Category: Tips

Phil Heath and his main parameters

• Name : Phillip Jerrod Heath
• Nickname : “The Gift”
• Place of birth : 12/18/1979, Seattle, Washington, USA
• Height : 175 cm
• Competitive weight : 113 kg
• Off-season weight: 127 kg
• Residence : Arvada, Colorado, USA [1]
• Favorite cheat meal: Italian food
• Favorite Exercises: Scott Bench Biceps Curls, Biceps Squats, Chest Press 
• Favorite sport : basketball, football
• Hobbies: reading books, playing video games 
• Favorite music : Rock, Hip-Hop

Interesting Fillet Facts

• He trains at the Armbrust Pro Gym in Whit Ridge, Arvada, Colorado.
• While attending the University of Denver, he played basketball.
• After playing 66 matches, he quit basketball and started bodybuilding.
• In 2003 he competed in the first bodybuilding competition.
• Received the title of Mr. Olympia 7 times in 2011 – 2017
• His first title Mr. Olympia won in 2011 when he defeated Jay Cutler (winner of Mr. Olympia 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010)
• As a bodybuilder, he now eats 6 to 7 times a day, but his diet was limited as a basketball player. He only ate 3 times a day. 

Phil Heath and his parameters

Arms: 56cm

Legs: 81cm

Calves: 51cm

Neck: 57cm

Waist: 74 cm

Phil Heath has been involved in sports since childhood. At the start of training, he weighed 84 kilograms. During the extensive preparation for the first competition, he managed to gain up to 97 kilograms. Finally, his competitive weight in the NPC ( National Physics Committee ) in 2003 was 87 kilograms. In this competition, he took first place in his weight category and also won the absolute title. Nicknamed “The Gift” or “Dar,” and thanks to the first competition’s success, he again took to the competition podium just 8 weeks later. In the overall victory, he lost only one point.

However, he realized that he had lost the competition due to his genetic predisposition and began to train smarter. Phil graduated from college with a degree in Information Technology and Business Administration. The decision to take up bodybuilding instead of basketball ended up being very rewarding for him. So let’s take a look at his workout and diet plan to see how he built his winning temper seven times in a row.

In 2014, Phil Heath became the fourth richest bodybuilder today . At the time, it was valued at approximately $ 5 million. Since then, his total winnings on Mr. Olympia costs 2,375,000 dollars.

The most famous wins

2015 – Mr. Olympia, 1st place

2014 – Mr. Olympia, 1st place

2013 – Mr. Olympia, 1st place

2013 – Arnold Classic Europe, 1st place

2012 – Mr. Olympia, 1st place

2011 – Mr. Olympia, 1st place

2010 – Mr. Olympia, 2nd place

2010 – Arnold Classic, 2nd place

2009 – Mr. Olympia, 5th place

2008 – Mr. Olympia, 3rd place

2008 – Arnold Classic, 2nd place

“To be Mr. Olympia is a big responsibility on the competition stage, but even more off-stage. I am satisfied that my personality and hard work help others to achieve their goals. I live by the motto: “Train hard, intelligently and have fun!” Make sure you’re constantly faced with new goals and enjoy the journey, however wild it may be. ” 

Phil Heath and his training plan

A Heath workout includes three to five exercises for each muscle and lasts about two hours. He focuses on a technical exercise like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Ronnie Coleman, who were also multiple winners of Mr. Olympia. His workouts differ slightly depending on whether he prepares for a competition or after a competition.

“My annual goal is to be bigger and better than last year. The competition is intensifying, so I’m under even more pressure. It couldn’t be easier. If I want to continue to win, I must overcome myself. This constant race does not mean that I do something crazy at the gym. I follow basic bodybuilding exercises. I train each muscle from different angles. I’m trying to fix my weaknesses, and my training plan must be challenging and help me progress.” 

Muscle training

Phil’s workout starts with a short cardio workout as part of his warm-up. Below you can find the training plan he trained with: na, Mr. Olympia.

Monday: quads / hamstrings / calves

• Romanian Deadlift – 4 sets of 8-10 reps
• Lying Leg Raises – 4 sets of 8-10 reps
• Seated Leg Raises – 4 sets of 10-12 reps
• Leg Press – 4 sets of 15-20 reps
• Leg Press – 4 sets of 15-20 reps
• Seated Bends – 7 sets of 10-12 reps
• Extension legs on the simulator – 4 series of 10-12 reps
• Squats with a barbell with two hands in front of the head – 4 sets of 10-12 reps
• Leg Press – 3 sets of 12 reps
• Haken Drep – 7 sets of 7 reps

Tuesday: chest/triceps

• Bench press with one hand on a bench with a positive incline – 4 sets of 10-12 reps
• One-handed fold on a positive incline bench – 4 sets of 10-12 reps
• Bench Press – 3 sets of 10-12 reps
• Pec Deck -7 series after 10-12 reps
• Extension of the arms on the block with a reverse grip – 4 series of 10-12 reps
• Bars – 3 sets of 10-12 reps
• Bench press with a large barbell with a narrow grip – 3 sets of 10-12 reps
• French press lying and with a barbell – 7 sets of 10-12 reps

