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One Simple Change for New Mass Gains

Muscular torso, reverse-grip triceps push downs

Q: I love 4X training. It’s gotten me bigger than I’ve ever been, but my gains have leveled off. I’m thinking about doing the last set in stage style for more intensity. Do you think that will work? Any tips if I try it?

A: We love experimentation. It can make good gains great, so we say try it on for SIZE…

Let’s start by explaining the 4X method for our new readers who aren’t familiar: You pick a weight with which you can get 15 reps, but you only do 10; rest 30 to 45 seconds, then do 10 more—and so on until you complete four sets. If you get 10 reps on your last set, you add weight to that exercise at your next workout…. [Read more…]

Filed Under: X Files Tagged With: 4x method, 4x training, beyond x-rep, biotrust protein, change to gain, drop sets, free protein, free supplements, intensity techniques, mass gains, negative-accentuated, stage sets, supersets, x fade, x-centric, x-hybrid, x-hybrid techniques, x/pause

Double-X Overload Everything

Jonathan Lawson doing incline dumbbell flyes

Q: I have almost all of your e-books. They’re all great, and I reread them often for motivation and ideas. Right now I’m on The Ultimate Fat-to-Muscle Workout. Can I Double-X Overload everything stretch-related in that program? It seems like that would produce even more muscle microtrauma similar to the negative-accentuated sets on the big exercises. That should speed up my fat loss and muscle gains, right?

A: If you give a man a fish, he eats for a day; if you teach a man to fish, he eats for a lifetime. What does that have to do with your question? We’re just glad to see you taking techniques from our other e-books and applying them to your current workout. You’re learning how to “fish”—grasping the mass-building concepts and applying them when and where appropriate… [Read more…]

Filed Under: X Files Tagged With: anabolic hormones, bodyweight training, Double-X Overload, dxo, fat burning, fat loss, fiber splitting, hyperplasia, muscle microtrauma, muscle protein synthesis, myotatic reflex, stretch overload, x-hybrid, x-hybrid techniques

Pack On More Muscle: Are You Making This Mistake?

Jonathan doing Smith machine squats - Pack on More Muscle: Are You Making This Mistake?

Q: I’ve made the best gains of my life the past year with X Reps, going from 185 to just under 200 pounds. But my gains have stalled. You talk a lot about muscle adaptation, so I’m wondering if I’ve adapted to X Reps. Should I stop doing them for a while so I can pack on more muscle?

A: Adaptation to training techniques and even bodypart routines can happen in as few as six workouts. If you train a muscle twice a week, that means you can adapt in three to four weeks. We’ve talked about phase training, which is downshifting intensity for one week with sub-failure workouts after four to six weeks of all-out workouts. But sometimes even that’s not enough to kick-start new gains once you resume a high-intensity phase. Usually, you have to mix things up somehow…

[Read more…]

Filed Under: X Files Tagged With: adaption, best exercises, Beyond X, beyond x-rep, Double-X Overload, dxo, fast-twitch, jonathan lawson, mr. olympia, pack on more muscle, ronnie coleman, slow-twitch, stage sets, Steve Holman, X Reps, x spot, x-hybrid

Photos and Freakiness

Q: I saw your before and after photos from your first X-Rep year contrasted with the following year when you gained 10 more pounds of muscle [with X-hybrid techniques]. Personally, I don’t think you look better. You both look bigger, but I think your physiques are more impressive the X-Rep year.

A: Well, that’s not a question, but it’s a relevant opinion—bigger is not necessarily better. In Jonathan’s case, you are seeing his most-muscular pose, and when you gain more muscle, your physique can look more “crowded” in that pose. You could argue that his muscles are starting to look too big for his frame. Steve, on the other hand, is in a semi-relaxed pose in the X-Rep photo, and a twisting ab shot in his Beyond-X photo. He looks considerably bigger in the “after” photo, but it’s a different pose, which makes it difficult to judge.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: X Files Tagged With: aesthetics, before and after photos, Beyond X, beyond x-rep muscle building, bodybuilding, freak physique, intensity techniques, more muscle, muscular, photos, physique, sleek physique, superhero physique, Ultimate Mass Workout, X Reps, x-hybrid, x-hybrid tactics, x-hybrid techniques, x-rep routine

My Fat-Burning Story: The Big Mistake

Jonathan Lawson back double biceps

If you’ve ever been in peak condition with big, full, vascular muscles and paper-thin skin, you know it’s an incredible feeling. People notice your in-shape ripped physique everywhere you go. It’s a rush you never forget, and you seek that peak like Tiger Woods craves, um, golf. The problem comes when you can’t get that conditioning, no matter how hard you try. It’s so frustrating and your workouts go into the toilet. That’s exactly what happened to me… This is my fat-burning story… [Read more…]

Filed Under: X Files Tagged With: casein, cla, egg, fat burners, fat burning, glutamine, lean, protein, supplements, whey, X Reps, x-hybrid

The Most Important Muscle-Building Exercises

Jonathan Lawson incline curl - 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…]

Filed Under: X Files Tagged With: anabolic, anabolic after 40, animal study, Beyond X, beyond x-rep, bird study, Canadian Journal of Applied Physiology, growth hormone, jose antonio, journal of applied physiology, muscle burn, muscle-building exercises, occlusion, POF, positions of flexion, progressive-stretch, split positions, split-positions training, stretch overload, tension, Ultimate Mass Workout, x-hybrid, x-rep-hybrid mega-mass

Stage Sets: Two Sets in One

Steve Holman Smith Squats

Q: I recall from some of your previous newsletters that you’ve done something called stage sets. What are those?

A: The stage technique is a great one for jolting new muscle growth because it does two critical things: emphasizes the semi-stretch point of the exercise’s stroke and extends tension time on the target muscle. Let’s look at Smith machine squats as an example… [Read more…]

Filed Under: X Files Tagged With: Beyond X, beyond x-rep, semi-stretch, stage sets, two sets in one, X Reps, x-hybrid, x-hybrid tactics, x-hybrid techniques

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