Many things in life fall into the category of arts, and others fall into science. Physics is a science. We can drop a 45-pound plate off a 100-story building, and – given all factors such as air resistance and humidity – scientists can calculate when that weight will reach the ground, and at what speed. Likewise, there are things in life that can only be classified as art. Paintings, sculptures and the like are only worth their value because of their perception of rareness, unique design, and aesthetic pleasantry. Bodybuilding – as a sport – is often classified as an art. Men don posing trunks and stand onstage. They are evaluated based upon the visual perception of their muscularity, shape, and conditioning. Men weighing 305 pounds are routinely defeated by men with 70 ...

If you like this article, click here to share:

The chest is the showpiece muscle group in any physique on the bodybuilding stage. Sure, people like to see big arms. And we all know that big backs seem to win the big pro shows. But in every frontal pose, the chest is a make-or-break point for success. Arnold Schwarzenegger had a set of pectorals worthy of a Greek statue, and always took home the trophy over men who were better conditioned. Phil Heath has the best arms of any bodybuilder in history not named Ronnie Coleman, but his lack of clavicle width has led to a chest which cost him an Arnold Classic title against Dexter Jackson in 2008. One of the main reasons that some bodybuilders have poor chest development is that they allow their shoulders to carry much of the workload when ...

If you like this article, click here to share:

We all get old. It’s the goal, isn’t it? And it sure beats the alternative. As long as we’re on the right side of the grass, we’re going to age. Part of aging is increased pain in our joints and muscles, resulting in reduced flexibility. Over time, these can lead to deterioration of performance, which can eventually keep us out of the gym. This phenomenon is something that none of us look forward to, but for which we all must prepare. The first step a bodybuilder should take when long-term joint and muscle inflammation lead to severe pain is to get some rest. Isolate which exercises are causing the greatest amount of pain and remove them from your routine – temporarily or indefinitely. Give the entire body a few days’ worth of ...

If you like this article, click here to share:

Every back day needs to be an “either/or” proposition. You’re either going to start by targeting the upper back, or the lower back. There is nothing in between. Spreading your back movements our in an arbitrary fashion is a waste of your time and effort. You’ll become a jack of all trades, master of none, as you randomly spread movements around with no rhyme or reason. Some bodybuilders try to alternate the angles of approach, hoping to just “get a great pump all over”. In doing this, they waste a lot of potential. Suppose you start back day with deadlifts and achieve a great lower back pump. What should your next exercise be? Many bodybuilders will move on to wide-grip lat pulldowns, and this is a mistake. Their lower backs just ...

If you like this article, click here to share:

In bodybuilding, we achieve as much as the resources around us will allow. If we all had personal chefs, we’d probably all be 15 pounds larger with more muscle and greater vascularity. After all, we’d have steak and omelets delivered every three hours on command. Our protein consumption would be through the roof, and our waistlines would shrink. If nutrition came easier, we’d all look and feel much better. Since there’s a good chance you won’t be getting a personal chef, you should try these very convenient meal ideas for getting the nutrients you need – particularly protein – during each day. Hard boiled eggs Every bodybuilder’s refrigerator should contain at least a dozen hard boiled eggs at all times. These can be consumed at the tail end of meals when only 25 grams of ...

If you like this article, click here to share:

It’s calf day. You may have done this a million times, in which case this article will be nothing more than a convenient review tool for you. Maybe you’re still in your first two years of training, in which case it’s just been a few hundred times you’ve entered the gym intent on pushing your calf muscles to their absolute breaking point. Whichever the case, this article should help you to develop a better sense of how to piece together the many components of a good calf day into one complete workout Warm-up Always begin your calf workout with 10 minutes of light walking on the treadmill. You may feel this isn’t necessary, but it will go a long way in helping increase your blood flow and preventing injury. Stretch Just 2 to 3 minutes of calf stretching is all that ...

If you like this article, click here to share:

When you lift heavy weights or spend 30 or more minutes on cardiovascular training, you’re going to become thirsty. Here are some beverages to consume – or avoid – the next time you’re in the gym! Water What else is there to say? Your muscles are made of it, it’s extremely cheap, and it’s the most widely used gym beverage in the country and the world. You should be drinking one-half to one full gallon each day, plus a few cups while you train. Gatorade For many years, Gatorade was the beverage of choice for many athletes in many arenas, including bodybuilding. In recent years, however, many athletes have moved away from Gatorade due to its high sugar content. Even though it still has less than half the calories (and sugar) of drink like soda and juice, drinking a half ...

If you like this article, click here to share:

The front thighs, or quadriceps, are often a very tough muscle group to fully stimulate. You want to hit them with everything you’ve got, and you give it your best. But it’s just so easy to reach the failure point with them. Here is a workout designed to help you reach maximum stimulation for the quadriceps, with minimal pain! Start your leg workout with high repetition leg extensions. These will serve a few purposes. First, you will be able to loosen up your tendons and get the blood flowing to your lower body. Secondly, you will be able to hit the front thigh muscles directly with an isolation movement. This will result not in their moving as much weight as possible (which will come later), but rather to contain as much blood as possible. ...

If you like this article, click here to share:

Walk into any gym and look for the bodybuilders training shoulders. An interesting tidbit right off the bat is that you probably won’t see all that many bodybuilders even bothering with hitting their shoulders. It turns out most bodybuilders place more emphasis upon the chest, arm, back, and even leg muscles. The shoulders enjoy their secondary stimulation from hitting the chest and back. Occasionally, you’ll run into a dedicated bodybuilder who manages to fit in that 5th and final day for shoulders each week. This is admirable, albeit rare. Okay, back to the gym. You finally find the guys training shoulders. Three-quarters of them are using some sort of shoulder machine. They want to train shoulders, and they like the fact the machine offers a fixed path of resistance. They’ll knock out their ...

If you like this article, click here to share:

Today’s gyms are equipped with a multitude of machines which allow the trainer to hit the various areas of the pectorals (chest muscles) with relatively no pain or balance. You can hop on any device in the gym and pump, pump, pump to your heart’s content. The problem is that you’re probably not going to build that much muscle as a result. You’re going to fill it with blood, and you’re going to feel like the strongest man in the gym inserting that pin and moving the stack. But the bodybuilder across the gym repping out with 225 on the bench press is going to be making better gains. Chest machines are highlighted as a safe, efficient way to build a chest. There is a problem with that. They are safe, but not nearly ...

If you like this article, click here to share: