X-REP.COM

Dedicated to Your Physical Transformation

1 Set of 1 Exercise for More Cuts, Veins, and Size

Q: I’ve been using an X-centric set [lift in one second, lower in six] for every muscle and have noticed more cuts, veins, and I’m pretty sure more muscle size. I usually use it on the last set of a 4X sequence, but I’ve heard it’s better on the first set to get more of a warmup. Which is better, the X-centric set on the first or last set of 4X?

A: In a previous newsletter, we outlined how to use an X-centric set on the last set of a 4X sequence with The Ultimate Fat-to-Muscle Workout. We showed a lat routine with 4X on the first exercise.

[Read more…]

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…

[Read more…]

8 Tips to Drop Fat and Build Mass—Summer’s Coming Fast

Q: The first day of [meteorological] spring slapped me in the face. My abs are gone and I feel “loose,” as in soft. I need to drop fat, especially around my middle, and add some hard muscle—like right now. How do I get it going and see abs?

A: Don’t panic. You still have about 12 weeks until summer. But because fat-loss is a slow process—if you want to hold and even gain muscle—you need to start NOW.

[Read more…]

High Reps, Supersets, and Super-Size Success (un-TORQ-ing-believable)

Q: I just started the first workouts from The Ultimate Super-Size Crash Course after reading yesterday’s newsletter. First day is in the books, and I feel like I’m ready to grow already. One complaint: TORQ hurts like a mo-fo; 30 reps is too rough. Can I do supersets instead, like two exercises for 15 reps each, no rest between? I think I could handle that. Will I get the same size and vein effects?

A: Don’t be a wuss; grit your teeth and tough it out, Gertrude. LOL! Seriously, higher-rep supersets could work, but there are two glitches that might prevent full-on success…

[Read more…]

Muscle-On, Fat-Off Sets, Splits, and Hits

Q: I just got The Ultimate Fat-to-Muscle Workout e-book because of all the positive feedback I’ve seen. Looking over the program I notice that it’s a four-days-per-week system, but you only hit each muscle once. Is that really going to be enough work for each bodypart? I really want to lean out quickly and still build muscle.

A: If you traumatize a muscle enough, it will require several days for full recovery. And that’s one of the goals with that program…

[Read more…]

3 Fast Fat-to-Muscle Tips to Get You Ripped

If you’re like us, you’re a little concerned. Spring is just a few weeks away and summer will be here before you can say, “Who stole my abs.” When the heat hits, you don’t want to be the victim of an ab-napping. It’s a lot more fun if you peel off your shirt that first warm day at the beach, pool, or lake and your midsection looks like acid-etched granite.

Of course, there is a downside. You have to put up with all the glares, stares, and the questions, like, “Man, how do I get ripped?” or “What workout are you on?” or “Can I touch your abs?” LOL!

[Read more…]

Home-Gym Training

Q: I’ve been following your Quick-Start Muscle Building Guide. I’m currently on week 4, and it’s a great program. I’m already seeing results, but I’ve been reading about X Reps and the Positions-of-Flexion approach to lifting. I want to start using those as part of my home-gym training. I currently have only a pair of dumbbells, an EZ-curl bar, and an adjustable bench. Which program should I follow next? I’m not sure I can do POF with my limited equipment.

A: That’s a limited gym alright, and if you’re going to with your home-gym training, consider adding some essentials. For now you can continue progressing with what you have—although you didn’t say if the dumbbells are adjustable or selectorized (so you can change the weight by moving a pin or twisting a dial).

[Read more…]

Major Muscle Expansion

Q: Your e-zines on fascia stretching are very interesting. I’ve been using your suggestion of supersetting a contracted exercise with a stretch exercise. It feels awesome, and I’m already seeing more muscle expansion, like on my inner chest. My question is, Why should I do actual full reps on the stretch move? Why not just hold in the stretch position so it’s a constant stretch on the pumped muscle?

A: We get excited and proud when bodybuilders take an idea and run with it. Congratulations. That’s an excellent variation that could make the fascia-expansion supersets even more effective—a Static X on the stretch exercise.

[Read more…]

Intensity for Muscle Immensity?

Q: I’ve been reading your e-zine for years, and I have almost all of your e-books. Great info, and thanks to you I have a lot of new muscle. 3D POF is great! My question is about rep ranges. You’ve talked about using lower reps, medium reps, and higher reps. I’ve read that the key to muscle growth is intensity, and that rep ranges don’t really matter. Can’t I just keep doing about eight to 10 reps, the best range for muscle growth, on all my exercises and train intensely, to failure, to make the best gains? Do I really need different rep ranges?

A: While intensity is the big key to forcing muscle growth, there is no doubt that the predominant fiber type in a particular muscle dictates its best rep range for fastest size gains.

[Read more…]

The Simple Mass-Building Solution

Q: I’ve read a little on your Point-of-Flexion training, and it seems complicated. I was thinking about getting the 3D Muscle Building e-book, but I’m not sure I’ll understand it. I guess I really want to know two things: if it works and if I will “get it” once I read the e-book.

A: It’s actually “Positions” of Flexion, but “Point” of Flexion works too—same meaning. POF is far from complicated; in fact, it streamlines mass-building bodypart routines. POF gets to the “point”—you don’t waste time or effort so you have more recovery ability for maximum growth.

[Read more…]