Dedicated to Your Physical Transformation
Q: I notice you guys never really mention doing dips for triceps. I know Mike Mentzer said that the parallel bar dip is one of the best triceps exercises—and he had some big arms with some of the biggest, most vascular tri’s I’ve ever seen from the “moderate-steroid era.” Do you consider dips a good triceps move?
A: Dips can work well as a compound, or midrange, exercise for triceps—in place of close-grip bench presses, for example… [Read more…]
Q: I love Positions of Flexion. I’ve gained about 10 pounds since I started using it, but one problem I have is biceps. I just don’t feel the last exercise for contraction, concentration curls. I’ve tried them Arnold style, with my arm hanging free, and I’ve also tried them seated with my arm against my inner thigh. Is there another exercise I can use?
A: We usually suggest spider curls, which are basically preacher curls on the vertical side of the bench… [Read more…]
Q: I’ve been using the Size Surge Phase 1 routine for only 2 weeks, and I’ve already added almost a half inch to my arms. I was skeptical since there’s only one direct arm workout each week [Wednesday], but I guess it’s like you said: the chest and back work on Monday and Friday hit arms hard too. Anyway, thanks for opening my eyes. I was wondering what you thought of supersetting the biceps and triceps exercises on Wednesday. I know Bill Pearl used to do that. BTW, I’m using 4X on my arm exercises.
A: It’s hard to argue with Bill Pearl considering his incredible mass—and his heyday was when steroids were in their infancy; minor use, if any, was happening back in the ’60s. Pearl was a staunch proponent of supersetting a biceps exercise with a triceps exercise because it made his arms so huge and full. Talk about in-the-gym motivation! The photo of Pearl above says it all. [Read more…]
Q: I’ve been on the basic Positions-of Flexion biceps and triceps routines you outline in 3D Muscle Building. I’m getting spectacular pumps, and I think my arms have grown already. I’m ready to go to all the POF routines in 3D for all my bodyparts. My question is on biceps. I don’t really feel concentration curls. Is there another ending [contracted-position] exercise I can do instead to help build 3D arms?
A: For the uninitiated, Positions of Flexion is training each bodypart through its full range. For example, for biceps, it’s barbell curls (midrange), incline curls (stretch), and concentration curls (contracted). [Read more…]
Q: I’m following the arm-specialization programs in your X-traordinary Arms e-book (I ordered the Anabolic After-40 package to get it free!). I like starting my biceps workout with cable curls, as you suggest, because I can add X Reps at the end of the last set. Many of the pro bodybuilders say free weights are better for growth, so I’m worried I’m not getting the most size stimulation. Are free-weight barbell or dumbbell curls better?
A: Not necessarily. The only problem with cable curls is weight-stack drag, which makes the negative, or lowering, stroke slightly easier; however, you get much better continuous tension with a cable curl as opposed to barbell or dumbbell curls. That’s very important for max-growth stimulation. There’s also another BIG benefit… [Read more…]
Q: Help! I need triceps sweep. Mine look flat from the side, and I’ve tried every exercise there is. Any suggestions?
A: We discuss a number of triceps “sweep” techniques and exercises in the X-traordinary Arms e-book, such as lying extensions, which mainly target the triceps’ long head, and dumbbell overhead extensions, which hit the long head with important stretch overload. If you’ve tried all of those long-head-specific exercises and programs, you may want to specialize on building some lat size. (Say what?) [Read more…]
Q: I’ve learned a lot from the X-traordinary Arms e-book I received with Anabolic After-40; however, I’m a hardgainer with limited recovery ability, so I’m looking for the single best exercise for triceps, one that hits all three heads. I also have your Ultimate Mass Workout e-book, in which you discuss the single best exercise for each bodypart. For triceps you list close-grip decline bench presses, but those don’t work for me. I just don’t feel my triceps. Any other suggestions?
A: Usually when someone doesn’t feel an exercise it’s because another muscle group is taking more of the stress, like chest and delts on close-grip bench presses. Also, neuromuscular efficiency may be deficient in the target muscle—your triceps are low in nerve-to-muscle connections. [Read more…]
Q: I have a hard time feeling warmed up for my first heavy set. I’ve tried three progressively heavier warmup sets before my work set, but I still don’t feel ready to blast on my first work set on most exercises. That’s a problem because it is my only work set, as I’m using your 3D HIT program [listed in X-traordinary Arms]. It’s like I’m wasting my big midrange exercise. Should I do two work sets for insurance?
A: We believe that not being warmed up properly is one of the biggest reasons high-intensity programs fail to build much muscle. Being completely “warm” for your first work set is important on any program, but it’s especially critical on one-work-set-per-exercise routines like our 3D HIT. We’ve got a couple of solutions for this first-set secret to muscle size… [Read more…]
