Muscle Pumping

Posts Tagged ‘Muscle Workouts’

Jason Ferruggia Muscle Gaining Secrets – If you exercise, you should consume a sports drink. While sports drinks may be beneficial for those individuals involved in large continuous exercise routines

(Lasting more than 2 hours) or work in a very hot and humid environment, most of us Average Joes and Jells don t need. It is true that these drinks have electrolytes that are critical for normal body function, such as muscle contraction and heart function, but these same electrolytes can be obtained from our daily diet. So unless you are exercising in extreme conditions or for a long time, water is a better way to go. Jason Ferruggia Muscle Gaining Secrets eBook;

What people often forget is that sports drinks contain calories, which in many cases invalidate what I just burned during your workout. Stick with water. You will get all the hydration and none of the added calories. Jason Ferruggia Muscle Gaining Training;

You need to work out as much as possible.

Although exercise has overall health benefits in addition to contributing to weight loss, the more exercise the better right? Not so much. Weight lifting should only be done every other day, three days a week. This is because muscle strengthening exercises decays, and the day off between workouts allows time for the muscle to rebuild. You should also be careful not to overdo cardio. Too much can cause excessive damage to the tendons and joints, which over time can lead to joint pain or discomfort, especially knees, back and shoulders. Jason Ferruggia Muscle Gaining Secrets Diet;

You simply need to remember to give your body time to recover from the workout. Consider a day from once or twice a week with holidays exercise. -If abuse of your body, you will have difficulty achieving the results you want. Consider the new federal guidelines from the American College of Sports Medicine when you plan your workout routine for the week. Recommends 30 minutes of moderate activity five days a week plus strength training you; it may seem cliché, but the saying is true slow and steady won the race. For more info go to the, Jason Ferruggia Muscle Gaining Secrets Review.”

MONTREAL — Despite the suggestion by several fitness experts that the crunch should be permanently retired, there are still plenty of fitness fanatics hammering out hundreds of reps a week.

Whether their devotion is based on the belief that there’s no better way to get a set of washboard abs, or they just can’t imagine a workout that doesn’t include a couple dozen crunches, it’s time to realize that this iconic exercise doesn’t offer a lot of bang for the buck.

Sure, the crunch used to be a fitness mainstay back in the day when ab workouts were all the rage. But those days are gone. Nowadays we do more than just train our abs, we train our whole core.

Defined as the area between our shoulders and hips, the core includes all the muscles located along the front, back and sides of our torso including those deep within the core structure itself. And, unlike the ab training of old, which focused primarily on the rectus abdominis, the long length of muscle that runs from the sternum to the pubic bone, today’s core workouts train all the muscles in unison, mimicking the synergistic way the core functions in daily life.

Interestingly, that singular focus on a specific muscle, which is what made crunches the alpha dog of all ab exercises, is the primary reason why the crunch has fallen out of favour.

But that’s not the only basis for its fall. Several exercise physiologists, in particular biomechanics expert Stuart McGill from the University of Waterloo, claim that too many crunches can lead to overuse injuries of the spine.

The trouble with changing our focus from the abs to the core means that we need more than just one exercise to target all those muscles, which translates into spending more time getting our midsection into shape. Or does it?

A research team from the Department of Kinesiology at Pennsylvania State University measured the amount of activity in six muscles during a series of core exercises including the crunch and a few others designed to target one or more muscles of the core.

The subjects were 20 college-age students, 10 men and 10 women, all of whom performed the exercises with small electrodes adhered to their body. The readings from those electrodes determined not only which muscles fired, but also just how hard each muscle worked during the execution of the individual exercises.

Not surprising for fitness experts who have been singing this tune for a few years now, the crunch didn’t fare so well in terms of the amount of muscle activity it generated compared to other exercises in the study. What was surprising however, is that even when focusing on just the rectus abdominis, the muscle the crunch was thought to isolate so effectively, there were several other exercises that worked it harder.

For example, the plank with lateral arm reach elicited 27 per cent more activity in the rectus abdominis than the crunch. The muscles in the shoulder and the lower back also worked harder during the plank, generating twice as much muscle activity than they did during the crunch.

Fitness enthusiasts often face the challenge of balancing sufficient workout time with work and family obligations. One potential option is rowing. As one of the oldest competitive sports, rowing uses multiple large muscle groups to attain an excellent workout in a short period of time.

The Yale-Harvard rowing regatta was first held in 1852 and is the oldest intercollegiate sporting event in the United States. On-water rowing consists of sweep rowing (both hands on one oar) and sculling (one oar in each hand).

