The Best Damn Workout Plan For Natural Lifters

Here's what you need to know...

The number one mistake by natural lifters is doing too much volume. You need to trigger protein synthesis and then stop training.

Frequency is also super important. Hitting a muscle three times per week is the optimal frequency for natties.

The key to growth is to have a big disparity between protein synthesis and protein breakdown. The more volume you use, the more you break down protein.

The best split for the natural is the push/pull split. It's both physically and psychologically beneficial.

Don't Train Like Drug-Enhanced Genetic Freaks

If you're a natural lifter, you can't train like an enhanced bodybuilder or action movie star. And if you have average genetics, you can't train like a genetic freak. Sure, it's tempting to copy the training programs of those we admire, but always chasing the next "star program" will get you nowhere.

So how should natural lifters should train to get the best results? Basically like this:

Do a push/pull split (or push+quads/pull+hamstrings) 6 days a week.

With that amount of frequency, you only need one exercise per muscle group and three total sets: two sets of moderate intensity to get ready, then one hard set.

Use different methods and exercises on the three different weekly workouts.

The Number One Natty Mistake

The most common mistake made by those who don't use performance enhancing drugs is doing too much volume. The whole purpose of training to build muscle is to trigger protein synthesis. Once it's been triggered, there is no added benefit in continuing to punish a muscle – it will not grow more. In fact, it might even lose size!

The key to growth is to have a big difference between protein synthesis (building muscle) and protein breakdown (mobilizing amino acids from muscles for energy). The more volume you do, the more protein breakdown you get. You don't want that.

Frequency is King

To maximize growth, frequency is king. That not only applies to how often you train a muscle per week, but also the number of training sessions you do per week.

Frequency is crucial for the natural lifter because the actual training session is the stimulus to trigger protein synthesis. In other words, the workout itself is what puts you in anabolic mode, whereas the enhanced bodybuilder doesn't need to use the workout as a trigger. The enhanced lifter is in anabolic mode 24 hours a day!

So the more often you train, the more your body stays in an anabolic state and the more muscle you'll build. But don't forget that frequency and volume are inversely related. Remember, you can't do a high volume of work if you have a high frequency of training when you're natural.

Frequency works better than volume. Hitting a muscle three times per week is the optimal frequency for a natural trainee (with a low volume to compensate for the increase in frequency). Train six days a week, doing short, low volume workouts hitting half the body each time. That's the only way to get the optimal frequency without the excessive cortisol release.

The Training Split

The best split, both physically and psychologically, is the push/pull split:

Pulling Muscles

• Hamstrings
• Back
• Biceps

Pushing Muscles

• Quads
• Pecs
• Delts
• Triceps

Each push or pull workout will have 4 exercises – one per muscle group (two for back since it's made of many different muscles).

Workout A: Pull Workout

• Hamstring exercise
• Lats/back-width exercise
• Rhomboids/rear delt exercise
• Biceps exercise

Workout B: Push Workout

• Quad exercise
• Pec exercise
• Delt exercise
• Triceps exercise

You do three pull workouts and three push workouts three times per week, using different exercise at every workout. While you can use any exercise you want, when possible I like to use 2 multi-joint exercises and 1 isolation exercise.

For example, our first hamstring workout of the week might consist of Romanian deadlifts while the second might consist of lying leg curls. The third hamstring workout of the week – the isolation move – might consist of glute ham raises.

How Many Sets and How Should I Do Them?

You will do two preparation sets for each exercises. These are sets where you get the feeling for the weight and decide what training weight you'll use for the work set(s). It also gets some blood in the muscle to increase the mind-muscle connection.

These sets are not typical warm-ups. They're done with weights close to your working set weight, or you can even use the same weight as your work sets but do fewer reps. Basically, your level of effort on these two sets is about 7 out of 10.

Then you'll do one all-out work set. This will use a special technique/method (explained below) and need to be taken to technical failure (but don't go to the point where you need to cheat to get the weight up). These special techniques will only be used on the third and last set of each exercise:

1 – Heavy Double Rest/Pause

• Pick a weight you can do around 4-6 reps with.
• Do your 4-6 hard reps, rest 10-15 seconds, do another 2-3 reps, rest 10-15 seconds, and then try to get an additional 1-2 reps.
• Always use the same weight. You only do one set of this special technique/method.

