I am an active reader of Testosterone Nation and a few other boards, the world of bodybuilding in general fascinates me, recently they produced a compilation article based on the number one tips seven top coaches give to pack on the muscle.
Tip #1: Focus on Compound Movements
Isolation exercises are great for definition but do very little in the way of building ultimate size and strength. Stick to squats, dead lifts, snatch, chin and presses. Compound movements recruit more of your central nervous system and as a result, more overall muscle stimulation leading to an increase in size. Compound movements give you more bang per time period then isolation movements, so stick to those.
Tip #2: Eat Better!
Nothing is as anabolic as food, give your body the proper nutrition throughout the day without any of the filler or junk and it will give you the body you desire.
Tip #3: Work out everyday!
There is a lot of controversy about working your body out on a daily basis with weights. The major problem is that you are always on the threshold of over training which can quickly make you weaker and smaller then ever before. Professional bodybuilders workout daily but they are also on a lot of pharmaceutical grade boosters, for non-juiced athletes. Unless you are under professional coaching or have years of workouts behind you, working out on a daily basis should be avoided.
Tip #4: Timing
When you eat is as important as what you eat, there use to be a rule that after a good workout, you pig out to give your body all the food it needs to rebuild itself. Now, with the advances in sports supplementation, “eating” (drinking to be more accurate) meals pre, during and post workout are the norm if you want to pack on the size. A new system is being proposed that involves layering different foods/drinks throughout the day so that the body has optimal nutrition when ever it needs it, without ever having cannibalize itself to rebuild muscle. Some of these routines can get quite complicated and hard to follow which is why most fitness enthusiasts simply stick to eating 7-8 times a day instead.
Tip #5: Carbohydrates aren’t scary!
Everybody knows that carbohydrates are the preferred nutrient to fuel our body, so much so that eating too much will pound on the fat in no time. Our body cannot store protein and breaking down fats is a costly venture which is why our bodies love the efficiency carbohydrates provides. Protein ingestion doesn’t need to be so high when you have a diet rich in carbohydrates, amino acids bathed in a rich carbohydrate environment lead to greater rates of protein synthesis.
Tip #6: Blast the Biceps!
Isolating the biceps using a number of exercises is the best way to create strong and powerful arms. Without strong arms, doing other exercises such as bench press or compound movements is that much more difficult as you are only as strong as your weakest point.
Tip #7: Increase Training Frequency
Get yourself on a HFT (High Frequency Training) instead of a HIT (High Intensity Training) program. Your body adapts to the environment it lives within, if you put it into a tough environment where daily effort is required, then it will compensate by building itself up more. Perform up to 10 workouts a week and you will see the benefits within a few weeks.
My views on this advice
I summarized these tips but generally, they are all correct even if there are some contradictory to one antoher. You see, what produces fantastic results for one person may be detrimental to the progress of another. If a training coach sees somebody respond well to a particular set of exercises, then that method will be prescribed for that athlete. Some people respond to minimal exercises using only compound movements while others respond best to extensive routines involving isolation techniques. Nutrition is another area of differentiation, there is no doubt that sports supplementation has made incredible strides in producing perceived optimal body composition but each body responds to supplements in a different way as well.
What works for me
For me, I have had great success with rotating my exercises, along with nutrition and working patterns. Basically, I don’t allow my body to adapt to anything for an extensive period of time, be that supplementation, reps and sets, speed of executed reps or regime length. I am not a huge and ripped 250lbs person but I believe that being heavy, no matter how you wish to define it, isn’t healthy for your joints. Remember, bodybuilders look fantastic when they are on stage but they are on the verge of dying from dehydration, body breakdown and to cope, need to fill themselves with blood thinners to avoid getting a heart attack!
The Bottom Line
Health is a long term goal, if I want to get to 150 years of age, I need to make sure my body or mind are never allowed to enjoy a routine for any extended period of time.
Buzzvia
http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=1683844
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