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How to Maximize Your Workouts

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How to Maximize Your Workouts

When we think of training, most of us will say it is hard to fit a workout in. These tips for how to maximize your workouts should help. I have used all of them at one point or another and can tell you that when done with focus you can really maximize your time in the gym.

  • Keep your workouts to 45 minutes in length. Many people think that the longer you spend in the gym the better, but that is not true. Research has shown that shorter training sessions are better.At the one hour mark the level of cortisol in your body will rise. This is not desireable. Keep your training sessions short and intense.
  • Switch to high intensity training. As my regular readers are aware, I am a big fan of Arthur Jones' HIT training, but that is not the piont of this tip. Here I am referring to keeping yout rest periods shorter. You should be out of breath as you train. This will add a cardio element to your training and that will help maximize the time you spend in the gym
  • Make sure to have adequate protein intake. Intense weight sessions require a higher level of protein intake. Be sure you are getting enough protein in your diet and you will see the benefits when in the gym.
  • Stay hydrated. Make sure you drink enough water. Studies have shown that even a slight amount of dehydration will decrease your level of performance in the gym.
  • Squeeze your muscles as you lift. Make sure that you are getting a good squeeze both up and down. This will increase the benefit of the exercise.
  • Use HIT training. This time I am referring to High Intensity Training from Arthur Jones. This method just works. You do one warm up set for a body part and then do 1 set of each exercise to failure. You generally train full body in this method. You take the one set of each exercise to total failure. Be sure to track your weight and repetitions and each session try to increase one or both variables.

If you want to maximize your workouts give these tips a try. If you have a tip that is not included here, please feel free to comment below.

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How to Train Your Back

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How to Train Your Back

If you want to know how to train your back, this is a great guide to back training. You will learn more from reading the following articles than you could ever learn on your own time. These tips will take your back training to a completely new level.

From my perspective, back training is about mixing heavy weights with lighter weights. When doing the heavier weights you can sacrifice form just slightly. When using lighter weights we need to focus on the squeeze in the muscle and getting the most out of every single repetition. By hitting the back muscles from many different angles you are able to build the V shape that everyone desires. Change up what you are doing on a regular basis so that your back muscles will continually get shocked into growing.

Nothing happens overnight. You are going to have to put the time in at the gym, but you will not be sorry if you follow these tips. Take your time and do it right. Stay focused and train hard. That's going to be the key to your back growth in the long run.

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How to Overcome Your Excuses

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How to Overcome Excuses

Everyone who trains for competition has had to deal with how to overcome excuses at one time or another. This is really a mental attitude topic and one that can be very difficult to deal with. I have 5 tips for dealing with and overcoming excuses.

  • Schedule workouts like an appointment. Working out should not be an option, it should be something you do just like any other important appointment. I am sure you would not flake out on a date with your wife or husband, so why flake out on an appointment with yourself? Put your training plan in your calendar and then stick to it. Don't change the appointment for anyone or anything.
  • Plan your training in advance. Always head into the gym with a plan in mind. It is best to take your training journal (you do keep one, right?) and write your workout plan down before even going to the gym. This gives you something that you need to do/accomplish while at the gym and mentally that will give you more motivation to get it completed.
  • Do your training at a time when nothing else can get in the way. I workout in the early morning because nothing else can get in my way. My only challenge is getting up. Once that is handled the rest is easy. I can then avoid issues in life that cause roadblocks on the way to my training sessions.
  • Get a training partner. It is rare that two people will flake on the same workout. Just get a workout partner and you will know someone is waiting for you at the gym and you will complete the workout. It is harder to disappoint someone else than it is to disappoint yourself.
  • Get your rest! Many times we make excuses because our body is exhausted. Be sure you are getting sufficient rest. Training for a competition can be grueling, but you still need adequate rest.

I believe it is possible to overcome your excuses, but you have to exercise some discipline in order to do so. What ideas do you have for overcoming excuses? Share them in the comments below.

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Eating for Mass

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Eat for Mass

Eating for mass sounds like such an easy thing, but honestly, it is one of the most difficult things to do correctly. You have to eat a lot of food to gain mass the right way. So what is “the right way”? The right way involves gaining mass while minimizing fat gain. That's where the difficulty arises.

There are bodybuilders who still believe that “off-season” means they can eat whatever they want whenever they want. The reality is quite different. In order to gain mass without gaining massive amounts of fat. Even the proponents of bulk and cut have changed their approach to something more like what I describe below. It is all in an effort to put on muscle but stay lean.