2 – Maximum mTor Activation

Here the key is how you perform each rep. Accentuating the eccentric (negative) and loaded stretching are the contraction types that increase mTor activation the most. So with this method you'll do as follows:

• Lower the weight over a 5-second count while tensing/flexing the target muscle as hard as possible at all times.
• Hold the full stretch position for 2 seconds per rep.
• Do 6-8 reps like this, and on the last rep hold the stretch position for as long as you can tolerate. Again, you only do one set of this special technique/method.
• 3 – 6-8-10 Drop Set
• 
  
• Start the set with a weight you can lift for 6 reps.
• Drop the weight down immediately by 25-40% (depending on the exercise) and do 8 reps with that new weight.
• Drop another 25-40% and perform 10 more reps.
• Rest as little as possible between the parts of the drop set. Only perform one set of this special technique/method.

The Program

This program is unconventional, at least when compared to most modern-day plans, but how has conventional been working for you so far?

Monday – Workout A1

1. Romanian Deadlift:  2 sets of 6 and one all-out heavy double rest/pause set
2. Pronated Lat Pulldown or Pull-Up:  2 sets of 6 and one all-out heavy double rest/pause set
3. Bent-Over Lateral:  2 sets of 8 and one 6-8-10 drop set
4. Standing Barbell Curl:  2 sets of 6 and one all-out heavy double rest/pause set

Tuesday – Workout B1

1. Front Squat:  2 sets of 6 and one all-out heavy double rest/pause set
2. Bench Press:  2 sets of 6 and one all-out heavy double rest/pause set
3. Dumbbell Lateral Raise:  2 sets of 6 and one 6-8-10 drop set
4. Lying Dumbbell Triceps Extension:  2 sets of 6 and one maximum mTor activation set

Wednesday – Workout A2

1. Lying Leg Curl:  2 sets of 6 and one 6-8-10 drop set
2. Straight-Arm Pulldown or Dumbbell Pullover:  2 sets of 6 and one maximum mTor activation set
3. Pronated Chest-Supported Row:  2 sets of 8 and one all-out heavy double rest/pause set
4. Preacher Curl:  2 sets of 6 and one maximum mTor activation set

Thursday – Workout B2

1. Leg Extension:  2 sets of 6 and one 6-8-10 drop set
2. Pec Deck or Cable Crossover:  2 sets of 6 and one maximum mTor activation set
3. Military Press or Dumbbell Shoulder Press:  2 sets of 6 and one all-out heavy double rest/pause set
4. Close-Grip Decline Bench Press or Dip:  2 sets of 6 and one all-out heavy double rest/pause set

Friday – Workout A3

1. Glute Ham Raise or Reverse Hyper:  2 sets of 6 and one maximum mTor activation set
2. Supinated Lat Pulldown:  2 sets of 6 and one 6-8-10 drop set
3. Neutral-Grip Cable Seated Row:  2 sets of 6 and one maximum mTor activation set
4. Dumbbell Hammer Curl:  2 sets of 6 and one 6-8-10 drop set

Saturday – Workout B3

1. Hack Squat Machine or Leg Press:  2 sets of 6 and one maximum mTor activation set
2. Incline Bench Press or Incline Dumbbell Press:  2 sets of 6 and one 6-8-10 drop set
3. Dumbbell Front Raise on Incline Bench:  2 sets of 6 and one maximum mTor activation set
4. Rope Triceps Extension:  2 sets of 6 and one 6-8-10 drop set

Read More

5 Tips To Reduce Your Risk Of Foodborne fitness

Prepping foods in bulk has become the norm within the fitness industry. Unfortunately, patience and attention to detail often fall by the wayside, which can lead to frequent dates with the toilet or a trip to the hospital.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there were more than 48 million illnesses in 2013 related to food.1-3 Sit-down restaurants are still the most prevalent location for bacterial exposure; however, cooking and preparing food at home can still expose you to disease.1-3 Implement safe prep, cooking, and handling techniques to minimize your exposure.

