Dedicated to Your Physical Transformation
Q: I’ve read some of your articles on the 10×10 method, and I just can’t wrap my mind around using lighter weights to gain mass. Can that really work? I’m scared I’ll lose muscle if I try it.
A: First, you don’t have to dive in head-first and use 10×10 all the time for every bodypart. For example, when we first tried it, we had some of the same doubts you’re expressing, so we decided to try it only on arms originally… [Read more…]
Q: Positions of Flexion is working great for me, but I’m having a problem with chest, specifically flyes. I know how important the stretch position is. You guys talk about the animal study that produced the huge [300 percent] muscle gain in one month with only stretch overload. That’s why I’m using the more focused 3-way POF pec routine in Chapter 5 [of the 3D Muscle Building e-book]. I do bench presses as my first [midrange] exercise, then flyes for stretch, and cable flyes for the contracted position. I just don’t feel the flyes at all, so I know I’m missing important mass stimulation. Any suggestions?
A: For those of us with below-average nerve force in our pectoral muscles—that includes both of us—dumbbell flyes can be difficult to feel. Well, that’s not completely true; they sometimes “feel” like a waste of time. That’s because the front delts and arms tend to take over and get the brunt of the size-building stress. [Read more…]
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…]
Q: I get sore muscles after almost every workout, and then I’m still sore the next time I go to the gym. Is it bad to train a muscle when it’s still sore?
A: Scientists believe that sore muscles are caused by micro-tears in the fibers. In other words, it’s damage. Training a muscle hard while it’s still sore is like scratching the scab off of a wound before it’s completely healed. It impairs the healing process and can cause damage that retards proper recovery.
[Read more…]Q: I’m having trouble with the incline one-arm lateral raise [stretch-position delt exercise]. I tend to lose my balance when I’m on my side on the incline bench, and I can’t feel my center-delt head working. Any suggestions?
A: It does take some jostling and positioning to get set on the incline bench for incline one-arm lateral raises—but it’s worth the time to get it right since these can really help detail your delts. It was an Arnold favorite, and for good reason: It stretches the medial head as well as the posterior head, both of which add considerable roundness to your delts. [Read more…]
Q: I really, really want a muscular physique like you guys have. I just can’t seem to stick with it. I’ve read books on motivation, but nothing seems to help. Any words of wisdom? Am I just a dreamer who will never get up and go after it?
A: Dreaming is the first step to getting what you’re after, but lack of motivation is the number-one goal killer. Even if you do manage to get to the gym regularly, if you’re not motivated to push hard and surpass previous bests, you won’t get results. You need to light a fire and keep it lit. (That’s one reason we put out daily newsletters—to try and keep our readers stoked.)
[Read more…]
