Category: Training

There are a lot of problems people have in the gym but one of the more common is the complaint of “I can’t feel my pecs when I bench”. In the majority of cases, this is simply because the person was never taught to bench press and actually use their pecs.    But it’s actually quite easy to do.   So let me show you how I always got my trainees benching with the pecs.

The Bench Press for Chest

The bench press is often considered one of the main training movements that everyone must do.   It’s usually considered to be one of The Big Three movements along with squats and deadlifts (or rows).   And make no mistake, it is or at least can be a good movement.  It allows heavy weights to be used and, for some people, can be a good chest exercise.

Mind you, for others it’s a terrible choice of exercise. … Keep Reading

One factor that is often forgotten by hard training athletes is the importance of rest.  Rest for the body, the mind, and most importantly the joints.  If you go into your gym and look, you’ll probably see lots of people training with knee braces, wrist wraps, elbow braces, etc. who refuse to take time off.  Alternately you may see folks who are just there going through the motions.  If you think about it, you might be one of those people.

The Importance of Rest Days

I want you to ask yourself how many days off you take each week. And when I say off I mean off. Not “I do an hour of aerobics but that doesn’t count.” I mean off. One, maybe two. Probably not that many. How many people (the ones wearing the various braces) are in there every day, sometimes more than once? Either they are doing weights multiple times per week and cardio on the off days or they are doing both each day.… Keep Reading

Now that you’ve read Periodization for Bodybuilders: Part 2 and understand the different training zones, I want to start to apply all of this information with explanations of how to set up workouts and training programs.

Training Zone Recap

I finished the second part by giving some volume recommendations for both training and maintaining loads for the different components (4 of them) of training: pure strength, intensive bodybuilding, extensive bodybuilding and really extensive bodybuilding. Without recapping that entire article, I’ll simply summarize the loading parameters for each below.

Notes: Tempo reads X/Y/Z where X is the lowering speed, Y is the pause, Z is the lifting speed. Some coaches add fourth value for the pause at the top. Rest intervals are in minutes, set length is in seconds. The really extensive zone should be timed for 1 to 2 minutes (up to maybe 3 if you’re a masochist) without focusing so much on reps.… Keep Reading