training

The 5 Exercises You Need Got angry knees? Here are the five best exercises to allow your legs to keep growing while keeping your knees happy. Sometimes our knees don’t feel 100 percent. Some of us deal with ongoing or intermittent pain. We don’t want this to shut down our leg training and force...

by Christian Thibaudeau Here's what you need to know about this tricky gene and its variants. The ACTN3 gene is in large part responsible for the type of muscle tissue that you have. Not only the muscle fiber dominance, but also the various qualities of the tissue itself – how well it handles...

Hardgainers, Freaks, and You Are you a hardgainer, a freak, or one of the other 5 types of muscle gainers? Find out here and learn how to lift if you're not gifted. There are seven different kinds of muscle gainers. The term “hardgainer” describes someone who has a poor genetic response to...

Effort vs. Volume vs. Load: Part 1 What's the best way to train for size gains? Effort, load, or volume-based training? Here's what you need to know. What works better for hypertrophy? High-volume training or low-volume/high-effort (intensity) training? What about “powerbuilding?” In short...

If you love to lift hard, then train every other day to make the most gains. Here's why and how to plan it. To maximize strength or muscle growth, get more awesome workouts than below-average workouts. Seems logical, right? Yet most lifters believe a bad workout is better than no workout. Their...

The tried and true workout program that builds muscle, burns fat, and busts plateaus. Training wise, I’ve tried it all: powerlifting style, Olympic style, and of course, bodybuilding style. All of them worked, for awhile, but the one that I keep coming back to, the one that never fails me, is...

If you don't manage inflammation properly, you'll never make any gains. Here's how to make this bogeyman bend to your will. Inflammation is fast becoming the bogeyman of the muscle-building world. In fact, it may even overtake cortisol as the frontrunner of known muscle killers. Is this...

Why Are Those Guys Bigger Than Me? Some guys build muscle easily. Others struggle. Here's why and what to do about it. You lift hard, eat right, and keep up with all the latest training info. You do everything to build muscle, but it's a slow slog. Frustratingly, some of your gym buddies don't...

by Clay Hyght, DC Want to design your own kick-ass training programs? All you need is the perfect template based on 20 years of trial and error. Or just read this. In my last two-part article series 138, I described my 11 principles for bodybuilding training. Now, I want to make things even...

How to Build Bigger, Stronger Calves Your genetics might stink, but there's still a way to gain size and look impressive in shorts. Follow these rules. Want big calves? There are six rules that'll help you get them. But first, let's look at a great exercise that illustrates many of the...

3 Strategies to Train Through Shoulder Pain Live with an icepack on your shoulder? These tactics for training through and around injuries (while also rehabbing) are mandatory. Shoulder injuries are common, but there's no need to miss workouts or forge ahead despite the pain. Here are three...

The Workout Stress Test Burnout is real and it's holding you back. Here's how to identify it, prevent it, and cure it. A must-read for hardcore lifters and athletes. We’ve all been there at least once. Training is going well. You’re making gains and can’t wait to get more. You’re on a roll. Then...

Effort vs. Volume vs. Load: What's the best way to build muscle? Effort, load, or volume-based training? Here's what you need to know. Note: I examined effort-based hypertrophy training 610 in Part 1 of this series. In the next installment, we’ll look at load-based training. But first, let’s dig...

Bodybuilding, powerlifting, CrossFit, running: Which one will mess you up the most and how can you prevent it? Which type of training causes the most physical damage? It's one of the most passionately battled debates in sports medicine. With the recent popularization of CrossFit, the fiery...

You may think you're training hard, but are you really selecting the right weight for the rep range you're working in? This study highlights the important differences in weight selection in people who train by themselves versus those who train under the supervision of a coach or personal...

Hitting plateaus is part of strength training. It doesn't happen with newbies, but once you're more experienced you will hit sticking points. The need for variance must increase as your training age does. Below is a list of methods to help overcome these barriers, many right out of Siff and...

Make Better Gains with 30 Minute Workouts TAGS BODYBUILDING, TRAINING HERE'S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW... With a smart training plan, you can cut your gym time in half and increase your gains at the same time. Intense workouts done for three days a week with greater discipline, focus, and...

HERE'S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW... Training for an extreme endurance event requires you to throw away all hopes of orthopedic health. Nearly 90% of triathletes are "broken" in one way or another. But some weight training could fix that. Triathletes must master a few key movements to stay healthy...

HERE'S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW... High frequency training (HFT) can consist of utilizing the same exercise(s) anywhere from 3-5 sessions per week to 15-20 sessions per week. Pretty much anything and everything works for beginners, but HFT works for everybody from beginners to very advanced...

Nothin' but the Truth! During your time in the gym, you've probably noticed that the same training questions are discussed amongst athletes and fitness buffs day in and day out. You know the questions I'm talking about: "What exercises will shape and tone my muscles because I don't want to get...