Wednesday: Rest

Thursday: back/biceps

• Bends on the horizontal bar with a wide grip for touching – 3 sets of 10-12 reps
• Tilts on the horizontal bar with a narrow grip for the touch – 3 sets of 10-12 reps
• Barbell Rows – 4 sets of 12 reps
• Two-handed forward bend dumbbell pull-ups – 4 sets of 12 reps
• Incline Dumbbell Curls – 3 sets of 12 reps
• Extension of arms on the block with an even grip – 7 series of 10-12 reps
• lifting the bar for biceps – 3 sets of 12 reps
• One Arm Dumbbell Raises – 3 sets of 12 reps
• Seated Dumbbell Curl – 3 sets of 12 reps
• Scott Bench Dumbbell Curls – 7 sets of 8-10 reps

Friday: shoulders / trapeze

• Press from behind the head on the Smith machine – 4 sets of 10-12 reps
• Standing Dumbbell Lifting with Two Hands – 4 sets of 10-12 reps
• Barbell Rows to the chin – 4 sets of 10-12 reps
• Standing dumbbell lifts with one hand – 7 series of 10-12 reps
• Dumbbell Shoulder Raises – 4 sets of 12 reps
• Barbell Shoulder Raises – 4 sets of 12 reps

Saturday: Cardio

Sunday: Rest  [5]

Volume workout

Fila is coached by the famous Hanna Rambod, who invented a unique workout program called Fascia Stretch Training (or FST-7). Combining this technique with other proven exercises helps Phil gain a particular muscle mass while preparing for a competition.

FST-7 means performing 7 sets of one exercise after 6-12 repetitions with a 45-second break. You can choose between stretching and isometric contractions during the break, which are performed after every other series.

Phil says you don’t need to invent any new exercises if the ones you use work. Another tip from this phenomenal bodybuilder is that you don’t have to deplete energy in a fitness center to build muscle ultimately. Especially if your body isn’t recovering fast enough or is not responding to training the way you would like it. So, smart exercise is the key to success. Most people will never find a training system that works best for them in their life.

Phil Heath and his meal plan for Mr. Olympia

After waking up – BCAA drink

• 230 g chicken breast, 1.5 cups egg white, BCAA drink with L-glutamine
• 340 g beef, 225 g sweet potatoes
• 340 g tilapia, steamed asparagus, and 1.5 cups white rice
• 340 g chicken breast, 225 g baked potatoes, two servings of BCAA s L- glutamine
• 340 g tilapia, steamed broccoli, and 1 cup white rice
• Post Workout – 2x Protein Drink, BCAA & L-Glutamine
• 340 g steamed beef with spinach
• 2 cups egg whites, two whole eggs, and steamed spinach

Before bedtime – amino acid drink

Phil Heath and His Bulking Diet

The Phil Heath diet is in bulk, mainly about gaining massive amounts of muscle without excess subcutaneous fat. In February 2018, a video was released in which Phil explains his meal plan:

In this video, he says he gets up at 5: 00-5: 30 am, 8-9 weeks before the competition. After waking up, he has about half an hour of cardio on the fitness steps or treadmill. It uses a heart rate monitor and smartwatch to achieve a heart rate of 145-150 pulses per minute. This will ensure effective fat burning. Then he returns home for breakfast. It consists of about 230 grams of minced chicken, 1.5-2 cups of egg whites, and about 60 grams of carbohydrates – regular rice in milk or oatmeal. According to Phil, oatmeal contains fiber, which helps in the absorption of food. Breakfast Supplements Multivitamin, Fish Oil, and Vitamin C.

During the day, every 2-2.5 hours. Adding all his meals together, we would get a daily caloric value of about 6400 kcal, which decreases slightly towards his cooking. These dishes include, for example, 340 grams of cooked chicken, beef, ground turkey, or white fish. These are its primary sources of protein in addition to egg whites. In total, he takes about 500 grams of protein a day and advises serious bodybuilders to get at least 3 grams per kilogram of their weight. As for fish, he prefers tilapia in the first place.
He also stressed that he prefers it because of its low mercury content. Towards the end of competitive training, fish becomes almost the only source of protein. And 230-340 grams of meat at the end of cooking is a lot of tilapia.
Towards the competition’s date, he cuts down on carbohydrates to emphasize his muscles but remains visually significant. Of the 8 meals a day, only four will include carbohydrates.

In terms of water, Phil drinks between 4 and 7 liters of water a day, but during the last week before the competition, only one large bottle of water a few days. However, the amount of meat remains the same.

“This is how we get a contoured vascular look.” [8] “I drink about 4 liters of water per day in the volume phase. It is useless to fill in liters and liters of water if you are not getting enough carbohydrates. My non-competitive diet is more organized than it was a few years ago. I used to be wrong with the food, but now I’m sticking to the plan. Even a simple change can drastically change the way my body looks. “

ne of the great

Do you know the adage that to become a champion, you must first defeat the champion? Over the past seven years, Mr. Olympia has been training members all year to dethrone reigning champion, Phil Heath.

Names like Jay Cutler, Kai Greene, Dexter Jackson, and Sean Roden stood alongside Phil during the final round of the competition to see Phil defend his title of the world’s best bodybuilder again. In 2017, a new face appeared on the stage next to Phil – Mamduh “Big Ramy” Elsbye, but the result remained the same when Rock caught the microphone and announced the winner “Phil Heath” again.