BACTERIA                     COMMON FOODS                                 CONSEQUENCES

Salmonella                      Poultry, eggs, cookie dough     Severe diarrhea, stomach cramps, fever

Shiga toxin-producing E. Steak, ground meats, water   Severe diarrhea, blood in stool, stomach            coli                                                                                                           cramps, fever

Campylobacter                 Poultry, water, produce           Severe diarrhea, blood in stool, stomach                                                                                                             cramps, fever

1. WASH YOUR HANDS

Always wash your hands before and after handling food, particularly produce and raw meat. If you're unsure whether you've touched raw meat, wash your hands just to be safe. This is especially true with the ever-popular chicken breast, so take extra caution when handling this type of protein.

2. HANDLE WITH CARE

Don't prep raw meat and fresh produce simultaneously. For safety and efficiency, cut, prep, season, and place lean protein in the oven first. Use separate, clean utensils and cutting boards to prep your produce. This will ensure raw meat juice does not contaminate your produce, minimizing the risk of infection. It will also save you time with food prep.

3. COOK THOROUGHLY

Failure to cook food to the proper internal temperature significantly increases your risk for consuming contaminated food. Sure, you may notice that grilling last week's chicken breast for 10 minutes on each side was enough to get the job done; however, next week's chicken may be shaped differently or larger in size, thus changing the appropriate cooking time.

Using a meat thermometer, ensure that the thickest part of the chicken reaches 165 degrees F. An additional method to double-check the doneness of your chicken is to ensure you see no pink and that the juices run clear. If not, make sure you continue cooking your chicken, regardless of the food thermometer reading.

Refer to these temperature guide to minimize your contamination risk.4

PROTEIN TYPE                                     MINIMUM INTERNAL TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F)

Steak                                                                                               145°

Pork                                                                                                       145°

Lamb                                                                                               145°

Seafood and shellfish                                                                       155°

Ground meat                                                                                       155°

Poultry (chicken, turkey, duck)                                                       165°

4. WHEN IN DOUBT, THROW IT OUT

If something smells funky or looks off-color, toss it. That additional bite may provide you with 5 gram of protein, but it could cost you five days of training.

5. THINK THROUGH THAWING

To thaw meat, simply place it on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator overnight. Depending on the size of the packaging and amount of protein, 12-24 hours should be sufficient to completely thaw your food. Placing it on the top shelf increases the risk of raw meat juice dripping onto other items in your refrigerator.

If you're short on time, thaw the meat under warm running water; however, make sure you cook the meat immediately afterward. Don't let the meat sit a bowl of warm water—a method that's just asking for bacterial growth!

Read More

Are Traps Best Trained With Back Or Shoulders?

Unless you're a beginner, your workouts are most likely divvied up by body part, and that means using multiple exercises to hit a specific muscle group from various angles in hopes of maximizing growth. That approach works well most of the time, but the trapezius muscle located on your backside presents an unusual dilemma.

Who, after all, says, "It's trapezius day"? No one I ever met.

What makes the trapezius so different is that the diamond-shaped muscle has three regions—the upper, middle, and lower —and each has a different function. Even though the trapezius is a single muscle, trainees often work those regions on separate training days. Hence the confusion, so let's separate the functions of each of the traps' regions to better determine when to train them.

When doing lateral raises for middle delts, shoulder elevation means the upper traps are engaged as well.

When you think of big traps, you're probably thinking of the upper region between your neck and shoulders. When you elevate your scapula (shoulder blades) or upwardly rotate them, the upper region is worked the hardest. This is the same motion someone does when they shrug their shoulders in everyday life. Besides shrugs, many delt exercises including lateral raises and upright rows effectively hit the upper traps quite directly, so it makes sense to finish off with single-joint shrug movements. So, it makes sense to train the upper traps on shoulder day.

The middle portions of the trapezii primarily pull the shoulder blades together, which is called retraction. You mimic this in the gym when doing seated cable rows. (And if you're not pinching your shoulder blades together during rowing motions, you're shortchanging your middle traps!) Rows are commonly done on back day, but the movement hits other muscle groups as well. You can better isolate the middle trapezius doing seated cable rows in which your arms remain straight throughout (called a straight-arm seated cable row). Simply pinch your shoulder blades together and release, so the range of motion is pretty small. For middle traps, your best training day is with back.

The first few inches of the pull-down recruit the lower trapezius.