In 1981, Concept 2 produced an indoor rowing machine that revolutionized training and helped many athletes gain the fitness benefits of rowing.

Workouts, both on and off water, consist of short intense sprints and longer, moderately paced sessions.  Because of the intense cyclic exercise of major muscle groups and the aerobic demands, rowing results in superior cardiovascular endurance.

Cardiac ultrasound studies of elite rowers demonstrate increased cardiac muscle mass. These studies show the ability of a trained heart to pump more blood with less effort.

The rowing stroke starts with an explosive pushing-off motion by the legs, extending the back and pulling the oar through with the arms at the finish.

Rowing injuries most commonly affect the low back, upper and lower extremities. The action of the low back moving from flexion to extension against resistance puts tremendous torque on the ligaments, muscles and discs.  This can result in sprain, strain and disc herniation.

Upper extremity injuries from rowing are a result of overuse. Joints become inflamed causing bursitis and tendonitis.

The most common lower extremity joint injury affects the tendons holding the patella (knee cap) in place. 

Rapid extension of the knee can cause the patella to divert from its usual track resulting in tendon pain.

Rowing is a sport worth exploring when looking for an intense workout in a limited period of time. 

Dr. Anthony G. Alessi is the medical director of The William W. Backus Hospital Stroke Center and in private practice at NeuroDiagnostics, LLC, in Norwich. E-mail him at aalessi@wwbh.org, or listen to his podcasts, comment on his blog or buy his book at backushospital.org
 

MONTREAL — Despite the suggestion by several fitness experts that the crunch should be permanently retired, there are still plenty of fitness fanatics hammering out hundreds of reps a week.

Whether their devotion is based on the belief that there’s no better way to get a set of washboard abs, or they just can’t imagine a workout that doesn’t include a couple dozen crunches, it’s time to realize that this iconic exercise doesn’t offer a lot of bang for the buck.

Sure, the crunch used to be a fitness mainstay back in the day when ab workouts were all the rage. But those days are gone. Nowadays we do more than just train our abs, we train our whole core.

Defined as the area between our shoulders and hips, the core includes all the muscles located along the front, back and sides of our torso including those deep within the core structure itself. And, unlike the ab training of old, which focused primarily on the rectus abdominis, the long length of muscle that runs from the sternum to the pubic bone, today’s core workouts train all the muscles in unison, mimicking the synergistic way the core functions in daily life.

Interestingly, that singular focus on a specific muscle, which is what made crunches the alpha dog of all ab exercises, is the primary reason why the crunch has fallen out of favour.

But that’s not the only basis for its fall. Several exercise physiologists, in particular biomechanics expert Stuart McGill from the University of Waterloo, claim that too many crunches can lead to overuse injuries of the spine.

The trouble with changing our focus from the abs to the core means that we need more than just one exercise to target all those muscles, which translates into spending more time getting our midsection into shape. Or does it?

A research team from the Department of Kinesiology at Pennsylvania State University measured the amount of activity in six muscles during a series of core exercises including the crunch and a few others designed to target one or more muscles of the core.

The subjects were 20 college-age students, 10 men and 10 women, all of whom performed the exercises with small electrodes adhered to their body. The readings from those electrodes determined not only which muscles fired, but also just how hard each muscle worked during the execution of the individual exercises.

Not surprising for fitness experts who have been singing this tune for a few years now, the crunch didn’t fare so well in terms of the amount of muscle activity it generated compared to other exercises in the study. What was surprising however, is that even when focusing on just the rectus abdominis, the muscle the crunch was thought to isolate so effectively, there were several other exercises that worked it harder.

For example, the plank with lateral arm reach elicited 27 per cent more activity in the rectus abdominis than the crunch. The muscles in the shoulder and the lower back also worked harder during the plank, generating twice as much muscle activity than they did during the crunch.

Summer is almost here, so it’s time to kick your muscle-building workouts into high gear. Call it vanity, but I personally am more comfortable in a T-shirt when my arms actually fill it out. Fortunately, this can be achieved if you have the right muscle-building strategy. (Watch Patrick Willis’s muscle-building workout.)