Phil continues to move closer to his goal of winning the tenth Mr. Olympia, which he announced as his target two years ago. Observing his determination, enthusiasm, motivation, effort, self-confidence, and winnings, it’s hard to refute this goal. Olympia 2017 was on behalf of the top three bodybuilders: Heath, Rama, and rookie William Bonac. Muscle expressiveness lagged behind competitors for Sean Rodin, who was second behind Phil in 2016. Over the past year, it has dropped from second to fifth place. Dexter “The Blade” Jackson also paid for a more massive and better fit for the competition, but his place was moved down to the fourth.

It was another great year of competition, culminating in a performance reminiscent of the legendary Arnold Schwarzenegger. Phil is only missing one title to compare him with Ronnie Coleman or Lee Haney for eight consecutive titles and two titles to fulfill his dream.

The next year is guaranteed to be exciting as Phil underwent surgery on two large abdomens shortly after the last competition. His training will undoubtedly be significantly different from the last one to reach 100% of his potential on stage Mr. Olympia 2018.

 This IFBB professional and seven-time Mr. Olympia title holder is determined to keep fighting and push for even more Mr. Olympia titles. He hopes to break the current record of 8 Mr. Olympia titles and get exactly 10 of those titles. Phil intends to “present bodybuilding in a way that people can identify with while maintaining respect for the sport.” He is currently a member of the Make it Fit Foundation, which aims to raise awareness about autism. He is president of his nutritional supplement brand, Gifted Nutrition, which he founded in 2014. 

The primary and most popular exercise for strengthening the legs and back is the squat. The fitness enthusiast will not miss a single “leg day.” But are you sure of the correct execution? Do you know all kinds of squats you can use to spice up your workouts? What other benefits does this exercise have? The answer to these and other questions about squats can be found in the following article.

What are squats?

Squats are one of the best functional exercises for strengthening the lower body. When done correctly, you will strengthen your legs, buttocks, and your abs or core. However, the main advantage is that you can do the exercise anytime, anywhere, without the need for special equipment. But the wrong technique can lead to injury.

If we focused on squats in terms of their use, you would find yourself squatting almost all the time. When your keys fall, you bend over, or you do a specific type of squat when you want to tie your shoes. The only difference between these actions and targeted squats is that you consciously think about proper posture and muscle strengthening when you squat.

What muscles are trained during squats?

Squats are primarily designed to strengthen the muscles in the legs and back. However, thanks to the correct posture during their execution and several squat variations, you can use many more muscles. 

During a standard body squat, you connect:

• quadriceps femoris
• biceps
• quadriceps
• inner thigh
• buttocks
• rectus abdominis muscles
• caviar

If you are using squat weights or trying other squat variations, you can also use your muscles:

• back
• forearms
• shoulders
• external and internal muscles of the press
• triceps
• biceps

Correct squat technique

The correct squatting technique will help maximize your effort and prevent injury or muscle damage. How to do it? 

1. Stand up straight with your feet hip-width apart with your toes pointing forward.
2. Pull your shoulders back slightly and tighten your stomach.
3. Stretch your shoulders or place your hands on your belt.
4. Inhale, lower yourself slowly, bend your knees, and slightly push your buttocks back.
5. Keep your back straight; do not bend it.
6. Stop when you reach a position where your knees are bent at a 90 ° angle, and your hips are parallel to the floor – stay in this position for about 2 seconds.
7. Place your weight on your heels, slowly straighten your legs and return to an upright position with an exhalation.
8. For best results, repeat the exercise at least 10-15 times in a row.

Most common squatting mistakes

• You don’t go low enough – with the right squat technique; your hips should be parallel to the floor. However, if you do not squat low enough to reach this point, not all the required muscles will be used.
• Straining your knees is a widespread problem when doing squats. This not only makes it impossible to do the exercise correctly, but it also creates a lot of unnecessary stress on the knees, which, as a result, damages your joints and tendons.
• Work your knees inward – when lifting, your knees should point outward, not inward. When you point your knees inward, it will be easier for you to squat, but the exercise does not make sense.
• Hunchback – It is essential to keep your back upright while squatting. Otherwise, it can lead to injury. Therefore, you should avoid bending or unstable spine.
• Lifting the heels off the ground – Squats should be done with the weight on the heels. This is because if you put your weight on your heels, you will ensure that your muscles are safely and correctly balanced and loaded. Therefore, never lift your heels off the floor when lifting.

Benefits of squats

Squats not only strengthen your muscles, but they hide many other benefits. You can also improve necessary activities such as walking, sitting, or lifting and carrying heavyweights. But that’s not all! Find out what other benefits you will get from regular squats. 

These are:

• maintains correct posture
• they help burn calories – a 64 kg person can approximately burn up to 133 calories in 15 minutes of intense squatting [11]
• improves flexibility and stability
• strengthens the lungs and heart
• helps prevent injury
• supports joint health
• supports strong bones
• improves driving speed
• improves digestion and blood circulation in the body

Types of squats

 With different squat variations, you also engage other essential muscles in the exercise and spice up your workout. However, remember that if you are new to training and squatting, you should focus on understanding the correct technique for basic squats and then try other, more complex forms. You can also use various tools such as dumbbells, fitness bands, or resistance bands, kettlebells. , chairs or fitness ball. See what types of squats you can include in your workout plan.

