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By Vince DelMonte

It happens every year. The New Year comes and every scrawny twerp on the planet swears this is going to be the year that he slaps on an extra 20 pounds of muscle. But if you didn’t pack it on successfully last year, what makes you think this year is going to be any different? Seriously?

Did you spend hours in the gym with no results? Did you spend the last year blindly following the muscle magazines only to look the same as you do now? Did you spend the year filling your body with mysterious supplements that only make you sick? Did you watch your friends train less than you but get twice as big? Sound familiar doesn’t it? I thought so.

So the question is, how are we going to get a different result? The answer is simple. By doing something differently. Would you agree the best way to get the same thing is to do the same thing? And would you agree that the best way to get a different result is to do something different?

Give me a amen if you have decided that 2008 is going to be different. Give me a amen-hallelujah if you are prepared to be a different person and prepared to do something different this year. Commit to having your best year, and I’ll take care of you, providing you with the best skinny guy transformation program.

My Own Skinny Guy Experience

Trust me, I know. I was a skinny beanpole all through high school and university and gained the nickname Skinny Vinny. I gawked at my room mates how displayed copious amounts of rock-hard brawn on there frame. I was inspired by the spectacular ‘before and after’ pictures in bodybuilding magazines. I read every piece of bodybuilding literature I could, got misguided by a slew of personal trainers, experimented with every legal supplement I could purchase, but despite my efforts, my 12 week pictures looked nothing like the supplement advertisements. The cruel scale needle stayed the same like it was cast in stone. Perhaps I was doomed to be skinny for life…

Skinny Guys Must Play By A Different Set Of Rules

As a weight training enthusiast, figuring out the most effective workout routine can become an endless source of confusion and frustration. Every single fitness expert and magazine has a different training theory or training angle which becomes more confusing than a trip for Jessica Simpson at Home Depot!

Most skinny guys end up using routines designed and touted by those freaky monsters seen in the hardcore rags who have more than a little chemistry lab going on inside of them. Programs that include hitting the gym more than five times a week, focusing on 1-2 exercises per workout, 12-24 sets per exercise and overemphasizing isolation-type exercises. None of these components of a program helps improve the underlying foundation of a hard-gainers success. Training to get bigger and more muscular, that is - your best body ever, must revolve around getting stronger and I mean really, really stronger. Increasing your strength remains the rock-solid foundation for defeating your skinny genetics and getting a head-turning physique for 2008.

Since the vast array of exercise machines came on the market, along with infomercials, instant result programs, and fancy dressed supplement ads, people are no longer willing to spend the time in the gym to build the solid strength foundation that is critical for long-term progress. Since you’ve read this far, you won’t be making that mistake this year!

Six Reasons Skinny Guys Must Focus On The Forgotten Factor: Strength

• Strength training is incredibly taxing on the body’s central nervous system. Increasing your central nervous system’s work capacity through heavy and/or explosive movements; you directly increase the ability of your muscular system to produce increased levels of strength.
• Strength training releases more growth hormone and testosterone. Using greater resistance loads than normal will release a greater abundance of these muscle building hormones necessary to maximize your genetic potential which will result in new muscle growth all over - especially on those lagging body parts!
• Strength training creates a platform to achieve more sets and reps. When you build a stronger foundation, your ability to handle heavier loads in the higher rep ranges will dramatically increase, resulting in some impressive muscular hypertrophy.
• Strength training benefits the smaller muscle groups as well. The pure strength movements do not just benefit the larger muscle groups such as the chest, back and legs but the smaller ones as well. An example: A skinny guy increases the amount of weight he can do on the bent over row from 135 to 225. The heavier poundages will result in significantly strengthening the assisting movers of the upper arm - brachialis and the brachioradialis - allowing him to curl much more weight on his curling exercises.
• Strength training involves the maximal amount of muscle fibers. To defeat your skinny genetics you must use the maximal number of muscle fibers in each set. Do you think lifting weights at 60-80% of your threshold is going to stimulate the maximal amount of muscle fiber? Think of your muscles as lazy. They would prefer to sleep this entire next year. They would prefer to stay small. They have zero interest in growing larger. That is something you want to do. The only reason they will wake up (get bigger) is if they are attacked. If they are exposed to an assault (heavy weight) they have not experienced before. Out of survival, your muscles will grow bigger to prevent the same assault from occurring again.
• Strength training does not eat up your precious calories. Unlike the 1-2 hour marathon training sessions that involve 12-24 exercises per body part or workout, strength training is much less demanding calorically. It does not burn up the calories your muscles need to grow because of the longer rests and shorter sets.
• Strength training leads to progressive overload. If you are thinking, “But I don’t care how much I can lift. All I care about is not being skinny anymore and building a good physique. I’m not a power lifter or bodybuilder.” I would reply that strength training is a fundamental principle of muscle growth because it leads to progressive overload. The only way to make a muscle grow is to subject it to unaccustomed stress. Progressive overload basically implies that when a muscle is subjected to an usual amount of unaccustomed stress and effort, the muscle must respond by getting larger to manage and cope with the new stress.

