Getting bigger muscles & growing stronger isn’t something you can do with slight changes to your training routine. No, your body has already grown as big and as strong as it needs to be, in order to move the amount of weight (with the level of intensity) that you are demanding. That’s it. You only grow as much as is needed. If you make minor changes to your training, then you are going to see minor changes in your results. If you want to make HUGE changes to your body – growing both bigger and stronger – then you are going to want to make some HUGE changes to your training routine. Here are some tips for quickly changing up your training for some new results!

Stick with the heavier exercises
You should immediately toss out any of those light weight movements you have been using in the gym. Granted, you’re not skimping on your workout. Rather, you will be replacing them with heavier exercises of the compound variety. Every set of cable curls should be replaced with a set of heavy barbell curls. Instead of leg extensions, you should be using squats. You’ll maintain that same number of sets in your workout, but you will also be training longer since it takes a bit more time to recover from heavy compound sets than it does for the lighter movements.

Use supplements for training a boost
There are a wide variety of excellent nutritional supplements available which can give you a boost of energy and greater blood circulation when its needed most – right before your workout! An added repetition or two might not sound like much, but it will make for a huge amount of difference over time, as the added energy means more reps, and more reps equate to new strength and muscle mass.

Use a spotter
You train safely, no doubt, and that means placing the bar back where it belongs before you run out of the energy to do so. Often you will feel like you “might” have another repetition in you, but you’ll stop short because of that small chance you might end up a pancake under that heavy Olympic bar. With a spotter, you don’t have to stop before you fail. And you may discover you don’t have an extra repetition left in the tank – you might discover it is actually an additional two or three repetitions!

It’s one thing to build up crazy mass. This kind of muscle requires years of dedication in the weight room, throwing down heavy weight on exercises like squats, deadlifts and bench press. You have to eat 5 or 6 high protein meals a day for years, and after a few years of this kind of intense discipline, you have some serious bodybuilding mass.

It’s quite another thing to get insanely cut. The kind of discipline you’ll need will be much greater, but only for a short period of time. Most people can combine smart nutrition, hard weight training, consistent cardio, and wise supplementation and move from a moderate body fat of 15% down to a lean and diced well-shaped physique of 8% body fat in about 3 months. You can reach this goal faster, but it does require much greater sacrifice and effort.

Bigger athletes – walking around at 250+ pounds of sheer muscle – will argue that anyone can get sliced and diced with 3 months of dieting. But their 19-inch arms… not many people can develop that kind of mass in just a few months, right? They do carry a good point there. However, the smaller and leaner athlete will probably argue in response that his style of physique is much more popular in the mainstream sense. Everyone would enjoy having a nice 6-pack, but not everyone would like to walk around at a body weight of 265 pounds of bulk.

The training methodologies used to reach both of these goals will have some things in common. You will want to use a sensible weight for 3 to 4 exercises for each muscle group. Start with two compound heavier movements, and then move to 2 exercises of 3-4 sets with lighter weight for the isolation work. At the conclusion of your workout, your muscles should be fatigued to the point they need a full week to recover before the next training session for that particular muscle group.

Whichever your goal – getting huge or getting ripped – you will want to use safe and intelligent training, nutrition, and supplementation on a consistent basis in order to reach this goal. Maybe you want to try getting big first, and then getting sliced. Or, perhaps your goal is to cut down first so that the veins emerge, and then slowly add the new muscle mass. Whichever the case, you should be proud of the fact you are about to embark upon a journey to reach your body’s potential in terms of muscle mass and definition. Good luck!

Bodybuilding is the ultimate pursuit of new muscle mass and strength. You pick up heavy barbells and dumbbells with a singular pursuit – you want the muscles of your body to become bigger and stronger. You wish to grow them so that you can look bigger, feel stronger, and increase your muscle stamina – all while losing body fat. The more advanced a bodybuilder becomes, the bigger and stronger he is.

