Bringing up a lagging body part is something most people are concerned with at some point. The answer is all about the way you train. Here are some tips that will help you bring up lagging body parts.

Prioritize the order of your exercises

By putting weaker body parts towards the front of your workout you will be able to hit them harder. Your energy levels will be at their peak and that will enable you to increase the intensity.

Increase the number of times you train the body part

As mentioned in a previous article on the basics of biceps training, if you have a lagging body part try training it twice a week instead of the typical recommendation of once per week. This will enable you to build the muscle faster.

Use compound sets

A compound set is similar to a superset, but instead of using two exercises on two different muscle groups, you use two exercises for the same body part. You do them back to back without any rest. This is a technique for increasing intensity as well.

Use staggered sets

A staggered set is where you throw in an exercise for a lagging body part while you are supposed to be resting. Thus, if it is chest day and you want to increase the size of your biceps, do a biceps exercise in between your chest sets while you are supposed to be resting. This will also help with your conditioning.

Use much heavier weights than normal

Sometimes you just need to hammer the weak body part. Add some weight to the bar and lower the reps to 3 to 4. This will simply shock the hell out of the muscle and spur on growth.

By using these tips to bring up lagging body parts you will be amazed. Your training will start to show massive results as you reach new heights.

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The basics of training your biceps are both simple and elusive at the same time. If you take the time to go back to the basics and apply these tips you will see growth in your biceps.

Always Squeeze Hard

As with any muscle group, one of the keys to good biceps training is to squeeze the muscle hard at the top of the movement. You need to move tghe muscle with good form and then squeeze extremely hard at the top. Squeeze hard enough that it hurts and feels like it is about to cramp. That will recruit maximum muscle fibers.

Move the Weight the Way the Muscle Moves

One of the things that surprised me when I learned to pose is how to properly do a double bicep pose. You have to push your shoulders back and twist your wrists back towards your shoulders. It is the same when you train your biceps. If you are doing a dumbbell curl, bring the weight up and at the top, turn your wrists so your pinky is facing upward. That will give your biceps a natural push and will help with the squeeze.

Train them Twice a Week

If your biceps are lagging there is nothing wrong with hitting them more than once a week. I started training mine twice a week about 3 weeks ago and have seen differences already. Make sure there is always at least 1 day between sessions, but it is just fine to train biceps twice a week.

Don't Forget the Triceps

When aiming for an increase in bicep size, the triceps play an important role. When you increase the size of your triceps you also make your biceps look bigger because the triceps go under the biceps. Make sure to train your triceps hard. Follow the principle of squeezing the muscle hard. Make sure you push the weight with your triceps isolated. Don't let other parts of your body assist with that movement.

Use These Basics

By using these basics you will be assured some great gains in your biceps. Push hard and follow the basic training principles I've presented here and you can't help but do well in the gym.

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• Training Lagging Body Parts
• How to Take Intensity to a New Level
• How to Build Your Triceps
• How to Do Circuit Training Without Weights
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As you know if you read this blog on a regular basis, I am always looking for ways to increase the intensity of my training. I am now a strong believer that the more intense your training the better your results will be. Recently I have discovered how important it is to use just one arm on certain exercises in order to increase the intensity of your training.

One area I have been focused on in my training is my chest. To work on that area, I have focused on getting some incredible squeeze when working that body part. In addition, I have added some exercises that allow me to use one arm. One major tool I've been utilizing of late (thanks to Ken Turchek and Phil Heath) is the Hammer machine.

What I do is keep my elbow in close to my body and use one arm at a time. I squeeze hard at the top of the movement and hold for 2 seconds. When I am done with one arm I switch to the other arm and repeat the process. It has really worked to build up my chest quite a bit.

You can also do dumbbell presses for your chest one arm at a time as well. Just be sure to squeeze hard at the top of the movement. Focus on the form and the rest will come.

For the back I enjoy using the Hammer machine row. I handle it the same was as the chest–one arm at a time with a strong squeeze at the top of the movement.

One thing to help you with intensity is to remember that even one arm movements can be changed up. You can do all one side and then the other side or you can alternate sides. Your body will respond differently to the different approaches. Again, it is all about the form. Make sure you are squeezing hard. That will increase the intensity of your training.

If you have any tips for increasing the intensity of your training, please leave a comment below.