To complicate matters even further, let's move on to the lower traps. Their function is to rotate the shoulder blades downward, such as during the initiation phase of pull-downs, another back exercise. In fact, you can effectively isolate the lower traps by doing just the first few inches of a pull-down by keeping your arms straight. Those lower fibers are also engaged when doing prone front raises on an incline bench, and that's considered a shoulder exercise!  Even snatches, a whole-body Olympic move, engage the lower-trap fibers.

So where do traps belong in your workout split? It depends. Unless you train back and shoulders together on the same day, you're most likely hitting different regions of the muscle in different body-part workouts, and that's perfectly fine. Just know that to target it completely, you'll need a variety of motions. Too often, trainers might think shrugs are enough. Now you know they aren't.

Read More

3 Ways Whey Protein Can Help You Lose Weight

You probably know that whey protein should be your top protein choice when you're trying to build muscle, but you may not know that it should actually be your top choice when looking to lose weight, too! Yes, this fast-digesting protein king actually packs a powerful appetite-suppressing punch, contrary to the fact that liquids (and whey in particular) digest quickly.

Whey protein has been shown to positively impact the hunger hormones in your gut, the appetite control center in your brain, and to have a helpful impact on blood glucose levels (which has a positive impact on appetite). It's even been shown to be a superior appetite suppressant compared to casein protein in the short term.[1]

1. Increases Appetite Suppressing Hormones

Whey protein is composed of several bioactive compounds, or small molecules that exert powerful effects in your body. Glycomacro protein (GMP) is one that may play a major role in suppressing your appetite. GMP has been shown to increase secretion of the gut hormone cholecystokinin (CCK).[2] CCK plays a major role in sending satiety signals to the brain, which may help encourage you to put your fork down.

A study in the journal Appetite found the presence of GMP in whey protein to have a major impact on keeping appetite at bay.[3] Researchers provided subjects with a regular whey protein or a GMP-depleted whey protein before they sat down to an all-you-can-eat meal. Subjects who drank the GMP-depleted whey ate significantly more than the traditional whey group, which researchers attributed to the appetite-suppressing impact of GMP.

2. Signals Fuel Availability In The Brain

Whey protein contains more leucine (a critical branched-chain amino acid) than any other protein source.[4] Beyond its muscle-building role, it's thought that leucine may have a direct impact on appetite, too. In a study published in Journal of Science, researchers injected one group of mice with supplemental leucine and another with a control, and then exposed them to unlimited food after a brief fasting period.[5] Both groups gained weight over the next 24 hours, but the mice injected with leucine gained one third of the weight of the control group!

There seems to be a complex relationship between leucine, mTOR (the master growth regulator within cells that plays a role in initiating muscle protein synthesis), and the hypothalamus (where the appetite control center in the brain is located). Researchers suspect that mTOR has a fuel-sensor role and helps to regulate appetite.

When you consume leucine-rich whey, the leucine serves as a signal of "fuel availability" to the mTOR complex. As a result, mTOR sends a signal to the hypothalamus to downregulate appetite, helping you feel full!

3. Stabilizes Blood Glucose

Hunger is one consequence of low blood-glucose levels. After a meal, particularly one rich in carbohydrates (especially simple carbohydrates), blood glucose levels spike; however, shortly after, insulin levels rise in order to keep blood glucose levels within a normal range. A rapid rise in blood glucose and the subsequent insulin response can lead to a dip in blood glucose shortly after. This sets the scene for hunger to take over.                                                

Whey protein can help to curb this response, ultimately promoting steady blood glucose and appetite for hours after eating. Whey has a profound effect on the release of two incretins: glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) and glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP).[6-8] Incretins work to enhance the insulin response to a meal to ensure proper blood glucose control.

Rather than a massive spike in blood glucose and insulin, followed by a spike in hunger soon after, whey helps you remain on an even keel in terms of both energy and appetite. Plus, GLP-1 and GIP both function to suppress appetite and slow gastric emptying.[9-10]

There's Another Whey

If the idea of chugging a liquid to fight hunger doesn't appeal to you, consider making protein pancakes, protein pizza crust, protein oatmeal, or homemade protein bars. They're all good—and delicious—options!

If you decide to take the liquid route, consider using a blender and adding ice to your shake. The blender will help incorporate air, which will add volume to the shake. The ice will further thicken your shake and help increase fullness.