Running is often viewed as the ultimate exercise to use in the pursuit of health & fitness. Running requires every muscle of the body to be at work – for light weight, very high repetition work. Blood flow is at its maximum, and cardiovascular health benefits as a result. You love longer, sleep better, and experience a much higher quality of life when you run. But you are smaller when you run – it’s tough to maintain much in the terms of body mass. You don’t see many thick runners!

There are some drawbacks to bodybuilding. It’s not a sport of health, even though lifting weights is actually very healthy. Adding 20 to 40 pounds of muscle mass to your frame means your heart is working harder to move blood to all of that tissue. Your ticker cannot tell the difference between 210 pounds of muscle and 210 pound of fat – it’s working just as hard either way. The result is that your blood pressure is going to be higher – which places your kidneys and other organs at risk.

Running also has its own set of drawbacks. First off, if you are carrying any appreciable level of muscle mass, you are going to be placing a great deal of stress upon your joints and tendons of the knees and feet. If you’ve been lifting weights for years, then your knees are already probably dealing with some sort of issue from the workload.

Mixing the two is possible, and can be very beneficial for your health and appearance – as long as you mix them sensibly. Realize that you aren’t going to become a top competitive bodybuilder if you run all of the time. You just will not be able to add enough mass to your frame. However, at the same time, you are never going to become a successful avid runner if you choose to engage in the bodybuilding lifestyle. Adding that much muscle to your frame is going to be very detrimental to your knees, and surgery may be in your future if you choose to do so. If you’d like to mix bodybuilding & running, your best bet is going to be engaging in a moderate bodybuilding lifestyle, along with moderate running twice a week.

Human growth hormone, or GH, is becoming more and more popular with middle-aged and elderly patients all over the world. This has caused the compound to become more readily available to bodybuilders looking for every possible edge in their very competitive sport. Here are a few reasons why bodybuilders will benefit tremendously from GH use.

Lean muscle mass increase

The main reason many young bodybuilders engage in the use of growth hormone is that it does lead to an increase in lean muscle mass. This causes the patient to become stronger in the gym, and able to complete more repetitions with the heavy weights formerly used for low repetition work. Users of GH who don’t lift weights will still see an increase in muscle mass and strength, but those users who do will see a much faster growth trend.

Reduction in body fat

Even with no modifications in diet, you will see a slow but steady reduction in body fat through the use of growth hormone. Obviously, if you are engaging in an actual dieting phase, an increase in cardiovascular exercise and a reduction in overall caloric intake should be used to facilitate greater change, along with perhaps a fat burning such as the ECA stack. Simple addition of GH will lead to several percentage points’ reduction in body fat over several months’ time.

Better cholesterol control

As you may already know, LDL cholesterol is the kind you should avoid, that leads to heart disease. HDL is the good kind, which strengthens cardiovascular system function. GH use elevates HDL levels in users with low levels. The return to desired range within two months and stay there, even with no diet modifications. Since bodybuilders consume so much meat and eggs, cholesterol control is a very real need.

Stamina boost

Growth hormone leads to an increase in oxygen in the bloodstream. Aside from the mental and organ function benefits this provides, there is also a significant boost in aerobic performance capacity that accompanies this boost. This leads to more repetitions being completed on every movement. It means we can train longer and harder when it comes to cardiovascular exercise. It means we don’t become winded as easily in all the things we do in life, including posing, a major breakdown point for many bodybuilders.

Mental Effects

Much of what we do in bodybuilding requires a strong mental acumen. Doling out food portions, showing up on the gym on days we don’t want to, and keeping that drive alive for years of the same monotonous training can be hard sometimes. Growth hormone delivers a mental focus and concentration that helps make performing these mundane tasks easier.

Remember that GH use doesn’t lead to fast results, but over time its results will be dependable and consistent. Bodybuilders do not “need” growth hormone, but they will see significant improvements in all areas of their diet and training should they choose to use it It’s a great tool, when used with healthy lifestyle elements such as diet and exercise, for prolonging length and quality of life.

Rowing is the key to building a big and thick back. Sure, deadlifts are essential for overall core mass and strength, and chins are definitely useful for building up width. But nothing beats barbell and dumbbell rows when your goal is to get big and thick. That kind of three dimensional thickness you desire comes particularly from a style of rowing known as T-bat rowing. Most gyms are equipped with a T-bar corner, in which you bend over, pick up the handle, and slowly raise the weight to your midsection. It works – but you have to be at a gym to do it, right? Think again!

Row, row, row your bar… at home! You can enjoy the wonderful benefits of T-bar rowing, including back thickness, width, pop, flex, strength and stamina, and all you need is a standard Olympic barbell set, a towel, and a corner of your garage or training room. Place a 45 pound plate (or two) on one side of the bar. Place the towel in the corner of the room. Then push the empty (unweighted) side of the barbell into the corner. The towel will protect the wall from damage. You will then clip the bar to keep the weight locked in, straddle the bar in the standard T-bar rowing motion, place your hands at the end of the bar OVER the weight, and then row to your heart’s desire. It’s that simple! Keep the range in the 5 sets of 6 to 12 repetitions. You should also be performing barbell rows, deadlifts, and chins as part of any quality home back training routine.

Remember that a mass building compound exercise like T-Bar Rows aren’t going to do you much good in terms of building new muscle, if you’re ignoring other factors which are highly important for the process. You should be consuming at least 250 grams of protein per day, with 300 to 325 being preferable. You should never wait more than 3 hours between meals. Keeping your bloodstream packed with amino acids means you are always recovering and growing from your tough workouts. Also, you should be sleeping at least 7 hours per night, with 8 or 8.5 being preferred. Use supplements as you see fit, particularly options like creatine and Mesobolin which have been proven to assist in the muscle building process best. Above all, keep stress out of your life. The only stress you need is the kind you inflict upon your back using set after set of makeshift T-bar rows. Now, it’s time to grow, baby!

Are you up for a new challenge when it comes to your weekly squatting? Let’s examine a new workout which will force you to hit all of your muscle fibers – from slow to fast twitch – with the hopes of stimulating as much muscular growth as humanly possible over the next 2 months. Are you ready for it? Let’s check out a routine that will vary the repetition range to mix up the muscle fibers being targeted.

Start with a week of rest. Use other leg exercises for your training day. Squats will start next week in a major war. For right now, you want to give those squat-specific muscle groups a week off to recover. They’re going to need it!

Week One
Start your squatting schedule by bumping up those repetitions. This week will be 6 sets of 20 to 25 repetitions per set. This will cut back your training volume significantly, but it will be a necessary adjustment to hit those slow-twitch muscle fibers which aren’t even firing until after repetition number 15. You will be sore from this workout, but in a new way!

Week Two
Continue this trend, cutting back this week’s repetitions to 6 sets of 18 to 20 reps. This will be an small increase in weight, but will still target those slow-twitch muscle fibers.

Week Three
Keep on bumping up the weight. Now you will be using 6 sets of 15 to 18 repetitions.

Week Four
Are you starting to feel the drill? This week it’s 12 to 15 reps, for the same 6 sets.

Week Five
Time to hit ten! Six sets of 10 to 12 sets – you’re starting to hit those fast-twitch muscle fibers finally – Doesn’t it feel good?

Week Six
Six sets of 8 to 10 reps this week. You’re getting heavy!

Week Seven
Now you’re down to 6 to 8 reps for your six sets. How painful is it?

Week Eight
It’s time to wrap things up – let’s ramp down to six sets of 4 to 6 repetitions. You are training like a powerlifter now!

All the while, you should be bumping up your calories by 500 per day. You will be aiming to add one pound of muscle per week, so this would total 3500 calories, or one pound, per week. You should also try to sleep more during this time frame. You will be targeting muscle fibers which have been neglected are suddenly going to come to life, and you want to nourish them.