Bulgarian squat

Before doing the Bulgarian squat, you need to prepare one, one hand means – an elevation, a low chair, or bench. Stand with your back to the platform and bend your right leg so that you place the top of your foot on the platform. This will be your starting position. Then bend your left knee and begin to squat until your right leg’s knee almost touches the floor. Make sure your shoulders are back, your back is straight, and your weight is on your heels. If you want to make the exercise more difficult, you can take dumbbells.

Sumo squat

Your leg width should be slightly wider with this type of squat than with the classic squat. Therefore, stand so that your feet are slightly farther apart than the width of your shoulders. The feet should be slightly outward. Bring your hips and shoulders back, keep your back straight, and begin the squat. Stop only when your hips drop just below knee level.

Smith Squat / Multi-Press Squats

The Smith Machine, or the so-called Multi-Press, is an excellent tool for those who have trouble squatting and find it challenging to keep their back straight. This device always maintains one trajectory of movement from which you will not deviate. This is a classic squat design, but with the weight you place on the harness. However, be careful that the heels do not come off the floor due to the weight in the starting position or, conversely, during squats. Adjust your weight so that you feel comfortable and safe.

Weighted squats

Once you master the basic bodyweight squatting technique, it’s time to add an iron! There are several ways to do this. Or add a dumbbell, kettlebell, or barbell to the squat. When using a dumbbell with one hand, make sure that the weight does not automatically outweigh you. When using the barbell on your back, make sure you don’t overload and injure yourself.

Overhead Squat

In addition to the lower body , this squat option also includes your abs and muscles in your back, shoulders, and arms.

The squat’s starting position is the same as in the classic squat, but we keep our arms straight over our heads. To complicate this exercise, add weights, a barbell, or a ball.

Jump squats

This is a plyometric movement, which effectively means that you are doing aerobic squat exercises. Therefore, it is required that you do as many movements as possible and quickly. The jump squat technique is identical to the classic squat, but you push a little more with your heels and jump out as you get up. We recommend adding weight to this squat only when you have mastered the technique.

Squats near the wall

Stand with your back to the wall and squat slowly. The back and head should always touch the wall. Slowly move slightly away from the wall to create an essential squat position – your knees are bent at a 90 ° angle, your feet are pointing forward, and your thighs are parallel to the floor. You must remain in this position for at least one minute. You can put a barbell or kettlebell on your knees to complicate things. While this is not a dynamic type of squat, it works out your thighs and glutes.

Side squats

Five aerobic types of squats. Get into the starting position of the classic squat and slowly move down. However, stay in this position, do not rise, but step with your right foot to the side. Make sure your hips are still at the same height during this movement. Then repeat the same movement with your left leg to return to the squat position. You can repeat the movement a few more times to one side and then change sides. You can also use a fitness elastic band or expander exercise to make it harder.

Squats on one leg

The ideal exercise for the muscles of the thigh and buttocks and achieve better stability. Take the starting position of the classic squat and extend one leg in front of you. Move down slowly. You can stretch your arms out to get the best balance. Keep your leg still extended. Just do as much as your body can. Do not push your knees inward and try to maintain as much stability as possible.

Crouched Plie

The best kind of squat for toning your legs that doesn’t look like a classic squat simultaneously. Take the same stance as the sumo squat, with a broader stance, extend your arms to the sides and move down. However, with full squats, your weight does not remain on your heels but instead on your toes. Therefore, stand on your toes in a squat and spread your knees so that you feel as much pressure as possible on your inner thigh muscles. This ballet style squat is wildly popular with women.

Of course, there are many squat options, so we’ve picked the most basic and most popular ones for you. What about you and the squats? Do you include them in your workouts? What type of squat do you like the most? Please share your opinion with us in the comments. If you liked the article, be sure to share it with your friends.

Have you ever asked yourself, “What would Arnold Schwarzenegger do?” These 31 tips will answer that question and help you build muscle.
Long before he made $ 25 million for his film roles, Arnold Schwarzenegger wrote monthly articles for bodybuilding magazine Joe Weider, who is also considered the godfather of bodybuilding. Although Arnold did not receive any journalistic awards for his work, he later collected his ideas and training in his bestselling book, The New Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding, which is still used today as an excellent source of information bodybuilders.

To gain the best knowledge from one of the strongest minds in bodybuilding, we bring you Arnold’s 31 workout tips on how to develop your dream body.

General training tips

1. Choose the right exercises for growth.

Hard training is just as crucial as training-wise. “To become massive, you first have to be strong,” wrote Arnold. “Newbies and advanced bodybuilders shouldn’t focus as much on refinement as on height.”

With these thoughts on Arnold, you should focus less on isolated exercises and prefer complex exercises. Bench presses, squats, deadlifts, forward bends, or power shifts are examples of good complex exercises that require the coordination of multiple muscle groups. These exercises should form the core of your training plan.

In addition to being more complex than their isolated counterparts, these movements have the significant advantage of allowing you to train with heavy weights aimed at the target muscle group. Arnold believed that performing these movements and overcoming oneself plays the most significant and crucial role in gaining strength and volume.

2. Use heavy weights and low reps

For Arnold, choosing the right weight is just as important as choosing the right exercise. Eight reps of 160kg squats is a better muscle boost than 40 reps of 45kg.

“Start with fewer reps for warm-ups (but not to lead to complete muscle wasting), then add weight with each set and increase the number of reps until you reach your peak,” wrote Arnold. “Usually, there was a person next to me to help me climb the top or gain weight.”