Read More

The 8 Best Supplements For Strength Athletes And Bodybuilders

If you're a serious strength or physique athlete, you've surely heard that supplements can help you get the most from your intense training sessions and on-point diet. But which supplements? The market is overstuffed like a bodybuilder in a child's blazer! You might be tempted to wander through a digital forest of get-big blogs and personal guru websites, but unfortunately those places can often be rife with misinformation.

Fortunately, we're here to set the record straight. Knowing what to take, how much to take, and when to take it will help you squeeze every ounce of results from your hard work, so let's zero in on the right supplement stack for your needs.

If your goal is to get as big and strong as possible, these eight products will help you do it.


Knowing What To Take, How Much To Take, And When To Take It Will Help You Squeeze Every Ounce Of Results From Your Hard Work, So Let's Zero In On The Right Supplement Stack For Your Needs.

1. Creatine Monohydrate

This muscle-building, power-enhancing supplement has an extremely high safety profile and a plethora of evidence to support its efficacy. Creatine supplementation works by increasing the availability of creatine and phosphocreatine (PCr) within the muscle, helping to maintain energy during high-intensity exercise such as weightlifting. Furthermore, increasing the availability of PCr may help speed up recovery between sets.

Long-term creatine supplementation appears to enhance the quality of resistance training, generally leading to 5-15 percent greater gains in strength and performance.[1]

Recommended dose: The fastest way to increase muscle creatine stores is to follow the loading method of 20 grams per day for 5-7 days, followed by the standard maintenance dose of 5 grams per day. However, a lower dose of 5 grams for 28 days will also increase creatine stores without causing the 2-4 pound weight gain typically seen with a loading protocol.

2. Caffeine

Caffeine may be the most widely used stimulant in the world, and for good reason. It has repeatedly been shown to be an effective ergogenic aid in both endurance exercise and high-intensity activity. However, when it comes to strength performance, the effects of caffeine are a little muddier.

While there's some research suggesting caffeine consumption prior to resistance training can increase one-rep max (1RM) for the bench press, other studies have found no strength benefits from caffeine.[2,3,4]

That being said, caffeine has been shown to decrease rates of fatigue and lower perception of effort, which may be of benefit during high-intensity, high-volume workouts, or if you just need a little pick-me-up before hitting the weights.

Recommended Dose: 150-300 milligrams 30-60 minutes before your workout.

3. Branched Chain Amino Acids

If you're a strength athlete or bodybuilder, we can't think of a single reason not to take BCAAs during your workout. Besides the fact that they taste delicious, sipping on BCAAs between sets may help speed up the recovery and repair processes after a tough workout.

A 2010 study published in the International Journal of Sports Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism found that participants who ingested BCAAs at 100 milligrams per kilogram of bodyweight, or about 9 grams for a 200-pound individual, experienced significantly less muscle soreness and damage following a high-volume squat protocol.[5]

It appears that BCAAs, especially leucine, help to regulate protein metabolism by promoting protein synthesis and suppressing protein degradation, which may improve recovery of muscles damaged during resistance training.

Recommended Dose: 6-10 grams before or during your workouts.

4. Citrulline Malate

Citrulline malate (CM) was originally marketed as an "antifatigue" supplement. In fact, if you were to travel back in time about 40 years, you'd find CM being prescribed to treat both mental and physical fatigue in post-surgery patients. More recently, CM has become popular for its performance-boosting effects.

The benefits seen with CM supplementation are most likely attributed to the synergistic combination of both L-citrulline and malate, which may help to increase rates of ATP during exercise, followed by increased rates of PCr recovery after exercise.[6]

Previous investigations have shown that a single dose of CM (8 grams) increased the number of repetitions performed during an upper-body resistance training protocol and reduced soreness at 24 and 48 hours post-exercise (compared to a placebo).7 Recently, researchers from Mississippi State University found that a single dose of CM (8 grams) significantly increased the number of lower-body repetitions compared to a placebo group.[8]

CM may be beneficial in improving exercise performance during upper- and lower-body multiple-bout resistance exercise in resistance-trained men.

Recommended Dose: 8 grams of CM taken 60 minutes before exercise

5. No Boosters

Nitrate-rich foods like beets, radishes, and pomegranates are a great way to boost the production of nitric oxide (NO). Although there's very limited research examining the effects of beet root juice and pomegranate extract on resistance training, these ingredients have previously been shown to increase skeletal muscle blood flow and lead to reduced soreness, which may ultimately lead to improvements in strength and performance.[9,10]

Nitrate-Rich Foods Like Beets, Radishes, And Pomegranates Are A Great Way To Boost The Production Of Nitric Oxide (NO).