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I just finished watching the Washington Capitals and the New York Rangers finish up a triple overtime hockey game. It struck me how strong these players are. They have superhuman endurance. They literally played 114 minutes of hockey before the game ended. Hockey players work hard during their shifts. They are able to last and last. Watching the third overtime, you would never have known they had played for so long already.

Endurance is an important tool in your arsenal. Yes, I call it a tool because it is something you can use to help push your training to new heights. Any time you can use something to improve I will refer to it as a tool–plain and simple. But just how can you have endurance like a hockey player?

Endurance training has a very specific goal in mind. Quite simply, the goal of endurance training is to develop the energy production system to meet the demands of the event. Now, most of us ignore endurance when we train. Instead, we train to improve our 1 rep max. This is awesome if you are going to need to quickly lift up something heavy, but what if you need to lift the heavy item and hold it in place for a long period of time? That's where endurance comes into play. This is especially important to people who participate in sports.

Baseball athletes need the endurance to swing a bat. They are not given long rest periods in between each swing. Football players explode with maximum intensity for a very short period of time. This requires endurance to last throughout that time period. MMA requires that you last through the entire round, giving your maximum effort for the entire round.

There is a principle called SAID (specific adaptations to imposed demands) that states the body will adjust to the stresses placed specifically on it. For bodybuilders this means that if they train with heavy weights and long rest periods, they will become stronger, but not increase their endurance. So should we train with high reps and lighter weight? Absolutely not! If you want to increase your endurance you must focus on three things in your program: (1) heavy weight; (2) short rest periods; and (3) volume.

By lifting heavy weight you are going to increase your strength. It is a no-brainer. Thus, try to lift as heavy as possible. Shortening your rest periods forces your body to adapt to working at maximal effort while not fully recovered aerobically.This, in turn, generally trains your body to recover more quickly. By pushing up the volume of work and coupling it with the heavy weights and shorter rest periods, your body will improve its endurance as a reaction to the stress you put it under.

If you want to be superhuman like the hockey players I mentioned you must increase both strength and endurance. With those two components in place there is no way you can miss your goals.

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• How to Take Intensity to a New Level
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To me, intensity in weight training brings about the most results. Here I am speaking of High Intensity Training (HIT) as introduced by Arthur Jones, inventory of the Nautilus line of gym equipment. I have tried body part splits and I have tried HIT full body training and I believe I had the best results from HIT. In fact, I am seriously considering returning to HIT after my show won April 14, 2012. There is just something about heavy weights taken to failure that my body likes. There seems to be no better way to bulk up with my body type than HIT.

The following are some tips for using intensity in weight training. Read through them and give this training system a try for at least 12 weeks. Follow the guidelines and see if it makes a difference for you.

• Perform 1 to 3 sets of 4-6 exercises for the lower body and 6-8 exercises for the upper body, and not more than 12 exercises in any given workout (for the most part). Every set is taken to positive failure.
• Utilize the repetition inroad principle to determine the optimum repetition range for your body and stick to that for the entire 12 weeks. You can find out more about this by subscribing to my email list via the form in the sidebar to the right.
• Perform each set to positive failure (ie. you can't maintain proper form any longer). When you reach the top end of the repetition inroad, add 5% to the bar for the next workout. Make use of the overload principle of training.
• You want to work the largest muscles first and move very quickly from one set to another and from one exercise to another. 30 seconds would be considered a long rest period with this type of training. This will introduce a cardiovascular element to your training.
• Use good control throughout the movement, accentuating the negative. In other words, don't let the weight stack clang together.
• Use slower repetition cadence. You are going for time under tension along with positive failure. Don't lose sight of that fact.
• Isolate the muscle group you are training on a given exercise and be sure to breathe properly throughout the set.
• Always attempt to increase either repetitions or weight or both. You want to beat the previous workout in as many exercises as you can.
• Train no more than 3 times a week. Yes, I know this is hard for some of you, but it works. Trust me on this one!
• Keep an accurate training log to track your progress.
• Work in some of the advanced HIT principles every so often — things like forced repetitions, breakdown sets, negative only sets, etc.

To me, if you follow these principles you cannot help but get bigger and stronger. Your body will recover faster (very important for us older lifters) and you will enjoy some great gains.

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• The Showdown: Good Form vs. Heavy Weight
• How to Use One Arm and Increase Intensity
• Elements of Training: Intensity
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