Arnold didn’t just focus on weight. He wanted to make sure the weight was within the target range: “I have a limit. I never do less than six reps for most movements and never more than 12. This rule applies to most parts of the body, including the calves. “Therefore, make sure you select the correct weight in the given rep range.

3. Don’t settle for a routine

Few know that Arnold has an advanced degree, but he didn’t need a degree to discover that yield reductions could be applied to exercise. Doing the same exercises for a long time without significant changes loses value over time. It happens when a bodybuilder gets into a training routine.

“Based on a specific structure, I changed exercises regularly. I was happy to shake my muscles so that I didn’t leave them in a stereotype. “Arnold always planned his workouts as homework. As soon as he realized that one exercise was no longer working, he replaced it with another. He was never afraid to experiment with exercise or alternative training methods. He was always looking for new ways to get bigger and better if the old methods were ineffective.

4. Overcome failure with advanced techniques

In his book, Arnold defines various advanced training techniques as weapons to strengthen lagging body parts. Relying on trial and error, he tried various techniques himself and then focused on what worked best for him.

Don’t be afraid to apply techniques such as violent reps, negatives, drop sets, partial reps, rest breaks, or any other ideas you’ve read about to your workouts. After using one technique, notice how you feel, do not set each series until you are exhausted, but still, save the most difficult 1-2 series for each exercise.

5. Protect yourself from overtraining

In your eagerness to build muscle, you can get to the point where you want to throw it all away and flush it out. Still, Arnold warns against this counterproductive strategy: “There will be days when some part of your body will fall behind because you have overtrained and overworked. So often and so intensely that she never had time to rest, recover, and grow. “

“The answer to this problem is to give the strengthened muscles a chance to recover and adjust the training plan so that they don’t overtrain anymore. Remember, when it comes to bodybuilding, too much can be as bad as too little. “

Shoulders

6.Volume is best created by pressure

Strenuous exercises like pressing and chin pulling work best to create volume in the shoulders. Arnold practiced these exercises mainly at the beginning of the workout when he had the highest energy level. He usually did barbell presses behind and in front of his head to complete the development.

7.Learn different ways to make one move

Small differences in how similar movements affect the target muscle group slightly differently give us a better stimulus.

Arnold was looking for alternative exercises that target the target muscle from different angles. For example, by using one-handed dumbbells instead of a large dumbbell for overhead lifts, he deliberately reduced the distance of the weight a few inches below the lowest point of motion. He then brought the one-handed dumbbells upward, increasing the range of motion.

8.Attack the shoulders with isolated exercises

Arnold used isolated exercises to increase overhead pressure and isolate the deltoids. Here he also looked for differences that improved the overall size over time. For example, when climbing on the front pulleys, you feel that other muscles are involved besides the back. Knowing how to move and create movement patterns across devices is critical for a bodybuilder to take his figure to the next level.

9Train the upper traps with your shoulders

Arnold trained them all at once because the upper traps receive some stimulation during various arm exercises. His primary exercise for the upper trapezoid was the “shrug.” However, several other movements were required to maximize this muscle, including deadlift, locomotion, and rowing. Since the range of motion of the shoulder bend is relatively small, Arnold recommends losing weight in favor of fully flexing the shoulder as high as possible.

Biceps

10.Gain volume with a massive barbell with a biceps curl while standing

Arnold loved the bicep curls to get baseball biceps. Looking for a specific movement to build muscle, he preferred exercises that allowed him to lift heavy weights and do a full range of motion, which allowed him to do 6 to 8 heavy reps. This is how he developed huge biceps and claims that this is a good start for your workouts.

11.Don’t stop if you fail

Some do biceps lifts to muscle failure, but Arnold didn’t stop. Having reached the top point, he gave himself enough time to complete the streak. Sometimes he did biceps curls with extra body movement to do a few extra reps to stimulate the muscles.

• Change the rotation of the one-handed dumbbell while lifting the biceps.

In the book, Arnold describes that he always included at least one one-handed dumbbell exercise in his workouts. In this way, feeling in an upward direction, as opposed to when doing the lift, he felt the best “peak” effect because the arm muscle is in the neutral position in which he started. Arnold performed a one-handed dumbbell bicep curl simultaneously with alternating repetitions. This later allows the body to rest more between reps.

• Do more reps for some exercises.

Not every biceps movement was performed 6 to 8 times. Arnold identified some exercises, which he called “bodybuilding movement definitions,” and performed them with relatively lightweights in a series of 8 to 12 repetitions. Here he focused on squeezing and contracting muscles and maintaining maximum contraction over time. Among his favorites are the isolated curl, the biceps curl with forearm support on the Gironde bench, and alternating curls with one-handed dumbbells.

Triceps

• Experiment with a healthy body part

Arnold’s chest and triceps were particularly vital parts, so he didn’t train them the same way as his biceps. Since his triceps were already strong, he did up to 20 reps per set to build muscle.

• Set the goal of the exercise

“It is foolish to do triceps exercises and not know which part of the triceps you are training .” This is excellent advice, but how do you apply it?

Arnold offers advice he learned from legendary trainer Vince Girona: “Do 20 sets of one exercise and nothing else for that body part. Then notice where the pain is concentrated the next day .”

• Add partial iterations after errors.

