training

Rest Days Believe it or not, our bodies recover on the days AWAY from the gym, not while we are actually training. To better understand this, think of your muscles like a cut. When you cut yourself, you leave the wound alone so that your body has the time it needs to repair the damaged...

Recovery is one of the most underappreciated components of the overall training plan, yet it’s arguably the most important. Training provides the stress that creates an environment for the body to adapt (and become stronger, bigger, faster, you name it), but it’s adequate rest and recovery that...

I really dislike being told what to do. Always have, probably always will. Therefore, I have a natural tendency to break rules. I recognize this is not the best trait to have. Being like this can make things unnecessarily difficult in your life. However, some rules are made to be broken. I...

In fitness, time on task should be worth a lot. However, sometimes experienced people still struggle with their fitness goals. Why is that? We all follow the same pattern with any new skill we learn. We start by wanting to get better at something, gather information from a book, website...

Nutritional Layers of Importance Before we get too deep into what to eat around the workout, it’s important to point out where it fits into the layers of nutritional importance. #1: Energy Balance / End of Day Calories As you have heard many times before, when it comes to building muscle and...

Daily Undulating Periodization is exactly what it sounds like (surprising huh?). Let’s break it down: Daily: literally we are talking about days. Undulating: Ok now we are getting into some technical sounding terms. Don’t be afraid, undulation simply means a flowing motion, up and down in a...

Behind every incredible physique, there’s a story of hard work, discipline, and unwavering dedication. For Mike Mentzer, that story includes innovation and pushing the limits of the human body and mind’s capabilities. Mike Mentzer’s training was unlike anyone else’s of his time. The term legend...

How hard should you train? It is a question that is debated a lot in fitness circles. On the one hand, you have an old-school bodybuilding approach of training instinctively or simply pushing everything to failure. Workouts like this leave little need for quantifying how challenging a set...

by: Kyle Hunt When I first got into training it was bodybuilding that had my attention. I used to read all of the popular bodybuilding magazines – Flex, Muscle and Fitness, Muscular Development, MuscleMag, etc. I even read Arnold’s massive Encyclopedia to Modern Bodybuilding cover to cover...

It’s simple: There’s a LOT that contributes to strength beyond muscle mass. Now, it’s impossible to pin down exactly how much muscle mass influences strength because that would require a 20-year training study that would be utterly unfeasible to carry out. However, we can get ourselves in the...

5 Muscle-Building Mistakes (And How To Make Gains) By Brad Schoenfeld 1) You Always Train in the Same Rep Range The claim that muscle growth is maximized in a moderate rep range (6-12 reps per set) continues to be a source of debate in the fitness field. Although this theory is backed by some...

The most reliable way to make progress is to do more. It’s certainly not the ONLY way to make progress. Exercise selection plays a role, intensity plays a role, frequency plays a role, proper periodization plays a role. But the primary contributor – hands down – is training volume. It’s been...

Work capacity is the most important factor in training that people know nothing about. First, let me just start off with a working definition of work capacity and an explanation of why it’s so important. Work capacity is, essentially, the total amount of work you can perform, recover from, and...

As we age, the general belief is that muscle loss and increased fat gain are inevitable. This is false. In this article, you'll learn how to continue building muscle mass as you age. You’ve probably had an older friend or relative tell you that after you hit your late thirties, everything goes...

Mini-cuts are a vital tool in your muscle-building toolbox. Learn why they are so effective in long-term muscle growth and how to use them to help reach your goals. A mini-cut is a short-term, aggressive fat loss phase. They are a vital tool in your muscle-building toolbox. I know a fat loss...

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...

Should I Take Creatine on Rest Days? Creatine (monohydrate) is arguably the single most popular sports supplement available with numerous benefits backed by countless studies across a diverse set of populations. Research continues to uncover the numerous benefits of creatine supplementation...

There was a time when the image of masculinity was characterized by super-hero like size, round muscle bellies, and low body fat percentages. The former ideal physique was epitomized by Sly Stallone or perhaps even Arnold in Commando. These men sculpted physiques that not only looked strong, but...

What do you get when you ask some of the world's top strength coaches and nutrition gurus to share their most powerful tips for dramatic physique changes? You get one hell of an article series! In this second installment of the "Top 10" series, it's Dr. Lowery's turn to bat. Read on as Lonnie...