Give this training protocol a try for 8 weeks. You may discover a brand new inch or two of leg muscle that’s been waiting to explode all along!

We all love bodybuilding magazines. They deliver inspiring photos of world class athletes, in grainy black & white shades. We all believe that guys get oiled up in contest condition and go out there and bench press 600 pounds, right? And the workouts? It’s fascinating to think any human being can move that kind of weight. Same with the diets… who can really consume 3 pounds of beef each day and live to tell about it? Let’s look at some of the more commonly made promises by muscle magazines to see if they pan out.

World class mass while remaining healthy!
The very definition of world class mass – 40 to 60 pounds of new muscle on your frame – is not healthy. Even if you didn’t need to use artificial testosterone or growth hormone to reach that level (and you do), you would have to

Do it without drugs!
You can attain a great looking physique without drugs. You can break 200 pounds, with abs, and plenty of muscle. But to achieve the look of the top bodybuilders in the world, a foray into the dark side of AAS use is required. Don’t let the magazines fool you – steroids are part of the game at that level.

Get Arms like Phil Heath!
Phil Heath has always called himself “The Gift” based upon the genetic gifts which which he was bestowed. He had world class arms while he was a college basketball player. They only got better once he started adding all of the other bodybuilding elements. Genetics always end up left out of bodybuilding magazines, for some reason. The truth is that Phil Heath is a “once every ten years” genetic specimen, and which training your arms with heavy weights on a consistent basis will help you improve your own, you aren’t going to look like Phil Heath. Ever.

She is gonna love it!
Many women do admire a man with a good build. Stack up that muscle and take your shirt off at the beach, and without a doubt, you will enjoy some attention. However, you can also throw a stack of money up in the air and get attention. You can juggle and get attention. Many of the top bodybuilders in the world – 305 pounds and ripped – would get attention from the ladies, and it wouldn’t all be positive. If you take care of yourself and have a good personality, you won’t be alone. But don’t believe the magazines when they promise things like this – Muscle can’t buy you love!

Imagine a bodybuilding magazine cover with headlines such as “Just 52 weeks of consistency to a leaner and stronger you!” They sure wouldn’t sell that well, would they?

You toss two identical twins in a gym. You tell them they have a year to build their triceps. Cutting the gym in half, you let Twin #1 use any machine in the place – cables, nautilus, hammer strength, etc. He pumps and pumps and pumps until his arms are completely engorged with blood. Then you take Twin #2, and lock him on the free weight side of the gym. He can’t use any of the expensive sophisticated machines. Relegated to only dumbbells, barbells, and EZ curl bar, he is expected to try and keep up with his technology-assisted friend.

A year later, and the results are not even close. Twin #1 has some highly toned triceps. Nice round horseshoe shape, and some veins are definitely present. He has decent arms, probably 16 inches. Twin #2 is the guy who can’t fit into the medium t-shirt anymore. He is THICK. The use of free weights was incredible for him. Maybe he’s not as diced or cut as his twin, but his arms are 18 inches and he’s not even flexing. Twin #2 has thicker and bigger triceps because he used free weights. Machines are good, but free weights are great!

Free weights can give you that kind of advantageous thickness as well. Choose exercises such as skull crushers, EX bar presses, DB triceps press behind head, and bench dips. Close grip bench press is also an excellent choice. Train with 4-5 sets per movement, for 8 to 12 repetitions per set. Train to failure on most sets, but keep your form steady and strong. No need to swing around the weight. Stay strict and focused.

You can still benefit from those ‘pumping’ movements such as the triceps machines or the cable pressdowns, but they should be reserved for the tail end of your workout. Use them to get a little vein action, once you have stimulated your triceps in a massive way for thickness.

Keep in mind that you will need to eat more food if you want bigger triceps. You will need to add about 10 pounds of weight to the scale for every one inch of new muscle on your upper arms. Dieting while trying to grow your arms is never a good idea!

Base your triceps workouts on free weights and you’ll see better gains in terms of muscle mass and strength. This rule works with all of your other muscle groups, in case you were wondering! Lift heavy and simple, eat big, and you’ll get big!

Let’s spend a month kicking your body into some serious growth mode! Let’s gradually adjust factors each week from our current training levels, so that by the time the month ends, we have a substantially different training protocol. Ready to get started?

Week one
This week, your emphasis will be upon diet. This will give your body the nutrients it needs to start training harder and longer, and will really clear up any nutrient deficiencies from which you have been suffering. More protein at ever meal – at least 40 grams per meal – is all the difference you need! Steak, chicken and whey all provide ample sources.

Week Two
This week, the emphasis falls upon sleep. Even if your body doesn’t want it, you should give it to yourself anyway. Stay in bed 8 hours per night, even if you cannot sleep. Lay down for 45 minutes each day, even if you cannot sleep. The results will be fantastic! You will be recharged and ready to face everything with greater vigor and focus.

Week Three
Now that your body is ready for the new levels of training (with the addition of more food and rest) it’s time to add a single exercise for 5 sets, to each of your workouts. This will mean your workouts will take an extra 15 minutes, and the exercise must be of the compound variety. Squats, deadlifts, bench press, military presses, barbell curls, and skull crushers are ideal additions to each of your training days.

Week Four
This week, you will want to add some cardio to your routine (while keeping the other newly added factors constant). This will lead to more and more appetite, desire for sleep, giving you greater factors to contribute to better and more effective weight training workouts. See how the cycle begins to form?

Going Beyond
Have you had enough? Are the results adequate for your desired goals? Or have the first four weeks been nothing more than just enough to wet your appetite for the gains you’d like to see in the coming months? If you’d like to advance your training results more quickly, it isn’t that difficult. You simply need to continue with these same steps, each month. Change up your diet during the first week of every month. Add more rest & recovery time during week 2. In week 3, you can add more exercises to your training day, and week four can be more cardio. Train hard, rest and eat well, and enjoy the results!

Back day is upon us once again, and once again, it’s time to compromise, right? You know that the heavy, mass building training versus the all-feel, pumping back routine? One of them build shape and one builds size, but it seems incredibly hard to work them both into the single workout. Either we leave the gym feeling like we didn’t move enough poundage to make size gains, or we leave feeling the pump just wasn’t satisfactory, right? Well, worry no more. The solution was demonstrated by 8-time Mr. Olympia Ronnie Coleman in his DVD a few years back, and it still works today. Let’s SPLIT our back workout into two days.

Day One – Mass Day
This is the day where you go HEAVY on the heaviest possible movements your body is capable of completing for back. Low reps, low sets, and lots of iron are used to give your back the stunning and jarring workout needed to add some serious pounds to your scale. Deadlifts, rack deadlifts, and rows of the dumbbell and barbell variety are ideal, for small sets of 4 to 8 repetitions. You can place this day on your Tuesday workout, for example.

Day Two – Width Day
This is the day that you are able to make better use of the machines in your gym. You can focus more upon the pump, the burn, and the width of your back muscles. This isn’t the time to worry about picking up insane amounts of weight at all costs. Rather, this is the time when you really try to FEEL the way the muscles are affected by the weights. Lat pulldowns, cable rows, and the wide variety of Hammer Strength and other cable movements in your gym which target the back are ideal on this day. Stick with rep schemes of 8 to 15, and train to failure! This is an ideal Friday training routine.

Obviously, any time you run short on time, your quickest tool for saving time and ‘missing a day’ will be to merge these workouts. Additionally, you can find some greater success by sprinkling a few smaller body parts into the equation. On Day one, the heavy back day, you can always add Traps to the list. Hit a few exercises like shrugs with barbells or dumbbells to wrap up this heavy day. Or, Day Two (the lighter back muscle day) can also include some shoulder work.

Mix it up, keep it interesting, and enjoy the results!