heavy

Weightlifting belts have been a long-standing debate across all types of athletes in the gym. One side of the argument claims that belts are an essential piece of equipment to perform heavy lifts without injury; the other side claim that these weightlifting belts are simply a band-aid for any...

A 12 INCH NEEDLE IN MY LIVER I was 20 years old and in for a routine check-up that included some labs. At this point in life, I lifted weights six times a week. I assumed everything would look flawless. I was wrong. I got a call back from the sports medicine GP saying I needed to come back in...

Body levers can play a pretty heavy role into what we naturally excel at. People with long arms, for instance, will likely be especially good at throwing, rowing, martial arts, and racquet sports. Taller folks will generally have a size advantage in basketball and volleyball. Large, heavy people...

If you're a competitive bodybuilder, then a pair of killer arms are essential for making your mark in any competition you enter. If you're just a beach bodybuilder, a set of well developed biceps and triceps is very much needed to make acquaintance with the fairer gender in your travels. If...

Twice-Weekly Pectoral Blasts Sounds nice - make it twice! We all know that the best way to create some growth in a pair of lagging arms is to hit them twice a week. Maybe we toss in 6 sets of heavy-ish triceps pressing at the end of Monday's chest day, and biceps enjoys a few sets of curls on...

Here are 10 of the most overlooked and misunderstood facts about abdominal training – some of these may fly in the face of what you THINK you know to be facts! Keep an open mind and read the explanations. You may still not agree but it might just change your ideas on how your abs should be...

There’s no free lunch, not in biology, not in physics, and not in life. In this vid I cover some of those realities with additional text/thoughts below the vid and offer some possible resources and additional thoughts. 8 time Mr Olympia Ronnie Coleman can hardly walk and is going through...

Injury Prevention How to Warm Up The process of warming up before a weight training session involves 3 different phases: Mild cardio – 5 to 10 minutes of non-taxing cardio. Stretching – Several minutes of full body and workout specific stretching. Working warm up sets – Prepare your body and...

Whether you’re a novice lifter or a seasoned veteran in the gym, you have likely struggled with an exercise at one point or another due to your grip failing. It’s a humbling experience - picking up a barbell that’s quickly trying to escape your grasp, or hanging onto a dumbbell for dear life...

You may have heard through the Bodybuilding circles that basic, heavy, free weight exercises increase overall body mass. Perhaps you have heard movements like squats; deadlifts, bench presses etc… induce endogenous hormone production, leading to acute increases in lactate, growth hormone (GH)...

The Hardcore 40 combines a high-speed, fat burning workout system with HIIT cardio and a precision diet to melt away fat and leave behind muscle. It’s time for all out war on fat. You have a goal – look good by Summer, lean out before your next birthday, or drop the freshman 15 – and now you...

IFBB Pro League women’s bodybuilder Kristina Mendoza has a physique worthy of standing on any stage, but what fans know her best for are her quads. Knowing a lot of people wonder what her keys are for building great legs, she shared her insights with Whitney Jones and Alina Popa on a recent...

The number of articles online reassuring women that upping their dumbbell weight will not morph their feminine physique into a She-Hulk speaks volumes. Although over the years more women have gravitated to the weightroom, the misconceptions surrounding women and weights continues to make its...

Everyone wants big guns. You do, I do, and heck…even my mother occasionally strikes a double biceps pose, and flashes her 65 year old pythons. In this article, I am going to break down two aspects of the race for bigger arms: What to know. I will provide you with vital information on just how...

So let me guess. You're at the gym each day trying to get bigger and stronger. In fact, almost every free moment of your life is spent obsessing about adding muscle and strength. You read all the magazines, buy all the best supplements and construct workout plans so complicated they make Jay...

Even though drop sets are claimed as part of the Weider System (what isn’t?), they were originally called the multi poundage system by their creator, Henry Atkins, editor of Body Culture magazine, in 1947. Since then, they have become known as strip sets, the stripping method, descending sets...

How Do You Build Muscle? If we’re talking about building muscle and not truly focusing in on our lifting performances, then we’re talking hypertrophy in its purest form. We can’t increase the amount of specific muscle fibers that we possess, but we can increase the size of our existing fibers...

Retired professional boxer and former British welterweight champion Chris Evangelou knows a thing or two about throwing powerful and accurate combinations thanks to his heavy bag drills and boxing technique. The London-born athlete of Greek-Cypriot origin represented Cyprus at the 2008 Olympic...

Fitness expert and two-time Ms. Figure Olympia champion Erin Stern knows the importance of strong glutes, hamstrings, and back muscles doesn't end on the stage. In her recent Instagram video, Erin demonstrates the rack pull, a rarely-seen, shortened version of the deadlift performed from either...

Google "shoulder training mistakes," and the search engine will spit out articles featuring advise like "Don't use bad form," "Move a full range of motion," and "Never go too heavy." Well...duh! You won't find that kind of overgeneralized silliness here. This is advice by lifters, for lifters...