When you’re in a pinch, you need to focus on the small details of your workout to help you get swole in a hurry. Training volume, rest time and the exercises you perform become much more important. Follow these guidelines:

Muscle-Building Workout Guidelines

• Schedule your workouts in upper- and lower-body splits, meaning you focus on each area on separate days. This allows you to train each muscle more frequently in your weekly cycle without risking overtraining.
• Keep your rest intervals low. Your goal is to break muscle down and exhaust all muscle fibers. The amount of weight you lift doesn’t matter as much as a regular strength program.
• If you have weight-lifting experience, add extended sets (e.g., drop sets, split sets, paused reps, etc.) to your program.
• Superset grouped exercises (as in A1 A2, B1 B2, below). (Try these supersets.)
• Use the “three-on, one-off” schedule, meaning you work for three consecutive days, rest for one day and repeat.

Muscle-Building Workout Program

Day 1 – Upper Body

• A1) DB Low Incline Bench Press – 4×12
• A2) Wide-Grip Rows – 4×12
  • Rest 90 seconds between supersets
• B1) DB Neutral-Grip Floor Press – 4×12
• B2) Neutral-Grip Pull-Ups – 4×10
  • Rest 90 seconds between supersets
• C1) DB Bent-Over Rows – 4×12
• C2) Decline Fly – 4×12
  • Rest 90 seconds between supersets
• D) Face Pulls - 4×15
  • Rest 60 seconds between sets

Day 2 – Lower Body

• A1) Front Squat – 5×6-8
• A2) Vertical Jumps – 5×10
  • Rest 2 minutes between supersets (technically a contrast set)
• B1) Barbell Walking Lunge – 4×10 each leg
• B2) Leg Press – 4×10
  • Rest 2 minutes between supersets
• C1) Eccentric Glute-Ham Raise – 3×8 (lower for 4 counts)
• C2) DB Bulgarian Split-Squat - 3×10
  • Rest 90 seconds between supersets
• D) Breathing Squats — 1×20
  • Complete 20 Back Squats performed with your 10 to 12 rep max. Take as much time as you need between reps, but don’t put the bar down until all 20 reps have been completed. Calculate the weight based on what you feel you can do for 10 reps at that moment—NOT when you’re fresh.

Day 3 – Isolation and Specifics

• A1) Seated DB Shoulder Press – 4×12
• A2) Close-Grip Pulldown – 4×12
  • Rest 2 minutes between supersets
• B1) DB High Pull – 4×10-12
• B2) DB High Incline Fly – 4×10-12
  • Rest 2 minutes between supersets
• C1) DB Hammer Curls – 4×10
• C2) Decline Skull Crusher “Plus”- 4×10
  • Rest 2 minutes between supersets

Mobility Check

Always remember to focus on tissue quality and mobility, especially when your goal is to add muscle. Larger muscles often cause mobility issues if proper measures aren’t taken. Foam rolling and dynamic mobility work should precede every workout. Also, static stretch all worked muscles after a session.

Better flexibility and mobility can actually help you build more muscle because it increases your range of motion. The greater your range of motion, the more time your muscles will be under tension during each rep. You will do more cumulative work, accelerating muscle growth.

Try That on for Size

In as little as four weeks of disciplined training, you should notice significant muscle size gains. Bonus: this program is designed around supersets, which keep your heart rate up and get you in better shape. It won’t be long before you are calling in sick from school or work, explaining that you’re suffering from a bad case of swoleosis.

Wahlberg got huge.The Rock got huger for their body-building roles in ‘Pain Gain.’

LOS ANGELES — You don’t earn the nickname “The Rock” unless you’re pretty ripped. But even Dwayne Johnson admits he was impressed on the first day of filming Pain Gain last year to see the bulked-up version of co-star Mark Wahlberg.

“I thought, ‘Wow, he really packed on some muscle,’ ” Johnson says.

So that makes twosuper-sized actors for the film, opening Friday. Both Johnson, 40, and Wahlberg, 41, turned back time to pump up to career-high sizes to play two Miami bodybuilders — guys with under-utilized brain muscles, but massive physiques.

“It wasn’t easy. It’s a lot of hard work,” says Johnson, who’s also a pro wrestler. “And a lot of protein.”

The Michael Bay-directed film is based on the true story of Miami’s Sun Gym gang, which hatched a twisted abduction scheme to get rich in the 1990s — leading to extortion and murder. Bay championed the project for close to a decade before pulling together the right team. The acting chops came first over physique, but a big body was key for the role.

REVIEW: There’s ‘Pain,’ but not much ‘Gain’

STORY: Johnson, Wahlberg go for dark comedy in Pain Gain
‘PAIN’ CLIP: Honest mistake

He zeroed in on Johnson, who added 12 to 15 pounds of muscle to his 6-foot-4 frame to push over 250 pounds, and Walhberg, whose 5-foot-10 body started at a lean 165 pounds and later maxed at 212 pounds.