Several studies have used either beet root juice or pomegranate extract in multi-ingredient performance supplements and have observed improvements in strength, hypertrophy, and performance in resistance-trained men. At this point, however, it's difficult to determine if these benefits are from beet root juice and pomegranate extract working alone or synergistically with other ingredients.[11,12]

Recommended Dose: 500 milligrams of beet root juice or pomegranate extract 30-60 minutes before your workout.

6. Whey Protein

Fast-digesting protein like whey is optimal post-workout as it can help improve your muscles' ability to recover and adapt after strenuous exercise. In fact, consumption of whey protein has been found to stimulate muscle protein synthesis to a greater degree than other proteins like casein and soy.[13,14]

A recent review article published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition highlighted the benefits of protein supplementation and showed that supplementing with protein during prolonged (greater than 6 weeks) resistance-type training can lead to significantly greater increases in muscle mass and strength when compared to resistance training without a dietary protein intervention.[15]

Got milk? Blends of protein, like whey and casein, have been shown to promote muscle hypertrophy and improve body composition to a greater extent than soy-based proteins when consumed after resistance exercise.[16,17,18]

The combination of fast-digesting whey and slow-digesting casein keep the body in a highly anabolic environment for a prolonged period of time, helping to keep rates of protein synthesis up, while minimizing any muscle breakdown.

Lifters who follow high-volume or high-intensity resistance-training programs, as many bodybuilders do, may also benefit from carbohydrate intake immediately post-workout. Compared with a placebo, carbohydrates combined with protein immediately post-workout and one hour after a bout of resistance exercise have been shown to increase insulin levels and rates of glycogen resynthesis.[19]

Recommended Dose: 20-30 grams of whey (or whey/casein blend) protein with a high-glycemic carbohydrate post-workout

7. Glutamine

While this nonessential amino acid may not deliver earth-shattering PRs or extreme muscle growth, it does play an important role in repair and recovery. Glutamine works by removing excess ammonia, which can accumulate during intense exercise, helping to regulate your body's acid-base balance. Individuals who are engaged in heavy resistance training, two-a-day training splits, or are in a calorie deficit may benefit from the extra support of glutamine supplementation.

Recommended Dose: 20-30 grams a day, consuming 10 grams post-workout

8. Fish Oils

Fish oils are an excellent source of omega-3 fatty acids, which provide myriad benefits for the body. For strength athletes and bodybuilders, we're most concerned with their anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Intense resistance training can cause microscopic tears in your muscle fibers, leading to muscle damage and inflammation. While some inflammation is desirable, too much can delay the post-exercise recovery process.

Research suggests that omega-3 fatty acids can help reduce post-exercise muscle soreness and speed up the recovery process, getting you ready for your next session with the weights.[20,21] As an added benefit, when combined with BCAAs and carbs, omega-3s can increase protein synthesis rates, leading to greater gains in muscle mass.[22,23

Read More

Should You Train Rear Delts On Shoulder Or Back Day?

Back training is pulls; shoulder training is mostly pushes. Simple enough, right? On the former, you focus on a variety of rows and pull-downs that engage a wide variety of real estate on your backside, including the lats, middle and lower traps, and rhomboids. Maybe you even do some deadlifts in there. On shoulder day, it's military presses, dumbbell presses, and isolation work like lateral raises.

But there's one muscle group that fits in a gray area between these two: your rear delts. These muscles on the back of your shoulders are highly engaged in multijoint back exercises where you bring your elbows back behind the plane of your body—in other words, rowing motions and that end-of-shoulder-day classic, the rear-delt fly.

But should rear delts be trained on shoulder day or back day? It may seem like splitting hairs, but there's more to take into consideration than you might imagine. Let's break it down.

Out Of Site, Not Out Of Mind

It's likely not surprising that muscle stimulation on the rear delts isn't great on overhead shoulder presses. Those primarily focus on the middle and front delts, as well as triceps. After a few hard sets, your body will definitely let you know this is the case. But the research backs it up as well.

An unpublished EMG analysis from 2014 found that rear-delt activation was considerably less on the overhead dumbbell press than it is on the incline dumbbell row.[1] This suggests to me that other kinds of rows also effectively engage the rear-delt musculature.

So if overhead presses don't really hit the rear delts, but rows do, why don't bodybuilders consider training their rear delts as part of their back workouts rather than shoulders? In fact, many do. But before you make your decision, here are some further points to consider.

You're probably double-dipping: If you choose to do rear-delt isolation exercises like bent-over lateral raises or reverse pec-deck flyes with you shoulder workout to ensure it covers all three delt heads, don't forget you'll get further rear-delt stimulation on your back days.

That means your rear delts are effectively being trained twice over the course of your split. This isn't necessarily a bad thing! On the contrary, it can be a great strategy to bring your rear delts up if they're lagging in comparison to the fronts and middles.

The rear delts still need rest: Typically, you don't want to work a muscle on consecutive days to allow for more optimal recovery. So, if you want to hit your rear delts hard, consider separating your back and shoulder workouts by at least 48 hours.

You could train back with shoulders: Yes, one potential solution to this dilemma is to hit both muscle groups in the same workout. If you do, start your training session with the larger muscle group—in this case, the back. Who knows; starting with back might actually be good for your shoulder health and pressing power!

Rear-delt isolation work still belongs at the end: If you train rear delts with back, add single-joint rear-delt moves after you're done all your multijoint back exercises, just like you would on shoulder day. The combo of multijoint rows and the rear-delt isolation moves will tax them quite effectively.

Read More

3 Methods That Will Change The Way You Train Forever

It's the standard approach to weight training: Show up at the gym. Do a handful of exercises for one body part. Perform 3-4 sets of 8-10 reps, per exercise. Move on to the next exercise. You may actually get decent results with that approach to building muscle—at least for a while.

But what happens when the gains stop coming? Let's take a look at three ways you can modify your training structure for great results today as well as sustainable long-term gains.

FOLLOW PYRAMID OR REVERSE PYRAMID TRAINING

In resistance training, a pyramid is a workout structure for arranging the sets, reps, and weight for an exercise. It entails starting out light and stepping up the poundage on successive sets. As you add more weight, the number of reps you do drops.

:This kind of pyramid is called an ascending pyramid. Here's an example using the bench press

SAMPLE PYRAMID STRUCTURE FOR BENCH PRESS

SETS        WEIGHT (LBS.)                    REPS

Set 1             135 lbs.                          15 reps

Set 2             185 lbs.                          10 reps

Set 3             205 lbs.                            6 reps

Set 4             225 lbs.                            3 reps

Set 5             245 lbs.                            2 reps

Set 6             265 lbs.                            6 reps

There are a number of considerations to keep in mind when using pyramid training to build size and strength

The ascending pyramid builds in progressively heavier warm-up sets. Even when you're sufficiently warmed up, you continue with the step-up approach with incremental weight additions rather than going right up to your working weight.

This type of pyramid means you'll be taking only your last set to muscle failure. It's tempting to take fairly heavy sets to muscle failure as you go up in weight, but don't. Your strength may be slightly compromised on the heavier sets that follow.

When following an ascending pyramid and increasing the weight on successive sets, you ultimately do a lot of sets, ensuring that you do a high volume of work, which is ideal for building muscle.

This structure works great for powerlifters and other strength athletes who normally don't train to failure the way bodybuilders do. This step-up approach allows them to generate maximal force on those last one or two sets, when they need to move the heaviest weights.

If you're already doing ascending pyramids, try reverse or descending pyramids. After a few warm-ups, go right to your heaviest weight, so there's almost no step-up. Start out with your heaviest weights for your target rep range. On the sets that follow, decrease the load slightly to account for accumulated fatigue.

When following a reverse pyramid, attack your heaviest sets early, before you're too fatigued to handle them. This is ideal when training for muscle size, because you're often taking sets to failure. Drop your weight by about 10 percent on each successive set.

 EMPLOY PROVEN TECHNIQUES LIKE 5X5 OR 10X10

One of the simplest training programs you can follow is called 10x10, sometimes referred to as German volume training (GVT). That's 10 sets of 10 reps (100 reps total) of a single exercise. In addition to being extremely simple, it's also highly effective.

GVT was popularized in the 1970s in Germany, hence the name. The super-high volume is an important stimulus for muscle growth. Two decades ago, Finnish researcher Keijo Hakkinen, PhD, found that GVT produced dramatic increases in metabolic stress, a primary mechanism responsible for triggering muscle growth.

In his article on German volume training, noted strength coach Charles Poliquin wrote, "[GVT works] because it targets the motor units, exposing them to an extensive volume of repeated efforts. The body adapts to the extraordinary stress by hypertrophying [growing] the targeted fibers."[1] Poliquin added that mass gains of 10 pounds or more in just six weeks wasn't uncommon, even in experienced lifters.

There are a few variations of GVT you can find online, but most are structured around a single major, multijoint lift (following a three-day-a-week split centered on the bench press, squat, and deadlift, for example). Dumbbells are more difficult to control than barbells, especially as you become highly fatigued, so go with barbell movements for the best results. Keep the motion explosive in order to maximize muscle-fiber recruitment.

Start with a load that's your 15-20-rep max—the most weight you can handle while failing in that rep range. This weight will probably be 60-65 percent of your one-rep max. The working weight will feel light at first, but as cumulative fatigue sets in, you'll find you can't reach the target rep. A training partner can be useful on some exercises to help take the weight should you hit failure mid-rep. Don't push through with forced reps, however. Time your breaks at 90-120 seconds between sets, and be consistent.

:Your initial results may look like this

SETS                                   REPS

Set 1                                 10 reps

Set 2                                 10 reps

Set 3                                 10 reps

Set 4                                 10 reps

Set 5                                   9 reps

Set 6                                   8 reps

Set 7                                   8 reps

Set 8                                   7 reps

Set 9                                   6 reps

Set 10                                   5 reps

The goal is to complete 10 reps on all 10 sets. Once you achieve that goal, start anew with a heavier load. But discontinue this technique after eight weeks in favor of a more basic training scheme. The body requires a fresh training stimulus to continue making gains.

You may still want to complete additional exercises for that body part during your training session. You can add 1-2 supplemental exercises done from different angles for 3 sets of 8-10 reps.

The 5x5 protocol is similar, but the focus becomes strength rather than growth. You'll be doing one exercise for 5 sets of 5 reps. The weight should equal 85 percent of your one-rep max. You should be able to at least do the first 2 sets to 5 reps, but not the third; you may have to adjust the weight up or down 5-10 pounds for your next workout if that's the case. Once you determine the right weight, stick with it for all 5 sets.

Your goal, over time, is to reach 5 sets of 5 reps. Having done that, start over again with a heavier weight. You can do this with up to two exercises for a given body part; all other exercises in your routine should be 3 sets of 6-8 reps. This approach can also follow a three-day-a-week split and is best discontinued after about eight weeks. Otherwise, you'll get stale.

 BREAK A SINGLE SET INTO CLUSTER SETS

Cluster sets break the main set into several parts. "Instead of doing a set of 9 straight reps, you might do 3 reps at a time while resting no more than 20 seconds in between," says strength coach and Bodybuilding.com writer Josh Bryant, MS, CSCS. "That intra-set rest period allows you to lift more total weight than you'd be able to with straight reps, providing a greater anabolic stimulus."

Rather than just doing a single set broken into smaller sets, cluster sets can also be done for time by constraining it to a short interval. In that way, you could do 5 reps with your 10RM weight for 4 straight minutes, taking a 15-second break between each work segment. The result: much greater volume in less time. "You won't be lacking intensity, as the relative intensity of training is greater when using cluster sets compared to traditional straight sets," says Bryant.

"A traditional hypertrophy protocol might consist of 3 sets of 10 reps, which means you get a total of 3 first reps (one for each set you do)," adds Bryant. "You could do the same amount of volume and do 10 sets of 3 reps; all of a sudden, you've performed 10 first reps. To get better at your one-rep max, you need to train more first reps. This will also allow you to focus greater attention to technique on each individual rep and perform each rep with a greater amount of power."

Bryant calls this approach a hypertrophy-specific cluster set. He adds that if you can no longer do 5 reps, drop it to 4 reps; if you can no longer do 4 reps, continue with 3. If 3 reps becomes unmanageable, lengthen the rest interval to 20 seconds. When that becomes too much, stop the set and move on to the next exercise.

Read More