You may have seen the clip of a Joe Rogan podcast during which he showed a photo of himself and Jeff Bezos, both looking muscular. [Read more…]
Testosterone-Surging Workout?
Q: Your comments regarding your testosterone dropping when you increased your workout volume is similar to my experience. I’m 55, and had my T checked a few years ago. It was 350, which is on the low side. I had been hitting the gym five days a week for an hour or more. Lots of compound exercises. I thought I might be overtraining, so I switched to the Old Man Young Muscle workout. I wasn’t sure 35 minutes three day a week would do much, but I was wrong. I began gaining muscle again, and my testosterone measured 603. Wanted to say thank you. At this point for me, the OMYM workout is magic. [Read more…]
Time for Testosterone?
Q: You’re in your 60s and look pretty muscular. Do you use testosterone-replacement therapy? I’m in my 50s and thinking about it. [Read more…]
Progressive-Shock Size-Surge Tips
Q: I’m astounded by Jonathan’s Size Surge transformation in only 10 weeks. His arms got huge, and he said his gains really took off during the second phase when he started using Positions of Flexion. I was thinking that I should do POF for arms in phase 1 too. Like for biceps, he has two sets of barbell curls and two sets of concentration curls. Wouldn’t I make better gains if I did two sets of barbell curls followed by one set of incline curls [for stretch] then one set of concentration curls? That’s the same number of sets, but now it’s full-range POF. I could do the same for triceps too.
A: That sounds like a good plan—at least until you realize one reason phase 2 in the Size Surge program works so well is because the muscles get a progressive-shock size effect when you shift to full-range training for the last four weeks. In other words, you force more growth adaptation to happen when you add stretch-position exercises like incline curls for biceps and overhead extensions for triceps at week 7… [Read more…]
How to Cheat on Cheat Day
Q: First I want to thank you for creating your X-treme Lean e-book. What a bargain for so much great information! I’m already starting to see lines in my abs after applying many of your suggestions for only a few weeks. One question: You call for at least one so-called cheat day a week. Do I have to eat junk food on those days?
A: Despite the term ” cheat day “, no, you don’t have to eat junk food. In fact, for those who have trouble controlling the amount of junk they eat once they get a taste, it’s best to steer clear. Those addictive-personality types will binge and undo a lot of the fat-loss progress they may have already achieved. [Read more…]
Moment of Bodybuilding Zen 65: Frank Zane Age 35 vs. 65
Here’s a very cool comparison of three-time Mr. Olympia Frank Zane in his prime to how he looked peaked at age 65… [Read more…]
New Angle for More Mass and a Beastly Back
Q: I’m on the Size Surge 2.0. I’m loving it! Feeling bigger already, but I have a question about shrugs. I started with dumbbell shrugs, 4X style. Then I went to barbell shrugs and got a whole new soreness in my upper back. The exercises don’t feel that different. Why did I get so sore?
A: Amazing how one little tweak to an exercise can trigger new soreness. It’s all about angle of pull and restriction vs. non-restriction. [Read more…]
Grow Gargantuan Guns!
Q: Your Power-Density Mass Workout 2.0 [with Super TORQ] is the most riveting bodybuilding e-book I’ve read lately. I tried Super TORQ, and my pump was off the charts, with a lot of new soreness. I’m hoping it will add mass to my lagging arms, which brings me to my question: The workout split in that e-book, and 4X as well, has arm training only once a week (Wednesday). Can I add an arm day on Saturday? I don’t mind training five days a week if my arms grow.
A: You could try that. It would mean your arms get hit directly on Wednesday and Saturday, with indirect work from chest and back on Monday and Friday (like Week 1 below but with an added arm day on Saturday). [Read more…]
Pyramid Power: Secret to Mega Mass and Strength
Q: I just got The Ultimate Power-Density Mass Workout and The X-traordinary X-Rep Workout. Tremendous. I’ve already read them both twice. Undoubtedly the best bodybuilding info I’ve ever seen. I noticed that in the programs in both e-books, you rely a lot on pyramiding the weight on the compound exercises. Is that better than just using the same poundage on all work sets and going to exhaustion?
A: With the type of training we list in those e-books, we believe adding weight to each work set so that the rep count decreases—9, 7, 5, for instance—is ideal to build BOTH mega mass and strength for three reasons… [Read more…]
Tips for More Muscle Now
Q: I want to thank you both. I’m from Italy, 178 cm tall, and my weight now is 68 Kg (150 pounds). At the beginning of April, my weight was only 62 Kg (136 pounds). My increase in muscular mass, almost 15 pounds, is due to you. Before your training methods, I tried so many others, but with no results. The program that worked is the 10-week Size Surge [that Jonathan used to gain 20 pounds of muscle, listed in 3D Muscle Building]. I’d like to improve my muscle mass to 75 Kg (165 pounds), with a particular emphasis on delts, back, and forearms. I believe forearms are very important. Can you suggest anything to increase my mass? I have most of your e-books, so I can look up any method you suggest.
A: Thank you for the complimentary e-mail. We’re glad you’re making such striking progress with one of our most popular and effective workouts, the 10-week Size Surge program that Jonathan used for his transformation. His progress photos during that mass-building experiment are very motivational. Just seeing his 10-week results can program your mind to help you pack on more muscle now… [Read more…]