Still Not Convinced That Strength Training Is The Answer To Your Best Body This Year? How many people do you see with skinny arms that can curl 135 pounds? How many people do you see with no chest who bench press 275 pounds? How many people do you see with massive upper girdles that can dead lift 315 pounds? How many people do you see with chop-stick legs who can squat 400 pounds?I would say - not many. There are many more reasons why strength training will help you defeat your muscle unfriendly genes and get the body you deserve this year but I think you get the point. If ever in doubt, just take a look at the biggest guys in your gym. I bet they are lifting 3-4 more times the weight as you!

The 1 + 1 Skinny Guy Strength Program

Stage 1: 4 x 4 Strength Phase
Week 1-3

Monday
Exercise	Work Sets	Speed	Rest
Back Squats	4 x 4	311	2-3 m
Bench Press	4 x 4	311	2-3 m
Bent Over Rows	4 x 4	311	2-3 m
Upright Rows	2 x 20	211	1 m
Calve Raises	2 x 20	211	1 m
Wednesday
Exercise	Work Sets	Speed	Rest
Lunges	4 x 12-15	311	2-3 m
Stiff Leg Deadlifts	4 x 12-15	311	2-3 m
Dips	4 x failure	311	1 m
Chin Ups	4 x failure	311	1 m
Weighted Abdominal Work	3 x 30	211	1 m
Friday
Exercise	Work Sets	Speed	Rest
Deadlifts	4 x 4	311	2-3 m
Military Presses	4 x 4	311	2-3 m
Wide Grip Pull Ups	4 x 4	311	2-3 m
Barbell Shrugs	2 x 20	211	1 m
Calve Raises	2 x 20	211	1 m

Stage 2 - 5 x 5 Strength Phase
Weeks 4-6

Monday
Exercise	Work Sets	Speed	Rest
Back Squats	5 x 5	311	2-3 m
Stiff-Leg Deadlifts	5 x 5	311	2-3 m
Barbell Curls	5 x 5	311	2-3 m
Barbell Shrugs	3 x 30	311	1 m
Calf raises	3 x 30	311	1 m
Tuesday
Exercise	Work Sets	Speed	Rest
Dumbell Bench Presses	5 x 5	311	2-3 m
Barbell Rows	5 x 5	311	2-3 m
Dumbell Shoulder Presses	5 x 5	311	2-3 m
Weighted Abdominal Work	3x 30	211	1 m
Thursday
Exercise	Work Sets	Speed	Rest
Deadlifts	5 x 5	311	2-3 m
Lunges	5 x 5	311	2-3 m
Close Grip Presses	5 x 5	311	2-3 m
Barbell Shrugs	3 x 30	311	1 m
Calve Raises	3 x 30	311	1 m
Thursday
Exercise	Work Sets	Speed	Rest
Incline Bench Presses	5 x 5	311	2-3 m
Seated Row	5 x 5	311	2-3 m
Military Presses	5 x 5	311	2-3 m
Weighted Abdominal Work	3 x 30	211	1 m

Stage 3 - 6 x 6 Strength Phase
Weeks 7-9

Monday
Exercise	Work Sets	Speed	Rest
Back Squats	6 x 6	311	2-3 m
Bench Press	6 x 6	311	2-3 m
Bent Over Rows	6 x 6	311	2-3 m
Upright Rows	3 x 15	311	1 m
Calve Raises	3 x 15	311	1 m
Wednesday
Exercise	Work Sets	Speed	Rest
Lunges	4 x 8-12	311	2-3 m
Stiff Leg Deadlifts	4 x 8-12	311	2-3 m
Dips	4 x failure	311	1 m
Chin Ups	4 x failure	311	1 m
Weighted Abdominal Work	3 x 30	211	1 m
Friday
Exercise	Work Sets	Speed	Rest
Deadlifts	6 x 6	311	2-3 m
Military Presses	6 x 6	311	2-3 m
Wide Grip Pull Ups	6 x 6	311	2-3 m
Barbell Shrugs	3 x 15	211	1 m
Calve Raises	3 x 15	211	1 m

Stage 4 - 7 x 7 Strength Phase
Weeks 9-12

Monday
Exercise	Work Sets	Speed	Rest
Back Squats	7 x 7	311	2-3 m
Stiff-Leg Deadlifts	7 x 7	311	2-3 m
Barbell Curls	7 x 7	311	2-3 m
Barbell Shrugs	3 x 30	311	1 m
Calf raises	3 x 30	311	1 m
Tuesday
Exercise	Work Sets	Speed	Rest
Dumbell Bench Presses	7 x 7	311	2-3 m
Barbell Rows	7 x 7	311	2-3 m
Dumbell Shoulder Presses	7 x 7	311	2-3 m
Weighted Abdominal Work	3 x 30	211	1 m
Thursday
Exercise	Work Sets	Speed	Rest
Deadlifts	7 x 7	311	2-3 m
Lunges	7 x 7	311	2-3 m
Close Grip Presses	7 x 7	311	2-3 m
Barbell Shrugs	3 x 30	311	1 m
Calve Raises	3 x 30	311	1 m
Friday
Exercise	Work Sets	Speed	Rest
Incline Bench Presses	7 x 7	311	2-3 m
Seated Row	7 x 7	311	2-3 m
Military Presses	7 x 7	311	2-3 m
Weighted Abdominal Work	2 x 20	211	1 m

Weight Training Program Notes:

• You will notice Monday is a Quad Dominant day with Horizontal Pushing (Chest) and Horizontal Pulling (Rows). You will notice that Traps and Calves are opposite movements so have been paired up respectively.
• You will notice Friday is a Hip Dominant day with Vertical Pushing (Shoulders) and Vertical Pulling (Lats). You will notice Traps and Calves are opposite movements so have been paired up respectively.
• You will notice slight variation on some of the exercise selection. The exercise selection is not as critical as the load and set protocol. Feel free to tweak the exercises based on your personal preference. For example, if a Trap Bar Deadlift feels better for you than a normal Deadlift - go for it. If you know you will get better results with dumbell’s instead of barbells - don’t be afraid to follow your instincts and be involved in the training process.
• For some, the 6 x 6 phase and 7 x7 phase will be too much volume on muscle groups like biceps and triceps. Feel free to modify these to only 3-5 sets. The goal is to keep the weight the same the entire workout. If your weights start to drop than simply record the number of sets you were able to do and try to beat it next week.
• I am guessing 4 x 4 will be your first exposure to heavy lifting. Remember, next phase, you will be focusing on adding one extra rep to the same weight with one extra set hence the 1 + 1 Program. This program is based on increasing the amount of work you are capable of performing over a 12 week period.
  e.g. Let’s say you can do 185 lbs for 4 x 4 in phase one. Next phase, you will be aiming to do 185 pounds for 5 x 5. You might even be able to slip a few extra pounds on the bar, depending on the rate that you super compensate which will be bonus.
• For time efficiency, opposing muscle groups like Shoulders and Lats, Chest and Rows and Shrugs and Calves can be super set together. I would not recommend super setting your legs. This is your personal choice though.
• The 2 x 20 and 2 x 30 are unique additions I have added from my own personal experience. I have found, generally, that skinny guys responds better to higher rep ranges for the calves and traps.
• You will notice that Monday and Friday can be classified as your Heavy days and Wednesday is an opportunity to increase your body weight strength and prevent your metabolic system from de-training. These higher rep exercises will counteract and help balance out the dominance of central nervous system training occurring.
• The weighted abdominal work should come from Hanging Leg Raises, Weighted Ball Sit Ups, or Cable Crunches.
• You will notice this is a three day program which will be alternated every three weeks with a four day program. I might suggest taking a ? week off at the six week mark if any symptoms of overtraining are suspected. Take at least one week off from the gym at the completion of this 12 week program.

Cardiovascular and Flexibility Training Tips

• During phases 1 and 3 while you are doing only three day of weight training per week I would recommend the following:
  • At least two or three 20-30 minute cardio sessions placed either on your non-workout days on immediately after you weight training workouts.
  • Use the form of cardio that, in your experience, holds the most muscle on your body. For some, this will mean doing shorter interval cardio sessions. For some, this will mean going for a easy run or swim.
  • Incorporate the cardio work to enhance your muscle gain goals - not detract. For example, you might benefit from a easy swim workout after a heavy upper body day. You might benefit from a easy bike ride to loosen up from a heavy lower body workout. Use common sense when choosing your cardio activities. For example, don’t try out for the soccer team at the same time you are trying to transform your body!
  • Incorporate your cardio based on your nutrition intake. Remember, your muscles grow on calories so the more cardio you incorporate, the more overall calories you will need to counteract the lost.
  • Try to stretch at least 1/4 the amount that you lift. Heavy lifting requires long and lengthened muscles to allow full range of motion. Shortened muscles perform weaker and slower and have a higher incidence of injury. If you are weight lifting 4 hours in the week, you should be stretching at least two. This means at least 1 hour of stretching before or after you weight training workout. This is my personal recommendation, any less, and your body will screaming for a injury.

Take The Challenge

Give the 1 + 1 Skinny Guy Strength Program an honest effort for the next 12 weeks and commit to making 2008 the year that you defeat your skinny genetics and build a body you can be proud of without spending any more time in the gym than you have to. Believe that you can do it. It can be done and it will!

By Mike Geary – NCSF CPT, AFAA CPT, Author of The Truth About Six-Pack Abs

The Front Squat

As you may have already discovered, the squat is at the top of the heap (along with deadlifts) as one of the most effective overall exercises for stimulating body composition changes (muscle gain and fat loss). This is because exercises like squats and deadlifts use more muscle groups under a heavy load than almost any other weight bearing exercises known to man. Hence, these exercises stimulate the greatest hormonal responses (growth hormone, testosterone, etc.) of all exercises.

 

 

In fact, university research studies have even proven that inclusion of squats into a training program increases upper body development, in addition to lower body development, even though upper body specific joint movements are not performed during the squat. Whether your goal is gaining muscle mass, losing body fat, building a strong and functional body, or improving athletic performance, the basic squat and deadlift (and their variations) are the ultimate solution.

 

 

 

If you don’t believe me that squats and deadlifts are THE basis for a lean and powerful body, then go ahead and join all of the other overweight people pumping away mindlessly for hours on boring cardio equipment.

 

 

Squats can be done with barbells, dumbbells, kettlebells, or even just body weight. Squats should only be done with free weights – NEVER with a Smith machine! My book, The Truth About Six Pack Abs contains the full story on why machines are so inferior and even potentially DANGEROUS compared to free weights.

 

 

 

The type of squat that people are most familiar with is the barbell back squat where the bar is resting on the trapezius muscles of the upper back. Many professional strength coaches believe that front squats (where the bar rests on the shoulders in front of the head) and overhead squats (where the bar is locked out in a snatch grip overhead throughout the squat) are more functional to athletic performance than back squats with less risk of lower back injury.

 

I feel that a combination of all three (not necessarily during the same phase of your workouts) will yield the best results for overall muscular development, body fat loss, and athletic performance. Front squats are moderately more difficult than back squats, while overhead squats are considerably more difficult than either back squats or front squats. I’ll cover overhead squats in a future newsletter issue.

 

 

 

If you are only accustomed to performing back squats, it will take you a few sessions to become comfortable with front squats, so start out light. After a couple sessions of practice, you will start to feel the groove and be able to increase the poundage.

 

 

 

To perform front squats:

 

 

 

The front squat recruits the abdominals to a much higher degree for stability due to the more upright position compared with back squats. It is mostly a lower body exercise, but is great for functionally incorporating core strength and stability into the squatting movement. It can also be slightly difficult to learn how to properly rest the bar on your shoulders. There are two ways to rest the bar on the front of the shoulders.

 

 

 

In the first method, you step under the bar and cross your forearms into an “X” position while resting the bar on the dimple that is created by the shoulder muscle near the bone, keeping your elbows up high so that your arms are parallel to the ground. You then hold the bar in place by pressing the thumb side of your fists against the bar for support.

 

 

 

Alternatively, you can hold the bar by placing your palms face up and the bar resting on your fingers against your shoulders. For both methods, your elbows must stay up high to prevent the weight from falling. Your upper arms should stay parallel to the ground throughout the squat. Find out which bar support method is more comfortable for you.

 

 

 

Then, initiate the squat from your hips by sitting back and down keeping the weight on your heels as opposed to the balls of your feet. Squat down to a position where your thighs are approximately parallel to the ground, then press back up to the starting position. Keeping your weight more towards your heels is the key factor in squatting to protect your knees from injury and develop strong injury resistant knee joints.

Keep in mind – squats done correctly actually strengthen the knees; squats done incorrectly can damage the knees. Practice first with an un-weighted bar or a relatively light weight to learn the movement. Most people are surprised how hard this exercise works your abs once you learn the correct form.

START/FINISH

MIDPOINT

 

 

For complete descriptions of over 50 of the most effective exercises for stripping away body fat while developing a rock-hard body, download my e-book The Truth About Six Pack Abs.

 

 

Listen, if you want to get big, you have to train big.

Entering the gym and simply going through the motions without a sweat just isn’t going to get the job done. You have to overload those muscles with heavy weight and high intensity if you want to see real results. This is without a doubt the most effective means of stimulating muscular growth.

Muscles grow due to a natural adaptive survival response, and if you don’t give them a damn good reason to grow, well, they won’t.

While training hard and heavy may be awesome for your muscles, it can be trouble for the health of your joints and connective tissue. This is simply the reality of intense weight training, and while there are no guarantees that you will be able to completely avoid getting injured, you can certainly take specific steps to lessen the chance.

An injury is the absolute last thing you could ever hope for, as it will stop you dead in your muscle-building tracks.

Down below I’m going to outline my “5 golden rules” when it comes to minimizing the risk of injury. If you can honestly say that you implement all 5 of these into your training program, then your risk of getting hurt will be much lower than someone who does not.

1) Always perform a thorough warm up.

A proper warmup is the single best thing you can do to minimize your risk of injury. This simple 15-20 minute process will prepare your mind and body for the hard work to come by increasing blood flow into the surrounding connective tissue and by lubricating your joints. I would recommend that you perform 5 minutes of light cardiovascular exercise before each workout followed by 4-5 warm up sets for your first major exercise of the routine.

2) Always train with proper form.

This should go without saying. Every exercise that you perform in the gym should be done with proper form and technique in order to keep the stress off of your joints. If you start squatting or dead lifting with a rounded back, jerking the weights around in a ballistic manner or performing dangerous exercises you are almost guaranteed to hurt yourself at some point.

3) Always train within your own personal limits.

Weightlifting is a personal battle, and letting your ego take over is almost always a recipe for disaster. It doesn’t matter what the guy next to you is benching and it is completely irrelevant to your training program. You must always use weights that you can handle and control with proper form, and if you start piling on the plates to impress the people around you, you’ll be stretching your limits and putting yourself in a very vulnerable position.

4) Always know when to quit.

If you cannot complete another rep of an exercise using proper form, the set is over, plain and simple. Put the weight down and rest up for your next set. If you start using huge amounts of momentum and jerky body motions to crank out a couple of extra reps, you’ll be on the sidelines before you know it.

5) Never ignore your aches and pains.

When you’re motoring along through a training program and are making progress from week to week, the idea of quitting just seems impossible. This can sometimes lead us to ignore those obvious injuries and pretend as if they aren’t really there as we often “work through” the pain and hope that it magically disappears.

More often than not, it will only get worse. If you feel that something definitely isn’t right and can sense that you probably shouldn’t be training, gGet the problem checked out by a professional and then take the proper measures to heal. While it may hurt your progress in the short term, the overall long-term effect will be a positive one.

You can learn even more details about keeping your joints and connective tissues healthy for years to come by visiting my website using the link below. I’ll teach you the specific way to perform a proper weightlifting warm up, which will not only greatly decrease your chances of injury but will also result in virtually instant strength increases for your major exercises…

by Sean Nalewanyj, Author of Muscle Gain Truth

If you’ve decided to get into bodybuilding, it’s important to remember that the right bodybuilding routine is crucial for best results. Just like the bodybuilders who design them, bodybuilding routines are also equally different in many ways. The best bodybuilding routine is ideally the one that achieves the maximum result in the minimum amount of time.

It’s a common mistake for rookie bodybuilders to think that they can attain a physique like that of a certain Mr. Schwarzenegger by simply renting copy of “Pumping Iron” and imitating Arnold move for move.
Now, borrowing bodybuilding techniques from a world-class bodybuilder is fine, however, expecting those same techniques to give you a sculpted body within ten months is really just building castles in the air.

Here are three fundamentals of bodybuilding routines that work which you should keep in mind when choosing a workout routine for yourself.

Fundamental #1 of Bodybuilding Routines That Work: No such thing as One Routine Fits All

When it comes to bodybuilding, what works for one individual doesn’t ever work for the other. You can see this by spending sometime observing builders at your local gym and you will realize that each one of them is performing separate exercises for different rep counts and with different weights in order to tone, sculpt or build different body parts. Experienced bodybuilders have all found their routines through a basic trial and error process and so shall you if you proceed diligently.

Fundamental #2 of Bodybuilding Routines That Work: Different Strokes for Different Muscle Folks

In order to choose a bodybuilding routine that actually works for you, make sure to pick one that suits your body type. There are three basic body types as far as gaining muscle mass is concerned. These are Endomorphs, Ectomorphs and Mesomorphs. Those with the Endomorph body type are able to easily build muscle mass but are also prone to putting on weight. This type has to watch their diet carefully and need some amount of cardio in their workout routine as well. Ectomorphs on the other hand are of the tall, thin and lean body type with long, slim limbs. Ectomorphs don’t put on weight or muscle mass easily and need to eat the right kind of food to increase their calorie and protein intake. They must also weight train to a great extent instead of cardio in order to sculpt a good body. The final body type is Mesomorphs and those with this kind of body type are extremely lucky since they don’t put on weight easily and are also able to gain muscle mass fast. If you fall in this category, do not change the amount of food you eat, only eat healthier and start bodybuilding immediately.

Fundamental #3 of Bodybuilding Routines That Work: Change is the Name of The Bodybuilding Game

Finally, if you do find a bodybuilding routine that works amazingly well for more than three months, then chances are that you will probably have to add some variations as you go along, doing what’s necessary to get the desired results as well as adding or removing exercises to build different muscle groups and parts of your body.

To conclude, no bodybuilding routine that works is complete without the right kind of nutrition. And also no bodybuilding routine includes workout sessions longer than 75 minutes or more than 5 sessions per week. If you push your body beyond its limit, you must be ready to face the consequences such as injury and long recuperation periods. This is why it’s especially important to choose and follow a bodybuilding routine under the watchful eye of a professional natural body builder or trainer. Apart from that, keep the above-mentioned bodybuilding fundamentals in mind to find the perfect bodybuilding routine that works for you and before long you will be well on your way to attaining that dream body you’ve always wanted.

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You’ve tried everything; now try a bodybuilding routine that actually works! Get a full 26-week detailed and simple workout plan from a professional natural bodybuilder and get ripped.

Join the email course and get sample chapters and tons of awesome free stuff here:

http://www.body2envy.com/musclegaintruth
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Now that you are past the rookie stage in bodybuilding, the next step would be to push things up a notch and take on an intermediate bodybuilding routine. This is the level where you are no more a beginner and nor are you too far from becoming a pro. Here are five apt exercises that should be part of the ideal intermediate bodybuilding routine:

Intermediate Bodybuilding Routine Workout #1 - The Incline Press with a Dumbbell: This exercise is designed to mainly work you chest while benefiting your shoulders and triceps as well. Here, you need to lie on an inclined bench at 45 degrees. Next, bring the dumbbells from your tights to your shoulders. Lift the weights over you chest with your palms facing forward and then lower them in a slow manner. Remember to inhale when you lower the weights and exhale when you raise them.

Intermediate Bodybuilding Routine Workout #2 - The Push Down: This exercise focuses on your triceps, chest and shoulders. Here you need to hold on to two parallel bars as far apart as your shoulder width. Then, lift yourself with straight arms, supporting your entire body. Next, lower yourself to a point where your elbows are bent but shoulders stretched and repeat this technique for 3 to 5 times per set.

Intermediate Bodybuilding Routine Workout #3 - The Front Military Press: This workout will put stress on your shoulders and triceps. Here, you need to begin by lifting a barbell from your shoulder over your head at the full length of your arm. Make sure you chest and back are straight. You can even do this while sitting on a bench with your feet apart and flat on the floor. To conclude a single rep, slowly lower the barbell before raising it again for the next rep. Do this at least 3 to 5 times per set.

Intermediate Bodybuilding Routine Workout #4 - The Dumbbell Shrug: The dumbbell shrug works on your back a traps. Here you need to stand up straight with your feet apart. Next, place your arms at your sides with two dumbbells in your hands. Then raise your shoulders and slowly lower them. You may also rotate your shoulder when you do this.

Intermediate Bodybuilding Routine Workout #5 - The Biceps Curl: The biceps curl, as the name suggests, will exercise your biceps. Here, you must hold the dumbbells with you palms positioned to face you, then curl the dumbbell from your sides and bring them up to your shoulders. In this exercise, you must ensure that you elbows are in a steady position and shouldn’t move from their place at all. You can also use a barbell instead of a dumbbell.

The above-mentioned exercises are just some of the workout techniques an intermediate bodybuilder should do and the steps mentioned therein are the correct way to go about doing them. You can always innovate and incorporate your own ideas to improve the steps and enhance the effect of the workout. The basic concept of focusing on one body part at a time is still applicable at the intermediate level although you can do as many reps as you want, but remember not to overdo it since you run the risk of injury that way.

Whatever you do, its recommended that you workout under the guidance of a bodybuilding professional trainer, since the trainer will be able to tell you which intermediate bodybuilding routine will give you best results.

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Hey scrawny! It’s time to get serious…Ready to follow simple, detailed intermediate bodybuilding routines to get shredded? Sign up for the free email course and get tons of free tips here:

http://www.body2envy.com/musclegaintruth
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Bodybuilding goes beyond just lifting weights. A good weight lifting routine has several aspects. When bodybuilding you need to remember proper nutrition, daily cardio exercises, drink plenty of water specially when weight lifting, include plenty of protein in your diet, and remember to take proper rest periods between sets.

Warm-up.

To begin with, a good routine includes a cardio warm-up and light stretching before any weight lifting. A good habit to get into when you are weight lifting is to start with a warm-up version of your core exercise. After doing 5 minutes running, using the treadmill, or some other light cardio exercise, do five sets of increasing weight decreasing reps of the core lift you planned for that day to warm-up that muscle group.

You should start your warm-up sets by lifting 50% of your max weight for 10 repetitions. Increase the weight in the second set to 60% for six reps. Continue increasing weight by 10% as you decrease repetitions. Your fifth set should be slightly less than the weight you will be lifting during your actual workout and should only be done for one rep. This is meant to be a warm-up and should not fatigue your muscles. Lifts during the warm-up should be easy for you.

Don’t Try to do Everything in One Day, Split-up Your Workout.

Good weight lifting routines split your workout up by body parts. To do this you group large muscle groups together, for example; legs and abs on Monday; chest, shoulder and triceps on Wednesday; back, biceps and forearms on Friday. You should workout each muscle group once a week and allow time for muscle repair and muscle growth.

Muscle growth does not happen during your workout. Muscles actually repair themselves and increase in mass during rest periods between workouts. When you give your muscles more time between workouts your muscles have more time to repair themselves and increase your muscle mass.

Get the Most Out of Your Workout by Working to Exhaustion.

You build muscles through progression. Progress by starting each workout with five more pounds than you used in last week’s workout. For your weight lifting routine to do your body the most good, you need to work to exhaustion on all sets. Exhaustion is when your muscles can no longer safely perform that lift properly. You should spend about an hour a day and only 3 to 5 days a week lifting. Always use good form. Use slow, steady movements to protect your muscles from injury while lifting.

Reps

If you are using the right amount of weight, you should only be able to do 5-7 reps per set when working on your large muscle groups, 10-12 for small muscle groups. You should hit exhaustion somewhere within that range of reps, if not you didn’t start out with the right amount of weight.

Sets

A good weightlifting routine should include 5-8 sets for large muscle groups and 2-4 sets for small muscle groups. You shouldn’t be spending hours on end working out; a good weight lifting routine only takes an hour of your day. Keep track of what you were able to do this week as this is what you will base next week’s routine on.

Rest Periods Between Sets.

After you have completed each set, you need a rest period. Some people try to limit the rest between each set to a set time, this doesn’t work well. You should rest as long as you need for your muscles to be able to perform the next set safely. Some people might feel rested and ready after 90 seconds while others need a full five minutes, or perhaps even six. The key is to let your body tell you when it is time to move on to the next set. This will keep you from injuring yourself due to exhaustion.

Water

Drinking water is important. You need to wash impurities out of your system as you workout. If you are slightly dehydrated, you will have a drastic drop in muscle strength. Drink enough water before, during, and after your routine to keep your muscles hydrated. This is important if you want to get the most out of your weightlifting efforts

Nutrition.

While diet plays an important role in your overall health, it is important that your muscles have enough calories to burn during your workout. To keep your muscles fed through your workout you should have a high glycemic carbohydrate snack just before your workout. A piece of fruit for example, is a good high glycemic carbohydrate to have before your routine. Including a small amount of protein will help you regulate your blood sugar levels. This should keep you from having your blood sugar levels drop during your workout.

Post Workout Nutrition.

For three hours after your workout, your muscles need to be fed protein and good quality carbohydrates. High glycemic carbohydrates will get into your system faster and are a better choice during this period. A large portion of your day’s caloric intake should be during this time. For your body to build muscle it will need more calories than usual.

Protein.

After your workout, your muscles need protein to rebuild. You need to get protein into your system as quickly as possible. Many bodybuilders like to bring a protein shake or some protein powder and a liquid to mix it with (like orange juice or water) with them to drink right after the workout is over. Whey protein in milk with oatmeal or eggs is another good choice right after your workout. A tuna sandwich with a glass of orange juice, or any good quality lean protein and a high glycemic carbohydrate will work. You want to keep away from fats during the three post workout hours, fats will slow the body’s absorption of the protein and carbohydrates that it needs.

Sample Routines

All sets are done to failure, meaning done until your muscles fail to be able to perform that exercise using proper form. Keep track of what you do each week. You should lift five more pounds weekly. Muscle gain is done by progression; if you cannot progressively increase your weight weekly then you need to increase the number of reps you perform.

