overtraining Archives

Mix Muscle Hits to Get Big and Ripped

Q: Thanks for the X-centric Mass Workout! Mixing heavy work, negative-accentuated sets, and 4X has given me the best gains of my life. My bodyweight increased over 5 pounds, but my abs are sharper with veins in the lower part. I’m stoked, and the ladies seem to like it too. LOL! My question is about NA sets vs. negatives at the end of regular sets. After two heavy sets, you say to reduce the weight on the last set for an NA set on the big exercise [like bench presses]. Couldn’t I just keep the weight heavy and add four to six negatives at the end of that last set? I feel like I need another heavy set. I have a partner, so he could lift and I could lower on the negatives. I think Mike Mentzer recommended this style.

A: In his prime, Mentzer actually recommended a 3-phase set to get big and ripped…

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Make this single change to sky-rocket your gains

Q: I remember reading in some of your previous e-mails that you talked about how some of the bodybuilders of the past added a lot of muscle fast, like 10 to 20 pounds in a month. Is high-rep leg work really that powerful? I’m wondering if I should try it.

A: You’re referring to the 20-rep squat results that some of the early bodybuilders got. For example…

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Three-Pound Muscle Gain After Only One Workout?!

Q: In your X-Rep Update #1 e-book you discuss a study that produced a three-pound muscle gain after only one workout with static-contraction sets. Do you think that’s true, that much muscle after only one workout? And if so, should I do most of my sets just holding the weight statically?

A: The researchers used the most sophisticated body-composition-measuring device available at the time, known as a BodPod, so we have no reason to doubt their results. Subjects did a full-body workout that consisted mostly of one static-contraction set for each muscle and then rested for 14 days. Most gained muscle, and one subject packed on an amazing three pounds of muscle from that one workout, but…

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X Reps and the Fat-to-Muscle Hustle

Q: I read your last e-zine on fat-to-muscle tips with great interest. I added your recommendations to my training immediately. My question is, What about X Reps? Do they help? Should I add those in as well?

A: Yes, X Reps are excellent for a faster fat-to-muscle hustle. For the uninitiated, X Reps are eight-inch partials that you add onto a set after you hit exhaustion. You do those end-of-set partials at the point on the stroke at which the target muscle is somewhat stretched—for example, near the bottom of an incline press, bench press, or chinup…

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Should You Skip Triceps Work?

Q: I was reading that because most bodybuilders do a lot of pressing, they shouldn’t do much direct triceps work. I do bench presses and incline presses for chest and overhead presses for shoulders, so isn’t that enough work for my triceps? I’m drug-free, so I don’t want to overtrain them.

A: Two things to consider:

1) MRI studies show that bench presses and overhead presses do hit the triceps, but mostly the medial and lateral heads; in other words, the bulkiest section of the triceps, the big long head, is almost totally neglected. [Read more…]

On Your Mark, Add Sets, GROW!

Q: I’m testing your 4X variations [Shock-centric, 4X Pyramid, etc. from one of your recent newsletters]. Great stuff! Isn’t another way to get more mass simply to add sets by increasing the volume to 5X or more on any exercise?

A: Yes, volume increases, as in tacking on sets to 4X so you’re doing 5X or 6X, can boost mass gains—to a point. It’s a lot like tanning: To get darker, you can increase exposure time. The problem is diminishing returns… [Read more…]

New Size With Full-Body One-Hit Mass Workouts

Q: I’ve been reading about the 4X training and am wondering if you have any advice on how to use it with a full-body three-days-per-week routine. I just started using the 4X method for each bodypart. I do one exercise per muscle. Monday I do chest, shoulders, back, bi’s, tri’s, abs, legs. Wednesday I do the same body parts but in a different order and using different exercises. The same goes for Friday. I take the weekend off. I’m drug-free, so I think I’ve been overtraining till now. I’m hoping that 4X will help spark some new gains.

A: That sounds like a great plan for building more mass. First, skeptical readers need to realize that three-days-per-week programs can do incredible things. We discuss the Colorado Experiment in Size Surge 2.0 and 3D Muscle Building, a four-week research project in which Casey Viator gained 60 pounds of muscle… [Read more…]

Best Way to Build Muscle After Years of High-Intensity Training

Q: I have the 4X Mass Workout e-book, and I’m convinced it’s the best way for me to build muscle now after years of high-intensity training. I’m ready to start, but I want to include some negative-accentuated (NA) sets for better fat burning. I have both the X-centric Mass Workout and the Fat-to-Muscle Workout [which both include NA]. Lots of good info and workouts, but nothing that really merges 4X and NA the way I want. I need to add NA sets to the Direct/Indirect 4X Mass Workout. How?

A: Keep in mind that negative-accentuated sets are very traumatic and can require more recovery. With the Direct/Indirect 4X Mass Workout, most upper-body muscles are getting THREE hits a week, be they major or minor. That’s already a lot of muscular trauma. But you’re right: Adding an appropriate dose of NA work—one second on the positive and six seconds on the negative—without overtraining, can stimulate more fat burning on a couple of levels… [Read more…]

Overtraining Test

Q: You’ve mentioned that the Anabolic Reload workouts are particularly effective at priming fast muscle growth if you’re overtrained. But how do I know if I’m overtrained? Is there any sort of “overtraining test?”

A: If you’ve been training fairly hard and heavy consistently for at least two months, we can almost guarantee you’re overtrained…

The Anabolic Reload workouts are designed to provide an optimal dose of muscle-fiber activation, slow-twitch and fast-twitch, with moderate weights and brief workouts.… [Read more…]

Recovery is a must to pack on mass

Q: You guys have said that training each muscle only once a week never worked well for you. But now I see Steve doing that. Has he changed his mind? I’m 40 and wondering if that’s the best way for me to grow.

A: You may have heard the adage, “There’s no such thing as overtraining, only under-eating.” There is some truth to that–if you’re very young and a mesomorph [naturally muscular with good recovery ability]. In all cases, however, recovery is a must to pack on mass. [Read more…]