Arnold’s improved triceps exercise selection technique, there were partial reps. After making a full range of tension, he added 5-6 partial iterations of the top, bottom, or half movement to the series. Although he could no longer do any full reps and was limited to the peak, he still managed to do a few reps because his height propelled him.

• Make additional streaks to strengthen the strengthening.

Arnold often added series to the biceps and triceps exercises, or in other words, he did the exercises one after the other to get a lot of blood into his hands. Blood carries oxygen and nutrients necessary for growth, but these additional streaks also allowed Arnold to achieve his ultimate training goal: “pump killing.” The different series for a smaller muscle group, such as the arms, are lighter than those for larger groups, such as the legs, although Arnold often did the same.

Legs

• Make your weakness your priority.

If you have big breasts, it is natural that you want to show them off, and you will be doing more chest exercises in the gym. However, Arnold had the opposite approach. At some point, Arnold noticed that his calves were lagging behind general physical development. Instead of hiding his weakness, he solemnly cut off his pants’ bottom and put on shorts. Thus, he always reminded himself of his weaknesses and further strengthened them. He trained his calves more frequently, early in his workout when he was still fresh, and sometimes even between batches of larger body parts, which strategically helped him earn the world’s most recognized bodybuilding degree.

• Try everything

Since Arnold had long legs, at first, his calves and his thighs were behind him. Therefore, on the day of leg training, he abandoned all training plans and, as he wrote: “It was tough for me to train my legs, considering that I have long legs, and therefore muscles.

The so-called long-legged bodybuilder must explore different exercise options. Therefore, he advises you to include other exercises until you figure out what works best for you. Of course, you shouldn’t forget to change your daily routine to surprise your muscles continually. “

• Change the relationship if necessary

You probably know how important posture is, for example, when squatting. During the squat, Arnold tested different leg positions to see how they affect different parts of the thighs. “If my legs were farther apart and my toes pointed outward, I would feel a thigh squat inside. The position of the legs greatly influences which part of the hips is most strengthened. “

Arnold liked to use different squats and lying on the machine; even while standing, he could use different leg positions to train each part of the leg.

1. Use squat machines to improve.

Squat machines don’t have to be just a beginner’s tool. Arnold made it difficult to exercise them. He used a shortened movement – he only went down three-quarters in the squat and only a quarter cup. He called this technique “strength squats,” which allowed him to feel a burning sensation in his legs without struggling with weight balance.

• Add hamstring exercises

Although the hamstrings work during basic squats, pressure movements, speed control of the squat, and subsequent stretching, Arnold argues that it is necessary to do exercises that focus directly on these parts.

The deadlift is an excellent exercise for the whole body, and the Romanian deadlift focuses on the hamstrings. Strengthening the hamstrings is essential to reduce the risk of a knee injury, which can occur when the quadriceps’ muscle mass exceeds the hamstrings’ strength.

Abdominal muscles

• Train your abdominal muscles indirectly

Arnold’s approach to abdominal training was mostly simple. He had several movements that he did in several repetitions. However, if you reconsider how hard he trained his core during his leg and back workouts, you find that he didn’t need to train him. Heavy and challenging exercise certainly played a more critical role in the strength and aesthetics of his belly.

Chest

• Work hard to get the size.

Arnold’s significant chest development began with strength training as he acted as a powerlifter early in his career. He found that with a power base, it would be easier for him to reach size. Out of season, consider a powerlifting cycle that will help you strengthen and improve your performance before returning to bodybuilding training. As a personal record, Arnold stung 102 kg in 60 reps!

1. Use multiple angles

Arnold included an essential, complex exercise in his training program to focus on the chest from different angles. In one article, he wrote: ” I knew the routine had to be simple and at the same time very complicated.  ” The basis for Arnold was to train on an upright bench with ups and downs, training as a powerlifter from time to time, rather than alternating several machines or using technical trends. Arnold continued pumping until the end of the workout.

• Cyclic training pushed him to grow.

Arnold’s routine was based on the amount and frequency of training for each body part. His offseason training program sometimes included up to 26 sets on a more challenging day, while his chest was trained up to three times a week. He alternated between hard and easy days, strengthening the muscles of relatively different intensities to overtrain the chest.

Arnold divided his back work into two types of movement: bends and rows for the width and vertical rows in forwarding bends for general reinforcement. When shaping the form, he used all possible types of variations, making bends by touch and overheating with weight, but at the same time without adding weight, he also exchanged rods – sometimes behind the head, sometimes back to the chest. By varying angles, he achieved better overall development.

• Don’t forget about your elbows.

Standing biceps flexion with the elbows more at the sides has a better effect on the top of the broadest back muscle. In exercises with a narrow grip and an inverted grip, the elbows stay closer, which reduces the pressure on the upper part of the triangular muscle and affects the lower one more. This leads to the dependence of the elbows’ position on the effect on strengthening the various parts of the back.

• Set a goal based on reps.

Many trainers usually do 3 to 4 sets per exercise. Still, in the event of failure, Arnold usually used a technique to achieve a certain number of repetitions, claiming that 50 reps is better than a certain number of sets.

He said, “In the first set, you do, for example, ten reps. In the second, you may already be doing eight reps, but you already have. When you do at least 5 in the third set, you will have 23. You will continue to do this until you reach 50, even if you need to do 20 sets. So I strengthened my strength on my mistakes and achieved success. “

• Do vertical deadlifts with a gradual increase in weight.

