exercises

A detailed look at the most potent muscle building exercises, as well as a bodypart by bodypart breakdown. Stop wasting time in the gym and start getting results! A workout is made up of only so many sets and exercises. Constructing a workout without a purpose, and without the use of the best...

This article takes a close look at the reasons why you're not building muscle and gaining weight. Read this is you're having trouble getting big! Here’s a question I see time and time again in online bodybuilding & fitness forums: This is an all too common story for people with no experience or...

To stay healthy and progress on your upper body lifts, you've got to take care of your shoulders! Add these 6 exercises to your routine to improve shoulder stability. One of the greatest issues facing athletes and weightlifters is the ability to stay healthy while lifting weights and training at...

To get better at performing chinups, you need to do more chinups. It would be best if you actually did the thing, which some people miss. But when doing more doesn’t improve performance, it’s time to train smart. This is where these four chinup accessory exercises come in. Chinups are one of...

Ballet-dancer-turned-actress Natalie Burn kicked butt in her starring role as a runaway bride in the action-thriller-horror, “Til Death Do Us Part” (read the full interview here) and now shares with M&F readers the killer workouts that kept her core strong for some of those grueling action...

Healthy Shoulders Grow Faster Adopt this workout structure today. Not only will your delts grow faster, but you’ll also reduce the wear and tear on your joints. Here are five things to start doing, plus a full workout plan. 1. Train Your Rear Delts First Don’t be one of those people with a...

OPTIMIZE EXERCISE QUALITY For any given lifter at any given time, some exercises are better than others. By "better" I mean a more optimal benefit/drawback ratio. What makes an exercise "better?" Lots of things: Exercises you can perform safely and effectively are better. If bench...

THE PROBLEM WITH BACK TRAINING A seasoned lifter knows how to manage the ratio of training volume and intensity against accumulated fatigue. Accumulate too much central nervous system, cardiovascular, or mechanical fatigue during or across workouts and your results won't be optimal. But when...

ELIMINATION CIRCUIT WITH CLIMBING REPS This is almost like a game. You create a circuit of 5 exercises covering the whole body. They all have to be big movements: 1 squat variation 1 horizontal press (barbell or dumbbell bench/incline) 1 hip hinge variation (any deadlift, Olympic lift...

It might be the challenge you need to give yourself a swift kick in the pants. A pyramid is a collection of sets in which you do any given exercise starting with higher reps during the initial sets and progressively fewer reps as you work your way through the pyramid. Basically, reps start high...

IT'S NOT WHAT YOU THINK IT IS Contrary to popular belief, the "pump" is NOT increased blood flow to your muscles. Instead, it's fluid accumulation. Specifically, this fluid accumulates in the spaces between your muscle cells (the interstitial space). As you lift weights, the contractions of...

THE LEG DAY DILEMMA It's leg day and you have a decision to make. You're really not feeling it today. You take a look at your workout plan and groan. What do you do? As a dedicated lifter, you're not going to miss a scheduled workout. So should you stick to the program you've been following and...

With all the cool shiny gym “toys,” it is easy for you to get sucked into needing to use them all to get a great full-body workout. In reality, you don’t need much space, a lot of time, or multiple pieces of equipment to get a great training. Just take this full body landmine workout for...

IT'S NOT WHAT YOU THINK IT IS Contrary to popular belief, the "pump" is NOT increased blood flow to your muscles. Instead, it's fluid accumulation. Specifically, this fluid accumulates in the spaces between your muscle cells (the interstitial space). As you lift weights, the contractions of...

BIG UPS I get asked a lot of questions from trainees. Here are the four most frequent: How can I improve my bench? How can I lose fat while gaining muscle? How can I improve my vertical jump? Coach, why does it burn when I pee? Okay, I'm kidding about that last one, but the first few really...

ROW SPECIALIZATION Most lifters have achy shoulders, poor posture, and backs so narrow they disappear when they turn sideways. So what's the best way to build a thicker back, improve posture, and prevent future shoulder issues? Do a row every time you train. To add slabs of muscle to your back...

Why sprint? To dominate your sport. Faster athletes are better athletes. Not an athlete? Sprints are still important. If you want to achieve blazing speed you'll have to make deliberate choices in the gym with your exercise selection. Here's what will make you faster. 1 – HIP THRUST FOR...

When you think about getting ripped, gym memberships and fancy equipment probably come to mind. But what if there's a way to create a stronger, more muscular you without the need for dumbbells or a weight machine? Enter calisthenics: a type of bodyweight training that requires minimal or no...

Designing an effective push-pull-legs workout from the ground up takes a bit of planning and strategy, regardless of prior lifting experience. Thankfully, the push-pull-legs routine is fairly straightforward and easy to follow for just about any gym-goer, athlete, or bodybuilder that wants to...

With many former gym-goers switching to at-home workouts due to the coronavirus pandemic, bodyweight exercises like push-ups and pull-ups are now staples for strength-training. So, how does this tie into supersets? Well, push-ups and pull-ups are the perfect example of two exercises that you can...