The following are some tips for gaining mass while keep the fat at a minimum:

  • Focus primarily on lean protein with carbohydrates your second area of focus. Gaining mass means keeping both of these items at a reasonable level (40% of your total calories each one).
  • Don't avoid fat. Healthy fat is essential for building muscle. It works with your body to raise your testosterone and that is essential for mass building.
  • Eat higher calories than your maintenance level. If you do this, be sure to keep track of your body fat percentages.
  • Time your meals properly. In order to get in a large amount of calories you might need to eat every 2 hours. Try to hit the 3 hour mark at the very least.

By following the tips above you are going to be well on your way to gaining mass. At the same time, your metabolism will be revved up and you won't be putting on a lot of fat. That is the balance you want.

Even proponents of bulking and cutting would advocate a clean bulk. A clean bulk means you have to eat lean meats and vegetables. That's why I say this is a very difficult thing to do. Think about how hard it would be to get in 4500 calories when it has to involve chicken breast. That's an awful lot of chicken breast!

When you want to build mass, focus on what you are eating. Make sure there is enough food in your body for it to grow. You won't be disappointed by this approach.

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Flex Pro 2012 Review

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On Saturday, February 19, 2012, I attended the IFFB Flex Pro show in Santa Monica, California along with my son, Matthew. While the results were not stunningly surprising, they were surprising nonetheless. I will discuss all of my impressions in the following article.

The Venue – Santa Monica Civic Auditorium

I grew up in Santa Monica from 12 until 23 years of age. The Santa Monica Civic Auditorium was a place I saw many bands in concert. Not surprisingly, it has not changed much at all. It is a very convenient location for a bodybuilding show. It is just off the 10 freeway and there are a ton of restaurants nearby.

The ticket window was well-staffed and I was able to pick up my will-call tickets right away. The ushers were extremely helpful (almost too helpful) at finding my seats. The venue had maps of the seating chart up all over the place so finding your seat location would not have been a problem even without the ushers. I felt that the venue was excellent overall.

Vendor Exhibits

Something I look forward to when I go to shows like this are the vendor exhibits. I was extremely disappointed in this area. There were exactly 6 exhibitors present. The variety was slim because of so few vendors being present. I think that the people at Flex magazine could have worked harder at having vendors present for the first show of the IFBB season. This was really the only disappointment of the day.

Pre-Judging

The pre-judging started right on time. The bikini division went up first. There were 20 competitors in total. I don't completely get this division. By that I mean that I don't understand exactly what standards the judges are looking for. At the same time, I seem to have a knack for picking the top finishers and today was no different. The men's bodybuilding was next and they presented 17 competitors. To me, the top 5 became quite obvious as soon as they hit the stage. Again, I was quite close to picking the top 5. The pre-judging ended with the fitness competitors (12 in total).

The Finals

The finals were quite entertaining. The fitness competitors did their routines and they were extremely good at what they were doing. The male bodybuilders continued to be impressive. Everyone, with the exception of JoJo Ntifor0, came in great shape. In the end, each division shaped up as follows:

Men's Bodybuilding Results 
1 Lionel Beyeke
2 Ben Pakulski
3 Fouad Abiad
4 Shawn Rhoden
5 Eduardo Correa
6 Grigori Atayan
7 Mark Dugdale
8 Vladimir Sizov
9 Constantine Demetriou
10 Omar Deckard
11 DeShaun Grimez
12 Stan Efferding
13 Lionel Brown
14 Oleg Emelyanov
15 Rusty Jeffers
16 JoJo Ntiforo
17 Mehmet Yildirim
Women's Fitness 
1 Adela Garcia
2 Oksana Grishina
3 Myriam Capes
4 Tanji Johnson
5 Bethany Cisternino
6 Jodi Boam
7 Vanda Hadarean
8 Camala Rodriguez
9 Allison Ethier
10 Sheri Vucick
11 Michelle Mayberry
12 Paula Williams-Gulman
Bikini 
1 Janaina Barral
2 Katrina McLellan
3 Lauren Triana

The biggest controversy was the placing of Eduardo Correa. He came in super ripped and people actually booed when he was announced at 5th place. However, his size is what cost him a better placing.

My Conclusions

I truly enjoyed the atmosphere at the Flex Pro show. It got me super motivated watching everyone and the awesome shape they were in. It made me realize that the hard work is definitely worth it.

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