Vertical lifts were an essential part of Arnold’s training. It had various popular variations (pull-ups on the lower pulley to the belt, pull-ups with a specially modified two-handed T-bar). Still, each was done with a lot of volumes and gradually increasing weight. Arnold followed a pyramid scheme in which he gradually increased weight based on a successful streak with reduced reps. Only the hardest streak resulted in muscle failure.

It’s up to you if you want to train and grow like Arnold Schwarzenegger, but it’s certainly great to be inspired by his advice. As you may have noticed, his advice makes him feel how much he loves to exercise and how much he enjoys trying and “playing” with his muscles. Arnold is a great inspirer and idol of many, and there is nothing to be surprised at.

You can keep doing the basic exercises over and over, but don’t expect your psyche and strength to get close to your goal. Professional development requires a conscious decision to increase your training efforts. Therefore, you should change your approach to training.

Here are the three most essential tips you need to learn – and start practicing – as an advanced athlete looking to lift more weight.

Tip 1: Add Volume, Reduce Reps

Many beginner programs focus on repeating basic exercises continuously. After a while, your body will get used to the exercise and adapt to it, first through motor training as you improve coordination, and then through increased muscle and strength. However, if you want to know about your progress, you should focus on the appropriate exercises for each muscle group.

As a beginner, you have several chest exercises. However, as a seasoned lifter, you need to raise the bar a little higher, and one way to do this is to add more exercises that engage your muscles at different angles. If the mid-pect press is part of your workout, we recommend adding a positive incline bench load for the best upper pectoral workout. The extra volume allows you to work your muscles, allowing you to develop better fully.

Adding sets of multiple exercises increases your volume (a factor that is directly related to muscle growth) and lengthens your workout. If you double the amount of exercise you do, you also double your time at the gym. We must not forget that additional exercise will increase muscle growth, so it will take you a little longer to recover.

Decision? Add volume, reduce reps. Instead of training your entire body three times a week, try splitting your workout into upper and lower body workouts or according to the muscle groups themselves. You can even separate your workouts into muscles that “push” (shoulders, chest, and triceps) and muscles that “pull” (back and biceps) and the legs themselves.

This way, you can train each part of your body twice a week or every fourth day, which gives you enough time to train each muscle group without dragging out your workout, although you may need to go to the gym more often.

Tip 2. Explore different variations of your favorite exercises

Beginners practice basic movements that build muscle and strength. As you progress, you will learn how to use various devices and machines to help you build more muscle. Maybe you’ve learned how to do standing biceps curls with an EZ barbell or even a biceps curl with a massive barbell. Small changes (maximum grip and bottom grip) and placement (inside or outside of the shoulders) can affect your muscles and their growth.

 Like many exercises, lifts can be done with one-arm dumbbells, which provide more freedom in the shoulder joint. In turn, the pulley allows you to change the angle of the muscle’s tension, depending on where it is installed. You can do this exercise while standing or sitting with one hand in one hand instead of both.

Certain types of lifts can also be performed on machine tools. That’s where the controlled path is. Since some equipment has its advantages, you can use several of them.

Since each type of equipment has its unique advantages and disadvantages, you must find a way to incorporate all the equipment available to you in your workouts. Learning to do the exercises in different ways can improve overall muscle development. You will appreciate it if you come to a crowded gym and cannot get to the equipment because it is always loaded. Try one of the alternatives, and you never have to wait again

Tip 3. Take on new challenges

 Do you remember all those heavy exercises and weights that you quickly lifted when you were a beginner? As you may have noticed, the more you exercise, the harder it is to master size and strength. Don’t worry; everything is going according to plan – the plan of nature. When you load your body in the gym, the muscles get bigger and stronger, and the tasks you set for yourself are suddenly easy to overcome. The growth of muscle fibers will help you meet this challenge faster in the future.

However, if you want to increase muscle mass and strength, you must continue to adhere to progressive overload principles. The point of progressive overload is never to get used to training.
If you no longer see your progress, it might be time to change your workout. Start by changing the order of the exercises you perform. You can also control volume, load, rest periods, intensity methods, or even adjust training intervals. Typically, changing your workout every six weeks helps maintain muscle growth, strength, and endurance. It will also help you maintain a fresh attitude towards exercise and exciting workouts.

We are confident that you will be able to make progress in your athletic performance and fully enjoy your success with the help of this article. If you liked the article, please support it by sharing it so other athletes can learn to stay fit.

CAN YOU GAIN MUSCLE FASTER OR LOSE WEIGHT BY SHOCKING YOUR MUSCLES?

You will probably experience a real shock when you find yourself in a cold shower in the morning, encounter a bear in the woods, or find yourself in front of a New York subway map, although you have lived alone until now. Is it possible to “shock and confuse
The idea was quite popular with the P90X high-intensity exercise programs and fitness trainer Tony Horton. For faster and more noticeable results with this method, it is enough to continually load the muscles or otherwise shock and carry out an ever-changing training program. These can be strength training, karate, yoga, sprint training, and other sports from various fields of activity. In English, this term is known as Muscle Confusion.

Simply put, it’s about continually shocking your muscles with different types of workouts so that your muscles don’t get used to a particular type of exercise, so you continuously push your boundaries towards maximum productivity and prevent stagnation. Imagine you have strength training on Monday, CrossFit on Wednesday, running on Friday, and circuit training on Sunday.

