Workouts: Turn Fat to Muscle 24/7

One of the toughest parts of building your physique is staying stoked to hit the gym—and not just hit it, but power drive it over the wall every time you work out. That can be especially tough in the winter when you’re all covered up and not necessarily thinking of your lean-machine spring and summer body… [Read more…]

Embarrassing Gym Moments

Q: I’m using an X-Rep-based routine in the X-Rep Update #1 ebook I picked up a couple weeks ago, but do I have to use Static Contraction (StatC) sets to get the best results from it? I feel like an idiot holding a weight in the flexed position [on contracted-position exercises]. People at my gym look at me weird. LOL!

A: You don’t have to use any of the tactics if you aren’t comfortable with them or if they cause any embarrassing gym moments. BUT… Are you going to let what other people think slow down your gains?

As we explain in the X Update ebook, that hold technique on contracted-position exercises, like triceps pushdowns (below), added [Read more…]

Muscle Expansion With Isolation

Q: Isn’t it true that you activate the most muscle fibers in the flexed position, like at the top of a leg extension or leg curl? I know that [Nautilus creator] Arthur Jones said that. So shouldn’t I really flex at the top of those isolation-type exercises? Come to think of it, why should I do compound exercises [like squats] at all? Isolating the muscle appears to be the logical way to stimulate the muscle growth best.

A: We respect the late Arthur Jones and value much of his research, theories, and opinions (Steve met him many years ago in Florida); however, newer research states the contrary—that the contracted, or flexed, position of an exercise is not where the most force/fiber activation occurs—it’s the bottom, where the target muscle is somewhat stretched. Here’s a quote from respected scientists Steven J. Fleck, Ph.D., and William J. Kraemer, Ph.D., that makes the point (we’ll put their statements in simpler terms in a moment): [Read more…]

Fat-to-Muscle Facts and Photos

Q: I saw before and after photos of Steve’s wife, Becky, on your site. Amazing transformation! My girlfriend would like to know what type of program she used. Did she use X Reps, or should women not use that type of intense training?

A: Becky’s transformation took a few months (she kept having to restart due to motivation issues—so much fat to lose was overwhelming to her—and she didn’t use X Reps because we hadn’t developed that technique yet; however, she did use static holds, which we call a Static X. At the end of a set to exhaustion, she would drive the weight up as far as she could and hold for a five count or so to extend the tension time. That had a similar muscle fiber-activation boost as well as occlusion effects. She added muscle and lost fat quickly, as you can see from her before and after photos… [Read more…]