Warm-up
• Start with a 5 minute run on the treadmill to get your blood pumping
• Set 1 of main exercise at 50% of weight x 10 reps
• Set 2 of main exercise at 60% weight x 6 reps
• Set 3 of main exercise at 70% weight x 4 reps
• Set 4 of main exercise at 80% weight x 2 reps
• Set 5 of main exercise at 90% weight x 1 rep

Monday (legs and abs)
• Warm-up (see above)
• Squats: 5-7 reps, 5-8 sets
• Leg Curls: 5-7 reps, 5-8 sets
• Calf Raises: 10-12 reps, 2-4 sets
• Abdominal Crunches: 10-12 reps, 2-4 sets

Wednesday (chest, shoulder and triceps)
• Warm-up (see above)
• Flat Barbell Bench Press: 5-7 reps, 5-8 sets
• Incline Dumbbell Press: 5-7 reps, 5-8 sets
• Lateral Raises: 5-7 reps, 2-4 sets
• Barbell Shoulder Press; 5-7 reps, 2-4 sets
• Bench Dips: 5-7 reps, 2-4 sets
• Triceps Pull downs: 5-7 reps, 2-4 sets

Friday (back, biceps and forearms)
• Warm-up (see above)
• Dead lifts: 5-7 reps, 2-4 sets
• Standing Barbell Curls: 5-7 reps, 2-4 sets
• Seated Dumbbell Curls: 5-7 reps, 2-4 sets
• Wrist Curls: 10-12 reps, 2-4 sets

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Interested in following a pre-set weight lifting routine that will skyrocket you away from scrawny-ville, straight to muscle town?!?!

Then you NEED to check out Muscle Gain Truth! Read the official BodyEnvy review and sign up for our free email course to get sample chapters, tips and more here:

http://www.body2envy.com/musclegaintruth

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Gain More Muscle By Training Less Often

by Sean Nalewanyj, Author of Muscle Gain Truth

The more work you put into something, the better results you will achieve. This has always been a widely accepted truth that applies to most areas in life.

The harder you study, the better grades you will achieve. The more time you spend fine-tuning your athletic skills, the better athlete you will become. The longer you spend learning to play an instrument, the better musician you will become.

Therefore, it only makes sense that the more time you spend in the gym, the stronger and more muscular your physique will become, correct?

Contrary to what you might think, the answer to this question is a gigantic, definite, absolute no! It is in this area of bodybuilding that conventional wisdom goes straight out the window, down the street and around the corner.

I know what you might be asking yourself…

“What? Spending less time in the gym will actually make me bigger and stronger?”

The answer is yes! It really will, and when we examine the muscle-growth process from its most basic roots, it becomes quite clear why this is the case.

Every single process that occurs within the human body is centered around keeping you alive and healthy. Through thousands of years of evolution the human body has become quite a fine-tuned organism that can adapt well to the specific conditions that are placed upon it.

We become uncomfortable when we are hungry or thirsty, we acquire a suntan when high amounts of UV rays are present, we build calluses to protect our skin, etc.

So what happens when we break down muscle tissue in the gym?

If you answered something to the effect of “the muscles get bigger and stronger”, then congratulations! You are absolutely correct. By battling against resistance beyond the muscle’s present capacity we have posed a threat to the musculature. The body recognizes this as potentially harmful and as a natural adaptive response the muscles will hypertrophy (increase in size) to protect the body against this threat. As we consistently increase the workload from week to week the body will continue to adapt and grow.

Sound simple?

Ultimately it is, but the most important thing to realize in relation to all of this is that the muscles can only grow bigger and stronger if they are provided with sufficient recovery time. Without the proper recovery time, the muscle growth process simply cannot take place.

Your goal in the gym should be to train with the minimum amount of volume needed to yield an adaptive response. Once you have pushed your muscles beyond their present capacity and have triggered your thousand-year-old evolutionary alarm system, you have done your job. Any further stress to the body will simply increase your recovery time.

Most people train way too often and with far more sets than they really need to. High intensity weight training is much more stressful to the body than most people think. The majority of people structure their workout programs in a manner that actually hinders their gains and prevents them from making the progress that they deserve.

Here are 3 basic guidelines that you should follow if you want to achieve maximum gains:

1) Train no more than 3 days per week.
2) Do not let your workouts last for longer then 1 hour.
3) Perform 5-7 sets for large muscle groups (chest, back, thighs) and 2-4 sets for smaller muscle groups (shoulders, biceps, triceps, calves, abs).

Take all sets to the point of muscular failure and focus on progressing in either weight or reps each week. If you truly train hard and are consistent, training more often or any longer than this will be counterproductive to your gains.

To learn how to combine all of these principles into an effective step-by-step routine, click the link below and visit my website for details. You can gain instant access to my renowned “26-Week Workout Plan” as well as a full printable logbook that you can take to the gym with you…

Written by: Sean Nalewanyj, Author of Muscle Gain Truth