I’m sure you’ve heard this idea several times from athletes who have been training for a year. But like everything, not all gold that glitters, and things are a little more complicated.

What drives successful training, and isn’t constant training changes and muscle shock necessary?

A well-designed training plan will allow you to achieve better barbell and body results in the long term.

What variables should your training plan follow?

1. Workout volume is the work done during a workout, such as the number of sets and reps per workout or over a more extended period. We can also include the number of jagged or elapsed specified intervals here.
2. Training intensity can be compared to difficulty. In strength training, we are talking mainly about the weight on the barbell, and in the running, we can talk about speed.
3. Training frequency measures how often we train a muscle, run, or do another sport.

Don’t expect drastic results from one or two workouts per week, as if sleeping with a barbell. Simply put, you need to train “just right,” neither less nor more. 

Proper training planning leads to a sexy figure and excellent athletic performance.

Performing for a long time, you may want to consider a new type of training. Are you doing the same exercises with the same load and the same number of repetitions over and over? Have you been running the same hour every other day on the same route for a year now?

Then it’s not surprising if your performance doesn’t improve. Any long-term sports activity leads to the adaptation of muscles in your body. Strength will increase, some of the muscles used will grow, you will lose some fat, your overall physical condition, and your circulatory systems’ performance will improve to regulate and slightly increase your endurance.

However, while you are still giving the body the same boost, you cannot expect other adaptation results in chest growth after bench press exercises with the same load. Also, you can’t expect to run a marathon well if you run 10 kilometers every other day. 

How to improve athletic performance and overcome stagnation in training and weight loss?

If you want to improve continually, you must also add and achieve progressive overload in your training, which will lead to a more vital training impulse, which will translate into better results in the long term. [five]

Progressive overload can be achieved:

1. Large training volume in the form of more repetitions in exercises during training. To start, instead of 3 reps, do 4. You can also use repetitions of one exercise instead of the entire workout.
2. Higher training intensity, which you achieve by increasing the load on the bar. Even those small pancakes weighing 1.25 kg make a difference. In particular, we will achieve greater mechanical muscle tension, which is one indicator of muscle growth.
3. By shortening the rest intervals between sets, you achieve shorter exercise times and more metabolic stress, which is an indicator of muscle growth.
4. As you slow down the exercise, you increase your time under tension (TSR) and increase metabolic stress.

How many repetitions per workout per muscle part is the smartest choice? This is a 40-60 rep range. We can move from the more powerful 4-6 reps in the compound exercise to the 8-12 reps of “bodybuilding” in the next exercise. [6] If you are not sure how to create a workout plan, our article will help us. 

3 mechanisms that stimulate muscle growth, without which there will be no result

Schoenfeld’s (2010) comprehensive work shows that three main factors are responsible for muscle growth from strength training. 

1. Mechanical stress. You achieve more mechanical stress with more weight on the bar.
2. Muscle damage is a manifestation of a training load noted on muscle cells by damage and the formation of microtrauma. Subsequently, they rebuild, and the muscles get bigger and stronger.
3. You stimulate metabolic stress with more extended time under tension (STL) or more repetitions, called a “pumping series,” and you can think of this as the long-familiar “muscle burning during exercise.”

Periodization of training: Isn’t “muscle shock” and frequent training changes necessary?

The key to consistently changing athletic performance and overcoming stagnation is a well-designed training plan that considers the underlying mechanisms of muscle growth. Increasing the intensity of your workouts doesn’t go on forever. As part of training planning, increase the load in the mesocycle (mid-term training period) by about 4-8 weeks. 

This block should be followed by a roughly weekly unloading training phase, which does not mean coaching Netflix. In doing so, we can imagine reducing the training intensity by about half to fully reflect the training adaptations. Simply put, we can reduce the load on the bar or the number of reps performed. We can also use longer rest breaks between sets.

Muscle shock and constant training will not bring you the best and fastest results. On the contrary, they can extend the path to the goal. Imagine that your goal is to increase leg strength, and your workouts should focus primarily on strenuous, heavy strength exercises such as squats, deadlifts, or lunges. Instead, we will practice one bodyweight workout and replace another, such as HIIT. This will not help us achieve our goal. Paradoxically, performance would rob us of this strategy.

Rather than shock the muscles, sometimes it is better to change the exercises’ order in your workout for more motivation.

In a study by Enek Baz-Vallee and colleagues (2019), researchers found that changing the exercise order of an 8-week training plan based on a computer program results was less tiring for an experimental group of athletes than a classical training program where the control group trained accurately. The training plan is still the same. Both groups trained 4 times a week, went through approximately the same amount of training during the program, and achieved similar results. But this should not be confused with the principles of “muscle shock,” which are based on changing the type of training. [nine]

If you don’t have specific goals, doing each workout for a different sport can also be beneficial.

1. Changing the training types during the week can be beneficial, as it does not quickly get boring and does not fit into the training stereotype. You can look forward to new workouts and be more motivated. But this, in turn, is a very individual question.
2. By combining different sports (strength training, HIIT, running, Crossfit, etc.), you can work with virtually all athletic performance components, such as maximum strength, strength endurance, speed endurance, or general aerobic endurance to improve overall physical fitness.