“I knew Dwayne was already there. And with Mark it was like, ‘Can you do it?’ and he said ‘Ya!’ ” says Bay. “Mark was like a machine. He was like ‘I’m going to be the biggest I can be.’ They were both fully committed. That’s as big as (Johnson) has ever been.”

There were some perks to the gig. Wahlberg says he enjoyed the building-up phase where he was forced to have up to 10 meals a day.

“The only part where that’s not fun is when you’ve gone to bed at 10 o’clock after a big meal. And then at 2 o’clock you wake up to eat again and you’re still full from the last meal,” says Wahlberg, motioning to his throat. “You can feel the food right here. When you burp, pieces of food come up.”

He spent 12 weeks on the diet while pumping iron for the role of Sun Gym ringleader Danny Lugo.

“For months afterwards I was sore,” says Wahlberg, who re-aggravated past shoulder injuries. “The toughest part for me was realizing that I’m not a kid anymore at 41. Trying to lift heavy weights and pack on pounds and muscle was difficult.”

Johnson, who had emergency surgery Monday for a hernia suffered in a WWE match last month, says that he had to moderate his Pain workouts by “training smarter.”

“When you’re young, you think you’re invincible,” says Johnson. “When you’re older, you have to start listening to your body.”

Coming off an impressively sized starring role in G.I. Joe: Retaliation, Johnson’s additional muscle, via the workouts and a strict diet, looks like more.

“Onscreen, that small amount of extra pounds translates to 50 pounds, making my character look like an 800-pound silverback gorilla just released from jail,” he says.

Wahlberg says he never tried to out-muscle his co-star, whom he dubs “a freak of nature.”

“You gotta know your limitations. For me, it was about being the best I could be,” says Wahlberg. “But it’s hard to be comfortable standing next to this mountain of a man when he’s playing a bodybuilder.”

“Every time I leave for a tour I have to get creative with what we call “prison style” workouts. I don’t claim to be the authority on this stuff at all, so I’m seeking advice as much as I am dishing it out. For starters, there are always the basics you can do in any prison cell (or backstage room).
- pushups (clap pushups, triangle, wide grip, etc.)
- abs (crunches, jackknives, leg raises, bicycles, planks, etc)
- chair dips for triceps
- lifting luggage for biceps
- jump squats
- lunges
- handstand presses for shoulders

I’ll be really up front about that fact that I haven’t been able to gain a noticeable amount of muscle doing any of these things. All of these exercises really only help me maintain what I’ve been able to do from real gym workouts while off tour. These type of workouts can certainly help a person tighten up, get stronger, and get in great shape overall though. To actually build bigger muscle though, you have to lift an amount of weight that can take that muscle all the way to failure, usually in under 12 reps. That’s why the hardest thing for me is putting on size.

When I do get the chance off of tour at my local gym, the idea is to completely tear down a muscle by hitting it from a minimum of three different angles. An example on an upper back day would be to do vertical pull downs, high rows with different widths to the grip, and also low rows. The weight I would try to use would be whatever is heavy enough that I can’t do over 12 reps and sometimes as low as 4. Also, to cause my muscles to full break down and fail, I often need a spotter to force me to do at least one or two more reps than what my body can handle on its own.

Those are the basic principle I work out by. I’m curious to get other peoples opinions since there are thousands of people who swear they know best at my gym alone. I also don’t recommend anyone lifting weights that way if they haven’t already done other simpler exercises to get the muscles used to the pressure before going for heavy weight. I’ve only been working out for under a year and at that only about three times a week. Most people try to overdue it and get hurt. If you’re new to this, then do more full body (crossfit, kettlebells, etc) type workouts for at least three months before trying to look like Ahhnold. In my year of working out, I personally spent the first six months or so dabbling in a variety of kettlebells and prison style workouts while on tour so that my body was ready for what I’m trying to do now.

Lastly, either be an athlete or just admit that working out is mainly for vanity. Simply being healthy requires eating healthy and jogging your butt around the block from time to time. I admit that I have no practical reason for getting in great shape other than for intimidating girly men in the front row at ADM shows. Ahhnold still intimidates me, so I have a small man’s complex at 6’3”. My saving grace is that I’ve picked up a number of other hobbies to balance out my meathead ways. Check out documentaryheaven.com and come talk to me about something new you’ve learned at one the upcoming AILD shows. Overall, I’d rather talk about documentaries and/or charities than I would protein shakes.”